Catching up on the news while running on the treadmill is a now a possibility for those who enjoy the Student Recreational Center.

Two weeks ago, six brand new televisions were installed throughout the SRC.

All the new TVs are plasma screen LGs. There is one larger Panasonic television in the weight lifting area, and three TVs are suspended in front of the treadmills and elliptical machines, while the other two are placed in the lounge area.

Thad Long, the associate director of sports at the SRC, said the TVs are ‘a culmination of a two year project.’

‘Each year we have annual projects we can make requests for ‘hellip; the TVs would fall under the category of a separate pool of funds that are just for facility enhancement, or patron amenities,’ Long said.

In their entirety, the TVs cost about $50,000 in operation after the permits, engineering, and installation. Unlike standard workout equipment, televisions require attention from engineers and over 100 professionals working to make sure they are installed correctly and need as little maintenance as possible according to Long.

Senior Megan Sowder, who uses the facility’s elliptical machines, said the TVs might make her workout longer.

University alumnus Ram Das also liked the new additions.

‘It’s cool because I can watch Sports Center (while I work out),’ Das said. ‘Maybe if they added audio…I could listen while I watch.’

The new televisions are just the beginning of a number of improvements the SRC hopes to make in the future, Long said. He said sometime during the fall the furniture in the lounge, which is about thirty years old, will be replaced.

‘I’m very proud of this thirty-year-old facility, but the wood is dated, the look and format is dated, and we know that the average student is checking out Kent State’s facility or Miami’s facility,’ he said. ‘We like to think we’re a part of the recruitment process (for the University).’