I am genuinely upset at the thought of a university telling adults what they can or can't do with their own time. Yes, they are young adults, but they are adults nonetheless. Or is America treating its university students as children still?
All of the activities that Penn State's Outing Club used to organize are still available to students through the university-run Outdoor Adventure program [1].
The only difference is that now instead of a student club (cost center), the activities are organized by a university-run office (revenue generator).
So it's not about coddling. It's about money (and not even insurance)
To be fair, it's a New York Times story because it's so unusual and bizarre. (And the fact that it's happening at a school known for its Big Ten football team makes it even more so.) I can pretty much guarantee that this would be pretty much unheard of with the outing clubs where I attended school. One of those schools even has a freshman (outdoor) trip enshrined in its freshman orientation before classes.
