Last week the university announced an incredibly difficult decision to discontinue five athletic programs, as well as reclassify cheer as a club sport. COVID-19 continues to create a devastating financial impact on the entire country and the university has felt that impact as well. In order to sustain our commitment to excellence in Athletics, we restructured Athletics around 11 teams. This decision places us in the best position going forward to support our student-athletes and the broader student experience, while protecting the university's commitment to provide all our students with an education anchored in Holy Cross, Catholic values.
 
Our primary focus will always be taking care of our student-athletes and that is why scholarship-eligible student-athletes impacted by the reduction in teams will have their athletic scholarships honored for the duration of their undergraduate enrollment at St. Edward's. Those wishing to transfer and compete at another institution will be given their full and immediate release.
 
St. Edward's has always known that Hilltopper student-athletes could count on the solidarity of alumni, parents, friends and the Hilltop community. True to form, the response in support of these teams has been strong. While St. Edward's will not compromise our student-athletes by running programs that are not properly funded, we have spoken with stakeholders, conducted several meetings and engaged potential funders, outlining a financial pathway to reinstatement. We understand it will be incredibly challenging to fulfill a multimillion-dollar commitment for each team and we welcome the opportunity.
 
If you would like to learn more about how you can financially support the pathway to reinstatement, please contact Tommy Gallagher, Associate Director of Development for Athletics at tgallagh@stedwards.edu.