Grand Valley State University revamps Recreation & Wellness Center for enhanced accessibility
The center will undergo a three-phase equipment update, with the first phase having been completed while students were on break between semesters. Eighty new pieces of equipment were installed.
Grand Valley State University has begun a three-phase revamp of its Recreation & Wellness Center to upgrade equipment and enhance accessibility of the facility and the machines it houses. The center expanded in 2017 and has seen an uptick in visitors, with 400,000 visits being recorded in the year 2024. The updates to the center in 2025 will include new equipment and more adaptive intramural sports opportunities.
According to an article on Grand Valley State University’s website, Aaron Mowen, who serves as the director of Recreation & Wellness at the university, explained why there is a push for enhanced accessibility. Mowen is quoted as saying, “There are already so many barriers for people to just walk into this building. We’re trying to break down those barriers so that once they’re here, it’s easy to keep going.”
As part of the first phase of the revamp, GVSU spent the students’ winter break installing 80 new machines within the Recreation and Wellness Center. The new equipment comes with an app that will give students and other machine users the ability to track their workouts, view the availability of machines within the Recreation & Wellness Center, and connect with coaches or trainers. These machines include treadmills and ellipticals and come from the company Technogym, which Peter Bryant, the assistant athletic director for Facility & Event Operations, said was a choice that was made after much deliberation and visits to other universities to check out their equipment.
Bryant noted, “We chose Technogym equipment over other competitors because of its unparalleled combination of innovation, durability and user-centric design. The ease of use and advanced mobile app features enhance the overall experience for students, faculty and staff.”
Additionally, the Technogym equipment comes along with screens that provide entertainment options for the visitors to enjoy during their workout, including access to Netflix and Prime Video.
Another improvement is the addition of an inclusive workout space that features workout equipment that is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. It also features an REV Pulley which will be usable by individuals of all skill levels.
Future phases of the equipment upgrades will focus on strength training and functional fitness equipment. The next two phases of the project will be completed throughout 2025.
Other enhancements being made by the Recreation & Wellness Center include the addition of several new adaptive intramural sports opportunities. Sports include wheelchair basketball, goal ball, seated volleyball, tennis, pickleball, and flag football, all designed to be inclusive to anyone and everyone who wishes to participate.
Dakota Francoeur, the school’s intramural sports coordinator, said, “A lot of people look at adaptive sports as something they can’t do because they don't have a disability. We want to make an inclusive environment for the students that need it, but also a space to educate those that don't.”
Francoeur added that she hopes more and more opportunities will arise in the future for the expansion of adaptive sports. “Adaptive sports are just another part of what intramural sports are. We hope they’re offered just as frequently and that they’re a regular piece of everything we’re doing,” she said.
Another facet to the school’s commitment to increased accessibility within the programs offered by its Recreation & Wellness Center is its Climbing Center staff undergoing training and acquiring the necessary equipment to make sure individuals with physical disabilities are able to enjoy the opportunity to experience a climbing wall.
The Climbing Center had Paradox Sports train the center’s staff via its Adaptive Climbing Initiative. Paradox Sports is an organization that seeks to help facilitate more adaptive sports opportunities. Now that the staff has had training on how to assist individuals with physical disabilities participate in climbing, the Center is seeking the proper equipment and believes it will be able to offer adaptive climbing by the end of 2025.
For more information about Grand Valley State University, visit the school’s website.