HAYWARD, Calif. - Cal State East Bay announced today that it will discontinue the sponsorship of women's water polo at the conclusion of this academic year.  

"CSUEB's women's water polo team has represented the university well over many decades. Our campus community and alumni body are proud of the current team and their hard work, commitment and achievements," said President Cathy Sandeen.

Sandeen says she and Associate Vice President/Director of Athletics Allison Kern made the difficult decision to discontinue the team after careful consideration."Cal State East Bay continues to take steps to become more efficient and implement cost savings across campus due to a number of factors, including enrollment shortfalls." 

Kern said that the water polo players may opt to stay at East Bay or pursue opportunities at other universities.  Any scholarship commitments will be honored if they choose to remain at East Bay.

Pioneer Athletics does not anticipate discontinuing sponsorship of any other sports at this time.

"Personally, I understand that our athletes and coaches received difficult news today," Kern said. "We are doing everything we can to support our student-athletes and coaches through this transition as they plan their next steps."

Media inquiries: Kimberly Hawkins (kimberly.hawkins@csueastbay.edu)
General inquiries: Department of Athletics (athletics@csueastbay.edu) 
 

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Why discontinue women's water polo?  Why now?
Many factors have come into play to make this the appropriate strategic decision both for Pioneer Athletics and Cal State East Bay. Measures are being taken institution-wide to manage enrollment deficit implications and the growing costs of higher education. Currently, Women's Water polo is not an NCAA DII-sponsored sport, and only 10 Division 2 institutions nationally sponsor the sport. Pioneer Athletics has collected data to evaluate what is necessary to sustain our overall program and sports sponsored by NCAA DII. A strategic reallocation of resources benefits the institution and provides an opportunity to position us better.

How did you reach this decision?  Who and what was involved in the process of "careful consideration"?
The leadership of CSUEB engaged in discussions about the best way to move forward in Pioneer Athletics and how that fit into the overall institutional model. A study was conducted of resource allocation that benchmarked our current sport sponsorship against peer institutions. Short and long-term financial projections; budgetary constraints; and the impact on students, the athletic program overall, and the university's strategic priorities were all factors, and all were considered.

What will the players do?
We have 13 returning student-athletes. Whatever they decide, we will support them.  If they are receiving a scholarship from East Bay, we will honor that. We have also assembled resources and are prepared to help our student-athletes find a new program to compete with, should they choose to do so.

What will the coaches do?
We are working with Academic Affairs and Human Resources and the coaches to determine their next career steps. We are grateful for Coach Cooper's long standing commitment to Cal State East Bay, Pioneer Athletics, and our student-athletes.

Will other East Bay sports be discontinued?
We have no plans to discontinue any other sports at this time.