Club sports look for $15,000 budget increase

Written by Kimberly Gunning
(kgunnin1@mscd.edu)

Campus recreation and the Metro athletic department asked the Student Affairs Board for a club sports budget increase Feb. 23.

Club sports, a tri-institutional program for all three Auraria colleges, currently receive an estimated $5,000 yearly budget that is split between 15 teams. They are asking SAB for a $20,000 budget to further help with teams’ insurance fees and various league expenses.

“The club sports program has blossomed and $5,000 doesn’t meet the needs anymore,” said Peter Julian, club sports coordinator. “It has grown threefold in the past four years.”

With 15 teams sharing the current budget, student athletes look to various fundraising ideas to come up with the money needed to play.

Metro’s ice hockey team holds an annual fundraiser to help with some of the team costs, and each player pays a seasonal fee of $1,500.

“It (a budget increase) would definitely take some pressure off of the fundraiser,” said Curtis Duffus, Metro hockey head coach. “The cheapest ice in town is $195 per hour.”

Ice time for practices and home games reach an estimated $15,500 each year.

“We (the athletic department) are very supportive of club sports growing and the funding of it,” said Joan McDermott, Metro’s athletic director.

McDermott and Julian both explained the frustration of limited play space for these athletes.
The varsity field north of the gym is reserved for those athletes and participants receiving academic credit, leaving club teams to find practice space off campus.

According to McDermott, Auraria acquired land south of Colfax. There is no set plan for the land at this time, but there are intentions to use part of it for a multipurpose field that club teams can play on.

“The need for traditional amenities is apparent,” Julian said.

He explained that having a club-sports program for students to participate in is an important dimension to campus life; however, it is currently limited by the inadequate budget and the lack of play space.

“We feel it is important to meet them halfway,” Julian said.

“Any little bit of money can help out,” said Tony Price, director of campus recreation.
For the past six years, the club-sports program has been run by the athletic department. It has been provided with a $5,000 fixed yearly budget from the general fund, which is salaried by the state of Colorado and student tuition.

“Campus recreation would like to assist in co-managing club sports with the athletic department,” Price said.

With the campus recreation department involved, club sports will become a student fee-funded program. This enables the decision for a budget increase to be made by SAB.

Because of the repositioning of club sports, the recent higher education budget cut does not eliminate the opportunity for a program budget increase.

“Enrollment is up significantly,” Price said. Higher enrollment means more student fees. However, “other programs want a piece of the pie too.”

Metro is becoming a more traditional college campus. The enrollment is increasing and the average student age is decreasing. The new budget proposal has not yet been approved by SAB.
Based on these observations and the growth of club sports over the past several years, the club-sports program is a “testament to the fact that students want to be more engaged,” Price said.