Upsetting students, including taking health and legal experts totally by surprise is a Pennsylvania university mandate requiring all overweight undergraduates to take a fitness course, if they wish to receive their degree.

However, officials of the historically black Lincoln University explain, saying the requirement is mainly because of the school’s concern about high rates of obesity and diabetes, especially amongst the African-American community.

The fallout began this week on Lincoln’s campus, as seniors, the first class to be affected by the mandate realized their last chance to take the class would be this spring. Writing in this week’s edition of the student newspaper - The Lincolnian, Tiana Lawson, a 21-year-old senior wrote she ‘didn’t come to Lincoln to be told that my weight is not in an acceptable range. I came here to get an education.’

She said she did not have an issue with getting healthy or losing weight, rather she had a problem about larger students being singled out, and if the university was truly concerned about everyone being healthy, then everyone should be compelled to take gym class, not just the bigger students.

Overweight students, including those considered obese are required to take the ‘Fitness for Life’ class that meets three hours a week, with the course involving walking, aerobics, weight training and other physical activities, including information on nutrition, stress and sleep.