Bellarmine University fundraising campaign passes $9 million with two large anonymous donations

Recently, Bellarmine University has received two gifts totalling $350,000 from longtime, but otherwise anonymous, donors. These gifts have pushed Bellarmine’s fundraising campaign past the $9 million mark, bringing the school ever closer to its fundraising goal of $10 million. 

The fundraising campaign is called Bellarmine Rising and is a strategic initiative that was announced back in 2019. Its goal is to improve the school’s athletics program to NCAA Division I from Division II, which will expand the University’s reach and which will bring more awareness to the school and increase enrollment.

In an article posted on Bellarmine’s website, the University’s president Susan M. Donovan was quoted speaking about the reasoning behind selecting athletics for investment, saying, “Our teams represent how athletics, done the right way, can elevate a university and help it transform students’ lives through teamwork, leadership and community engagement. Bellarmine Rising allows us to share our commitment to a well-rounded student-athlete experience—and our commitment to academic excellence for all our students—with a larger audience than ever before. We are grateful to the donors who believe in our mission and who are supporting our rise to national prominence.”  

Bellarmine Rising has diverted no money from academics in its drive to support the athletic transition to DI. The plan set a limit for the amount of university spending for athletics at the same level it was back in 2019, and then set a fundraising goal of $10 million more to pay for the equipment upgrades, operational expenses, and facility upgrades needed to reach DI status.

The two recent gifts were for $100,000 and $250,000 and represent a huge leap forward for Bellarmine Athletics.

Athletics director Scott Wiegandt talked about the donors who have given so far, saying, “We are so appreciative of the donors who have supported Bellarmine Rising. We hold our student-athletes to a high standard both on and off the field of play, and with the help of our supporters we are able to provide them with the excellent facilities and academic assistance they need to succeed.”

The opportunity to rise to DI for Bellarmine came from an invitation from the ASUN Conference, which contains member schools largely based in the southeastern states, and began competing at that level starting in the 2020-21 school year. 

In order for a school to rise to DI, it has to go through a four year transitional period before it can compete in the NCAA Tournament. However, in only its second year of this transitional period, Bellarmine’s men’s basketball team won the 2022 ASUN championship, surpassing expectations and leading many to wonder if the NCAA’s rules should be changed to accommodate such successes. 

The team’s success in the ASUN championship has garnered quite the buzz with over 3.7 billion media impressions within a week and coverage by large media outlets such as USA Today, the Associated Press, MSN, Yahoo, CBS Sports, The New York Times, and ESPN. The level of exposure is in line with what the university wanted with the change to DI.

Donovan talked about the future of the athletics program, saying, “With proper oversight and a commitment to excellence on the court and in the classroom, athletics has the power to showcase strong, mission-driven academic institutions. Bellarmine’s rise to DI is allowing us to share the Bellarmine story on a larger stage than ever before.”

Anyone interested in contributing to the Bellarmine Rising fund can visit the university’s giving page.

More information about Bellarmine University can be found at the school’s website.