Desptie Cal Poly president Jeffrey Armstrong lowering the fundraising goal for saving the university's swimming and diving program from $25 million to $20 million less than two months ago, only about $10 million was ultimately raised.
As reported by SwimSwam, Armstrong announced Monday that the efforts have “fallen well short,” and therefore the teams will not be revived.
“While I appreciate the significant annual support and revocable bequests that have been identified, the fundraising effort has fallen well short of the goal to reinstate the program,” said Armstrong, who had established a June 15 fundraising deadline. “As a result, the university is unable to reinstate the swimming and diving programs.”
As of early May, the group had raised around $7.5 million, and one source told SwimSwam the number ultimately reached $10 million, SwimSwam's James Sutherland reported.
The Save Cal Poly Swim & Dive Instagram advertised Sunday as the last day to donate, according to Sutherland, and the group’s website’s most recent update said they had $6 million left to raise by June 15.
“The university made several changes in good faith throughout the effort, including implementing multiple extensions to the deadline dates and lowering the threshold of permanent funds for an endowment to the absolute minimum that would be required to realistically support the programs,” Armstrong said.
“I know this is difficult news for participants and supporters of the programs, and we want to recognize and again express our appreciation for the work they have done.
“This is an unfortunate reality given the approved NCAA House settlement, state budget and the tenuous situation moving forward for both the state and the NCAA. I want to reiterate that the significant and unequitable changes in the NCAA and the House settlement (and new organizations resulting from this settlement) had an impact that weighed heavily in this decision.”
The swimming and diving teams were cut in early March, with then athletic director Don Oberhelman informing the team’s coaches of the decision, which Armstrong said was due to “financial realities,” specifically mentioning the annual $450,000 lost due to the House settlement.
According to Sutherland, the endowment return on the $10 million raised by Save Cal Poly Swim & Dive would more than cover the $450,000 budget shortfall.
Last week, Oberhelman suddenly resigned after 15 years at the helm, with the fate of swimming and diving still uncertain.
The swimming and diving program is the only athletic team being eliminated by Cal Poly. Officials said it was chosen over other sports due to a “combination of factors, including conference stability, lack of current investment from alumni and donors, and the gap in current funding to be competitive vs. what is presently afforded.”
