An atheist group at the University of Wisconsin-Madison seems on track to receive nearly $70,000 in student fees for staffing and programming next year, in what appears to be a first for the university and student atheist groups nationally.

The Atheists, Humanists, and Agnostics, or AHA as it's called, said it will provide support services for students struggling with doubts about their faiths and offer a safe place where they can discuss religious issues without fear of recrimination.

"Religious groups have been receiving this type of funding for years," said Chris Calvey, president of the organization, which helped stage a three-day Freethought Festival that drew hundreds of nonbelievers and skeptics from around the country to Madison this year.

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Filed under: * Culture-Watch • Education • Religion & Culture • Young Adults • * Religion News & Commentary • Other Faiths • Atheism • Secularism

1. pastorchuckie wrote: Do you have to be an atheist to join, or to be an officer of this group? Just asking… in the interest of fairness. Pax Christi! Chuck Bradshaw Hulls Cove,  Maine November 20, 9:49 am | [comment link]

2. BlueOntario wrote: “It’s about time that secular students got the support we deserve,” Calvey said. [....] With the allocation, the Atheists, Humanists, and Agnostics would join a small group of UW-Madison organizations - 16 in 2012-‘13 - that this year shared about $1.2 million in funding. They include groups that offer or promote tutoring, sex education and legal information, multicultural sensitivity and Catholicism. I think he means secularist students. Or maybe he really does believe their club should be in charge of all secular activities. November 20, 9:55 am | [comment link]

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