In the coming weeks, all 23 of our sports will simultaneously be in competitive seasons – a far cry from the typical rhythm of fall, winter and spring. The volume and pace as we seek to train and compete as safely and fiscally responsibly as possible will stretch our capacities to the limit, particularly in support areas like sports medicine, facilities management, sports information and more. On behalf of all our student-athletes, coaches and fans, let me offer an early Valentine of appreciation for all the folks who make it possible for the Tribe to train and compete.
 
In February, we celebrate Black History Month by reflecting on the accomplishments and contributions of African Americans, even as we press on in the work to make our shared value of Belonging felt throughout the William & Mary community and beyond. We also recognized National Girls and Women in Sport Day earlier this week, the 35th annual occasion to celebrate their accomplishments and the positive impact of athletics participation.
 
Alongside those far greater celebrations of progress, I'm pleased to share that W&M Athletics is advancing toward our critical fundraising goals:

• We reached our March 1 target for FY21 funds six weeks early. Thanks to each donor who has generously supported the Tribe in recent months, we anticipate being able to operate this spring without additional personnel actions. We continue to encourage giving in ways that ensure FY21 financial needs are met, such as the Athletics Impact Fund or gifts to teams that have not yet achieved their goal.
• On behalf of every coach and staff member, thank you. We will continue to be fiscally responsible and stretch every dollar.
• Through January 29, our donors have contributed more than $3 million in expendable funds – the earliest in a fiscal year that we've ever reached that level. That's 76% of our $4M goal for FY21 (by June 30).
• Four programs, swimming, men's tennis, track & field and volleyball have now reached their annual giving targets for the year. A fifth, women's gymnastics, is very close to joining that group. 

As I've said, W&M Athletics is only able to compete in the highest division of NCAA athletics because of the caliber of William & Mary people. Each year, more than 15% of our budget comes from annual giving – a budget already stretched thin. Simply put, without sustained annual giving, W&M Athletics would be unable to operate at the level we do. In conversations with donors in recent months, many shared they were unaware of the ongoing need. We've got to continue to openly convey the need, inviting everyone to be part of the solution.
 
We're also off to a strong start on our gender equity review, a comprehensive study of the department. We're entering a phase in which we'll conduct meetings with head coaches and student-athlete representatives. Peel Hawthorne, our Senior Associate AD/Senior Woman Administrator with more than 30 years of experience as a coach and administrator, is coordinating the effort on behalf of W&M Athletics. We continue to expect the review to conclude with a report by June 30, 2021, and that will inform our equity plan scheduled for the end of August. I'll share more on this topic in my next update.
 
There is a lot of work ahead on a number of fronts, and I welcome your thoughts.

• I've added virtual office hours each week in which student-athletes can meet directly with me. For alumni and friends, I'll hold virtual office hours on Thursday, February 11, and Tuesday, February 16 (Zoom links on the dates). Feel free to stop by.
• My goal is also to meet with more of you through the Zoom gatherings of alumni and friends for each sport. If you still need to receive the information for your program's meeting, please reach out to the Tribe Club (trbclb@wm.edu).
• As always, you can email me at athleticdir@wm.edu and we'll be launching a website later this month that will be a centralized location of information about athletics finances, gender equity and our planning process.

 In the meantime, and as always, go Tribe!
 
All the best,
Jeremy
 
PS-For those of you who are visual leaners like me, here's a comparison of a normal year to 2020-21. That early Valentine is well deserved.