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Va Tech Changes Donation Requirements To Cover Athlete Costs, Keep Pace With Peers

With rising scholarship costs and a "donation fund that has leveled off," Virginia Tech on Monday retooled its "donation requirements for the first time in more than 20 years," according to Andy Bitter of the ROANOKE TIMES. Virginia Tech will "require football and men’s basketball season ticket holders in certain locations to meet minimum per-seat gift contributions" starting in March of '17, a new setup that is "sure to cause some ripples among the fanbase." Virginia Tech AD Whit Babcock said, “People can say it’s change and it is, but I look at it as it’s more of an evolution and we’re setting the course of the next generation of the Hokie Club." Bitter noted the school’s goal is to get giving "in line with the rising price of athletic scholarships for 550 athletes," which has increased over 60% in the past five years to more than $13M in the '14-15 school year, in part because of the "increase in covering full cost of attendance." The Virginia Tech Athletic Fund, which once could "cover the entire cost itself, receives only $9.8 million in scholarship support, creating a shortfall." In football, the largest donation requirement for non-club seating "will be $800 per seat around the 50-yard line." That figure "drops to $600, $350, $200, $100 and $50 as the seats fan out from midfield and farther up." The highest requirement for "non-courtside basketball tickets is $500, with $400, $250 and $100 sections as well." The per-seat gift "will count toward a person’s annual giving level." Conservatively, Virginia Tech estimates the new measures will bring in $3M in extra revenue to an athletics budget that will be $80-81M in '16-17, putting the school "squarely in the middle" of Power Five schools (ROANOKE TIMES, 5/3).

LAGGING BEHIND: In Virginia, Norm Wood noted despite having the "third-largest number of living alumni" in the ACC, Virginia Tech has "lagged in donations compared to other ACC schools." The school is "fifth among the 15 ACC schools in terms of number of donors, and tied for 11th out of 15 ACC schools in terms of percentage of donors for athletics." Babcock: "We felt it set up well with our peers. ... What we found was, we might have someone giving a good amount sitting right by somebody who wasn't, and we wanted to make it a little more fair and equitable" (Hampton Roads DAILY PRESS, 5/3). In Richmond, Mike Barber noted under late former AD Jim Weaver, the school "emphasized donations for facility improvements." However, changing times meant it was "time to revisit the Hokie Club’s focus." Babcock: “You don’t want to have all your eggs in one basket. It’s just our scholarship basket was getting a little bit light, and we wanted to turn our attention back to that” (RICHMOND TIMES-DISPATCH, 5/3).

KEEPING UP WITH THE JONESES: In Shreveport, Kevin Connelly noted Northwestern State Univ. has four projects "proposed as part of the 'Vision of the Future' fundraising campaign." Included are "improvements to the Demons baseball complex, tennis complex and track and field complex, in addition to upgrades for the N-Club Hall of Fame." Demons Unlimited Foundation Exec Dir Adam Jonson said that facility upgrades for all 14 sports "are part of the plan." Meanwhile, Louisiana Tech also has made "major advancements to some of its athletic facilities recently." The Davison Athletics Complex "debuted this past football season, while the baseball and softball complexes received" a $1.2M upgrade earlier this year. The 70,000-square-foot football facility at Joe Aillet Stadium was a $22M project that "included a weight room, players lounge, meeting room, coaches offices and club level seating" (SHREVEPORT TIMES, 5/3).

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