Former Bear Jeff Kent Announces Women Driven Scholarship Endowment

Courtesy: Cal Athletics
Release: Monday 09/22/2014

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BERKELEY – Jeff Kent, the former California baseball player who retired from the Major Leagues in 2008 as one of the most prolific second basemen in history, has created The Jeff Kent Women Driven Scholarship Endowment to support the education of female student-athletes at Cal, it was announced Monday.

Kent’s donation of $531,000, augmented by $100,000 in matching funds, will create a fully endowed scholarship in perpetuity for Cal Athletics.

“The creation of this endowment demonstrates Jeff’s continued leadership in philanthropy, particularly in supporting student athletes at Cal. He stands as a role model to both former collegiate and professional athletes,” said Phil Esten, Deputy Director of Athletics and External Relations. “The University is delighted to see the value he places on his Cal education by his continued involvement, whether through women’s athletics or men’s baseball. Jeff’s dedication is truly remarkable.”

Kent will return to the Bay Area to be recognized for his generosity and commitment to Cal during the Golden Bears’ football game against Colorado at Memorial Stadium on Saturday, September 27.

Monday’s announced endowment will provide a full scholarship each year to one female student-athlete selected from soccer, softball, tennis, track or cross country at the University. The criteria for the scholarship include a preference for non-recruited student-athletes with a minimum 2.8 GPA, an interest in community service or mentoring, and demonstrated financial need.

The Women Driven Scholarship Endowment has its origins in the Women Driven fund created by Jeff and his wife, Dana, together with the San Francisco Giants in 1998. That original entity earmarked funds for the program with every RBI Kent produced in addition to an annual celebrity golf tournament. Combining Kent’s $500-per-RBI commitment with corporate matching funds, Women Driven raised over $115,000 toward scholarships for female walk-on athletes at Cal in its first year, and over $600,000 throughout his career with the Giants.

Kent’s desire to support female athletes was fueled by the birth of his first child, daughter Lauren, along with his personal memories of how tough it was to make ends meet while at Cal. Kent entered Cal as a walk-on athlete with a partial scholarship before receiving a full scholarship in his final year. Recognizing that many female athletes coach and mentor others after graduation, Kent chose to encourage this tradition of service by emphasizing the involvement in community service and mentoring as a key criterion for the awarding of each scholarship. This element remains in the language for the current endowment.

Kent credited everyone who joined the cause when Women Driven began 16 years ago for adding to his desire to create a long-term endowment. “It was the goal from day one of the original Women Driven program to create an endowed scholarship,” he said. “Having the opportunity to get an education at Cal can make a profound difference in life. I know how much I benefited. Everybody should have a shot, and this is my chance to ensure others have their shot.”

“It’s not every day you get a phone call from a former Golden Bear and professional athlete who says he wants to endow an athletic scholarship, let alone for a male athlete to be such an outspoken champion of women’s athletics,” said H. Michael Williams, Interim Director of Intercollegiate Athletics. “Jeff came to us with this idea. Supporting 30 sports programs at Cal is a challenge and he is making a significant difference for female student-athletes in five of those programs, differences that will have an impact throughout the rest of their lives.”

About Jeff Kent
Jeff Kent (Baseball, 1987-89) was a three-year starter for Cal at shortstop. He set a school record with 25 doubles during the 1987 season, a mark that stood until 1998. His 1988 team won the NCAA Central Regionals in Austin, Texas, and advanced to the College World Series. After Cal, Jeff emerged as one of the greatest second basemen in MLB history, earning All-Star recognition with the San Francisco Giants in 1999, 2000 and 2001; with Houston in 2004; and with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2005. He won the 2000 National League Most Valuable Player award, hitting .334 with 33 home runs and 125 RBI as a part of the Giants’ National League West Division championship team, and earned four Silver Slugger awards. After a 17-year career in the major leagues, Jeff owns the all-time career home run record (377) for second basemen and is the only second baseman in the history of the game to produce six consecutive 100-RBI seasons. His post-MLB highlights include being the first-ever former player to participate on the reality television show Survivor Philippines. Kent owns three locations of Kent Powersports and a working ranch, the Diamond K, in Texas.

About the Jeff Kent Women Driven Fund
The Women Driven Fund was established by Jeff Kent and his wife, Dana, with the support of the San Francisco Giants in 1998 to help fund scholarships to walk-on women athletes at the University of California, where Jeff played baseball on a partial scholarship as a walk-on athlete before receiving a full scholarship his final year. The original annual scholarships were awarded based on academic achievement, economic need, coaches’ recommendations, community service and athletic ability. From its inception, the program included a mentoring program to involve professional women and former scholarship recipients in the lives of younger women. The realization of the current Women Driven Scholarship Endowment completes the commitment the Kents made at the fund’s creation to fully endow a scholarship in women’s athletics at Cal.

About Cal Athletics
The University of California is represented by 850 student-athletes in 30 sports. Striving for excellence in the classroom and the arenas of competition, Cal teams have earned 85 national championships in 15 different sports, with 264 individual national championships won by student-athletes. To learn more about how to support the Golden Bears, visit calbears.com/bearbackers.


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