Cavalier Corner

Dear Cavalier Friends, The summer days are quickly passing by, which means that a new academic year and fall sports season are just around the corner. Before we turn the page to a new season, let's reflect back and enjoy the accomplish- ments of 2011-12. In 2002, Craig Littlepage an- nounced a set of 10-year goals that have been a measuring stick for all of us in the athletics de- partment. This past academic year marked the end of tracking against those aggressive goals. Undeniably, they have been the most successful ten years in the history of Virginia athletics — from gradu- ation rates and recruiting to ACC cham- pionships, NCAA championships and Learfield Directors' Cup rankings. At the core of this success has been an incredible investment by our donors and fans. More than $300 million in contribu- tions has been invested in our athletics program over the past 10 years. Without this support, our program would not have been able to achieve this kind of success. We are extremely grateful for your in- credible investment. The number of facili- ties that have been built or renovated has been astounding. The amount that has been invested in scholarships is remarkable. At the heart of this success, is the number of student-athletes who have been touched by your contributions. It is easy to think of a contribution to an athletics program as a way to improve a ticket location or secure a better parking space. While it is an added ben- efit of supporting an athletics pro- gram, it is in many ways second- ary. I recently had a donor explain to me how he became involved in contributing to the Virginia Stu- dent Aid Foundation (the previous name for the Virginia Athletics Foundation). Back in 1962, he was encouraged to buy a piece of a Bob Davis' (quarterback for the Cava- liers) education by making a $25 contribu- tion to fund part of his scholarship. Fifty years later, he is still making contributions to support scholarships for student-athletes because he believes in making a meaning- ful investment in the athletics program. He still has season tickets but his main reason for making a contribution is to make an in- vestment in a student-athlete's experience. As we turn the page toward a new aca- demic year and a new set of 10-year goals for the athletics department, the challenges will be even greater. Our fund-raising staff is already preparing to meet those chal- lenges. We have spent time planning the kind of growth in annual giving, endow- ment and the number of donors that will be required to support the athletics depart- ment's needs over the next 10 years. We continued on next page CAVALIER CORNER ◆ AUGUST 2012 ◆ 3

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