Indianapolis, Ind. - Cornell University is one of 18 institutions or conferences selected by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) to receive a women's basketball grant as part of the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Grant Program, which is in its second year. The 2009-10 NCAA grant program dedicated approximately $750,000 nationally to increase awareness, exposure and increase attendance of women's basketball.
“The Big Red women’s basketball program has seen some incredible success in the past several seasons,” said Associate Director of Athletics for Sales and Marketing Jeff Hall. “As the excitement around the team continues to grow, this grant will provide the Cornell Department of Athletics and Physical Education an opportunity to draw new fans to the team. Scott Gruver, the Assistant Director of Marketing and Group Sales, deserves much of the credit in obtaining this grant and he will be instrumental in implementing several new programs that will utilize the funds.”
Cornell is planning to use the grant for many exciting activities and initiatives, such as developing a kids’ club program and a community grass-root program.
“I am incredibly excited that our team has been selected for this program,” said Dayna Smith, The Rebecca Quinn Morgan '60 Head Coach of Women's Basketball. “As a team, we have had a lot of success at Newman Arena, and that is in large part due to the wonderful support we get from our fans. I know that with the help of this funding we will be able to reach out to the Cornell campus and the Ithaca community and get even more people interested in our program.”
A total of 75 member schools and conferences submitted proposals in the second year of the pilot program. National office staff and representatives from the NCAA women's basketball marketing consultant firm, Hawkeye Sports and Entertainment, evaluated the proposals.
"We are pleased with the success of many of last year's grant recipients and are excited to see what these new recipients are able to achieve with this assistance," said NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Vice President Sue Donohoe. "When resources are allocated and efforts are focused to promote women's basketball, it can provide a meaningful return on the investment."
Joining Cornell as 2009-10 grant recipients are Auburn University; Big South Conference; East Tennessee State University; Eastern Michigan University; Iowa State University; Patriot League; San Diego State University, University of California, Los Angeles; University of California, Riverside; University of California, Santa Barbara; University of Hartford; University of Kansas; University of Miami (Florida); University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; University of South Carolina, Columbia; West Coast Conference and Western Athletic Conference.
"The first year of the grant program went very well and we are anticipating more success in year two," said Donohoe. "The membership has had a tremendous interest in securing grant resources to advance women's basketball. It is important that we continue to work to grow women's basketball from the inside out and at the grass roots level."
2008-09 grant recipient success stories included Texas Tech University which doubled its student attendance for women's basketball home games; Florida State University increased season ticket sales by 63 percent, with a 55% increase in overall attendance for women's basketball; East Tennessee State University increased its average attendance by 231%. Several grant recipients, including the Patriot League, set record single game attendance marks.
The program will be evaluated following its second year to determine if the objectives are being met. Grants are awarded on a one-year basis and are not automatically renewed.
This marketing initiative concept was generated from the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Discussion Group, chaired by NCAA President Myles Brand. The group consisted of head coaches, media representatives, former student-athletes and conference, institutional and Women's Basketball Coaches Association administrators. This initiative has been strongly supported by the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Committee, and the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Issues Committee.