Mines Athletics receives $6.5 million donation for scholarships, facilities

Orediggers plan to build cross-country training course this summer

BY CORINNE WESTEMAN CWESTEMAN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

A major donation to Colorado School of Mines Athletics will bene t Orediggers for the next 20 years, at least.

Mines Athletics recently received a $6.5 million donation — one of the largest in school history — from an anonymous donor. More than $5 million will go toward scholarships, while the remaining $1.2 million will help renovate the Stermole Track & Field Complex and build a new cross-country training course.

Not only will these funds help Mines recruit against NCAA Division I and Division II schools, but it’ll bene t generations of Orediggers even after graduation, Athletic Director David Hansburg said. “Our student-athletes are truly students rst,” he continued. “ … It has a lifetime of impact, with what these kids do with their degrees once they’re done here.” e total cost of attendance for in-state students is about $40,000, while it’s closer to $60,000 for out-ofstate students, Sparks and Hansburg said. Plus, because Mines is a NCAA us, many younger athletes start as walk-ons or receive a few thousand dollars in scholarships, Sparks explained. But, as they improve and develop, the coaches allot them more scholarship funding. e last few years have been especially tricky, as there are still Orediggers with the extra COVID-19 year of eligibility on the roster. So, Sparks said, the coaches are “spreading those dollars out among ve years’ (of student-athletes) rather than four

Hansburg said the $5 million for scholarships will be set up as a quasi-endowment, generating about $450,000 a year over the next 20 years.

Hansburg said donors, like this one, sometimes ask what the greatest needs are at Mines Athletics, wanting to fund the teams or projects that don’t have as much support. Across the 20 years’ quasiendowment, Mines will likely use the funding for 10-12 of its 18 sports, he stated.

However, teams that aren’t fully funded — meaning they haven’t met their NCAA scholarship funding limit yet — will bene t the most from this donation. ey include cross country, track & eld, swimming, wrestling and men’s golf, Hansburg explained.

Coach Matt Sparks, the head coach of the indoor and outdoor track & eld teams, described how the cross country and track teams spread scholarship funding among their 90 combined athletes. e NCAA cap is 12.5 scholarships per gender, and the teams haven’t met that cap yet.

Division II school, there aren’t fullride athletic scholarships.

While 2023-24 should be nal one with a ve-year roster, Sparks said this donation’s scholarship funding will provide a huge, immediate boost to his teams and others.

“It’s an early jumpstart and gives us some momentum for next year,” he continued. “ … It’s a big di erence in recruiting. … We’re in a position where we can continue to build, instead of maintain.”

New running facilities

For the $1.2 million toward facilities, Mines Athletics will use the funds toward building its crosscountry training course this summer and updating Stermole Track & Field Complex next summer. How exactly the funds will be split between the projects is still being determined, sta members stated.

e cross-country training course’s design is also still in the works, but Hansburg said it will be near Mines Park on the southwest side of campus, and will likely have 1K and 2K loops. Hansburg hoped it’ll be built and nished by the time the 2023 cross country season starts.

e Orediggers currently train at Denver-area parks, but this will save them travel time that they could use to study, Hansburg described.

Sparks added how other Mines teams, like track and wrestling, could use it also, weather permitting.

Meanwhile, Stermole needs “some TLC,” Sparks said, as it hasn’t been renovated since it was built. It also needs to be more NCAA compliant, so Mines can host bigger track & eld meets, which will help with recruiting and training.

e project, which is slated for next summer, will include redoing the jumps and throws areas, and updating the arti cial turf inside the track, Hansburg said.

Overall, Oredigger supporters are excited to see so many Mines teams excelling right now, and Hansburg said donations like this will help them build on that success to achieve new heights in the coming years.

“I’m proud of the work we’re doing at Mines, and I think this (donation) is a testament to what we’re doing here as an institution overall,” he continued. “ … You don’t see (donations of this size) often at other schools; but at Mines, it’s de nitely more common.”