The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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more borrowing from the University as necessary," she said. "We've al- ready borrowed in order to complete the projects that we've done. What we're ultimately hoping to do is raise as much of it as we can, so we're not having to borrow any more. "Getting this done with our do- nors and through our own good fis- cal responsibility are our first two choices." like men's and women's lacrosse. "We need more space, so the stu- dent-athletes have a place to study and see tutors and do everything they need to do over there." Specific programs are in situations that call for action as soon as pos- sible, Rawak noted. "Lacrosse is in a trailer," she of- fered. "Their offices are in a trailer. The student-athletes' locker rooms are from coaches to student-athletes in getting the word out to potential pro- gram donors. "There is no easy answer," she said. "That's why we have invested in fundraising here at Michigan ath- letics. Everybody's a fundraiser, in some way, shape or form. It's not just my team. It's the culture change that Dave has invested in. "I know there are a lot of people who care about what we're doing and are happy and proud of what we're doing. They know the way it stays that way or gets better is through investing and being a part of the work we're trying to get done here. "We are working our way across the country, back and forth and side- ways, talking about this, creating en- ergy around it. It's been exciting see- ing our coaches getting excited about it. We're going to be bringing our stu- dent-athletes into the mix a little bit and helping them understand what we're trying to accomplish." In the meantime, seeing what has Michigan has produced highly successful rowing squads. A new indoor practice facility, Some of what the athletic depart- ment would like to upgrade or ex- pand isn't that old. For instance, the Ross Academic Center was com- pleted in the winter of 2006. It's a testament to the success of the shown here in an artist's rendering, could boost the efforts of this program. IMAGE COURTESY UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT center, Rademacher noted, that it's on Michigan's wish list for expansion. "We've outgrown it," he said. "It's simply that we've outgrown it. The staff over there, which services the academic needs of our student-ath- letes, is not able to do what they need to do within that building. We've added some sports and some stu- dent-athletes over the last couple of years, and they're high-count sports, 48 THE WOLVERINE NOVEMBER 2012 all over campus. They simply need a home. "With soccer, it's a bit of a similar situation, although not nearly as bad. Everybody is our favorite child in this experience. We have 29 sports. That's what this is about. However, we have to recognize that some needs may be a little different. "It's like dealing with your chil- dren. You don't give every kid the same thing. You give every kid what they need at that moment in time." They want to do as much as they can as soon as they can, though, and that takes money. Rawak's develop- ment team is incorporating everyone already been done can give people an idea of what the department would like to do down the road, regarding fan comfort and experience. That's all above and beyond providing what they consider a Michigan-like venue for student-athletes. "It goes to one of our guiding prin- ciples, which is that we create 'Wow' experiences for our student-athletes, fans and team members," Radem- acher said. "When we plan for these facilities, we keep that in mind. "With some of the amenities we added at Yost and added at Crisler, we thought, how is it going to work out for the fans? We looked at all parts of the fan experience from parking to bathrooms to seating to scoreboards and invested a lot of money in all of those items. "We thought about those items in every little detail. We'll do that with the rest of these projects, so we create those 'Wow' experiences for our fans, our student-athletes and our team members." The overall price tag might repre- sent the first "Wow." Rawak is quick to remind anyone, there is a cost as- sociated with the "Leaders and Best" tag. "It's people understanding that, for us to do it right, we need their sup- port," she said. u