Does Ivy League athletic success increase unrestricted contributions from alumni?

College presidents, development officers, athletic directors, alumni, coaches, and fans have all speculated about the relationship between the success of athletic programs and the level of philanthropic support. The perception is that a relationship does exist: as teams win, the level of donor generosity increases. Alumni contribute the largest share of the revenue donated to higher education. This financial support frequently provides the margin of difference that separates one institution from another. Alumni support is the only real source of discretionary income an institution receives. Research is inconsistent about any relationship between alumni contributions and athletic success. Success is measured in many ways. This study defines success as the won-loss records of the football and men\u27s basketball programs of Ivy League institutions during the period, 1998–2005. The purpose of this study is to address two research questions: (1) Is success on the playing field associated with increased unrestricted alumni contributions to the athletic department? and (2) Does unrestricted alumni contributions to athletics affect unrestricted alumni giving to the university? In order to address these questions, it is necessary to have some knowledge of income and price. Inconsistencies in the current research stem in part from the omission of these two variables. Further, the literature does not separate giving to the university as compared to the athletic department. The quantitative analyses conducted for this study indicate that a positive relationship exists between athletic success in football and unrestricted alumni giving to the athletic department. The results found no positive relationship between athletic success in basketball and unrestricted alumni giving to the athletic department. The findings also show this increase in unrestricted alumni giving to athletics, resulting from football success, is unrelated to unrestricted alumni giving to the university