Finding the funding for Yale's athletes

Facing challenges, the athletic department seeks a way to make dollars and sense

By Aaron Lichtig

Yale is one of the richest universities in the world. It has an endowment greater than the Gross National Product of many small countries. The University can afford to hire some of the best and brightest professors in the world. Yet despite the money Yale continues to bring in, its athletic department is continuously looking for funding for its teams and projects. These monies are generated by a variety of means, and are distributed in a number of ways.

Doing just fine with Title IX

Last year, 534 men and 433 women participated in varsity sports at Yale. Of the $675,250 in revenue generated by varsity sports, including money from concessions, programs, and parking, less than one percent came from women's sports. Despite the disparity in these revenues, funding for the teams remained comparable. The athletic department allotted $847,085 to the 15 men's programs, and $567,482 to the 16 women's programs in 1997-1998, according to the athletic department's Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act release. Much of the budget goes toward recruiting expenses, such as brochures and travel costs. Average head and assistant coaches' salaries for men's and women's teams are also significant. "Yale does a good job of equalizing the funds," Forrest Temple, director of finance and administration, said.

The club question: What happens if Yale doesn't give enough?

Though the men's and women's varsity teams receive significant monies, other funding inequities and problems remain. Out of the almost eight million total dollars given to the athletic department by the University, hardly none is earmarked for club sports. In fact, the 35 clubs teams that Yale supports receive a total of just $19,156 from the athletic department. Assistant Athletic Director for Club Sports Tom Migdalski must decide on how to allot these meager funds. This can leave club teams without the necessary funding. Often, club teams qualify for national competition after they have exhausted their athletic department funds.

This leaves club sports' captains with three options. First, the teams can go to the newly created college Masters' national championship fund, which allows for $5,000 to help club teams defray the costs of attending a national competition. The Council of Masters created the fund last year in response to persistant springtime requests from club athletes within the residential colleges.

"This fund has been a great help so far," Larry Matthews, associate athletic director for sport and recreation, said. Unused funding can be redistributed to teams that have advanced to national competition, but such money is often scarce. "Last year we gave the men's and women's ultimate frisbee teams $250 each. The year before, though, we could only give them $50," Matthews said.

Another option calls for team members to pay for their travel expenses without Yale's help. They may engage in fund raising activities such as raffles, movies, and car washes. The most popular option, however, is to seek donations from outside sources. Unfortunately for club teams, solicitation of such donations is severely restricted by the Administration. The Yale Club Sports Handbook outlines strict rules regarding what teams are able to do. Club teams may only raise funds from "club alumni, club parents or known supporters." They may not randomly solicit donations from corporations.

This rule was created in response to the actions of the cycling team in the early 1990s. The team mailed out letters to CEOs of Fortune 500 companies requesting money to defray competition costs. After learning of this practice, the development office decided that it was inappropriate, and outlawed such methods of fund raising. This year's rugby team, however, is experimenting with a third option for raising revenues. The team is using the connections of coach Peter Hawkins' wife to investigate the possibility of creating a special Yale rugby jersey, to be produced by a national manufacturer. If the project is successful, proceeds from the jerseys will be used to support the team's trips to Europe and national competitions. Despite the current regulations, Matthews has given the team permission to enter into discussions with designers.

In addition to the expenses of going to nationals, club teams must also worry about paying for uniforms, regular season travel, and even the hiring of a coach. They do not, however, have the recruiting expenses of varsity sports. Despite this cost-saving matter, however, talented club teams are often faced with difficult circumstances as their seasons wind down."I would really like to be able to give more funds to club sports, but I definitely would not support taking any money from the varsity athletics program," Matthews said.

Getting money for the varsity blues

Yale's use of funds for varsity sports reflects the mission of the department. "At Yale, we want to try to give a lot of people a chance to play on a varsity level. We're not trying to win national champions in every sport. Here, we have 33 varsity sports. At the University of Texas, they have only 20 sports and their student body is many times larger than ours, but they're trying to win a national title in everything," Matthews said. Despite the wide array of athletic offerings currently available, Yale would still like to offer sports like downhill skiing and sailing on the varsity level. These sports are currently offered as varsity sports at other Ivy League schools.

Under the eye of the development office, contributions to varsity teams come under close scrutiny. Donors usually request that the athletic department puts their donations to specific uses, or that they be funneled to specific teams. Joel Smilow, PC '54, donated the necessary funds to the Smilow Field House near the Yale Bowl, which opened in 1993. Numerous crew alumni have had their donations sent specifically to the current Bob Cook Boathouse renovation project, which includes a $30,000 boathouse and improved landscaping.

People who want to make donantions to the athletic department are encouraged to direct their money to specific projects. "I'd tell a potential donor we'd like to have their money, but they need to be reasonable about how much they can control it," Matthews said. Problems with donor control have occurred in the academic arena. In 1991, the University effectively lost $20 million when they refused to let the donor, Lee Bass, SM `79, have more control over how his money was spent in the western civilization department. While the athletic department is wary of creating the same sort of situation with their requests of donors, it continues to try to push for donations to high priority projects.

As Matthews said, Yale is not Texas. The Bulldogs will not be playing in a packed Cotton Bowl anytime soon, or in front of a national televsion audience. While the lack of such widespread exposure presents an obstacle, Yale seems to have overcome such a challenge by tapping into a wealthy network of alumni and contributors. With club sports on the rise, however, and its programs becoming more diverse, Yale's ability to more equally distribute its funds will ultimately decide if the University is truly money.

Graphic by Sara Edward-Corbett.

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