Completed Event: Women's Golf at St. John's Women's Invitational on April 6, 2026 , , T-11th of 12
Women's Golf
at St. John's Women's Invitational
Final
T-11th of 12
Providence College Athletics
Friars Forever Seating Program Helps Move Department Forward
Friars Forever Seating Program Helps Move Department Forward
May
My last column was primarily retrospective, outlining Providence athletics' accomplishments and changes since January of 2002. It also briefly touched on a few of our top priorities going forward, one of which is the focus of this column: the Friars Forever seating program.
What is the Friars Forever seating program?
The Friars Forever seating program affects current men's basketball season ticket holders with seat locations within "premium" sections at the Dunkin' Donuts Center. Beginning with next year's season, each season ticket seat purchased within certain sections at "The Dunk" will require a seat donation in addition to the purchase of the season ticket. A mailing explaining program details is scheduled to reach season ticket holders in May and I will be hosting three town meetings in June to answer Friar Forever seat program questions.
The Friar Athletic Fund
The Friars Forever seating program will anchor our annual fund for athletics, called the Friar Athletic Fund. Currently, over 60% of our budget is generously provided for by Providence College, leaving almost 40% to be derived by other sources. These other sources, in order of impact, include ticket revenue, BIG EAST Conference revenue, other athletic revenue, corporate sponsorships, and donations. Going forward, our goal is to increase donations levels via the Friar Athletic Fund, a comprehensive annual fundraising program. We are simultaneously working to increase funds contributed by other sources, where we have an impact. Despite the annual challenge of maintaining existing levels of funds, we believe that structured focus and effort in all of these areas will help us achieve our goals.
Why is an increase needed?
Currently, Providence College ranks last in the BIG EAST with regard to its athletic scholarship budget. In many cases, our facility development has not kept pace with comparable institutions in our conference. Our services and support for student-athletes - vital for success both on and off the playing field - is growing, but still limited. While every other BIG EAST member institution has developed strong athletic fundraising efforts in recent years, we have fallen behind, and are the only BIG EAST member without a "priority seating" program.
To ensure our program's success as a BIG EAST member institution, we must be able to attract and retain student-athletes that can consistently compete at the highest levels. We also must be able to adequately support our student-athletes throughout their tenure at Providence College. Given the competition we face, it is imperative that we build on - not rest on - our foundation of strong academics, great athletic tradition, and a developing student services program if we expect to compete for conference and national championships.
Some of the needed improvements to our program can be achieved by redirecting funds or by focusing on non-fund related intangibles. Others will require additional financial support. The reality is that remaining static while others advance is the equivalent of falling behind. We must not spend unnecessarily, but make steady progress in key areas. The Friars Forever seating program will help Providence athletics move forward.
The three seating program town meetings will be held from 6:00pm to 8:00pm on June 3, 5 and 9 in 64 Hall at the Slavin Center on campus.
As always, thank you for your support of Providence athletics.
Go Friars!
If you have any comments, questions or concerns, please click here to e-mail Athletic Director Bob Driscoll.
