ESPN Article on Gonzaga

[FieldGoodie05]

In all fairness, Gonzaga University was also very fortunate for their success. I don't think this tour around was planned from the beginning.

Regarding location, we are less than Ann hour from Chicago and could be considered as a suburb. Valpo can tap into talent in NW Indiana and Illinois..

I apologize, but Valpo is not a suburb of Chicago.  Cities the size of Chicago are, imo, worse because of their shear size and disinterest in anything and everything.  There is NO college sports team that has success being "Chicagos Team".  I live in the actual suburbs of Chicago....we suck!

[usc4valpo]

FieldGoodie05,

I can talk about college basketball and Chicago for hours. I grew in the north burbs and watched a lot of great college basketball - DePaul under Ray Meyer, all the Big 10 teams playing Northwestern, even Loyola was good and played an entertaining fast pace offense in the old Alumni Gym.

the drop in college basketball in the Chicago area is a travesty. I blame most of it to DePaul and their nepotism and incompetence in the athletic department.  Jean Lenti Ponsetto is a knucklehead.  I think another big issues is the collaboration of the Chicago Public  League and suburban schools with the Local universities.

regarding proximity, you can say that Valpo is a Chicago suburb, just like Hammond, Gary, Crown Point, Merriville, Aurora, Gurnee, Grayslake, etc. Valpo is less than an hour away From Chicago, thus you could say that it is in the Chicagoland area.

Also, Valpo can recruit from the NW Indiana and Chicago area.

[bbtds]

No, but you might blame university leadership in not making a strong enough case to these donors that investing in athletics is investing in the university and ensures that it meets its stated aspirations.

Bingo!

Also why don't the Christophers, Helges and Duesenbergs have the same passion for Valpo athletics that the Schrages do? For the Schrages it's a natural. For the Christophers, Helges and Duesenbergs they have to be guided into that an investment in Valpo athletics that helps the overall viability of the university and academics also.

[usc4valpo]

Professors and alums at Valpo need to innovate, get patents, make big dollars and donate to the athletic department.

My brother works at Northwestern  and he was talking about latest construction on campus. A chemistry professor invented Lyrica which has provided over 1 billion back for upgrading facilities, including an incredible athletic facility.

Sometimes we have to get lucky. Maybe research in meteorology or science education or theological science would be a good start. Engineering collaboration with Purdue could be a tremendous venture. This would be a stretch of course. Sometimes you have to think big, holistically and outside the daily grind.

[FieldGoodie05]

FieldGoodie05,

I can talk about college basketball and Chicago for hours. I grew in the north burbs and watched a lot of great college basketball - DePaul under Ray Meyer, all the Big 10 teams playing Northwestern, even Loyola was good and played an entertaining fast pace offense in the old Alumni Gym.

the drop in college basketball in the Chicago area is a travesty. I blame most of it to DePaul and their nepotism and incompetence in the athletic department.  Jean Lenti Ponsetto is a knucklehead.  I think another big issues is the collaboration of the Chicago Public  League and suburban schools with the Local universities.

regarding proximity, you can say that Valpo is a Chicago suburb, just like Hammond, Gary, Crown Point, Merriville, Aurora, Gurnee, Grayslake, etc. Valpo is less than an hour away From Chicago, thus you could say that it is in the Chicagoland area.

Also, Valpo can recruit from the NW Indiana and Chicago area.

Recruiting in the region, yup.  But drawing ppl not associated with the university out of the real Chicago suburbs (IL) and getting them to come to the ARC, slim pickings.

A point was made that towns where Gonzaga and WSU are from > 200,000 ppl.  And a very solid point it is, they have population to grow rabid local fandom.

Valpo is not and will not be > 200,000 ppl to pull from anytime soon.  I don't agree with an argument that states we have the Chicago market to grow rabid fandom (butts in the seats).  Sorry if didn't elaborate, typing on these stupid cell phones gets old quick.

[usc4valpo]

No worries fg05, I appreciate the conversation and I agree with your points.

[bbtds]

Professors and alums at Valpo need to innovate, get patents, make big dollars and donate to the athletic department.

My brother works at Northwestern  and he was talking about latest construction on campus. A chemistry professor invented Lyrica which has provided over 1 billion back for upgrading facilities, including an incredible athletic facility.

Sometimes we have to get lucky. Maybe research in meteorology or science education or theological science would be a good start. Engineering collaboration with Purdue could be a tremendous venture. This would be a stretch of course. Sometimes you have to think big, holistically and outside the daily grind.

We have identified the issue--finding "people who have a passion for your program and are willing to step up and help. ... To this point, we haven't been able to find anybody who's willing to champion the ARC."

I think we need to lay out in concise terms exactly what an upgrade in the ARC will do for Valparaiso University and how that will help in the areas that the B of T are promoting--increase in enrollment, an upgrade in enrolling students SAT/ACT scores, more money for other facilities with the success of the men's basketball team, more money for faculty salaries, etc.--and how those goals are directly achieved through the success of the men's basketball program. If the large money donors won't champion the ARC maybe they will champion VU in general through the success of the MBB program.

[vu72]

No, but you might blame university leadership in not making a strong enough case to these donors that investing in athletics is investing in the university and ensures that it meets its stated aspirations.

Bingo!

Also why don't the Christophers, Helges and Duesenbergs have the same passion for Valpo athletics that the Schrages do? For the Schrages it's a natural. For the Christophers, Helges and Duesenbergs they have to be guided into that an investment in Valpo athletics that helps the overall viability of the university and academics also.

I fully understand the frustration and agree.  That said, remember that FITT (part of the OUR VALPO campaign did finally get finished.  So donors funded the Tennis complex, new turf field at Brown, lights, scoreboard and other stuff.  Jay Christopher did give the final $1 million to complete the track and earlier someone made an anonymous $1 million gift for the FITT project.  So there are folks interested in athletics.  I have no idea what the FITT costs were but $10 million doesn't seem out of line.

[VULB#62]

In a way, I find that Valpo speaks about financial advancement from two conflicting perspectives. 

On one hand, we embark on a well publicized, well organized, high profile $250 million fund drive to increase the endowment.  The president crisscrosses the country to drum up support.  Precise goals are set and publicized and targets for this money are identified.  The university comes right out and tells all alumni "we need this, please contribute."  There is no doubt that increasing the endowment is important in the long-term health of the university and should be done. 

But on the other hand, the university has other more immediate needs that, beyond the endowment, would, if met, result in physical campus growth, application pool growth, applicant qualification improvement, enrollment growth, swelling of alumni pride, increased national brand recognition to name a few.  Yet here we never (with the exception of a FITT campaign that took ~10 years to complete) see a  well publicized, well organized, high profile fund drive for athletics. Never.  We do not see the president crisscrossing the country to drum up support.  No precise goals are set and publicized and targets for this money are not identified.  The university never comes right out and tells all alumni "we need this, please contribute."

Instead, the advancement people go about soliciting support in the background from certain wellheeled benefactors with little in the way of a cogent strategy.  For instance, is there a master plan on paper with even just conceptual blueprints for ARC renovation? Could it be broken into a series of possible options or maybe a aeries of phases (with approximate costs associated) that the entire alumni population could at least see and thus allow them/us to judge whether they/we are willing to contribute?  How can you drum up enthusiasm without a clear vision and something tangible to present? I think, given the OK by the powers that be, MLB would go out for bids for putting something like that together.  But IMO it comes back to University leadership at the top ASSUMING what they think alumni should or need to hear when it comes to fund raising.  I find that a bit disrespectful toward Valpo's body of alumni.

[vu72]

In a way, I find that Valpo speaks about financial advancement from two conflicting perspectives. 

On one hand, we embark on a well publicized, well organized, high profile $250 million fund drive to increase the endowment.  The president crisscrosses the country to drum up support.  Precise goals are set and publicized and targets for this money are identified.  The university comes right out and tells all alumni "we need this, please contribute."  There is no doubt that increasing the endowment is important in the long-term health of the university and should be done. 

But on the other hand, the university has other more immediate needs that, beyond the endowment, would, if met, result in physical campus growth, application pool growth, applicant qualification improvement, enrollment growth, swelling of alumni pride, increased national brand recognition to name a few.  Yet here we never (with the exception of a FITT campaign that took ~10 years to complete) see a  well publicized, well organized, high profile fund drive for athletics. Never.  We do not see the president crisscrossing the country to drum up support.  No precise goals are set and publicized and targets for this money are not identified.  The university never comes right out and tells all alumni "we need this, please contribute."

Instead, the advancement people go about soliciting support in the background from certain wellheeled benefactors with little in the way of a cogent strategy.  For instance, is there a master plan on paper with even just conceptual blueprints for ARC renovation? Could it be broken into a series of possible options or maybe a aeries of phases (with approximate costs associated) that the entire alumni population could at least see and thus allow them/us to judge whether they/we are willing to contribute?  How can you drum up enthusiasm without a clear vision and something tangible to present? I think, given the OK by the powers that be, MLB would go out for bids for putting something like that together.  But IMO it comes back to University leadership at the top ASSUMING what they think alumni should or need to hear when it comes to fund raising.  I find that a bit disrespectful toward Valpo's body of alumni.

Well said and I agree.  One issue however is the relatively small size of the alumni base.  The thinking, no doubt, is that if we hit them up for too many things we get none of them done. Clearly the administration(s) have felt that the Union, Library and now endowment are most pressing at the moment.  I totally agree that name recognition is vital to the value of a Valpo degree.  It is however a bit nebulous while a physical building is not.  The old library and union were no doubt keeping students from enrolling as are the constant rise of tuition.  The endowment will ease the cost by providing increased scholarship funds rather then just "discounting" tuition with nothing to back it up.  This "discounting" is in part what brought St. Joes to its current state.  When the roar of complaints coming from prospective students gets loud enough, the board will act.  At this time however the most pressing need in wrapped around controlling student costs via scholarship funds.  It is a brutally competitive world out there.  Everybody wants students, let alone top ones.  It is an arms race pure and simple.