What do KC Sports Trust donors really want?
Yael T. AbouhalkahWhy don’t the anonymous donors to the secretive Kansas City Sports Trust want people knowing who they are? What do they really want?
The trust is making front-page news with its anonymous $30 million donation to an over-the-top $200 million upgrade of MU’s sports facilities.
In essence, this group is trying its best to set a priority for how other people should spend their money.
The trust is urging other people to contribute massive amounts of money to continue the arms race when it comes to raising more funds for athletic palaces and bigger football stadiums.
So who’s making the decision to give this money for the improvement of athletics at MU, even while the supposed core mission of the Missouri system - you know, education - is suffering millions of dollars of cutbacks?
No one is saying.
From The Star’s story today:
“The Kansas City Sports Trust, which is administered by the law firm of Stinson, Morrison and Hecker, previously gave a $10 million gift to the MU athletic department in 2004. That matched the third-largest gift in MU history at the time.
“It was a trust formed by people who wish to remain anonymous but were interested then, and continue to be interested in, supporting the athletic programs at the University of Missouri,” said Mark Foster, the trustee of the Kansas City Sports Trust and former managing partner at Stinson, Morrison, and Hecker. “We’ve never disclosed information about our donations one way or the other.”
That 2004 decision was criticized in a Maneater opinion piece at the time.
Sure, some anonymous gifts are giving to universities. But most people either want the credit or want to spur their friends and colleagues to give to universities.
In this case, by giving anonymously, the KC Sports Trust members don’t have to be questioned about their misplaced priorities.
Wait a minute.
I think I just discovered a big reason why these guys (may I presume?) don’t want anyone to know who they are.
Scott Melton
10 months, 4 weeks agoConfused. Is Your whole point here that the KC Sports Trust is trying to spur others to give to Mizzou? And implying this is somehow a bad thing?
I want the last 2 minutes of my life back…
William Kevin Miller
10 months, 4 weeks agoYael,
Seriously, if I decide to give money to a school for a particular reason, I expect that the money will be used for the reason donated. If the school says “I know you wanted us to use this for sporting facilities” but we are now going to use it for paying teachers greater salaries and upgrading academics” It would most likely set a precedent that would stop most donations. Grow up Yael. As a Mizzou Grad, I want my Alma Mater to be academically formidable, but donations are for a purpose, just not always the one you want.
Kent Mueller
10 months, 4 weeks agoThis is really driving Yael batty. I guess not knowing who a donor is like catnip to you, Yael. You can’t put this down.
But, the real story here is how you can so blindly want to control what other people do with THEIR money. It’s their money, Yael, not yours.
You need to butt out of their private business.
Kevin Worley
10 months, 4 weeks agoUm, they want to donate $30 million to Mizzou for sports facilities upgrades. Did you not see the news?
Tracy Wakefield
10 months, 4 weeks agoI don’t understand what all the hub bub is. The donors like sports and are less interested in academics. I feel the same way I’ve never donated to anything but the athletic program and I never will.
Until the Prof. and admin. take drastic pay cuts and work harder for less and stop all their.. we are the elite intellects of the world jargon.. I hope the general alums across the nation continue to donate to the athletic programs and forget the educational side.
I earned my degree on the sweat of my brow and with NO help from my college prof. who just repeated lecture material on a white board and gave me research assignments that undergrads graded. Most of the stuff I learned in college had little practical real world use.
The higher education system is a business at best a scam at it’s worst because they want more students to feed the college coffers not really concerned about what type of degree or education that is put forth.
Richard Lozano
10 months, 4 weeks agoI’m sure you’d throw back a $100 bill left on your windshield. “SHOW YOURSELF, SIR!”
George Hunsucker
Northland
10 months, 4 weeks agoYT, you are off-base here. It is NONE of your damm business and you are just being a lib busybody even writing about this crap. Are you jealous you can’t make such a donation?
You really need to get a handle on yourself YT. This is just childish BS coming from you…