the summit club: elevating our game.
ever pressing forward
The opportunity to return to St. Paul after spending time in intercollegiate athletics across the country was one on which my family and I couldn’t pass. As Dani and I are both alumni, it was a proverbial once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to serve our alma mater and give back to a place that has meant so much to our family. Little did I know that less than three years later, we would be presented with the challenge of being the first school in modern NCAA history to transition directly from Division III to Division I athletics. What we have accomplished during this timeframe is truly remarkable. Together we have embraced this move and the idea of comprehensive excellence for our student-athletes. Our vision to prepare student-athletes as future leaders by boldly pursuing comprehensive excellence is at the forefront of everything we do. You have helped to shape future leaders through their learning in the classroom, interactions in our community, experiences building their character and success in their competitive venues.
This move signals a momentous step forward for St. Thomas. We’re capturing national attention and raising our institutional profile while attracting a more racially , geographically and socioeconomically diverse group of students to the university. These student-athletes are the future leaders who will add value to our communities and will work to advance the common good in their careers. You have helped make this happen through your investment. Together with your support, we have established an expectation of excellence and laid the groundwork for a successful future. I cannot thank you enough for believing in our vision, investing in our comprehensive excellence and being a part of this historic journey. Roll Toms!
-Phil Esten Vice President Director of Intercollegiate Athletics
Summit Club and financials
We are proud of our student-athletes and all that we have accomplished in our bold transition to D-I. These achievements were made possible through the generosity, leadership and wise counsel of our key supporters and trusted advisory team, the Summit Club.
THANK YOU, SUMMIT CLUB MEMBERS! • Pat and Ann Ryan (chair) • John and Rebecca Allen • Todd and Dawn Caven • Mike and Ann Ciresi • Joe Ryan and Tracy Constable • Mike and Kathy Dougherty
• Tim and Susan Flynn • Ron and Alexis Fowler • Jeremy and Tricia Hedberg • David and Teresa John • John and Susan Morrison • Joe and Mary Mulvehill
The Summit Club serves as the primary advisory committee for the vice president and director of athletics to support the advancement of D-I initiatives. We will increase this philanthropic leadership by continuing to grow Summit Club membership.
catapulting into a new era
FUNDRAISING The Tommie Athletic Fund provides the financial support for the D-I transition and beyond. In the first year, over 500 donors supported these efforts, providing a holistic student- athlete experience that preserves our St. Thomas values and mission and powers our pursuit of comprehensive excellence. • Generated over $12M in student- athlete support since launching fund in Oct. 2020, which encompassed the university’s FIRST THREE NAMED ATHLETIC SCHOLARSHIPS • Over 53% of donors were either brand new supporters or had been lapsed donors • The fund closed 21 MAJOR GIFTS IN ITS FIRST YEAR , including 10 GIFTS COMMITTED AT $1M+
FUNDRAISING PROGRESS
$12M
$11M
$10M
$9,792,085
$9M
$8M
$7M
$6M
$5M
$4M
$3M
$2,802,196 (as of Feb. 14)
$2M
$1M
$508,168
$0M
FY20
FY21
FY22
Making a powerful impact
550 STUDENT-ATHLETES PROUDLY REPRESENT ST. THOMAS
The decision to reclassify to Division I represents nothing less than the relentless pursuit of comprehensive excellence. We’re making our presence known in new markets and attracting a more diverse cross section of student-athletes who are accomplished in and out of the classroom. We’re competing at a more dynamic level, building the pride, spirit and loyalty of our fans and creating a more engaged community of alumni, donors, students, faculty, staff and Minnesota residents. D-I athletics is helping tell our story of excellence on a bigger stage, broadening the impact that St. Thomas can have regionally, nationally and even globally.
FROM 26 STATES AND 6 COUNTRIES
the relentless pursuit of comprehensive excellence
“When you're applying those same expectations of all-around excellence and then looking for someone who might be taller or run faster or tackle harder … you have to expand the footprint of where you're looking. The core values and mission of our school is something I’m simply not willing to bend on.” - Glenn Caruso, Football head coach
Exceptional performance
The mission of intercollegiate athletics is to provide conditions for success so that student-athletes can pursue and achieve comprehensive excellence – in the classroom and the community, building character and competition. Equipped with dedicated study space and two highly skilled, full-time academic support staff, the new Student-Athlete Academic Center is designed to bring that mission to life, ensuring that our Tommie athletes are as successful in the classroom as they are on the field. Director Michelle Smith Ware and Associate Director Keturah Cox are leading the development of a sustainable structure for academic support services, including advising resources and programs for student-athletes to explore career options and opportunities that enrich their intercollegiate experience.
270 HAVE A CUMULATIVE GPA OF 3.5 OR BETTER
set yourself up to set yourself apart
6 HOURS OF DEDICATED STUDY TIME EACH WEEK REQUIRED OF ALL FIRST-YEAR STUDENT-ATHLETES
105 DIFFERENT MAJORS REPRESENTED ACROSS 5 COLLEGES AND SCHOOLS
3.41 CUMULATIVE STUDENT-ATHLETE GPA (FALL 2021)
“Comprehensive excellence will continue to be the barometer of success as we transition to Division I. Our student-athletes demonstrated their commitment to their academics again last semester. I’m personally very proud of their collective efforts.” - Phil Esten, Vice President and Director of Athletics
30 STUDENT-ATHLETES WITH A PERFECT 4.0 GPA
Community impact
Our holistic approach to student-athlete development shapes Tommies who are leaders on campus today and are prepared to make a positive impact in their communities and careers tomorrow. After deep conversations about racial injustice in the wake of the May 2020 killing of George Floyd, students, faculty and staff in the Athletics Department came together to create “Shed A Little Light,” named after a James Taylor song about peace and unity. In a few short month, the efforts have generated increased diversity, equity and inclusion dialogue, voter registration programs, educational opportunities and many other important initiatives that represent our commitment to the holistic student-athlete experience.
don't just shine. illuminate.
"A lot of times people don't want to talk about things because it can be super uncomfortable, but people are coming to the table and talking about challenging issues. And it's messy, but that's the only way you're ever going to make progress.” -Kaia Porter ’22, Women’s basketball player and chair of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee Racial Justice Group
“Part of that empathy piece is being able to listen to one another and trying to understand even though you haven't been in a similar situation.”
- Jack Nasby ‘23, Men’s golf team captain and Student-Athlete Advisory Committee president
Classroom. Community. Character. Competition.
“One of the best pieces of advice I got from my St. Thomas baseball coaches was to learn to become your best coach.” -Jake Smith ’18, Former student baseball player
Jake has boldly pursued comprehensive excellence on the baseball field at St. Thomas, during a season of pro ball with the St. Paul Saints and in several entrepreneurship ventures. Now back at St. Thomas as the director of gBETA, a partnership
of the Schulze School of Entrepreneurship, and gener8tor, a nationally ranked startup accelerator, he’s providing valuable mentoring and coaching for St. Thomas students and alumni to help launch new enterprises.
believing in something bigger than yourself
“I’ve learned so much about who I am, what I’m good at, what I want to do, and what I want to contribute to my community in the future.” - Fran Egan ’22, Captain of the volleyball team
Fran is a first-generation college student studying human resources management at St. Thomas. The opportunity to explore the liberal arts, including Catholicism and philosophy, while honing her leadership skills on and off the court is what initially drew Fran to St. Thomas. She’s won and lost many games, tried out different career paths and volunteered her time and talents. These diverse experiences fed her dream to have her own consulting business where she can make a positive impact on the community.
Global talent
The transition to D-I has brought many great opportunities for attracting top talent to the university. Since August of 2020, we have filled 45 new staffing positions, including 25 coaches – one of whom is serving as head coach for Team USA Women’s Hockey at the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.
fueling the fire
“He epitomizes what it means to be a Tommie, as a relationship- focused servant-leader who develops his student-athletes both on and off the ice.” -Phil Esten, Vice President and Director of Athletics has been appointed to serve as head coach of the U.S. Women’s Hockey Olympics team for the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing, China. Joel Johnson brings 20 years of coaching experience, both at the collegiate level and with USA Women’s Hockey. In addition to serving as St. Thomas' third women's hockey head coach in program history, USA Hockey announced that Johnson
Strategic partnerships
The administration at St. Thomas is invested in empowering their student- athletes and providing them with the best opportunity to maximize their time in college athletics.
Developing strategic partnerships that provide additional revenue opportunities and create exceptional experiences for our student-athletes and fans is an important component of our D-I integration. Over the last 18 months, we’ve established key partnerships with the following companies: LEARFIELD IMG COLLEGE covers ticketing, sales, licensing and multimedia rights through a first-of-its-kind partnership with a sports marketing, media and technology services company. INFLCR provides Tommie student-athletes with content and educational materials to build their personal brands on social media as part of the university’s Purple Playbook initiative.
- Jim Cavale, INFLCR CEO
our limits are boundless
BSN serves as the official NIKE outfitter of St. Thomas athletic teams, including custom team uniforms, footwear, apparel and equipment that will provide ongoing support for Tommie athletics.
Additional apparel contracts signed with Wilson, CCM and Speedo.
ARMS brings together multiple business units using the most innovative software for college athletic departments to better communicate, create institutional control through compliance, and consolidate recruiting and student-athlete data.
We’re excited to bring the Tommies into our portfolio of great college brands we have the privilege to represent, particularly during this major milestone move for the university.” - Cole Gahagan, Learfield IMG College President and CEO
HUDL provides online and mobile platforms for video sharing and review, as well as automatic game breakdowns and analytics.
going head-to-head with the best of the best
Philanthropic priorities
We need partners to help capitalize on this momentous opportunity to raise our national profile through athletics and propel our pursuit of comprehensive excellence as a leading Catholic university. Over a five-year provisional period, we must close the gap between St. Thomas and our D-I peers by creating the support necessary to succeed as a fully integrated D-I university. Investments in the following areas will transform the educational experience of our students, create opportunities for our student-athletes to compete at the highest level and bring pride and recognition to our community:
• SCHOLARSHIP SUPPORT to recruit and provide access for accomplished student-athletes, without finances as a barrier. The need for annual scholarship support rises from $3.25M in FY22 to $11.5M in FY27. • OPERATIONAL SUPPORT AND INVESTMENTS IN PROGRAMMATIC INITIATIVES for student health, fitness and wellness, mentoring, tutoring and career services. • NEW AND ENHANCED D-I FACILITIES to attract student-athletes and fans and generate the necessary revenue to build a financially sustainable D-I program.
Building for the future
New and enhanced D-I facilities
We have concluded work with an international sports architect firm to assess our facilities landscape, uncovering critical needs to enhance spaces for competition, strength and conditioning, nutrition, sports medicine and academics. Priority facilities projects include:
CONCEPT OF A TOMMIE ATHLETIC VILLAGE encompassing a hockey arena, baseball stadium and softball stadium together to capitalize on shared used facilities for student services as well as parking.
BASKETBALL ARENA as a home for our men’s and women’s basketball programs and a venue for hosting campus events.
New weight room turf
Renovated basketball practice facility (McCarthy Gym)
FOOTBALL OPERATIONS BUILDING AND INDOOR PRACTICE FACILITY to provide a home for our student-athletes that includes a nutrition center, new strength and conditioning area, and new football meeting rooms and locker room. The indoor practice facility would provide a much-needed location with turf for our teams to practice during winter months and an additional space for recreational and club sports.
These D-I facilities will be an asset to our student-athletes, campus and broader Twin Cities communities by improving gameday experiences, providing spaces for St. Thomas events such as Convocation and Winter Commencement and creating rental venues for external concerts, speakers and youth sporting activities.
New football offices and recruiting lounge
Student-Athlete Academic Center
Good luck as you continue the hard and unprecedented undertaking you have embarked upon together. Few teams would be up for the challenge, but I’ve got my money on this team to grow and flourish. - Brett Keith, '94 alum and fan
proud to be purple
We’re watching, vested and smiling with our hearts and souls. The play and demeanor screams: we’re here … we’re transitioning to nothing … we belong. - Jeff Hyman, '87 alum and former student-athlete
Office of Athletics 2115 Summit Ave. St. Paul, MN 55105-1096 USA
My optimism about St. Thomas has never been higher. We are stepping onto a larger platform to tell our story about what we do, why we do it and how we
do it well. - Julie Sullivan, President
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