SPORTS BACK IN ACTION AT W&M
School announces men’s track and field, swimming and gymnastics are reinstated
William & Mary President Katherine Rowe announced Wednesday night that men’s track and field, swimming and gymnastics are back for good as part of the athletic department’s roster.
The four sports — track’s indoor and outdoor seasons count separately — were among seven slated for elimination in September amid a department budget crisis. Weeks after women’s gymnastics, swimming and volleyball were reinstated to stave off a Title IX lawsuit, the men’s sports were reinstated in November through at least the 2021-22 academic year.
A significant increase in donors and donations within the W&M community prompted Rowe’s announcement Wednesday that all 23 sports will remain part of the school’s athletic department for the foreseeable future.
“We are pleased to announce that these programs will continue to compete, without a stated potential end date, as do all other athletics programs at William & Mary,” Rowe said in a statement. “To be successful, every sport at William & Mary will require sustained higher levels of philanthropic support going forward.
“We recognize that every sports program annually depends upon generous support from alumni and friends in order to thrive. Moreover, W&M Athletics as a whole depends upon that generosity in order to avoid a moment in which sport sponsorship
must be reevaluated to ensure the department’s financial sustainability while advancing equity.”
Interim athletic director Jeremy Martin, who replaced Samantha Huge after her resignation in October over the uproar created by the proposed elimination of the seven sports, followed Rowe’s announcement with a letter underscoring the fundraising success allowing W&M’s 23-sport roster to remain intact.
Martin said following a drop from Fiscal Year 2019 to 2020 of donors by 36% and expendable athletic departments gifts of $1.5 million, “the Tribe has rallied to the cause in FY2021,” which ends June 30. He said that donors are up 13% and that expendable donations have increased 79%.
Martin added those donations are crucial because no school on the Football Championship Subdivision level, on which W&M’s football team competes, generates net revenue. In addition, W&M’s 23 sports are more than 86% of all Division I schools.
But with the reinstatement of all seven sports in the wake of widespread support, W&M athletics demonstrated a commitment to improving its financial circumstances by increasing revenue rather than cutting teams.
While lauding Rowe’s announcement, however, Martin reiterated that the commitment of the W&M community — alumni and friends included — must be ongoing for athletics to achieve financial sustainability.
“The magnitude of the financial challenge is not diminished by a single year,” said Martin, who announced recently that W&M was on track to reach its goal of $4 million in “current use” funds for FY2021, including $2.8 million before March. “It must be repeated and increased each and every year.”