|
UC San Diego Supports Division II Athletics
Program with Addition of New Development Officer
Diana Philippi joins UC San Diego to help cultivate support for Triton Athletics
Jade Berggren | January 16, 2006
The University of California, San Diego (UCSD) has expanded its athletics program fundraising efforts with the recent appointment of Diana Philippi as associate director of development for Athletics. In her new role, the former San Diego State University assistant athletic director and director of the Aztec Athletic Foundation will manage fundraising activities for the UC San Diego Intercollegiate Athletics program. The UCSD Tritons boast a total of 29 national championships in seven different team sports, 110 individual national championships and more than 800 student-athletes named All-Americans.
|
| Diana Philippi |
|
Philippi will work with Intercollegiate Athletics to garner private support for further expansion and enrichment of the university’s program. According to a recent report released by the former president of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), Cedric Dempsey, UCSD Athletics is underfunded by more than $1 million for its size and caliber. Enhanced development efforts will focus on building more community awareness of the university’s program, student-athlete recruitment, funding team travel, maintenance of facilities and equipment and overall continued advancement of UCSD Athletics, which is currently in Division II of the NCAA.
The creation of the new development position precedes an athletics fee referendum slated to appear on the upcoming winter quarter ballot. UCSD undergraduates will vote on whether to take on an additional $78 per quarter to support the advancement of the Triton Athletics program, in part by providing scholarships to student-athletes. Never before in UCSD’s history have athletic scholarships been awarded, however based on a recent NCAA mandate, Division II programs are now required to provide at least $250,000 in aid to student-athletes.
“We are very excited to have Diana on board with us,” said Earl W. Edwards, director of Athletics at UCSD. “To have a person of her caliber who is totally dedicated to raising funds for intercollegiate athletics puts us in a great position to achieve our goal of becoming the premier NCAA Division II program in the country. Diana’s position within the UCSD Development Office will give us a distinct advantage in finding the right donors who want to be a part of the Triton family.”
Philippi brings to her position extensive higher education experience in management and fundraising for athletics departments. As director of San Diego State University’s Aztec Athletic Foundation, she raised $1.6 million during a 10-week fundraising effort on behalf of the university. At the University of Nevada, Las Vegas where she was director of the Rebel Athletic Fund, she managed the university athletic department’s annual giving campaign—raising $3.2 million during 2005 alone.
Philippi is a member of the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics and National Association of Athletic Development Directors, and served as co-chair of the Mountain West Conference Development Committee from 2005-2006. She is also a competitive Masters swimmer and frequent marathon competitor.
Gifts to the UC San Diego Athletics program contribute to the $1 billion fundraising goal of The Campaign for UCSD: Imagine What’s Next.
About UCSD Athletics
The UC San Diego Athletics program is recognized nationally for its athletic achievements. In the Fall of 2000, UCSD moved from the NCAA Division III to Division II and joined the California Collegiate Athletic Association, widely recognized as one of the premier Division II conferences in the nation. In addition to winning a total of 29 national championships and boasting water polo and volleyball programs which are among the top in the country, UCSD student-athletes have also excelled in the classroom. At one of the most rigorous academic institutions in the United States, more than 60 percent of the more than 600 student-athletes carry cumulative GPAs of 3.00 or above and the average GPA of that group is higher than the average of the UCSD student body at-large. Twenty UCSD alumni athletes earned NCAA Post-Graduate Scholarships and 126 Tritons have been recognized as Academic All-Americans.
About The Campaign for UCSD: Imagine What’s Next
Since its founding just 45 years ago, the University of California, San Diego has rapidly achieved status as one of the top institutions in the nation for higher education and research. To keep UCSD at the forefront of academic and research excellence, the university launched The Campaign for UCSD: Imagine What’s Next in July 2000. Donations to the comprehensive $1 billion fundraising campaign will help support students and faculty, expand academic programs, fund research endeavors and strengthen innovation funds to meet the highest priority needs. The Campaign for UCSDhas generated over $950 million to date, with $50 million to raise before the campaign concludes in June 2007. For more information, please visit www.campaign.ucsd.edu. |
|
|
