Sample Letter

---

[Date]

To all relevant SSU Admin and CSU Leadership:

I’m writing to voice my strenuous objection to President Cutrer’s January 22, 2025 decision to cut all of Sonoma State’s athletic department and NCAA sports programs. I respectfully demand that the decision to cut all Athletics be immediately halted and cease from going into effect, and that an immediate announcement to that effect be made before further irreparable damage occurs. At minimum, no decision should be made while the current student athletes are still matriculating through the university.

I am a [describe who you are in relation to Sonoma State Sports. If you have a personal story about Sonoma State athletics, or how it has impacted you, please share!].

I strongly object to the elimination of sports at Sonoma State because athletics are vital to Sonoma State’s culture and financial viability. Sonoma State athletics are vitally important for the entire campus and community. Not having school teams would greatly detract from the college experience and enrollment will plummet. Sports are a large part of how the entire campus feels a collective sense of community and school pride. It is also a big part of how Sonoma State connects with the community in Rohnert Park and broader Sonoma County. 

As the CSU states in its own official policies, “Athletic programs serve as a focal point for school identity and spirit, while complementing the academic, cultural, and social facets of university life for the general student body, faculty, staff and alumni.”

Further, the student athletes impacted by this decision will be irreparably harmed, and this decision could open the school up to potential lawsuits. The student athletes made life-changing decisions to come to Sonoma State on the basis of playing NCAA sports. And the student-athlete population is more diverse than the school population as a whole, meaning that this decision disproportionately effects minority students. 

Moreover, although this decision was premised on the assumption that cutting all school sports will save Sonoma State $3.7 million, that estimate appears to be misguided and ill-informed. There has been no financial calculations or audit provided, so it is unclear how this estimate was made. But it seems clear that cutting athletics will substantially diminish enrollment at the university, leaving the university in even worse financial shape. The student athletes will leave SSU, and SSU recruitment and enrollment will go down. The entire student body already passed an initiative to pay additional fees per student to support athletics, which will go away too. And alumni support will drastically diminish. In short, cutting athletics at Sonoma State will likely lead to increased financial and enrollment hardship, and could potentially lead to the closure of Sonoma State as a whole.

Regardless of the financial implications of this decision, sports are not all about money. College athletics at small schools are just as vital to the well being of the institution as major universities. This decision sets a dangerous precedent and puts athletics at small schools across the country in jeopardy. It's important to recognize what Athletics bring to colleges, the surrounding community, and student-athletes beyond simply looking at the amount of money they bring in.

If such a critical, university-altering decision is to be made, it cannot be made through such a hasty, ill-informed, and unilateral process. Such a decision can only be made through substantial assessment and oversight from all relevant stakeholders with adequate communication well in advance. The very survival of Sonoma State depends on it.

Sincerely,

[Name].