The Harding Rams Athletic Booster Club is proud to announce that the Dick’s Sporting Goods Foundation has awarded us a $10,000 Grant as part of its Sports Matter Program!
Dick’s previously awarded us with an $8,000 grant last year and that money has helped support all our sports teams at Harding through the pandemic in which thousands of dollars were lost through the inability to host games which typically would generate ticket revenue and concessions revenue to help support our athletes and teams.
Our women’s track team, led by Head Coach Sonja Collins, recently was recognized as the best track team in the state at the State Championships based on cumulative scores! Akala Garrett was also named the Gatorade State Player of The Year! Akala also recently won a national championship in hurdle competitions! This was despite not having the ability to practice and compete on their own track at Harding due to the inequities in facilities we continue to face.
This incredible gesture by Dick’s comes after we as a Booster Club have continued to fight for equitable athletic facilities for all our programs from Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools. We have started to make some slow progression toward our goals for our athletes, yet we still have a long way to go – and this grant will help bridge the gap for our athletic programs!
On behalf of the Harding Administration, Athletic Director Bryant Bailey, and all our athletic teams and players, we thank everyone at Dick’s Sporting Goods that made this grant possible and look forward to another strong year of athletic success at Harding, overcoming the inequitable conditions thanks to strong community partners at Dick’s Sporting Goods!
Matt Morrow
Booster Club President
Harding University High School
