An unprecedented fundraising effort to Save The Seawolves reached its $3 million mandated goal just before the final buzzer to save and reinstate the University of Alaska hockey program.
On Tuesday, August 31st, UAA chancellor Sean Parnell announced the reinstatement of the hockey team at a press conference in the UAA hockey locker room. Chancellor Parnell was joined by Save Seawolf Hockey chairwoman, Kathie Bethard, UAA athletic director Greg Myford, UAA hockey alumnus Jim Mayes.
The fundraising effort, under the name Save The Seawolves, was pressed to raise the equivalent of two years operating expenses for the UAA hockey program; which was established as a goal of $3 million to be raised by a UAA mandated date of August 30, 2021.
Save The Seawolf Hockey chairwoman Kathie Bethard stated that, ““It wouldn’t have happened if the hockey community wouldn’t have stepped up and believed we could get this done. Thank you to everyone who donated, from $2 to $250,000.” Bethard added, “We had 70 individual contributions last week alone.” Bethard also praised the efforts of the Benton Bay Lions Club and the over two dozen committee members who worked to Save The Seawolves.
The announcement to eliminate four programs at the University of Alaska came April 15th of 2020. UAA Chancellor Cathy Sandeen announced that the University of Alaska Anchorage was eliminating four programs from the UAA sports roster including both UAA’s Division I sports of men’s hockey and women’s gymnastics and both men and women’s skiing. In a release sent out by UAA in April 2020, the university stated “reconfigure UAA Athletics in order to preserve the program’s long-term viability. Significant reductions in state funding have dramatically shifted the university’s fiscal situation.”
UAA hockey will return to the ice for the 2022-23 college hockey season and will play as an independent with the demise of the ECHL. UAA now must complete a head coach search, recruit players and establish a location for home contests.
Link to complete UAA Hockey press conference: Click Here!
