Help UH athletics retain its worth

Once again, the athletics department at the University of Hawaii at Manoa finds itself stuck with a budget deficit.

This fiscal year’s shortfall, $1.7 million, is smaller than the previous two years — $3.2 million in 2016 and $4.2 million in 2015. But that’s cold comfort: The department received a $3.4 million infusion this year that was supposed to help balance its books, with most of the money coming from the Legislature.

An athletics budget without a deficit — there have only been two in the past 10 years — now looks more elusive than ever. The situation once again raises questions about whether UH sports, a $40 million operation with 21 teams, is worth the investment.

The short answer is yes. The more complicated answer is yes, if UH gets its act together and the community offers essential support.

In its report to the UH Board of Regents on the budget shortfall, an independent auditor, Accuity LLP, described the financial condition of the athletics department as “fragile” because of increasing expenses and “the ongoing struggle to generate operating and fundraising revenues.”

Continued support from UH will be required to sustain athletics, the report concluded. That’s fair; very few college athletics programs are self-sufficient. But the department needs to be more aggressive about raising revenues, by attracting more donors and putting more fans in the stands.

Of particular concern is Ahahui Koa Anuenue (AKA), which raises funds for UH athletics and has “a fiduciary obligation” to help the department reduce its accumulated debt, according to the report.

AKA’s contributions have been decreasing steadily, the report said; UH agreed that AKA needs to develop a better fundraising plan with specific monetary goals going forward. Previous attempts to improve AKA’s approach have not accomplished much. New efforts are underway, and it’s hoped they will be more successful.

In its defense, the athletics department proffered its own reports to show how UH benefits from its programs.

In August, Athletics Director David Matlin present a 14-page study to a Board of Regents committee that argued that UH athletics provides a net benefit of $2.5 million to the university.

Some of the benefit comes from the fact that unlike other departments, the athletics department contributes $1.6 million to maintain lower campus facilities used not only by athletics, but by others at UH-Manoa as well.

Matlin also noted that the athletics program draws in paying customers: student-athletes who pay their own way or receive only partial scholarships.

In 2015, a study by the UH Shidler College of Business, commissioned by the athletics department, estimated that UH-Manoa athletic events drew in more than 20,000 visitors to Hawaii for fiscal year 2013-14, and they spent $31 million. The study concluded that UH athletics and related expenditures accounted for more than $66 million in direct spending in Hawaii in that period.

That’s all well and good, but general estimates of economic benefits won’t balance the books.

If UH athletics does indeed bring in more visitors, then the Hawaii Tourism Authority, which subsidizes other local sports events, should contribute more to help our hometown university.

The local business community and those with deep pockets also should recognize the broader value of an investment in UH sports.

Proponents of collegiate athletics note that participation promotes lifelong values of teamwork, leadership, time management and long-term friendships and school loyalty (in other words, alumni who donate).

Collegiate teams can also drive enrollment by enhancing and promoting a university’s brand. Generations of UH student athletes and dedicated UH sports fans in their signature Warriors sportswear would agree.

A successful collegiate athletics program requires fielding competitive teams that the fans want to see. UH has accomplished this before, with the help of smart decisions and investments. It can do so again.