Providence College Athletics

Fundraising Update; Ground Breaking Set for Exciting Facilities Projects

Fundraising Update; Ground Breaking Set for Exciting Facilities Projects

By Robert G. Driscoll, Jr.

September

It's been some time since I last communicated with you about Providence College athletics and much has occurred in the past few months that I am excited to share.

Our vision is straightforward: We want to have a respected athletics program, graduate 100% of our student-athletes, and compete for conference and, in some cases, national championships. I believe we will only achieve this vision by continuing to focus on our mission to provide an outstanding experience for each student-athlete here at Providence.

Each day, we are making strides towards realizing our department vision and mission. Along with momentum of spirit, we have been experiencing momentum in the important area of financial support.

Thanks to a donation by each member of the athletics department and the donations and gifts-in-kind of over 1000 supporters, we surpassed our fundraising goal of $475,000 this past year. Our Friars Forever seating program (the subject of the last AD Corner article) has been successfully launched. This program asks men's basketball season ticket holders with seats in specific locations to donate in addition to purchasing season tickets. It provides alternative seat selection for those not wishing to participate.

Monies generated by the Friars Forever program are critical to our efforts to improve the experience of Providence College student-athletes by supporting needed scholarships, upgrades to facilities, increased support for service programs, and additional staff with a greater depth of experience. It is similar to programs at other Big East and major conference institutions although we adjusted donation levels downward in consideration of our unique situation.

Support for the program to date has been strong and I am grateful to everyone who has participated in this program and/or donated to the department separately.

All of this support has us well on our way to achieving this year's fundraising goal of $800,000. It also has enabled us to execute or begin several exciting projects in support of our mission.

If you have not been by Alumni Hall in quite some time, I think you would be surprised by the updated condition of locker rooms, corridors and offices. This Spring we will break ground on an artificially surfaced field for field hockey, lacrosse and intramural/recreational use. We will also build a state-of-the-art fitness center for all students. These are examples of significant improvements to the College campus that would not be possible without your assistance.

Thank you for supporting our student-athletes so that they can reach their highest potential. Together, we can make Providence College athletics one of the model athletics programs in the nation.

Go Friars!

If you have any comments, questions or concerns, please click here to e-mail Athletic Director Bob Driscoll.