Santa Clara's Champions Fund
Dec. 8, 2009
Santa Clara’s Champions Fund Fred Smith, associate athletics director, Santa Clara University, tells NAADD about the Broncos' new Champions Fund. So many of us are in a unique situation in our career. Endowments have lost 20% of their values, annual giving is probably down and many of our most loyal donors are looking for work. So how does anyone think about a capital campaign during these times? At Santa Clara, this is the perfect time to start thinking about a capital campaign. As a university, we finished a $350 million campaign in which we raised $404 million in December 2006. We are currently in the planning stages to hit when the economy rebounds and the iron is hot. While we wait for more ideal conditions to return, we are forced to sharpen our message. At Santa Clara, we have two funds which enhance a vast majority of our athletics department, the Bronco Bench Foundation, our scholarship fundraising group; and the athletics directors Strategic Initiative Fund (SIF), a non-restricted fund, which gives our athletics director discretionary funds to supplement sport budgets, cover unexpected expenses, and cover funding emergencies. We plan to take this opportunity in time to rebrand, redevelop and reinvigorate the SIF by renaming it The Champions Fund. The Champions Fund will highlight our goal as an athletics department - winning championships and detail to donors and prospects how they can impact that goal. The Champions Fund collateral will dissect the ways to win championships at Santa Clara: Championships begin with Academics While it’s not a capital campaign, this rebranding and redevelopment effort can be equally transformative to our athletics department. During an economically distressed time, while we’re concurrently planning for the next capital campaign, we want to carefully, directly and explicitly explain to our alumni, fans, friends, parents and prospects how they can help bring championships to Santa Clara. The Champions Fund provides another large naming opportunity for our department and highlights every imaginable way, philanthropic (annual gifts and endowments) and non-philanthropic (buying tickets and attending events) to support Santa Clara athletics. As we roll out the newly named Champions Fund in 2010 we will help build the major gift prospect pipeline which will help make the athletics components of the next capital campaign successful. Any campaign, whether it be $1 million or $1 billion, requires planning, priorities and prospects. While the priorities are often out of the hands of the fundraisers, we can cover the planning and prospects which will make the execution and success of the campaign a reality. Our role is to provide opportunities for the young people who are fortunate enough to be student-athletes at Santa Clara or your respective institution. Take the time before your next capital campaign to make sure our student-athletes have the best experience possible. Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!
Prior to Santa Clara, Smith was the assistant athletics director for advancement at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo where he assisted in the direction of annual giving through the Mustang Athletic Fund. Smith also served at UNLV as an administrative specialist, assisting in the administration and oversight of all 13 Olympic sports and managed the UNLV Women’s Sports Foundation’s annual membership/donation drive. Smith started his career at UNLV as an academic advising assistant, working predominantly with the football program. A native of San Diego, Smith is a 1998 graduate of the University of Michigan with a degree in economics. He and his wife Shauna have one son, John Thomas (6 mos.)
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About Fred Smith: Fred K. Smith is in his seventh year at Santa Clara, currently as associate athletics director, development where he oversees major gift fundraising, sport specific fundraising, corporate partnerships, suite sales and three sports: volleyball and men’s and women’s golf. Smith’s previous roles included overseeing 13 sports and sports medicine and overseeing all fundraising for the Bronco Bench Foundation, Santa Clara’s athletics scholarship fundraising group.
