Our Crowdfunding Groups
Our Digitization Project
The University Archives actively works to document and preserve University of Maryland's history, including our athletic achievements. Our archive has more than 1,200 film reels and 2,800 videotapes of men's basketball footage spanning from 1953 to 2014. Many of these materials are fragile and in danger of being lost forever. Since we launched this project we have started digitizing some films and are finding audio segments are already lost. This will only continue to worsen as time passes and video will be next - lost forever. This is time sensitive and reaching a critical stage.
We need your help to ensure this historic footage is available for generations to come.
We need to raise $500,000 to digitize all 4,000 films. We have raised $100,000 to date but we need your help to meet our goal of another $10,000 for Giving Tuesday. Once digitized and preserved, every game, highlight reel, and interview will be available online, 24/7 through the University Archives digital collections!
Time is of the essence! While properly developed film can last for decades, we are at serious risk of losing games recorded on videotape. Video starts to deteriorate much faster than film and can be entirely ruined within 30 years... that means tapes from the mid-1980s could already be gone forever! Some of our film reels have started to lose sound at this point -- great picture, but no commentary!
Help us save this history before it's too late!
Make a gift today by giving to the overall project on this page. You can also make a gift by check to count toward the campaign. Insert "Basketball Footage Preservation Fund" on the memo line, and make your check payable to the "University of Maryland College Park Foundation." Please send your check to Kristy McDermott, 6131 McKeldin Library, 7549 Library Lane, College Park, MD 20742.
Help us save this important part of our university history today! Thank you for your support, and Go Terps!
Gifts in support of the University of Maryland are accepted and managed by the University of Maryland College Park Foundation, Inc., an affiliated 501(c)(3) organization authorized by the Board of Regents. Contributions to the University of Maryland are tax deductible as allowed by law. Please see your tax advisor for details.
Start us off right! $10 will digitize 2 minutes of film, or nearly 6 minutes of video.
$30 will digitize half a game on video, or nearly 4 minutes of game time on film.
Take the shot! $60 will help us digitize an entire game on videotape, or 8 minutes of film.
Your $175 gift will help us digitize almost 3 full games on videotape, or half a game on film.
A gift of $350 will digitize an entire game on film (that's two reels!) or 5 1/2 games on videotape!
Be our half court hero! $500 will help us digitize eight games on videotape, or a game and a half of film.
A $1000 gift will help us digitize nearly 17 games on videotape or 3 games on film!