Seminole fans, eager to see their sports teams succeed, are genuinely interested in knowing what Florida State Athletics needs and, importantly, how their contribution will help to achieve the program’s goals.
This will be the first in a series of One Tribe Campaign articles designed to communicate the essential needs of FSU Athletics and to share how fans can help fund those needs with a membership contribution (as little as $70 per year) to Seminole Boosters.
“Membership in Seminole Boosters is the lifeblood of the athletics budget,” said Michael Alford, Seminole Boosters CEO. “Your membership funds scholarships and essential services for more than 500 student-athletes.”
But exactly what does your contribution fund?
These One Tribe Campaign articles will cover each of the essential areas of need, which funds the salaries of more than 100 employees who serve the needs of 500-plus student-athletes. The campaign seeks to fund the cost of the following student services, which account for $38 million of FSU’s $80 million athletics budget:
- Scholarships
- Sports Medicine
- Nutrition
- Professional Development
- Strength and Conditioning
- Coaches
- COVID-19 Expenses
- Equipment
Scholarships
The largest portion of your contribution funds the cost of scholarships ($11.6 million) for Florida State’s student-athletes. A Florida State athletics scholarship pays the cost of tuition, room and board, books, fees and living expenses for more than 500 student-athletes, many of whom are the first of their family to attend college.
“An individual Seminole Booster member donated the money that helped pay for my scholarship and I’d like to tell them thank you,” said Bryant McFadden, who was a second-round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2005 NFL draft and is now an NFL football analyst and podcast host. “Because of that opportunity I think I became a better individual than I would have without the luxury of the scholarship and I’m going to do everything in my power to be influential in another young person’s life.”
McFadden credits Florida State with helping him develop a can do attitude in life.
“A lot of us come from different situations. When you don’t have the resources to change those situations you are stagnant but because of our donors, our Boosters create a resource for a lot of individuals to change the direction of their life,” McFadden added. “As a donor, you are extremely important. (The student-athletes and coaches) respect you and appreciated you and are so thankful you decided to become a Booster for one of the best institutions in the United States.”
Cost of attendance Scholarship Value
Category — In State — Out of State
Tuition — $5,666 — $18,796
Housing — $6,604 — $6,604
Board — $4,484 — $4,484
Books/supplies — $1,000 — $1,000
Transportation — $1,400 — $2,716
Personal — $3,982 — $3,982
Totals — $23,136 — $37,582
Donor Impact
Thanks to the contributions of our Seminole Booster members, FSU is able to fully fund scholarships for all of our men’s and women’s teams, which has enabled them to compete at the highest level in all sports. Since 2015, Florida State has achieved the second-highest overall winning percentage of the 357 Division 1 programs (UCLA is No. 1).
While compiling those wins, Florida State’s student-athletes have earned an all-time high grade point average above 3.0.
In addition to winning games and gaining knowledge, FSU’s student-athletes are learning the value of giving back to the community with more than 6,500 hours of community outreach in the typical year.
Your Seminole Booster membership helps FSU Athletics develop these future leaders who will contribute to society as outstanding citizens.
Rewards and Benefits for 2021
In addition to the intrinsic feeling of assisting the program and our student-athletes, Seminole Booster members receive tangible benefits as well as ticket and parking priority.
Contribution Reward
$70-$329 One Tribe Vinyl Decal
$330-$1,299 One Tribe Hat
$1,300-$6,499. One Tribe Polo
$6,500-plus. Mike Norvell Autographed Football
One Tribe Campaign
Florida State University is a preeminent, Top 20 public institution, and ranked number two athletically among all Division I institutions (357) for overall winning percentage since 2015.
In a quest to achieve more, we are excited to announce the launch of the One Tribe Campaign!
Your 2021 Annual Fund contribution will strengthen our Annual Membership in support of the following areas of Athletics: coaching, support staff, sports medicine, academics, mental health, nutrition, scholarships, professional development and COVID-19 response.
Progress Tracker
2021 Members: $2,016 (15.3 percent to goal)
2021 Pledges: $2,865,134 (19 percent to goal)
Thank you
Thank you for your continued support of Florida State Athletics! We simply could not compete for championships or provide the educational and leadership opportunities for student-athletes without you. You are a vital part of the team. If you have questions about giving or benefits, or would like to make a contribution over the phone, please call us at (850) 644-1830 or visit seminoleboosters.com.
“I’m very, very, very, very appreciative or our Seminole Booster donors,” said Jashaun Corbin, a junior runningback from Rockledge. “Very thankful they have invested into us. The resources and money they’re putting into us is not being taken lightly. We very much appreciate it. We’re very thankful.
“We try to show our gratitude by doing community service and being the best student athletes we can. We’re just thankful for their support.”
Renardo Green, a wide receiver from Wekiva High School, would like Seminole Booster members to know he considers them an important member of the team.
“Even though they’re not with us every day, like the coaches are, even though we don’t see them every day, they’re still a part of the family because without them, a lot of this stuff wouldn’t be available. We won’t be able to do it at all,” Green said. “So, I think they’re very much a part of our family.”
Does Every Student-Athlete Receive A Full Scholarship?
Most do, but many receive only a partial scholarship. Each year, approximately 350 students receive an athletic scholarship. We maintain 246.2 full athletic scholarships, the maximum number of scholarships allowed under NCAA rules, for each of our men and women’s sports.
What Does A Scholarship Cover?
A full scholarship includes tuition, meals, books, materials, housing and miscellaneous or cost of attendance expenses. Athletic scholarships provide both in-state and out-of-state tuition. In addition to the fall and spring semesters, scholarships also cover student athletes expenses during summer sessions and pre-and post-school periods.
How Much Does A Scholarship Cost?
For the 2019-20 school year, the AVERAGE cost of an in-state, undergrad athletic scholarship was approximately $23,146 and out-of-state, undergrad was $37,582.00. Our student-athletes are divided equally between Florida residents and non-Florida residents.
Who Pays For The Scholarships?
The Athletic Department is required to pay all of the student-athletes’ scholarship expenses, including tuition. Gifts from annual Seminole Booster donors (Golden Chief, Silver Chief, Tomahawk, etc.) are transferred to the Athletic Department to fund those costs.
Providing scholarships for its students is the most important function of the Athletic Department. However, these scholarship costs are one of the largest items in the athletic budget. Those costs are $11.6 million this past year.
Why Are Scholarship Costs Rising So Fast?
Florida State University has always been one of the best bargains in America for a great education. Until recently, our tuition has been one of the lowest in the country. The University has been forced to substantially raise in-state tuition. More important to athletics, where half of its students come from outside Florida, the University has increased out-of-state tuition rates more.
Additionally, the NCAA’s progress rule (how a student is progressing toward graduation, as well as the cost of attendance, have increased the overall cost due to summer school and student expenses.
What Is An Endowment?
An endowment fund is one whose principal stays intact, while a portion of the earnings (traditionally 5 percent of the corpus) is gifted for a specific purpose. The portion of the annual earnings not gifted is left in the corpus, allowing the fund to grow. Because a donor’s original endowment gift remains intact, he or she is making a gift that will give in perpetuity.
At an earnings rate of 5%, it would take a gift of $449,120 to fully fund an in-state, undergraduate scholarship and $736,080 to fully fund an out-of-state, undergraduate scholarship.
