Baylor’s Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Mack B. Rhoades, IV announced today a successful fundraising year for the department as they report $19.1 million in total annual giving at the close of the 2017-18 fiscal year.
The Baylor Bear Foundation again exceeded budgeted goals, reporting $12 million in cash giving from more than 7,500 members. This figure marks the foundation’s third-highest annual giving total in its 70-year history.
“We are deeply grateful to the thousands of Baylor Athletics donors and Bear Foundation members who have given thoughtfully and generously to help us achieve this milestone year,” Rhoades said. “Baylor alumni and friends are remarkable in terms of their support, loyalty and belief in Baylor University and our athletics program. Their giving is essential to our ability to compete at an elite level among the top programs in the country, and it has a tremendous impact as we invest in more than 530 student-athletes each year, Preparing Champions for Life.”
Baylor Athletics’ fiscal year runs from June 1 through May 31. The year-end total reflects giving across the department, including Baylor Bear Foundation contributions ($12 million), credits ($2.2 million) and gift-in-kind totals ($506k), along with gifts to athletic excellence funds ($1.2 million) and athletic endowment interest distributions ($3.2 million). It excludes capital gifts and ticket revenue received during the year. An expanded reporting model was recently adopted to offer more reporting transparency to donors and to align more closely with fundraising totals reported by peer institution athletic programs.
The successful fundraising year is attributed to improved year-over-year annual giving from Bear Foundation donors, along with a significant boost from endowment interest as a result of a strengthening economy. Through the Bear Foundation, excellence funds and other means of giving, generous donors to Baylor provide essential funds that help to offset the significant cost of athletic scholarships and other expenses associated with operating a Division 1 FBS NCAA athletics department. The cost of a full athletic scholarship is approximately $60,700 per Baylor student-athlete per year.
“Fundraising totals from last year reflect the confidence the Baylor community has in the strong tradition of Baylor Athletics and our bright future,” said Mitch Mann, Associate Athletic Director for Resource Development. “Their belief and consistency fuels the work we do every day.”
