Cal Poly Athletics launches new philanthropy program

Cal Poly Athletics launched The Stampede, an official philanthropy program for donations directly to Mustang Athletics. 

Cal Poly is a mid-major school in NCAA Division I, and lacks the resources that other power conference schools have to generate funding. The main reason behind launching this program is because Cal Poly Athletics relies heavily on donor investment. 

The Stampede’s website has direct links for supporters to donate to individual teams. According to its website, donations go into sport-specific funds that will support resources “including nutrition, training, technology, and each program’s greatest coaching needs.” 

The program is separate from the former “Stampede Club,” which focused on season tickets and game-day hospitality. Additionally, purchasing season tickets does not automatically guarantee membership to The Stampede.

“In creating The Stampede, our goal was to create an accessible, consistent, and engaging way for Mustang fans and supporters to invest in Cal Poly Athletics,” Director of Athletics Carter Henderson wrote in an email to Mustang News.

The team behind the program, led by Senior Associate Athletics Director Uri Farkas, wanted to build a program that could generate critical resources for Cal Poly Athletics and provide people the opportunity to support the mid-major program. 

“Creating a unified giving platform is something many of our peer athletics departments have had great success with over the years,” Henderson said. “We wanted to build something that felt uniquely Cal Poly while giving supporters meaningful opportunities to engage with Mustang Athletics at different levels.”

The Stampede went into effect Sept. 17, and new members can join on the program’s website. According to Henderson, the Cal Poly Athletics team wanted to ensure that supporters had the opportunity to begin participating right away.

“Donors will still have the opportunity to support specific teams and priorities, but their support will all live within a common giving society,” Henderson wrote. 

Membership levels fall across tiers and were created based on affordability, Cal Poly Athletics’ ability to provide benefits and the amount of support necessary to fund the program’s priorities. 

Henderson wrote to Mustang News that the ultimate goal for this program is to create a community of Mustang supporters who are invested in the success of student athletes.