It did not take long for new Georgia Tech athletic director J Batt to turn the fundraising wheel, and he cranked it with the help of school president Ángel Cabrera. The unfurling of a scholarship drive on his fourth day in office speaks to Batt’s reputation as a most effective development officer. Cabrera’s participation fulfills a vow he has made to help Batt develop sources of revenue for the athletic department.
In a news release issued Thursday, Batt announced the launch of the Competitive Drive Initiative, a fundraiser for scholarships. The first measure is the Accelerate GT Match Program, in which Tech is seeking to raise $2.5 million in gifts to the scholarship fund of the Alexander-Tharpe Fund, the development arm of the athletic department. The Competitive Drive Institute has been made part of Tech’s five-year $2 billion capital campaign that was launched in June.
New gifts made by Dec. 31 will be matched dollar-for-dollar by the Georgia Tech Foundation up to $2.5 million. The participation of the foundation, which develops and manages gifts that support the institute, is most notable. If this matching program isn’t the first time that the foundation has made such a direct investment in the athletic department, the instances haven’t been many.
It is surely welcome news to many Tech alumni who have longed for institute leadership and the foundation to play a more active role in directing financial support to the athletic department. It is a product of the cross-campus collaboration that Cabrera has vowed to develop in support of Batt in his leadership of the athletic department in general and the football team in specific.
Cabrera has promised to provide the necessary resources to enable Tech to field an athletic program that competed with the best in the country and matched the excellence that the institute has achieved in the academic realm.
“We are fully committed and committed in terms of maximizing the value and potential of the opportunity for Georgia Tech athletics,” Cabrera said at the Oct. 17 news conference when Batt was introduced. “So we’re going to be working together and figuring out what are the appropriate sources of resources.”
A $5 million scholarship drive probably won’t pull the lever to launch the Yellow Jackets into the College Football Playoff. And given that it held assets of almost $2.5 billion as of June 2021, a matching program that maxes at $2.5 million likely won’t make the foundation break a sweat.
But, as a program that aligns the institute, the foundation and the athletic department in perhaps unprecedented fashion and will lead to further initiatives – and furthermore was launched in Batt’s first week on the job – it appears to be the start of a fruitful partnership. And for a department that needs to be careful with its dollars, an additional $5 million would undoubtedly help.
Scholarships are no small expense for the department. In the fiscal-year 2023 budget, Tech is slated to spend $14.95 million on scholarships, 14% of the $105.2 million budget. Infusing the budget with $5 million to help cover scholarships can free money to be spent elsewhere.
Tech faces an unbudgeted expense in the form of former coach Geoff Collins’ buyout, which contractually obligates the department to pay the remainder of his contract, $10.5 million over the next three years. The installation of a new coach and staff could carry a significant cost, as well.
In a statement, Batt lauded the generosity of the foundation and sought the help of donors.
“We’re grateful for the Institute, the Georgia Tech Foundation and, of course, everyone who contributes to the Competitive Drive Initiative for the impact that they are making towards the success of Georgia Tech student-athletes,” Batt said.
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