University of North Carolina Wilmington 601 South College Road Wilmington, North Carolina

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1 University of North Carolina Wilmington 601 South College Road Wilmington, North Carolina Statement from UNCW Athletic Director Jimmy Bass December 8, 2014 Members of the Seahawk Community: As you know, this university has been examining our sports portfolio for the past several years in order to create long-term financial solvency for our Athletics program. In the spring of 2013, the Intercollegiate Athletic Review Committee put forth a series of recommendations, many of which have been successfully implemented over the past 18 months. One recommendation was to eliminate a number of sports. While we didn t proceed with that recommendation, the fiscal health of our Athletics program continues to require the development of a sustainable fiscal model. At our Board of Trustees meeting two weeks ago, Chancellor Sederburg presented four areas for priority funding from increased tuition and fee dollars: academic excellence, personnel, technology and Athletics. He challenged Athletics to become financially solvent via increased student fee revenue, the right-sizing of the athletic program, and increased private donations. The university is committed to serving our entire population of student-athletes to the best of our ability: supporting their academic needs; their health, safety and well-being; and their future as competitive athletes. In response to the ongoing analysis of fiscal health and the challenge presented by the Chancellor, I have prepared the attached report. After careful consideration of the factors you ll see in the report, including financial sustainability, Title IX compliance and gender equity, support levels and financial commitment, I have come to the difficult decision to recommend the discontinuation of four programs: outdoor men s track and field, outdoor women s track and field, indoor women s track and field and men s cross country, beginning with the academic year. This will also mean the elimination of four coaching positions. The Chancellor has received this report and has indicated his initial support. We have shared this news with the affected student-athletes and coaches and are offering them any counseling support they may need in the coming days. It s always very, very difficult to make decisions that I know will have a serious impact on student-athletes and employees. However, I felt it was important to communicate this decision to these student-athletes and coaches as soon as possible -- before the holiday break, to try to avoid an atmosphere of hearsay that would only add to their anxiety; so they could use that time to discuss the matter with their families; and so our student-athletes could explore possible transfer opportunities. We will honor our scholarship commitments to these student-athletes through their scheduled graduation dates. Academic and other support services will PHONE FAX

2 also remain unchanged for these student-athletes. In addition, all newly-recruited student-athletes in the affected sports will be notified and granted releases from their National Letter-of-Intent. Without right-sizing our team offerings, there is no ability to achieve financial sustainability in Athletics while at the same time meeting our obligations under Title IX. Therefore, in order to be in compliance with Title IX regarding gender equity, UNCW will be adding a women s sport in the coming year: sand volleyball. NCAA Division I members are required to sponsor a minimum of 14 sports: six men s programs and eight women s programs. UNCW will now sponsor 15 sports: six men s programs (soccer, basketball, baseball, tennis, golf, swimming and diving); and nine women s programs (soccer, cross country, volleyball, basketball, softball, tennis, golf, swimming and diving, and eventually sand volleyball). I hope you will join me in offering support to those affected by this difficult decision. The chancellor and I have designated Thursday, December 11 th at 3pm in UNCW s Golden Hawk Room on campus to be available to respond to students with specific questions. Supporting the immediate needs of our students and employees will be this university s priority in the days to come. PHONE FAX

3 UNCW DEPARTMENT OF ATHLETICS Recommendation for Sports Portfolio Management December 3, 2014

4 Recommendation for Sports Portfolio Management University of North Carolina Wilmington December 3, 2014 INTRODUCTION The UNCW Department of Athletics has a strong commitment to the strategic priorities of the University of North Carolina Wilmington, as well as those of the department. Two fundamental priorities are paramount: 1) ensuring quality educational and competitive opportunities for all student-athletes and 2) building a sustainable financial model. Decision-making within Athletics is generally guided by the principles of student-athlete well-being, fiscal sustainability and a desire for sponsored programs to be nationally competitive and garner positive attention for the University. Athletics engages in annual assessment and evaluation of existing priorities and overall departmental performance. Findings from the most recent assessment conducted during this Fall semester (2014) continue to echo the sentiments documented one year ago by the Intercollegiate Athletic Review Committee (IARC): Athletics still faces significant financial challenges that threaten future departmental solvency, the ability to provide a quality studentathlete experience and the ability to establish a consistent, sustainable competitive culture. Providing a positive experience for student-athletes, other students, faculty/staff, alumni, parents and friends remains a top priority for this department and this university. Our goal is to provide an excellent experience for all via competitive teams, academic quality, comfortable facilities, and an inspiring game-day atmosphere. Toward this end, Athletics offers a set of recommendations to restructure the current sports portfolio. This restructuring will permit realignment of the portfolio and resources to aid in improving Athletics ability to effectively accomplish its strategic priorities. The recommendation is based on the following factors: 1. Association/membership requirements for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) 2. Sustainability and vitality of each program in our current sports portfolio (in reliance upon the IARC findings and any new fiscal, competitive, or community information and/or challenges) 3. Institutional commitment to Title IX compliance and gender equity 4. Student-athlete services support levels 5. The volatility on the national competitive landscape (i.e. current autonomy movement within NCAA Division I) Page 2

5 As a NCAA Division I member, UNCW is required to sponsor a minimum of 14 varsity sports programs: 6 men s programs and 8 women s programs. UNCW currently sponsors 18 programs. Athletics is recommending the elimination of men s cross country, men s outdoor track/field, women s indoor track and women s outdoor track/field. Collectively, this reflects a reduction of four sports programs; two men s programs and two women s programs. The recommendation also includes the addition of women s sand volleyball. This addition is necessary to maintain Title IX and gender equity compliance. The resulting portfolio would consist of 15 sports programs: 6 men s programs and 9 women s programs. This report further addresses the effectiveness and safety of current facilities, overall student-athlete support, conference sport sponsorship levels and financial sustainability, among other considerations. Page 3

6 PHASE 1 The Department of Athletics has faced a series of challenges over the last decade. These challenges included an economic recession, lack of continuity (in personnel, programs, and departmental philosophy), poor performance of flagship sports, aging infrastructure, and insufficient attention to long-term planning. The absence of a clear strategy for the department resulted in unbalanced budgets and a lack of dependable, recurring revenue streams. The unfortunate outcome is an Athletics department exposed to vulnerabilities in several areas, including the fundamental priorities of providing a quality educational experience for all student-athletes and building a sustainable financial model. To address these vulnerabilities, Athletics embarked upon a series of proactive, collaborative efforts which resulted in the following: The department worked closely with former Chancellor Gary Miller and Vice Chancellor Rick Whitfield to establish a sustainable financial model and to rebuild reserves to an appropriate level. The creation of dependable revenue streams through increased student fees, new sports marketing revenues, and shared service initiatives with campus partnerships helped craft a three-year financial plan that is productive. Collaboration with University Advancement led to the crafting and implementation of a three-year advancement plan in July of 2013 which created a clear plan for private fund raising initiatives into the near future. To date, fundraising efforts have met and/or exceeded the proposed goals of the advancement plan relative to target number of donors, total visits with donors, and the budget transfer amount. Creation of a three-year scholarship plan for all sports also made budget planning more realistic while giving all head coaches a dependable scholarship base they can work with. The Outdoor Facilities Enhancement Plan (which started in May of 2014) is an effort to address the aging practice and competition facilities for all sports. The campus-wide initiative (which includes Trustee participation) is designed to identify areas of mutual cooperation for intercollegiate athletics, intramural/recreational sports and academics. Page 4

7 PHASE 2 Despite these actions, UNCW Athletics is still unable to sponsor programs consistent with its vision. UNCW ranks last among CAA members (excluding football) in key financial categories including total athletics budget, total athletics expenses, and total expenses per participant. The existing resource levels are simply not sufficient to support the current sports portfolio while balancing and accomplishing departmental strategic priorities. The current financial climate presents challenges that cannot be addressed without intervention. After careful analysis of the findings of the IARC, along with recent observations and evaluation of the current financial environment and existing student-athlete support levels within each sport program sponsored, Athletics has identified challenges specific to the track and field program: Unsafe outdoor facility o Facility is used by student-athletes, students, faculty/staff, general public o Facility doesn t meet hosting requirements, making it difficult to attract quality competition to campus Lack of scholarship resources Lack of operating resources Lack of financial support from private sources. Lack of participation by CAA schools (only 3 men s outdoor teams) A need still remains to right-size the base budget obligations in an effort to place the department on a continued course to solvency. Thus, Athletics is calling to reduce the number of UNCW s total student-athletes and to remove a huge financial obligation to provide more quality services to its remaining student-athletes. Page 5

8 SOLUTION Considering all of the factors identified earlier, Athletics recommends the discontinuation of the men s outdoor track and field program, men s cross country program, women s indoor track program, and the women s outdoor track and field program. This recommendation is not being made lightly. It comes with the full knowledge and consideration of the significant negative impacts resulting from such a decision, including recognition of the far-reaching impact to student-athletes, coaches, family, friends, alumni, and advocates of the program. Nevertheless, armed with an understanding of the responsibility to provide a quality educational and competitive experience for all student-athletes, Athletics acknowledges that it is not currently positioned to meet that responsibility and be a fiscally sound unit at UNCW. Restructuring the sports portfolio is necessary. This recommendation also includes the addition of a women s sand volleyball program to continue our commitment to Title IX and gender equity. According to the NCAA, Sand Volleyball is the fastest-growing NCAA sport and has reached the minimum required 40 sponsoring institutions to request an NCAA championship. The sport has met both the goals in the emerging sports for women program (growth of new women s participation opportunities and growth in sponsorship to the championship level). The NCAA is immediately moving forward with the establishment of a championships committee to allow for the organization of the sport in preparation for a 2016 target date for its first championship. UNCW s improving indoor volleyball program and coastal location should allow unlimited opportunities to field a competitive program. The benefits of adding sand volleyball include the opportunity to generate revenue; no immediate need to build a facility; and the opportunity to further engage community and business partnerships. It will also help strengthen the indoor program through additional resources for coaching, scholarships, operations and competitive opportunities. Page 6

9 SPORTS PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT The recommended sports portfolio will position UNCW athletics to sponsor a total of 15 programs: 6 men s programs and 9 women s programs. This includes a reduction of 2 men s programs and a net reduction of 1 women s program. UNCW will satisfy the minimum requirements of sports sponsorship as defined by the NCAA, and be able to focus its efforts on improving the overall quality of the student-athlete experience for all remaining sports programs. This will be possible with a reduced non-duplicate student-athlete roster count and redistribution of available resources to the remaining programs. The current cost of operating the UNCW track program is $595,000. After considering the costs of adding sand volleyball, maintaining women s cross country and honoring the scholarships of any track student-athletes that remain at UNCW, there is an estimated net savings of $243,571 1 for FY These funds will be used to help improve student-athlete well-being and meet budgetary needs of remaining programs based on the department s strategic initiatives. Athletics will be able to: Reduce total student-athlete roster count from 327 to 276 Improve student-athlete support services (effectiveness, quality of service, and individualized support/attention) 2 Improve the overall efficiency of Business Operations staff as a result of managing operational needs and daily workflows for fewer student-athletes and programs (team travel, insurance, purchased services, facility maintenance, etc.) Eliminate the need for a $2 million dollar track facility (track, locker rooms, stadium) Improve the quality of the educational and student-athlete experience Progress toward long-term financial sustainability to the department Bring the athletic department into closer alignment with identified strategic priorities The table in Addendum 3 reflects comparative elements of the current and recommended sports portfolios. It takes into account sports sponsored and roster count per Title IX. The recommended portfolio positions UNCW Athletics to meet Title IX requirements. It will reduce the number of male participants from 181 to 120 and the number of female participants from 239 to 173 on UNCW s official Title IX Roster Management Report. The recommendation yields a net reduction of 127 student-athlete opportunities. The student-athlete male/female participant ratio will change from the current level of 43.10%/56.90% to the adjusted level of 40.96%/59.04%. The university undergraduate student body male/female ratio for was 40.02%/59.98%. Note: Annual adjustments must be made to roster scenarios based on gender-related enrollment trends. UNCW Athletics is totally committed to being in compliance with Title IX thereby providing comparable athletic benefits and opportunities for men and women student-athletes. These 1 Reference addendum 1 for savings breakdown 2 Reference addendum 2 for support services ratios Page 7

10 sports portfolio adjustments will help UNCW remain compliant in the eleven areas that are subject to review: provision of equipment and supplies, participation in the number of athletic competitive events and the scheduling of games and practice times, travel and per diem allowances, coaching assignments and compensation, availability of tutors and their compensation, provisions of locker rooms, practice and competitive facilities, provision of medical and training facilities and services, provision of housing and dining facilities and services, publicity, recruitment of student-athletes and support services. SUMMARY This recommendation has taken into consideration the risks and benefits associated with this very difficult decision. The risks associated with the discontinuation of the sports include: elimination of 127 participation opportunities, potential loss of 66 students including 28 minority students, human resource impact associated with elimination of four full-time staff positions, short-term negative publicity, loss of Seahawk Club donors and potential negative reactions during the Spring 2015 season. The benefits associated with discontinuation of sports include: improvement of the quality of educational and competitive experience offered to UNCW student-athletes, reduced liability for University and Athletics, greater operational efficiency of the department, and steps towards long-term financial sustainability. UNCW is prepared to: 1. Honor all scholarship commitments to current track and field student-athletes through graduation, provided student-athletes remain in good standing (as defined by the NCAA and UNCW) and make satisfactory progress toward a degree per NCAA eligibility regulations. 2. Notify all newly-recruited student-athletes in the 4 eliminated sports immediately. Provide release from National-Letter-of-Intent (NLI) immediately upon request. 3. Offer current level of academic support, advising, and counseling services for any student-athlete choosing to remain at UNCW after a program s discontinuation. 4. Offer support and assistance with transfer opportunities to every affected studentathlete. 5. Provide support for all affected personnel to the extent allowed in accordance with mandated policies established by North Carolina Employment Law. Every athletics department has a fundamental responsibility to provide its student-athletes with a quality educational and competitive experience. UNCW Athletics is not financially positioned at this time to provide this level of experience for track and field student-athletes nor can it forecast the availability of resources necessary to bring the track and field program up to a standard of reasonable operations. In its six-decade history, UNCW Athletics has enjoyed many memorable moments and provided great opportunities for numerous student-athletes. It has also experienced a number of challenges over the last decade. The IARC s findings were well-researched and sound. Continued vulnerabilities can be overcome by making difficult decisions with a readiness to be prepared to handle the difficult short-term impact in exchange for long-term success. Page 8

11 Athletics requests the support of the University leadership to realign the strategic priorities of UNCW Athletics with its available resources and to preserve a commitment to provide quality educational and competitive opportunities to all UNCW student-athletes while operating in a sustainable fiscal environment. Page 9

12 ADDENDUM 1: Financial Overview of Sports Portfolio Right Sizing FY 15/16 FY 16/17 FY 17/18 Current Track and Field Program Budget (FY 2014/15) $ 595,061 $ 595,061 $ 595,061 Cost Associated with Right Sizing: Track and Field Scholarships Sunset $ 50,000 $ 25,000 $ - Employee Severance and Vacation $ 78,740 Cost for Adding Sand Volleyball: 2nd Assistant Coach $ 43,750 $ 43,750 $ 43,750 Assoc. Head Coach Removed from Teaching $ 30,000 $ 30,000 $ 30,000 Additional Scholarship $ 33,000 $ 33,000 $ 33,000 Team Operation Costs $ 33,000 $ 33,000 $ 33,000 Cost of Maintaining Women's Cross Country: $ 50,000 $ 50,000 $ 50,000 Loss of NCAA Sports Sponsorship Revenue $ 33,000 $ 134,000 $ 134,000 $ 351,490 $ 348,750 $ 323,750 Funds Available for Reallocation $ 243,571 $ 246,311 $ 271,311 Elimination Impacts: Reduce burden on academic staff, sports medicine, strength and conditioning, sports administrator, administrative staff (travel/purchases etc.) Facility is currently unsafe, no major improvement since it was built Scholarships are severely underfunded in comparison to NCAA allowable amounts and CAA allocations Current budget does not provide adequate support for equipment, supplies and uniforms Student athletes have voiced concerns to the Faculty Athletics Council regarding each of the above items Notes: FY 15/16 will have scholarships to honor but will sunset as athletes graduate Sport Sponsorship revenue will reduce in FY 16/17 for sports eliminated in 15/16 Page 10

13 ADDENDUM 2: Support Services Ratios Support Service Area(s) Current Staff to Student- Athlete Ratio New Staff to Student- Athlete Ratio Student-Athlete Academic Support (SASS) 4:86 4:69 Compliance 2:171 2:138 Strength and Conditioning 3:114 3:92 Sports Medicine 9:38 9:31 Page 11

14 ADDENDUM 3: Sports Portfolio Roster Management Table Baseball Men s Basketball Men s Cross Country 0 11 Men s Golf 8 9 Men s Soccer Men s Swimming and Diving Men s Tennis Men s Track (Outdoor) 0 43 Women s Basketball Women s Cross Country Women s Golf 8 8 Women s Soccer Softball Women s Swimming and Diving Women s Tennis 10 9 Women s Track (Indoor) 0 50 Women s Track (Outdoor) 0 50 Volleyball Sand Volleyball 17 0 Roster Count Summary Info Total (duplicated) Men s Total Women s Total Total (unduplicated) Men s Total Women s Total Men s Percentage* 40.96% 43.10% Women s Percentage* 59.04% 56.90% *Based on duplicate count Page 12