Facing Athletics Deficit - and Sending Athletes on Italy Trip

The athletics department at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee is facing a deficit of up to $8 million. So student leaders want to know why the university is sending its basketball team on a trip to Italy, at a cost of $160,000, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. A university spokesman said that 10 days in Italy "will enhance the cohesiveness of the team, while giving our student athletes a unique life experience that will foster their own personal growth." Students who have to finance their own personal growth may have another view. “The fact that the UWM Athletics Department continues to spend outside of its means is troubling. The department simply cannot afford to go on such an extravagant trip regardless of where the money is from,” said Travis Romero-Boeck, president of the Student Association.