The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1364233
MAY/JUNE 2021 ■ 21 that we continue to do a great job of teaching the history of NC State. "I'm just a year on the job, and it's clear we have a very, very proud history. It's also clear, for some reason or another, that we don't pound our chests as often as I think we should for some of the successes we've had here. We've had so many noteworthy student- athletes that have come through here." Blair VanHook agreed, and she is contributing to the endowment by honor- ing former NC State do- it-all football great Jaylen Samuels. "One of the greatest things you get to do in this profession is to call a for- mer great and tell them a donor that they have never met is honoring them with a significant do- nation," said Correll, who also noted that Samuels was humbled by VanHook's deed. The interest income generated by each athletics endowment reduces the money the Wolfpack Club needs to raise annually for its ever-increasing scholarship bill. The organization consistently meets its scholarship goal, a total that is approaching $14 million. The current endowment of about $30 million spins off around $1.4 million in interest revenue each year to help cover scholarship costs. "Unless things change, more than likely the scholarship cost will be flat or go up every year forever," Broussard explained. "Let's say we can turn that endowment into $100 million. Now we are looking at $4.5 million coming from the endowment every year. That's over a third of the scholarship bill coming in every year on day one." A large endowment can have a significant impact on an athletics program. "There are some schools where their en- tire scholarship obligation is funded by the endowment,' Correll said. "Everything that they raise annually can be used to enhance the budget or do other things for the student- athletes." For a $250,000 contribution that can be spread out over five years, donors could choose to participate in the Legends of the Pack, honoring an NC State Hall of Famer or former All-American. For $100,000, also payable over five years, they can join the Wolfpack Favorites, choosing to recognize former student-athletes, managers, coaches or administrators. Three endowments have already been es- tablished in the recently launched program, including one honoring baseball coach Elliott Avent. Broussard's hope is that when word of the opportunity spreads, more inquiries will come. "Someone may say, 'My great grandfather was so and so, and I want to honor him,'" Broussard noted. NC State's current athletics endowment is around $30 million. While it's not near the bottom of the ACC, it's also not approaching the top programs in the conference. At least five ACC teams, including Triangle rivals Duke and North Carolina, had more than doubled that amount according to a report from The Chronicle of Higher Education. While the Wolfpack Club's immediate pri- ority remains to get through the COVID-19 pandemic until some form of normalcy re- turns, markedly increasing the endowment will be a priority moving forward. "The beauty of an endowment is that it will be there forever," Broussard noted. "Long af- ter we are gone, there are going to be young men and women getting edu- cated in Raleigh based off the efforts we are putting into it today. "It's planting oak trees for the benefit of the city 30 years from now. Our goal with the Foundation of Champions is to find a way that we can encourage and incentivize our donors who want to participate in our endowment program, while finding a way to do a better job of honoring our past. "That's the beauty of our Foundation of Champions program." ■ " This is a program that is designed to tie our best donors with the best student- athletes, coaches and administrators. This is a way to honor the past while taking care of the future. " Wolfpack Club executive director Ben Broussard Longtime baseball coach Elliott Avent, who won his 900th game at NC State this April, is another who has been honored by a Wolfpack Club donor to help kick off the Foundation of Champions program. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS