EAST LANSING, Mich. — Battle for Spartan Swim and Dive is making progress towards getting the team reinstated. The group created a reinstatement budget proposal and they are scheduled to meet with university officials to discuss it this week.
“The proposal really is a pretty detailed approach to addressing each issue that Bill Beekman said was the cause or at least the proximate cause of the termination of the program at the time,” said Tom Munley, an alumni and form 1996 swimmer.
According to Munley, they were told the program was cut due to pool facility issues, financial issues, and because the program wasn't competitive enough.
“Then there's the alumni engagement and support, which again, one of the critiques that we heard after the fact was they felt that the alumni were not supportive of the program,” he said.
The group's proposal includes a list of alumni support plans, a reinstatement budget with statistics and a list of prospective donors, and more.
“This is all on our alumni, parents/supporters stepping up to the plate and saying, 'Hey, like if the program is brought back, we will commit this.' And that's, you know, over 10 and a half million dollars in just pledges, existing endowments and donations,” said Mindy Arbuagh, an MSU alumna and former 1996 swimmer.
While the university cut the swim and dive team due to facility issues with the current pool, we're told the university is now planning to build a health and wellness fitness center which may include a new pool, but that decision has not been finalized. So The Battle for Spartan Swim and Dive proposal suggests that the swim and dive team use this new pool.
“Having a new facility at Michigan State, a new 50 meter indoor facility will bring in a tremendous amount of revenue potential for the university as well,” said Arbaugh.
The Battle for Spartan Swim and Dive will be meeting with Vivian Leung of MSU University Advancement and Rebecca Surian of the Spartan Fund on July 20 to discuss the budget proposal. This meeting is happening a day before the Title IX lawsuit hearing between the women of the swim and dive team and MSU.
Want to see more local news? Visit the FOX47News Website.
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere.
Sign up for newsletters emailed to your inbox.
Select from these options: Neighborhood News, Breaking News, Severe Weather, School Closings, Daily Headlines, and Daily Forecasts.
