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"Did you guys hear about the university that&amp;#x27;s forcing overweight students take a fitness class before graduating? It&amp;#x27;s causing quite a stir... Lincoln University in Pennsylvania created a mandate for obese students: If you&amp;#x27;re overweight, you must take a fitness class--or else no diploma. Here&amp;#x27;s how it works: The university requires that incoming students get tested for body mass index, which correlates to height and weight. Students with BMIs 30 or above--considered obese--are required to take a 3-hour-a-week class called &amp;quot;Fitness for Life.&amp;quot; According to the AP, Tiana Lawson, a 21-year-old senior, wrote in this week&amp;#x27;s edition of The Lincolnian, the student newspaper, that she &amp;quot;didn&amp;#x27;t come to Lincoln to be told that my weight is not in an acceptable range. I came here to get an education.&amp;quot; She says she feels that larger students are being &amp;quot;singled out.&amp;quot; Yet, a University spokesperson said its only trying to help. &amp;quot;We know we&amp;#x27;re in the midst of an obesity epidemic,&amp;quot; said James L. DeBoy, chairman of Lincoln&amp;#x27;s department of health, physical education and recreation. &amp;quot;We have an obligation to address this head on, knowing full well there&amp;#x27;s going to be some fallout.&amp;quot; What do you think of this requirement? Is it going too far? Or, in your opinion, is it a good idea? More reading: *Plus-sized dance clubs: a good idea or not? *This woman wants to broadcast her baby&amp;#x27;s birth--live and online! *The controversial &amp;quot;Cookie Diet&amp;quot;... Photo: iStock"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.glamour.com/health-fitness/blogs/vitamin-g/2009/11/health-controversy-this-univer>