ALTOONA, Pa. -- There's now a glimmer of hope for the reinstatement of NCAA men's and women's ice hockey at Robert Morris University with the university's announcing a partnership with the Pittsburgh College Hockey Foundation to raise sufficient funds to save the programs on Wednesday.
This partnership comes after the university cut both programs on May 26 with the Pittsburgh College Hockey Foundation, led by two-time silver medalist and former Robert Morris goalie Brianne McLaughlin, being formed a short time after by alumni and hockey supporters in order to help save the programs.
"Representatives of the university and the foundation met Monday and agreed to work towards raising sufficient additional funds by July 31 to bring the teams back and position them to be financially sustainable for for the foreseeable future," Robert Morris released in a statement.
Neither program is out of the woods yet as the overall goal is to raise $7 million over the course of the next five seasons, though at this time the number needed by July 31 is yet to be released.
"The school and foundation agreed to meet this week to come up with a plan," McLaughlin told DK Pittsburgh Sports. "We still have a large number of funds to raise, but I believe we are on the right track."
Robert Morris faced intense backlash with Dr. Chris Howard and board chairman Morgan O'Brien's decision to eliminate the programs in May. Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert, a Robert Morris alumnus, stepped down in wake of the decision and the lack of transparency Howard and O'Brien had shown.
There was no vote, just a consensus given to discontinue the programs which led the Pittsburgh College Hockey Foundation to retain lead counsel Jeffrey Kessler, the same lawyer who represented Stanford and Brown student-athletes and won to represent their coalition in hopes of getting the programs restored. He cited the concealment and misrepresentation in his letter to the university last month.
That pressure and fear of formal litigation helped lead to the partnership between Robert Morris and the Pittsburgh College Hockey Foundation. It's a step in the right direction, though the timing is far from ideal with only 17 days remaining before the July 31 deadline.
Should the university be able to reinstate the programs, it will be an uphill climb for both programs as many players have found homes elsewhere to continue their educational and athletic careers. If there is an upside here, it's that Robert Morris' men's and women's coaches are still under their severance packages through this month giving them time to patch rosters together should the programs be saved.
While the programs would feature a multitude of new faces, the transfer portal being as loaded as it is could come in handy as both women's coach Paul Colontino and men's coach Derek Schooley look to pick up the pieces if able.
According to the Save RMU Hockey Go Fund Me page, the group has pledges totaling up to $427,000 currently with more seemingly to roll in from the page as well as private donations.
"The plan is to not only get the teams back, but to be able to sustain them for the future," McLaughlin said. "We are optimistic about working together with the university to do what's best for these programs and the community that loves them."
