OXFORD, Ohio - Miami Intercollegiate Athletics announced that it has launched the Miami Athletic Fund. The move is aimed at increasing visibility of the university's fund-raising effort to broaden participation in athletics to a wider range of supporters around the world. The MAF will serve as an umbrella under which all giving to athletics will occur, recognizing donor support beyond just annual scholarships in the Red & White Club. This will include all philanthropic gifts elevating the student-athlete experience in the pursuit of the mission to continue Graduating Champions.

"The Miami Athletic Fund recognizes the tremendous growth in charitable giving we have seen over the past several years," said David Sayler Director of Athletics at Miami University. "As we move forward and continue to serve our university community, Miami Athletics increasingly relies on the generosity of our loyal donors who invest and impact the lives of our student-athletes. Whether you are passionate about scholarships, facilities or impacting the programs directly, the Miami Athletic Fund provides greater impact opportunities that are more comprehensive and better positions the department for future growth and success."
 
Since 2012 Miami Athletics has generated nearly $100 million in pledges and support. About half of this support has created new facilities like the Dauch Indoor Sports Complex and Athletic Performance Center while making drastic improvements at several other facilities. The other half has been invested in scholarships and other programmatic support focused on enhancing the overall student-athlete experience.  Annual cash has increased more than 200% in the past five fiscal years compared to the previous five years in cumulative giving.

The Red and White Club has operated as the annual scholarship fund for Miami Athletics and has been the primary means for of channeling gifts to support student-athlete scholarships. Additionally, it served as the sole fund tied to points and benefits for season tickets holders throughout the year. Under the new model, the Red and White Club becomes the Red and White Fund, and Miami Athletics will continue to prioritize and reward gifts in support of scholarships. Gifts to the Red and White Fund will continue to receive a higher loyalty point level.
 
"The creation of the Miami Athletic Fund is symbolic to the growth of athletic development at Miami University and an ever-changing world of college athletics that we live in today," said Senior Associate Athletic Director Jon Schemmel. "This donor-centric model was created to be simple and inclusive for all of our friends, fans and supporters."
 
"At the same time, we've minimized the changes for our loyal Red and White Club members while expanding our message and preparing for future growth. The Miami Athletic Fund is designed to help us reach a new audience by providing donors with more choice and ensuring them more access accordingly. Whether loyalty points and benefits are important to you or not, the Miami Athletic Fund is something all Miamians can rally around and directly impact our 500 student-athletes."
 
This past year, Miami Athletics raised an all-time high of $9.446 million in total annual cash, with contributions to the Red and White Club accounting for $1.1 million of that total; however, only Red and White Club donors were eligible for loyalty points and benefit levels. The Miami Athletic Fund establishes a model where all donors to all funds are eligible for loyalty points and benefit levels.
 
As part of the Miami Athletic Fund launch, we are also switching to a calendar operating year. Any fan who makes a donation before December 31, 2019 will be eligible for benefits for the 2020-21 season. Additionally, all donations made before December 13 will increase loyalty points for bowl ticket allocation!

For more information, please visit www.miamiathleticfund.org or contact the Miami Athletic Fund staff directly at (513) 529-0422 or  miamiathleticfund@miamioh.edu. Facebook @MiamiATHLFund, Twitter @Miami_ATHLFund