Cal Poly Rejects Millions Raised To Save Swimming & Diving Program

Cal Poly President Jeffrey D. Armstrong announced Monday that the efforts to save the school’s swim & dive program have “fallen well short” and therefore, the teams will not be revived.

“While I appreciate the significant annual support and revocable bequests that have been identified, the fundraising effort has fallen well short of the goal to reinstate the program,” Armstrong said. “As a result, the university is unable to reinstate the swimming and diving programs.”

After initially giving the Save Cal Poly Swim & Dive group a $25 million benchmark to save the program, Armstrong revised the goal to $20 million less than two months ago with a deadline of June 15.

As of early May, the group had raised around $7.5 million, and one source told SwimSwam the number ultimately reached $10 million.

The Save Cal Poly Swim & Dive Instagram advertised Sunday as the last day to donate, and the group’s website’s most recent update said they had $6 million left to raise by June 15.

 

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“The university made several changes in good faith throughout the effort, including implementing multiple extensions to the deadline dates and lowering the threshold of permanent funds for an endowment to the absolute minimum that would be required to realistically support the programs,” Armstrong said.

“I know this is difficult news for participants and supporters of the programs, and we want to recognize and again express our appreciation for the work they have done.

“This is an unfortunate reality given the approved NCAA House settlement, state budget and the tenuous situation moving forward for both the state and the NCAA. I want to reiterate that the significant and unequitable changes in the NCAA and the House settlement (and new organizations resulting from this settlement) had an impact that weighed heavily in this decision.”

The endowment return on the $10 million raised by Save Cal Poly Swim & Dive would more than cover the budget shortfall Armstrong said the school incurred due to the House settlement ($450,000 annually).

Last week, Cal Poly Athletic Director Don Oberhelman announced his retirement after 15 years at the helm. SwimSwam asked the Save Cal Poly Swim & Dive group if Oberhelman’s surprise retirement announcement gave them more hope that reinstatement was coming, and though they weren’t sure one way or the other, they were clear they were not giving up hope.

The swim & dive teams were cut in early March, with Oberhelman informing the team’s coaches of the decision, which Armstrong said was due to “financial realities,” specifically mentioning the annual $450,000 lost due to the House settlement.

The swim & dive program was the only athletic team to get axed, with Cal Poly saying it was chosen over other sports due to a “combination of factors, including conference stability, lack of current investment from alumni and donors, and the gap in current funding to be competitive vs. what is presently afforded.”