Northridge Nears Goal in Fund-Raising Drive

It was, by national standards, a somewhat modest goal: $100,000. A Big Ten or Pacific 10 conference school might raise such a sum during lunch with a prominent booster.

But not so at Cal State Northridge, which is only 16 months from NCAA Division I status in sports but is still light years away from having what would be considered a major college athletics program.

To raise a six-figure sum in a six-week period for CSUN athletics was thought unlikely, if not impossible.

The most Northridge had raised in a year was $72,000; the most during a fund-drive was $60,000.

Until this year.

With one week remaining in its current appeal for funds, Northridge is quickly closing in on its six-figure goal. Ran Railey, director of athletic development at CSUN, said Wednesday that donations and pledges during the past five weeks have surpassed $85,000.

Suddenly, the $100,000 mark seems not only possible, but probable.

“I think we’ll make it,” Railey said. “We have a couple of large pledges that should come in later in the week. We might get $12,000 from one individual that could push us over the top.”

Premier Bank, Encino Hospital and Best-Way Distributing have all contributed $5,000 or more and Kerry Mayer, vice president of the CSUN Athletic Assn., has raised more than $10,000 through personal contacts, Railey said.

Total athletic fund-raising for the school year could reach nearly $150,000--more than twice the previous high--by the end of June.

“We have a few more months and there are a few large pledges still hanging around,” Railey said. “It’s gone well. I was very much concerned that we wouldn’t be able to get off the ground.”

Still in process is a phone-a-thon in which volunteers are soliciting donations from alumni, parents of Northridge athletes and other “friends” of the school’s athletic department. More than $21,000 has been raised in pledges taken by phone.