Interview

I interviewed Douglas Fillis from the Rutgers Foundation Office.  He is the Associate Athletic Director in athletic development.  I was able to get a lot of good information regarding fundraising from him.  He explained that funding for the athletic programs comes from ticket sales, concessions, apparel, parking fees, and fundraising.  What ever difference remains is made up from student fees.  In a typical year, the foundations office can raise around 13million dollars in athletic donations.  This is money that is donated to the athletic program, so if Rutgers did not have athletic teams, this money would not be spent on academics, because the money would have never come to the university.
He also shared with me that Rutgers has a plan in place to reduce the amount student fees necessary to finance their sports programs.  Avenues of income such as concessions and apparel have not been carefully managed in the past, but in the coming years more efficient operation of these income streams will reduce the amount of money spent by the athletic department that could otherwise go towards academics.
We also discussed how the sports programs aid in fundraising efforts. Often when considering making donations meetings with high profile figures, such as the football coach, can sway people into doing so.
One story about someone considering making a donation to the athletic program, but instead making a donation  over one million dollars towards academics, goes to show how athletic programs can aid academic fundraising.
The importance of the exposure that sports bring to a university was also addressed in our interview.  Doug mentioned the importance of the ads that run during nationally televised games, and how they can bring many important aspects of the university to light.  The ability to associate the Rutgers' R with winning would also be a huge boost for the school.
Overall, I received a lot of good info to put into my paper from this interview.