The university will continue those programs as Division I sports through at least the 2021-22 academic year, in order to reset a review process and engage in a thorough and open analysis to determine a sustainable scope for athletics going forward.

W&M Athletics will complete its reviews of equity, finance and excellence by fall 2021 and decide how W&M will establish a sustainable program and achieve gender equity during the 2022-23 academic year.

Interim Athletics Director Jeremy P. Martin has outlined clear actions that must be taken, including a gender equity review, fundraising efforts and cost reduction steps. A Title IX consultant will be hired to lead the gender equity review. The path forward for W&M Athletics will center on the same five principles that W&M has used in navigating the pandemic: setting clear and mission-oriented goals, using phased decision-making, defining a time frame for decisions and actions, listening to different voices and working from shared understandings. As we define specific steps, we will communicate those to the community and seek opportunities to continue hearing their voices as we shape the future of W&M Athletics together. 

Recommendations on a sustainable direction for the department as a whole will be prepared by the department leadership and approved by the president at the completion of that process. The overall health and excellence of the department in the context of the university’s larger strategic goals will be important criteria.

As noted in the report, William & Mary may have to make difficult decisions as the gender equity review is completed and the plan for compliance is developed. With additional time to engage our community about the strategic direction of athletics, W&M will be in a much better position to confront these challenges and to seek creative solutions to them.

The settlement announced last month requires W&M to complete an equity review and plan before September of 2021 and to achieve full gender equity in athletics during the 2022-23 academic year.

Tribe 2025 is a living document, designed to adapt in response to dynamic circumstances. It outlines William & Mary’s commitments to gender equity, financial stability and excellence in athletics among other important goals. These goals must guide W&M Athletics over the coming years and be incorporated into every solution brought forward. Consistent with the work outlined in Tribe 2025, W&M Athletics will pursue a robust process for completing a longer-term gender equity review this academic year. The review will result in a gender equity plan that will ensure Title IX compliance during the 2022-23 academic year and beyond.

We will strive for a process based on shared data and understandings, open inputs and feedback, inclusive of all programs.

This a department-wide effort. We are counting on supporters of each team to help raise funds to cover operating costs, as we take time to complete the gender equity review. Beyond that, fundraising will be essential to ensure the teams can be sustained and thrive going forward, via endowments.

No. The financial challenges, even for this year, remain very real. W&M Athletics is committed to a strong partnership with University Advancement, the Tribe Club and the W&M Foundation to meet the challenge head on. A $1.5 million challenge grant announced last month by an anonymous donor for women’s athletic scholarships, made in support of President Rowe and the university’s commitment to gender equity, is an important step forward. W&M Athletics has posted annual fundraising goals for each program through 2022, as well as contacts for each sport. Additional targets for scholarships and capital endowment will be shared in the spring.

Yes. This a department-wide effort. We are counting on supporters of each team to help raise funds to cover operating costs, as we take time to complete the gender equity review. Beyond that, fundraising will be essential to ensure the teams can be sustained and thrive going forward, via endowments. W&M Athletics has posted annual fundraising goals for each program through 2022. Additional targets for scholarships, capital endowment and five-year fundraising goals will be outlined by spring 2021.

The department needs to raise $4 million for immediate use this fiscal year, of which $2.8 million must be received no later than March 1, 2021, for athletics scholarships alone. Achieving this goal will enable W&M Athletics to meet its commitments for this fiscal year. 

At a minimum, we anticipate that there will be an annual fundraising goal of more than $4 million to sustain existing operations in addition to endowment goals. 

Additionally, our ability to achieve Title IX compliance by expanding competitive opportunities rather than reducing them will likely require at least an additional $1 million annually over and above the $4 million annual fundraising goal and the endowment goals; funding operational costs alone will not resolve the pressing financial challenges that we face beyond the current fiscal year.

In recent weeks, many have shared how powerful their W&M Athletics’ experience was – across all sports. Given that common experiential baseline, it makes sense to have a shared expectation of support from alumni and friends. Using a per-student-athlete measure allows all teams to have specific goals based on their relative roster size, yet built upon that common base of support of $7,500 per-student-athlete.

The $7,500 figure is based on the projected per student cost associated with delivering a high caliber experience for each of our student-athletes 

Establishing fundraising targets for each program is a critical component of any path forward. One way to do this is to build shared expectations of support per student-athlete that could sustain programs. Using this scale makes clear the respective giving levels within programs. The number of student-athletes influences the expected size of the alumni and friend population.

This per-individual level advances a common expectation among all athletics alumni in generating support for their respective programs. This shared level would also provide greater self-sufficiency for each sport, demonstrably increasing its sustainability through the ongoing commitment of alumni and friends.

No. Meeting our scholarships commitments and operational goals are essential to sustain all of our programs. However, additional resources are required to achieve Title XI compliance – and to support additional sports — so we will necessarily need to raise more funds in order to maintain the current roster of all 23 sports.