The Board of Trustees of Marist College has authorized a fundraising campaign to support the construction of a state-of-the-art track and turf field facility on the North End of the Poughkeepsie campus.
Marist’s track and field and cross country programs were established more than 60 years ago and have competed with notable success in Division I athletics since the early 1990s but have not had an on-campus facility for training or competitions.
Plans for the project include an NCAA regulation eight-lane running track with an artificial turf interior field on the site of the college’s existing North Field, which is largely used for intramural sports today.
The new facility would include space for various field events, including steeplechase, long jump, triple jump, high jump, and pole vault. Throwing events, such as javelin, shot put, hammer and discus, would be held in redesigned space next to McCann Arena.
The fundraising effort kicked off with a generous lead commitment of $1 million from Marist Trustee Tim Tenney made a lead commitment of $1 million as dollar-for-dollar matching challenge.
“I’m excited to support our student-athletes through this long overdue project,” said Tenney. “I encourage others to contribute in any way they can, because this is a win-win that benefits not only Marist Athletics but also the entire community because of how wide-ranging the uses will be for the facility.”
The goal is to raise a minimum of $3.5 million toward the project.
According to Marist President Kevin Weinman, “It is hard to overstate the importance of this project to our varsity, club, and intramural athletes, as well as the overall health and well-being of all Marist students, faculty, and staff. It will be a boost to recruitment efforts and its spectacular location will allow us to host local and regional sporting events, including area high schools, to introduce new audiences to Marist College.”
