The John E. Jaqua Academic Center for Student Athletes@@http://www.archdaily.com/137141/university-of-oregon-john-e-jaqua-academic-center-for-student-athletes-zgf-architects/@@ received a $5 million donation to offset some of the operating costs of the facility, University officials announced Tuesday.
The large donation, which came directly from the Jaqua family through the Oregon Community Foundation@@http://www.oregoncf.org/@@, will establish a permanent endowment to help pay for the approximately $1.83 million in personnel, maintenance and other expenses needed to run the 40,000-square-foot tutoring center each year. The endowment will be called the John E. Jaqua Academic Center Operations Fund.@@http://uonews.uoregon.edu/archive/news-release/2012/1/university-oregon-student-athletes-get-assist-5-million-gift@@
“(The donation) was made by me to the athletics department to make sure that they were educating the athletes in a serious way,” said Robin Jaqua, wife of the late John Jaqua.@@http://uoalumni.com/s/1202/blank.aspx?sid=1202&gid=1&pgid=461@@ “It was John’s money that he had earned … and I felt he would want it to go to that effort of educating the athletes. It was his passion.”
The current return on donor-sponsored endowments, according to University Foundation rules, is set at around four percent annually. In the case of this endowment, the return will come out to approximately $200,000, all of which will go toward paying a portion of the Jaqua Center’s operations costs.
Until now, all of the fees have been incurred by the University as academic-related expenses, an arrangement that has led many to dispute the athletic department’s claim as a self-sustaining institution. The facility serves 520 athletes competing on 17 Division I teams, providing NCAA-mandated academic support through assigned course tutors.
Paul Weinhold, the president of the University’s Foundation, said the donation was not a spur-of-the-moment decision.
“I’ve been in conversations with the donor family for about a year,” Weinhold said. “It’s very important for them, and it’s a wonderful gift for the athletics department and the University.”
Officials at the Jaqua Center were quick to show their appreciation for the donation.
“The Jaqua family continues to be incredibly supportive of our student-athletes and the University of Oregon,” said Steve Stolp@@http://ssa.uoregon.edu/staff.html@@, the building administrator and executive director of Services for Student-Athletes, in a press release. “With an endowment for the operating costs of the facility, we will send an important message to current and prospective students about the quality of the University’s support for student success.”