UMd. Teams Hope to Save Themselves

Although University of Maryland President Wallace Loh announced Monday that he would follow the recommendation of his appointed commission to  to salvage the athletic budget, those teams will have the opportunity to raise eight-years worth of operating costs by this summer to continue their programs. That amount totals $29.1 million.

Just hours after Loh’s announcement, Save Maryland Swimming and Diving Inc. released a statement that it had established itself as a non-profit organization in an effort to raise funds necessary to permanently endow the team.

Communications Director and UMd. swimming and diving alumnus Kevin Reardon said the organization began putting the pieces in place to form a non-profit organization immediately after .

“In the last week or two, we have been proactive in an effort to get ahead of what is going on, so that we could react in a timely fashion as we did today,” Reardon said Monday. “After hearing the announcement today, having this non-profit organization is necessary for what we need to do at this point.”

Because of Title IX, which requires that equal opportunities be provided for both genders at federally funded educational institutions, the programs are paired together to achieve their financial goals.

The following are eight-years worth of funding for the programs, according to UMd.'s Athletic Director Kevin Anderson's response to the commission report:

• men and women's swimming and diving: $11.6 million
• men's track and women's acrobatics and tumbling: $9.5 million
• men's tennis and women's water polo: $8 million

The student-athlete alumni group M-Club has already pledged $1 million toward the $29.1 million it would take to fund all of the teams for eight years.

Cross-country and track athlete Sean O'Leary said the team is optimistic about raising the funds by the June 30 deadline. While they recognize that it will be a challenge, they do not feel the challenge is insurmountable, he said.

The cross-country and track and field alumni have been very supportive over the past few weeks and they hope they will be able to support the team financially as well, said O'Leary, who is also a sophomore marketing major.

Commenters on the Facebook campaign pages to save women's water polo and women's acrobatics and tumbling indicate that team members will engage in fundraising efforts as well.

Loh said Monday that he received  from over 10,000 people, as well as 500 personal emails in response to the commission recommendations, the DCist reported.