CONNOR DUFFEY / CONTRIBUTOR

Many Toreros can recall waiting for the construction of the Palomar Health Student Wellness Center to be completed. Toreros watched with anticipation as the scaffolding surrounding the three-story facility was slowly torn down over several months, eventually revealing the building that has quickly become the newest installation on campus. Now, students and faculty alike have become accustomed to using the center’s facilities, from strength training to esports and more.

Alumni do not currently have access to the Palomar Health Student Wellness Center. Hailey Howell/The USD Vista

Kate    Lising   ’26    was    unable to  share  in    this   experience  during her latest visit to the Wellness Center.  Lising was a senior who completed her coursework  at the end of   the fall semester  and  is    scheduled  to  walk  with  her   peers   at   graduation  this   spring, placing her in the latest   batch of USD alumni. 

“They told me I would have to wait at least a year to gain access to the facilities,” Lising explained. “I absolutely think that alumni should be able to access the Wellness Center. The fact that that isn’t even an option is disheartening.”

The USD Vista reached out to the University’s public relations team and asked for a comment from a representative with questions. The media department responded with the following statement.

“Ensuring current students’ access to the Palomar Health Student Wellness Center is the top priority, enabling them to fully utilize the new facility,” the media relations representative wrote in a statement to The USD Vista. “Staff and faculty are also open to using the space, thanks to the decision by student leaders to include them.”

Being a Torero alum comes with various on-campus benefits, including access to both Copley Library and the Pardee Legal Research Center, bookstore discounts and Outdoor Adventures rentals. 

Off-campus benefits are also numerous, with multiple local and regional events held yearly to assist with maintaining the community of alumni networks. Not included in these privileges, however, is access to the Wellness Center, a fact that caught Lising by surprise when she was denied entry this January.

“It’s not a matter of price at this point,” Lising continued. “I would gladly pay a membership for the gym.”

This lack of access has not always been the case. Alumni were  previously able to purchase memberships to the Jenny Craig Pavilion (JCP) gym, which has since closed to non athletes. The JCP gym offered amenities similar to those of the Wellness Center, with  access to the strength training area, outdoor training facilities, Vistas Pool and the adjacent Sports Center basketball court.

With the Wellness Center off-limits for alumni, former Toreros can revert to the Sports Center. There, recent graduates are granted free access and other alumni can purchase  memberships,  ranging from daily  to   yearly  passes.  However, the Sports Center lacks   a   strength  training  facility comparable to the Wellness   Center or  JCP,  missing the wide array of machines  and free weight equipment offered in those facilities. This leaves  alumni with  few  options for strength training, a far cry from the various options offered by the JCP in the past.

Lising,  an  avid  gym-goer who utilized the cardio and strength areas several times a week, was informed she was unable to purchase a membership at the Wellness Center with no further justification provided. Another alum, Josh Nelson ’26, echoed Lising’s sentiments, emphasizing the importance of group fitness classes to community building. Both  seniors were  subject  to USD’s $150 semester fee at least once  during  their  time  as students for access to the Wellness Center — a facility they can no longer  use. 

“I have previously paid to be there,” Lising stated. “I’m sad and annoyed that a portion of my tuition was dedicated to the Wellness Center and now I can’t use it.”

USD alumni who were  present during the construction and who contributed to the funding of the Wellness Center now face a future without access.

Students incur a $150 fee every semester which supports the Wellness Center. Hailey Howell/The USD Vista