The varsity golf program will continue for at least one more season after members of the golf team raised close to $22,000 in donations to cover its costs, according to three members of the team.The University has not yet officially announced the return of the team for next year, but it hopes to do so after the April break, according to Dean of Student Life Rick Sawyer.

Captains Aaron Hattenbach '09 and Alex Podell '09, as well as Aaron Cusato '12, told the Justice that the team would return next season.

"I think [the Athletics Department] wanted to allow [Hattenbach] to make the announcement himself and have some kind of press conference," Sawyer said, adding that "I can't say they're definitely coming back next year."

However, Hattenbach said, "For now, I can tell you now we're going to have a team next year, and the [Department of Athletics] wants to make it official after April break."

The team has raised $21,115 from about 80 donors, Hattenbach wrote in an e-mail to the Justice. He also said there are "two more $500 pending pledges that are not included in [the $21,115] figure." The cost of running the golf program is $22,000, according to Director of Athletics Sheryl Sousa '90.

"Things are looking good but we are still waiting to record a few more deposits before we can confirm that all the money needed has been raised," Sousa wrote in an e-mail to the Justice. "These funds will hopefully be collected over the next week or so and we should be prepared to issue an announcement when students return from break."

"We're going have a team next year, but nothing has been confirmed," Custato added.

The team previously learned that the University planned to terminate golf as a varsity sport at the completion of this spring season in a meeting with Sousa Jan. 26.

At the meeting, she told the team that an estimated$22,000 was needed to support the team for one more season by the time the annual budget was approved at the Board of Trustees meeting March 25. But despite not having the exact amount needed by the time the Board of Trustees met, Sawyer said the Board had no problem approving the team's status for next season.

"Leading up to that meeting, they were so close [to raising the money] that nobody here was going to be slicing the cheese that thin with them," he said. "It was clear that they were as good as done."

He added, "It's just a matter of crossing the Ts and dotting the Is, but it certainly appears that they've been successful."

Several players said Hattenbach took the initiative to lead the fundraising efforts.

Hattenbach and his teammates contacted friends, family, alumni and a professional fundraising agency-My Sports Dreams-to gather the necessary funds while also working with the Department of Athletics.

"We've got money coming in through each player's mailbox, Development, Athletics, [coach Bill Shipman's] office, so it's [been] difficult to keep track of it all," Hattenbach said. "[Sousa and I have] been trying to touch base and add up what both of us have and compare numbers and make sure all the pledges and donations are in."

Hattenbach noted that a $7,500 matching gift from the family of a Brandeis golf alumnus pledged Feb. 13 propelled the fundraising effort.

"Once we reached $7,500 and got that matching $7,500 gift and went up to $15,000, my feeling was-and what I was told by several people-that if we had the majority of the money in [by the time of the Board of Trustees meeting], we'd have the team," Hattenbach said.

Sawyer praised Hattenbach's efforts for taking the lead in fundraising efforts.

"[Hattenbach has] done an incredible job," he said. "I don't know what his transcript looks like this semester, but I know that he's put every waking hour into this, and for a senior to do this for his team is just extraordinary."

Several team members say they hope to endow the program so they can compete beyond next season. Hattenbach said he was told that it would require around $300,000 to support the team for 10 more years and believed it was necessary to "cement relationships" with donors to complete that task.

"We're going to keep on raising [money] to have enough for at least 10 years," Podell said. "We reached [our original] goal and want it to go on as long as possible."

However, Sawyer said, "The University wouldn't be involved in an endowment itself. They would accept to hold an endowment and manage it, but these days to have an endowment with the amount of money to support them [would be] a stretch."

"It's been a bit of a roller coaster from when they told us we weren't going to have a team to all the efforts we've spent contacting people and trying to raise the money, so it's nice to see all of our efforts pay off," Cusato said.

"We're excited for [Hattenbach] and excited for the team, and we're happy that the rising seniors at least will be able to compete at Brandeis as a varsity team," Sawyer said.