The University's athletic department has donated part of its proceeds from the Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl to the Faculty Senate and the Cavalier Marching Band. Each organization will receive $25,000 of the bowl game proceeds to support its programs.
According to a University press release, the Faculty Senate will put the money toward one of its six Dissertation-Year Fellowships. These fellowships provide funding for the student's final year of doctoral work. Each fellowship is valued at about $25,000; it includes tuition, fees, health insurance and a stipend for students.
According to Houston Wood, chair of the Faculty Senate, graduate students often have difficulty finishing their research because of other time commitments, such as teaching. Dissertation-Year Fellowships, Houston said, provide the opportunity for excellent students to have a year to work on their research.
"The Faculty Senate is very grateful to [Athletic Director Craig] Littlepage,and the athletic department for their support of academics," Wood said.
This is the fourth year that the Faculty Senate has offered these fellowships. Funding for the fellowships comes from the Provost's Office, the Curry School of Education, the College of Arts & Sciences and the School of Engineering and Applied Science
The Cavalier Marching Band will receive $25,000 from the athletic department as well. The Marching Band, which was created in 2004 with a $1.5 million gift from Carl and Hunter Smith, will put the money toward its endowment, the press release said.
Littlepage said he will announce the gifts to the Faculty Senate and the Cavalier Marching Band at the Jan. 24 men's basketball game against the University of Miami. According to Littlepage, supporting academics is very important to the athletic department. Supporting other areas of the University is a demonstration of being a team player, he said.
This is the second year in a row that the athletic department has donated bowl game proceeds to the Faculty Senate and the Cavalier Marching Band.
Since the 1984 Peach Bowl, the athletic department has donated more than $930,000 to academics at the University, supporting programs such as the Eminent Scholars Endowment Fund, a newspaper database for the University Library and the Cavaliers Distinguished Teaching Professorship endowment, according to the University press release.
"We're pleased to be in the position to support other activities at the University outside of athletics," Littlepage said.
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