The U.S. Supreme Court decision that declared a mandatory student fees system constitutional received praise from many of the ISU student groups that may have lost funding if the court’s decision had gone the other way.

“The experience of the university is in a large part the exposure to alternative ideas and perspectives. If we take away that aspect of the university, the experience loses a lot of its value,” said Douglas Ficek, president of the ISU Atheist and Agnostic Society.

The case concerned the student fees system at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, which some law students said violated their constitutional rights because it used part of their tuition money to finance politically sensitive groups, such as gay support and religious organizations.

The unanimous decision by the court to allow the University of Wisconsin to keep its current fee structure indicates that Iowa State’s similar student fee system will also not have to be restructured.

Richard Olsen, president of the ISU Baptist Campus Ministries, said the decision was important because it allows alternative viewpoints to be heard.

“I may not agree with some things people do or groups on campus, but they may not agree with me,” Olsen said. “While a group’s beliefs may not be my favorite, this is something I am willing to put up with.”

Jeff Sorensen, adviser to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Ally Alliance, said having varying voices on campus is necessary for students.

“Diversity is an important part of a campus in all forms, whether is it race, religion, sexual orientation or whatever,” he said.

Sorensen said if the student fees system allowed students to choose where their money is directed, he doubted many students would participate anyway.

LGBTAA acting President Sarah Schweitzer said changing the current fees system would have hurt campus diversity.

“We believe a change in the fee system would have greatly limited ISU students’ knowledge of different people and cultures on campus,” she said. “Each person has the right to individual opinions and the right to voice those opinions.”

GSB senator Jim McCurdy, nontraditional, said the court’s ruling will keep student governments from having to decide which groups have the support of students.

“The decision is a good deal; it is hard to say where to draw the line, and there are not many organizations on campus where someone can say it’s not a group deserving funding,” McCurdy said.