After watching athletes in brand new Nike warm-ups open their Whitworth mailbox to find a campus-wide letter telling students the price of tuition and room and board has been raised for next year, it sparked a question. How are athletics affected by all of these financial changes?
Now, surely if the basketball team did not have team shoes or the baseball had one less set of practice jerseys, it would not solve the rising cost of college, but it does make you take a second look as athletes crack open boxes of new equipment while students continue to write bigger checks for school.
Some higher budget sports, such as basketball, consolidate their funding by making use of some of the equipment over the four-year span of the athlete. The athlete most likely will pay a discounted price to the team in exchange for apparel that will be used throughout his/her Whitworth career.
“Our parkas and our sweat suits are for all four years," freshman basketball player Michael Taylor said. "The only thing that comes in new is our shoes. We paid a hundred bucks for a parka, sweats and shoes.”
One must also take in to account basketball is a sport that generates profit for the school through ticket sales, concessions and potentially other behind-the-scenes income generators such as media contracts.
In 2007, Whitworth stated in their 2006 tax form, Form 990, it generated $187,748 in program service revenue from institutes and athletic events. Although the amount generated solely at basketball games is not specified, one could make a connection between the healthy financial practices of the men’s basketball team and the revenue they produce for the school.
What about all the traveling expenses though? Every year the men’s and women’s tennis teams, along with other teams, take spring break trips. Both teams have the same budget as last year.
This year both teams will be traveling to Hilton Head Island off the coast of South Carolina with the majority of expenses paid for, but similar to the basketball team, this trip is only possible with player contribution.
“We are all paying $300 dollars (each) to go on the trip,” sophomore tennis player Henry Williams said.
So, although that same athlete is still wearing the same brand new pair of Nike warm-ups opens his or her mailbox to find a letter few students are eager to open, students can rest assured the rise in the cost of college is not going toward expanding their team sponsored shoe collection.
Contact Colin Zalewski at colin.zalewski@whitworthian.com.
The Whitworthian > Special Features > Cost of College
Tuition increases unaffected by athletic costs
Published: Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Updated: Friday, March 6, 2009 11:03
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