$12,212 in seven days—the amount of funds the Longwood athletics department was able to raise this past week through their self-promoted event, ‘Lancer Giving Madness.’
While facing future revenue cuts, and ongoing controversy with men’s basketball player Jason Pimentel, the department went by the tried and true adage ‘the best defense is a good offense.’ The event, which ended Sunday, totaled 366 gifts from over 340 donors.
In the wake of proposed budget cut legislation by Del. Kirk Cox in the General Assembly, the athletics department was able to surge to their largest one-week fundraising event in recent memory.
If House Bill 1897 does indeed go into effect, it’s set to initiate major cuts to the amount of funds Virginia public institutions’ athletics departments gain from student fees.
In a Rotunda article from January referencing the cuts, Director of Athletics Troy Austin said, “We know we have to privately fundraise and generate more money for scholarships. We will try to increase private giving and fundraising in big ways.”
This past week, that’s what the department has been able to do. The support during Lancer Giving Madness put an emphasis on annual giving through a more “organic” process.
“It is hugely important for us to garner private support and we are certainly conscious of the fact that we need to generate more revenue from our donors,” said Associate Athletics Director for External Relations Scott Bacon during a Monday interview.
According to Bacon, the department had no set goal going into the fundraiser, but said they were pleased with the amount given.
“Since we had never done a micro-giving campaign before, we weren’t sure what to expect—we had very modest expectations,” he said.
Self-inflicted controversy involving the department occurred with the reinstatement of Pimentel to the Lancer men’s basketball team—opinions were voiced from the community, students and alumni on both sides of the fence.
Pimentel, who was convicted of a class 1 misdemeanor of sexual battery last month, was allowed to play via a decision made by Director of Athletics Troy Austin after the guilty verdict was dealt in court and he went through the student conduct process.
“We have to let people know what our story is,” said Bacon, commenting on how to be successful in fundraising despite controversy.
“We haven’t always let people know what the Longwood story is, and that’s the exciting thing about Longwood athletics—we’re an opportunity to tell the Longwood story. I think when people find out what that is they will want to be a part of it.”
He added, “I think athletics supporters have a lot of similarities to people who support the university. We don’t want to see ourselves on an island from the university…we feel like our supporters don’t want to just support Longwood athletics but the university as well.”
Two petitions collected just over 1300 signatures combined involving issues related to Pimentel’s reinstatement. Some alumni directly said they would no longer be donating to the university, but while under fire, the department was still able to harvest immense support.
“Athletics fundraising is a unique challenge in comparison with general fundraising—you need to find people who are passionate about athletics and passionate about what athletics can do for the university,” said Bacon when asked if controversy makes fundraising more difficult. “I think we embrace the challenge and look forward to generating more support for the department.
According to Bacon, this is the first campaign of ‘micro-giving’ in Longwood athletics’ history. The premise behind the technique involves donors giving small portions so more people can get involved. “With Lancer Giving Madness, the idea is to get more people engaged with what we are doing,” said Bacon. “Five minutes of your time, and a five-dollar gift,” he recited.
Final documentation from the athletics department shows that even prior to Lancer Giving Madness, the department had surpassed its donor count from the year prior, which ended June 30, 2014. From then until now, the departments fundraising has skyrocketed 36 percent.
“I think Longwood athletics serves as a front porch for the university,” said Bacon. “Our goal at Longwood athletics is to raise the profile of the university with national marketing and engage our alumni—we play a role in trying to raise the awareness about Longwood and what we are doing.”
Bacon added, “I can say without a specific expectation in mind, this has definitely exceeded anything we thought possible.”
The department succeeds despite controversy.
