Cavalier Corner is the publication just for UVa sports fans!
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/521028
Dear Cavalier Fans, Summer has arrived in Charlottesville, but that does not mark a slowdown in the VAF office. By the time you read this, we will have completed a very successful Spring Social Tour with over 1,800 donors and fans attending 13 events. In addition to many of our regular stops, we visited new areas including Boston, Mass., and Greenwich, Conn. Guests enjoyed hearing from our coaches, student-athletes and athletics administration. I hope you will take time to read the articles on Graduation (pages 26-27), highlighting the academic success of our graduating student-athletes, and National and ACC Championships (pages 12-13) that showcases the 2014-15 athletic success of our teams. There is so much to be proud of and we are grateful for your generosity and loyal support that helps make this all pos- sible. Much has been written about providing a cost of attendance (COA) stipend for student-athletes beginning with the 2015-16 academic year. Traditionally, grant-in-aid scholarships cover tuition, room, board, books and fees. With the COA stipend, scholarships will also cover travel expenses, personal expenses and school supplies. In-state stipends will be $3,180 and out-of-state stipends will vary slightly based on travel regions, ranging from $3,600 to $4,450. The COA stipend will increase the 2015 VAF annual fund goal from $16.17 million to $17.5 million. The increased scholarship expense was the main driver for the "All in For Excellence" fundraising initiative that we launched in February. Increasing the annual fund, endowment and the donor base will be critical to funding all of the scholarships in the future and maintaining a fully funded program. Additionally, we will continue to explore facility projects that will require a fundraising effort to bring those to fruition. We are currently working on a golf practice facility at Birdwood Golf Course that will benefit our men's and women's programs. At the May VAF Board of Trustees meeting, we reported that our fundrais- ing totals across all categories had reached over $14 million towards a goal