Open Letter to Students

[UA_MA_2000]

If you read the comments on the blog post you can see the Alumni Association who runs the Daneger Zone is trying to reach out to students this year..

 

 

"Mark, Your blog entry about UAlbany students is simpatico with our plans for the second semester. Through our DANEger Zone efforts (the Alumni Association provides a free t-shirt to every new student at the University) we will partner with the RAs on campus to provide nightly $50 prizes and a culminating season-long iPad giveaway. I agree that many students don't know what they are missing. We believe adding an incentive for leaders on campus to encourage their residents and friends to attend will add that extra social incentive to get them there. Here's hoping for a win vs. Colgate tonight."

 

Thank you for noting the informative quote above; I had not seen that yet. Having signed up for credit cards every now and then in college to get a free shirt, I'd definitely go to a basketball game for a free shirt if I had been given that opportunity!

 

These are great efforts being conducted on campus and directed towards on-campus residents. And, as many of our conference homes games (including the Big Purple Growl) clearly reflect, these efforts are very much a success, and I am appreciative of these efforts as an alumnus. Further evidence of the focus of these recruiting efforts stems from, I submit, the fact that the student sections at SEFCU are broken up into 4 sections, apparently named after the four quads (I do note, however, that there is technically a fifth section for off-campus students behind the opposing team's bench). Of course, irrespective of a broader recruitment effort of students, a greater turnout from the quads alone would probably fill up the students' sections at each game (although I have never been in one of the quads and have no idea how many students live in each one; they just seem like big buildings to me with many students).

 

Going back to my previous post, are you, or any other member here, aware of efforts directed towards off-campus and/or Greek members? I do recognize how this segment of the undergraduate population is an amorphous and inchoate body of students, making it difficult to recruit them to campus events (or even class for that matter).

 

 

Finally, and most importantly, other than going to the games when I can and inviting others to go with me, what can I do to help? Although students get in for free, are there sponsorship opportunities available whereby alumni like myself could buy tickets for better seats to be donated to students? Just a thought ... .

[Phoenix]

I believe the 'greek life' population at UAlbany is comparatively very small. The University website says '300 students' make up the greek community. Just assuming undergrads.. 300/13000 = 2.3%.

 

Yes.. most/many upperclassman do live off-campus.

[MRSGDG]

If you read the comments on the blog post you can see the Alumni Association who runs the Daneger Zone is trying to reach out to students this year..

 

 

"Mark, Your blog entry about UAlbany students is simpatico with our plans for the second semester. Through our DANEger Zone efforts (the Alumni Association provides a free t-shirt to every new student at the University) we will partner with the RAs on campus to provide nightly $50 prizes and a culminating season-long iPad giveaway. I agree that many students don't know what they are missing. We believe adding an incentive for leaders on campus to encourage their residents and friends to attend will add that extra social incentive to get them there. Here's hoping for a win vs. Colgate tonight."

 

Thank you for noting the informative quote above; I had not seen that yet. Having signed up for credit cards every now and then in college to get a free shirt, I'd definitely go to a basketball game for a free shirt if I had been given that opportunity!

 

These are great efforts being conducted on campus and directed towards on-campus residents. And, as many of our conference homes games (including the Big Purple Growl) clearly reflect, these efforts are very much a success, and I am appreciative of these efforts as an alumnus. Further evidence of the focus of these recruiting efforts stems from, I submit, the fact that the student sections at SEFCU are broken up into 4 sections, apparently named after the four quads (I do note, however, that there is technically a fifth section for off-campus students behind the opposing team's bench). Of course, irrespective of a broader recruitment effort of students, a greater turnout from the quads alone would probably fill up the students' sections at each game (although I have never been in one of the quads and have no idea how many students live in each one; they just seem like big buildings to me with many students).

 

Going back to my previous post, are you, or any other member here, aware of efforts directed towards off-campus and/or Greek members? I do recognize how this segment of the undergraduate population is an amorphous and inchoate body of students, making it difficult to recruit them to campus events (or even class for that matter).

 

 

Finally, and most importantly, other than going to the games when I can and inviting others to go with me, what can I do to help? Although students get in for free, are there sponsorship opportunities available whereby alumni like myself could buy tickets for better seats to be donated to students? Just a thought ... .

 

I believe all freshman received Daneger Zone shirts regardless of if they were on or off campus. I don't think students actually sit in the sections under the signs of their quads..maybe just that one game where they come to for the housing lottery.

 

I don't know much about Greek life but I did find this.. http://www.albany.edu/involvement/rec_org.shtml

 

I think part of the issue is that there are those who should care about getting students to games and getting butts in the seats but don't... We need to get those in the Athletic Dept to do more.. but that's just my opinion. If you don't have the $ to do it, than it's more important than ever to get bodies in the seats so you can generate interest and fight for more funding. If no one shows up to than why would the university give Athletics more programming money?

 

I'm not involved in any of student outreach, so I only see and here things. I'm sure there's a lot more to it than I know... just my 2 cents too.

[UAalum72]

I know other people who just enjoy college basketball, without much preference to Siena or UA, and elect to go to the Siena games because they like the atmosphere at the TUC when Siena's students are there.

Really? For many years there were complaints that there weren't many Siena students there either, now I think they have to hire buses to entice them downtown. Even so there are probably 600-800 students compared to their seasson ticket base of 4,500 or so. Then they get a walkup of 1,000-1,500. The math says this 'great' fan base is about 0.7% of the Capital District population. There's a lot more potential customers in the general population than the student body, and there's no reason that students would be bigger sports fans than everybody else.

 

I think generally students usually make up a pretty small percentage of the crowds at college games. This isn't high school where the players are the same guys you've been in class with since kindergarten. Finding a way to get the rest of the area might be a more permanent solution to filling the arena.

 

BTW I wonder if the way the dorms are spread out in little clumps all over the campus dilutes the bandwagon effect of going to the games, compared to if they were all in one area and you could see a continuous flow of people heading toward SEFCU arena.

[Dane Pound]

 

Really? For many years there were complaints that there weren't many Siena students there either, now I think they have to hire buses to entice them downtown. Even so there are probably 600-800 students compared to their seasson ticket base of 4,500 or so.

 

Their season ticket base isn't 4,500 although I'm sure some Siena fans would have you believe that. More like 3,500.

[Clickclack]

And in the end it all comes down to just win and entertain and people will come out...Look back at the Jamar years, on average over 3K fans were there every night.

[madDOG]

WIN and play well known schools and market the $iena out of it, especially to Freshmen.

[madDOG]

"Unknown and Under-promoted"

 

[alum73]

The marketing efforts of the athletic dept. are woefully inadequate. We have a pretty solid program with many championships in many sports. Solid A- B+ on the field, but F for marketing. Academically our athletes have a higher cum and graduate at a higher rate than the general student population, so I would give us an A for that. I guess that means we average C+ in total. I'm going to give them a small pass on facilities as it's not totally in their (athletic dept.) ability to get the ones we need.

 

Hopefully the new facilities for Football and Track get done soon and we can turn our priorities around to market our products to the campus and the surrounding community.

[dslyank]

The marketing efforts of the athletic dept. are woefully inadequate. We have a pretty solid program with many championships in many sports. Solid A- B+ on the field, but F for marketing. Academically our athletes have a higher cum and graduate at a higher rate than the general student population, so I would give us an A for that. I guess that means we average C+ in total. I'm going to give them a small pass on facilities as it's not totally in their (athletic dept.) ability to get the ones we need.

 

Hopefully the new facilities for Football and Track get done soon and we can turn our priorities around to market our products to the campus and the surrounding community.

 

What new facilities for Football and Track? ???????????????????????????????????????

[Clickclack]

The marketing efforts of the athletic dept. are woefully inadequate. We have a pretty solid program with many championships in many sports. Solid A- B+ on the field, but F for marketing. Academically our athletes have a higher cum and graduate at a higher rate than the general student population, so I would give us an A for that. I guess that means we average C+ in total. I'm going to give them a small pass on facilities as it's not totally in their (athletic dept.) ability to get the ones we need.

 

Hopefully the new facilities for Football and Track get done soon and we can turn our priorities around to market our products to the campus and the surrounding community.

 

What new facilities for Football and Track? ???????????????????????????????????????

 

[danefan]

The University has done nothing to show it cares about athletics, so why should the students?

[yboord028]

Athletics has their own thing, they are a whole subsidity. They have their own marketing, pr, etc... What is it for the University to be involved? Seems like wasted money if somebody is already doing it.

[MRSGDG]

Athletics has their own thing, they are a whole subsidity. They have their own marketing, pr, etc... What is it for the University to be involved? Seems like wasted money if somebody is already doing it.

 

Huh? Didn't really follow the post.. unless you're saying Athletics shouldn't use their $ for programming, marketing, etc to get students to games if the Alumni Association and SA are doing it? I think that's the concern of some on here -- those other parts of the University shouldn't have to put their own $ into it; Athletics should be the lead. Or maybe I misunderstand your post and that's not what you meant....?

[yboord028]

Athletics has their own thing, they are a whole subsidity. They have their own marketing, pr, etc... What is it for the University to be involved? Seems like wasted money if somebody is already doing it.

 

Huh? Didn't really follow the post.. unless you're saying Athletics shouldn't use their $ for programming, marketing, etc to get students to games if the Alumni Association and SA are doing it? I think that's the concern of some on here -- those other parts of the University shouldn't have to put their own $ into it; Athletics should be the lead. Or maybe I misunderstand your post and that's not what you meant....?

That's what I'm saying. Probably just a whole misunderstanding, so nm about my comment.