This year marks the 50th anniversary of the University’s Falcon Club.
“The Falcon Club is the annual giving club or booster club of Falcon Athletics,” said Jane Myers, director of athletic development for the Falcon Club. “It supports all of the 425 student athletes here on campus and it is membership-based.”
The Falcon Club started in 1964 with a group of 40 charter members who wanted a better way to support the Athletic Director at the time, Doyt Perry. By the end of 1964, there were 137 members. Now the Falcon Club has nearly 2,500 members and they hope to continually grow their membership. Membership is important with what the Falcon Club does for Bowling Green athletics and the University.
“It’s absolutely key in what we’re able to do,” Myers said. “We could not do it on our own without the support of our members and the University. It’s a way of bringing community and alumni together. It’s supporting Falcon athletics.”
Money donated to the Athletic Department or scholarship funds benefit student-athlete scholarships and supports the education of the University’s student-athletes.
The average cost of a student athletic scholarship is $20,000 in-state and $27,000 out-of-state according to the University athletics website.
The average student-athlete GPA is 2.99 and is slightly higher than the average student body GPA, which is 2.87. Graduation rates are also higher for student athletes at 70 percent, while the student body average is 59.6 percent according to the athletics website.
Each Falcon Club membership level has different incentives associated with it. The minimum contribution to join is $100 and the top giving level is currently $25,000. Each contribution level provides different benefits such as priority seating, parking and access to exclusive Falcon Club members-only events. Every Falcon Club donation is also tax-deductible.
“One of the most popular amenities of being a member is parking close for athletic events. We try to keep our Falcon fans together with special access events for members only,” Myers said.
Another popular perk of being a Falcon Club member is premium seating at all home football games.
“The Falcon Club has a tent for members only in the south end zone for all home games.” said events manager Doreen Bateson.
Anyone who is interested can join the Falcon Club including BGSU alumni, students, community members, BGSU employees, student athletes and fans of BG sports teams. The Falcon Club has plans to annually increase its membership and to spread awareness about what they do.
“We are looking at increasing membership, create a value of being a member and show where the dollars are going for our 18 sports groups. We want our student athletes to be aware of what we do,” Myers said.
For information on joining the Falcon Club or supporting BG athletics, visit bgsufalcons.com.
