There are
several donation opportunities that affect athletics at Cupertino
HS. The first is the Athletic Donation request. Relative to some
other schools, it is a modest $60. Some schools charge over $100 and it
is a mandatory fee. The highest that I have heard about is a
mandatory $150 per athlete per sport. The next opportunity is the
Athletic Boosters, which provides funds for equipment, special fees,
etc. that are outside the normal Athletic Department budget. The
Boosters raise money primarily through food and clothing sales at
events around school. There are fundraisers. And, of course,
there is the direct donation to a sport.
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 and sources of funds for CHS
athletics were diverted or eliminated . 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 the funding for our
programs at a reasonable level. The donation helps to keep all of the
sports at Cupertino High School intact. Many people believe that only
football program benefit, 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 you should support the sport(s) that
you are interested in, however, the big 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
donation means that one third of it, $20, will go back to the sport for
which it has been donated. (Note: One third of whatever you give will
go back to the sport for which it has been donated.) The athletic
department supports all of the sports with the rest of the donation,
from buying uniform to various equipment needs, and paying for
officials. So in the end more than one third of your donation will go
back to the sport. The Boosters support all of the sports at
Cupertino. The Cross Country and Track an Field teams have
received great support from them when I have made requests for
equipment. I do not like to do fundraisers because everyone is doing
them and puts are a drain on our time and energy for a small payback.
No team can be self-supporting in the long term, so supporting all
athletics at Cupertino is a reasonable way to go.
I believe that one of my many jobs, as a head coach, is to manage the
resources (time, money, equipment, manpower, and good will) that I have
access to effectively. I use the funds we receive to pay for our fees
at invitational meets primarily. If there is any left over, it is used
to pay for equipment. It is part of my budgetary process. It is
in the team’s interest that we have a high percentage of
donations. I have not yet cut my invitational entries due to fund
constraints. If we do not get enough donations, then that will
happen. If we have a high donation rate, then we can cover our fees,
buy some equipment, and have a little left for the following
season.
My very strong recommendation is that you make the suggested donation
to the Athletic Department first. You can give more than the
suggested $60. Join the Athletic Boosters and contribute your
time and money to their efforts. You may also give directly to the
Cross Country team, but that should be after you have made the Athletic
Donation and joined the Boosters.