Cleveland State University has launched its Woodling Gymnasium Enhancement Initiative, a project designed to raise funds for the university while celebrating its history, the school said in a news release. 

The initiative includes more than $1 million in total costs and has been seeded by startup gifts and pledges totaling nearly $500,000 from three donor families – Pete Granson and Family, Daryl and Jenniffer Deckard, and Clark Broida and Marie Kittredge. Funds raised through the initiative will support CSU Athletics' academic endeavors, student-athletes and coaches, and improve the sports experience for fans and event attendees.

Focal points for the initiative include new lighting and sound systems, branding and graphics, locker room improvements for multiple sports teams – including volleyball, softball and wrestling – and furniture and equipment for the academic center. 

The updates to the gymnasium will begin after the end of the 2022-2023 academic year, starting with the academic center. 

The school also received a $100,000 grant through the NCAA Accelerated Academic Success Program in fall 2022, which will be targeted towards the technology, furniture and equipment upgrades in the academic center. 

"As outlined in our CSU Athletics Strategic Plan, athletics facilities investments are critical to our sustainability as a viable and competitive NCAA Division I program," Scott Garrett, vice president and director of athletics at CSU, said in the release. "We have a number of spaces utilized daily by our student-athletes that are in need of attention, so we are so appreciative of Pete (Granson), Daryl (Deckard), Jenniffer (Deckard), Clark and Marie for their leadership in creating early momentum, and are excited and eager to find partners to assist in funding these improvements for Woodling Gymnasium and the Physical Education Building."

Broida and Kittredge have been supporters of the university in the past, helping the school with its installation of a new scoreboard and video panel in the Woodling Gymnasium earlier in the academic year. 

"We are proud of the positive impact that Cleveland State athletics and Viking student-athletes have in the greater Cleveland community, and as fans of many CSU teams, we were pleased to support coach Chuck Voss and the volleyball team, coach Josh Moore and the wrestling program and coach Christine Griffith and the men's and women's fencing teams," Broida, president of Harvard Title Agency, and Kittredge, said in the release. "We wanted to show our support for these great programs and their student-athletes, and to ensure that they have the equipment and support they need to be successful." 

The Deckard family has also been past supporters of the university. It hope its donation and the initiative will help encourage academic success for student-athletes. 

"While at Cleveland State University, student-athletes have been able to achieve tremendous academic success, and it is our hope that the academic center renovations will further encourage these scholarly achievements," the Deckards said in the release. 

Pete Granson, of the Granson family, spends time volunteering in the academic center since his move to Cleveland in 2019. His donation will go towards locker room improvements.

"It all goes back to the student-athletes at Cleveland State University – they are good on the field, but they are even better in the classroom and in the community – and I wanted to help make an impact in that process," he said in the release.

Those interested in submitting a donation can do so on the Cleveland State University Foundation website.

More information on the Woodling Gymnasium Enhancement Initiative can be found on the Cleveland State University sports website.