Strategic plan for Davidson athletics

A place to discuss topics which impact all of Davidson's sports
citycat
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Post by citycat » Fri Feb 09, 2018 6:13 pm

One would expect a team that went to the College Cup to have pleasant memories of the experience and donate accordingly.

Did you not know they went to the Final Four at Davidson or are you engaging in sophistry?

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stevelee
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Post by stevelee » Fri Feb 09, 2018 9:16 pm

citycat wrote:One would expect a team that went to the College Cup to have pleasant memories of the experience and donate accordingly.

Did you not know they went to the Final Four at Davidson or are you engaging in sophistry?
Yes, even I know that.

I don’t know anything about them personally or about their collective net worth. So they raised and pledged just a measly million, only $50,000 a player, or something like that. I realize they had help. I just don’t see that as deserving that level of criticism.
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citycat
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Post by citycat » Fri Feb 09, 2018 9:45 pm

I wasn't criticizing them. Just someone who didn't seem to understand that a Final Four soccer team would be a likely group to donate to a scholarship at their alma mater.

They raised $700,000, which is $35,000 per player, but there were others contributing, so it is less than that per player.

So, the answer is "Yes". You were engaging in sophistry. Argue on.

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Post by stevelee » Fri Feb 09, 2018 10:44 pm

Sophistry maybe, but we are doing a great job of talking past each other. They have commitments to raise the $1M goal. I don’t see the problem.
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Post by jamesdhogan » Sat Feb 10, 2018 9:51 am

citycat wrote:I wasn't criticizing them. Just someone who didn't seem to understand that a Final Four soccer team would be a likely group to donate to a scholarship at their alma mater.

They raised $700,000, which is $35,000 per player, but there were others contributing, so it is less than that per player.
Fundraising mini-campaigns like this never work out evenly, but the general rule of thumb is that if you want to raise $1 million, you're likely going to need someone give you $500k or more in a single commitment. On top of that, you'll need a handful of gifts in the $50-100k range, a bunch of $10-25k sized gifts (think Ne Ultra commitments in four-year pledge groups), and then a bucket full of one-off, $500, $2k, and $5k checks.

And, generally speaking, if you hope to land a single $500k donor, you need more than one fish in the pond. Ideally, you'd have three or four or five or ten. Because the chances of someone reaching a point in his/her life in which the circumstances, timing, affection, etc. are nominal to make a half million dollar commitment--and the chances that happens when you launch a million-dollar campaign--are slim.

Of course, one generally doesn't launch a million dollar campaign if s/he hasn't already landed that $500k gift. Find that one, then go fishing for the others.

There's a 100 percent chance this soccer scholarship campaign doesn't fit these metrics. Every one of these relies on human beings writing checks, and that makes them fundamentally idiosyncratic. No one ought to assume 100 percent of the Final Four team made a commitment to this campaign. Maybe they aren't ready. Maybe soccer isn't as important to them as biology. Maybe their own kids are heading off to college and there's not an extra $35k sitting around.

Like you, I'd hope that the Final Four members would be more inclined to support this good project. Inclination is only one part of the giving process, though.
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Post by slowcat95 » Sat Feb 10, 2018 11:31 am

citycat wrote:I wasn't criticizing them. Just someone who didn't seem to understand that a Final Four soccer team would be a likely group to donate to a scholarship at their alma mater.

They raised $700,000, which is $35,000 per player, but there were others contributing, so it is less than that per player.

So, the answer is "Yes". You were engaging in sophistry. Argue on.
If alumni are expected to be able to cough up a spare $35k by their mid 40s, I am definitely doing something wrong.
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Post by JCDC » Sat Feb 10, 2018 5:18 pm

I was once on the fundraising group for my class. I spoke to one fellow who claimed he was too poor to donate. I said even $5 would be appreciated. He said he couldn't afford even $5. I said how about I send you the $5 and then you donate it. He said he couldn't do that either.

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Post by stevelee » Tue Feb 13, 2018 5:57 pm

Like probably many of you, I got an update in email about the alumnae weekend and $9,000 raised toward the $20,000 challenge for women's basketball. Of interest for this thread is the statement that the funds are for current operations. IOW gifts to this do not increase endowment or scholarship funds. It's the Living Endowment model that has worked for Davidson for so many years. (Of course if you want to designate something to an endowed fund, they'll take your money.)
All donations to the women’s basketball program between now and June 30, 2018, will be matched dollar for dollar up to $20,000 (i.e. your $500 gift will actually have a $1,000 impact on the program).
Perhaps some of you have not yet given your whole $35,000 for this fiscal year and may want to direct a small portion of that to the women's basketball program.
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citycat
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Post by citycat » Tue Feb 13, 2018 6:30 pm

As James Hogan informed us, the college usually doesn't begin a campaign without a significant donation, he said 1/2, in hand. So no one expects $35,000 from each person involved or $35,000 at one time. Gifts are usually made over time. If 2 people donate $500,000 ($250,000 each), the other 18 need to average $28,000 apiece, or $2,800 annually, assuming gifts can be made over 10 years.

Today's Observer's article about Dick Cooke states the $5,600,000 for baseball scholarships was raised after the team's great performance last spring. If that team's season can cause people to donate that much in 5 months, the '92 Men's Soccer Team should be able to raise $1,000,000 over a period of years. A great season should cause players/parents/fans to donate.

If Davidson does not have the ability to raise money for endowed athletic scholarships, then maybe we shouldn't be playing D1 sports. I'm not talking about the maximum number of scholarships allowed by the NCAA, but enough to let our teams and athletes have a reasonable chance for success.

Davidson has had a scholarship Women's Basketball Team since the fall of '92. If we assume 2 scholarship players graduated each season beginning in '96, that would be 44 scholarship graduates. If each donated $500, on average, that would be $22,000. That does not include any money donated by parents or fans. $20,000 is a modest goal.

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Post by stevelee » Tue Feb 13, 2018 6:55 pm

$20,000 is a modest goal.
A very reasonable one. It is good to set goals that are reachable, and consequently celebratable. Perhaps $40,000 is about what the team needs for current operations above the budgeted amount, or maybe adds wiggle room and some small wish-list things.
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