Dear Track and Field Parents and Athletes:

The concept of an Athletic Donation is symptomatic of the times we live in. There never seems to be enough money
 to do the things that are necessary or needed. The schools are in a period of delayed gratification. That is, often we
 have to wait well after a need arises, before we can spend money to fix it. The Athletic Donation was born out of a
 need to continue the athletic programs as the district's revenue has not keep up with the spending need. Some
 districts and/or schools have cut sports, sometimes entirely, but most often they try to do with less. The Athletic
 Donation is an effort to keep our programs at a reasonable level. The donation helps to keep all of the sports at
 Cupertino High School intact. Many people believe only football benefits, but that is simply not true. This belief
 leads many parents to only support the sport(s) that their child participates in. On the one hand that is necessary and
 makes sense. However, the bigger picture is that we must also support the other sports. Every program contributes to
 the good of the other programs, and thus to the overall good of the school. Your $60 means that one third of it, $20,
 will go back to the sport for which has been donated. The athletic department supports all of the sports with the rest,
 from buying uniforms to various equipment needs. So in the end more than one third of your donation will go back to
 the your sport.

I use the money from the donations to help pay for our fees at invitational meets first.  If there is any left over, it is
used to pay for equipment.  It is a core part of my budgetary process.  It is in the team's interest that we have a high
percentage of donations.  I have not had to cut my invitational entries due to fund constraints yet.  But, if we do not
get enough donations, then that will happen.  This year we will have a larger team than we have had for a number of
years, so the budget pressure will be greater.  I do not like to do fundraisers because everyone is doing them and they
are a drain on our time and energy.  If we have a high donation rate, then we can cover our fees and maybe buy some
equipment. No team can be self-supporting. 

My very strong recommendation is that you make the suggested donation to the Athletic Department.  You can give
more than the suggested $60.  You may also give directly to the Track & Field team, but that should be after you have
made the Athletic donation. 

Paul Armstrong
Head Track and Cross Country Coach