Giving

All gifts—including one-time donations, endowed funds, and designated contributions from participation in the George Eastman Circle, our leadership giving society—help take athletics at Rochester to the next level.

Your contribution will help in many ways while supporting what is most meaningful to you. And by giving to Athletics, you automatically become a Friend of Rochester Athletics.

See our giving PDF to learn more.

Make a Gift

Ways to Give

Annually

Join or continue your commitment to the George Eastman Circle, the University's leadership annual giving society. Your support helps provide unrestricted resources to the athletics general fund or the athletic program of your choice, and makes an immediate impact.

Provide Endowment Support

Athletic endowment funds provide ongoing financial resources for the coaches and their teams. Giving to these funds is a commitment that supports varsity sports in perpetuity.The following is a list of these endowments and the programs they support:

Alumni Endowment for Women’s Basketball 
Created in 2015 with a gift from Louise Stapleton ’89 and Larry Williams to support the Women’s Basketball program.

Alumni Endowment for Rowing 
Created in 2015 with a gift from the Widra family to support the Men’s & Women’s Rowing programs.

Alumni Endowment for Women’s Volleyball
Created in 2015 with a gift from Jennifer A. Swift ’84 and Gary Stockman ’83 to support the Women’s Volleyball program.

Barth Family Endowment for Swimming 
Created in 2016 with a gift from Todd ’84 and Carin Barth to support the programmatic needs of the Swimming Program.

Blanck Family Endowment for Squash 
Created in 2006 with a gift from Dr. Peter D. Blanck ’79 and Wendy Jo Kislik-Blanck ’80 to support the Squash Program.

William “Buzz” Boomer Endowment for Swimming
Created in 2006 by former swimmers, family, and friends to honor Boomer and support the Swimming program.

Peter S. DiPasquale ’52 Male Scholar Award
Created in 2015 with a gift from Peter ’52 and Virginia DiPasquale to fund the award given annually to the top male scholar for academic excellence.

Terry Gurnett Endowment for Women’s Soccer
Created in 2002 with gifts from former players, family, and friends to support the Women’s Soccer program.

Terrence L. Gurnett ’77 Female Scholar Award
Created in 2017 with gifts from Mark Goldstein and other friends to fund the award given annually to the top female scholar for academic excellence.

Timothy G. Hale Endowment for Competitive Excellence
Created in 2012 with gifts from his former athletes to honor Tim and support the Cross Country and Track programs.

Peter Lyman Endowed Fund for Tennis & Squash
Created with a gift from Peter Lyman ’47 and continued to be built in memory of Peter by his former players to support the Squash and Tennis programs.

Maybaum Men’s Soccer Travel Endowment
Created in 2017 with a gift from Richard ’85 and Lauren Maybaum to support the team’s international and domestic travel occurring outside the regular season.

McAllister Fund for Basketball Travel 
Created in 2016 with a gift from Brendan ’05 and Julie ’02 McAllister to support the Men’s Basketball team’s international and domestic travel occurring outside the regular season.

Mark Nunge Endowment for Men’s Basketball 
Created in 2021 with support from Tyler Zachem ’88 and Adrian Smalls ’88 to honor the memory of teammate Mark Nunge ’89 and to support the programmatic needs of the men’s basketball program.

Peyton Family Team Academic Award 
Created in 2019 with a gift from the Peyton family to fund the award given annually to the team with the highest cumulative GPA.

Jane Possee Endowment for Women's Athletics
Created in 2011 by an anonymous donor and later supported by former players, family, and friends to honor Jane and support Women’s Athletics.

Prince Family Endowment for Men’s Soccer
Created in 2003 with a gift from Brian F. Prince ’86, ’89S (MBA) to support the Men’s Soccer program.

Recny Football Endowment
Created in 2019 with a gift from Dr. Michael Recny & Cate Sullivan to support the programmatic needs of the football program.

Rochester Baseball Endowment
Created in 2010 with a gift by the Guzski Family to support the Baseball program.

Rochester Football Alumni Endowment
Created in 2009 with a gift from Dr. Samuel Shatkin Jr. ’79, P’17 and Joni M. Shatkin P’17 to support the Football program.

Don Smith Golf Endowment Fund 
Created in 2000 by Donald C. Smith and Penelope T. Smith ’58 (MS) to support the Golf program. Subsequently supported by former members and friends of the golf team in memory of Coach Don Smith.

Pat Stark Endowed Fund for Football 
Created in 2014 with a gift from Kathleen E. Stark Landers ’82 and Peter J. Landers ’83 (MS) in honor of Coach Pat Stark to support the Football program.

Nancy Melvin Taylor Field Hockey Fund 
Created in 2004 with gifts from former teammates and family in memory of Nancy to support the Field Hockey program.

Zachem Family Endowed Fund for Men's Basketball 
Created in 2008 with a gift from Tyler T. Zachem ’88 and Karen Zachem to support the Men’s Basketball program.

Please contact Terry Gurnett ’77 at tgurnett@sports.rochester.edu if you are interested in making a gift to any of these endowments.

Contribute Toward Capital Improvements

Potential renovations and improvements to the Prince complex include upgraded equipment, training rooms, new locker rooms, team meeting spaces, the scoreboard in Fauver Stadium, and landscaping.

Rochester Athletics Locker Naming Campaign

Athletics is offering you the opportunity to leave your legacy now, so future generations of student athletes will know the impact of those who went before them.

A gift of $1,500 lets you sponsor one of the brand new lockers inside the new Boehning Varsity House, which makes up two floors dedicated to outdoors sports and is located within the Genesee Hall residential building. Established in 2017, the Boehning Varsity House is the latest addition to the Brian F. Prince Athletic Complex.

In recognition of your gift, we will inscribe your name, or name of your choice, on a plaque that will be placed within a locker for the team of your choice, including:

  • Football
  • Men's or women’s cross-country/track and field
  • Men's or women’s soccer
  • Baseball
  • Field hockey
  • Women's lacrosse
  • Softball

You have the option of engraving two lines. Each line has a 40-character limit, not including spaces. 

Choose from one of the following formatting examples:

Sue Jones '90 and Steve Jones '90

Edward Emerson '00
UR Football 1997–2000

In memory of Sue Jones '90

Seth Jones '08

Fill out the Locker Room Sponsorship Form to sponsor a locker.

Transformational Gifts

The Robert B. Goergen Athletic Center

Recognizing that a university needs high-quality facilities to attract the best students, Rochester Athletics launched an aggressive campaign in 1999 to renovate its 200,000-square-foot indoor athletic facility.

As chairman of the board of trustees during that time, Robert B. Goergen ’60 made a leadership gift and championed an effort that ultimately raised $15 million in support. In October 2000, during the University’s Sesquicentennial Weekend, the athletic center was named in his honor. Goergen has a long history of supporting the University of Rochester.

The Brian F. Prince Athletic Complex

Brian Prince ’86, ’89S (MBA) recently endowed the Brian F. Prince Athletic Complex (PAC). It comprises:

  • Fauver Stadium, a 5,000-seat, multi-sport facility
  • A baseball field
  • Outdoor tennis courts
  • Team practice areas

Prince first made a leadership gift to the University in 2002 when he established Prince Family Endowment for Men’s Soccer. Just as Goergen’s gift helped position Rochester Athletics on a national level, this endowment helps Rochester Athletics evolve into one of the elite division III programs in the country. Learn more about renovations to the Prince Outdoor Complex.

Boehning Varsity House

Former standout member of the men’s varsity soccer team Christopher Boehning ’87, ’88 (MS) and his wife, Julie, have made a leadership gift to University of Rochester Athletics. A varsity house holds the Boehning name in recognition of the family’s generous support. The Boehning Varsity House occupies the field level of Genesee Hall, the University’s newest residence hall on the south end of Fauver Stadium. It includes new locker, sports medicine, and equipment rooms for the University’s outdoor sports teams. 

Big "R" Atrium

University trustee Stephen Biggar ’92 and his wife, Elisabeth Asaro-Biggar ’92, have made a leadership gift to support athletics and data science, two leading priorities at the University of Rochester. In recognition of their gift, the entryway to Genesee Hall and the Boehning Varsity House is named the Big “R” Atrium.

The Varsity House contains new locker, sports medicine, and equipment rooms, and the atrium serves as a central gathering space as part of this latest addition to the Brian F. Prince Athletic Complex. The projects reflect an ongoing effort to improve the University’s athletic facilities, which began with an extensive renovation of the Robert B. Goergen Athletic Center in 2000.

Make a Gift