UIC Alumnus and Major League Baseball Player Curtis Granderson Supports UIC's Peggy Colvin Baseball Center for Excellence

Curtis Granderson, who recently signed with the Detroit Tigers and is the first UIC baseball player to join the Major Leagues, wants the University of Illinois at Chicago to score high with potential student athletes.  To ensure this, Granderson made a lead gift of $25,000 to support the construction of UIC's new Peggy Colvin Baseball Center for Excellence.

"People are going to be impressed when they see the Colvin Baseball Center. Hopefully it will bring in big-time recruits, both from within and outside Chicago," Granderson said. "This will give UIC the edge when players decide which school to go to."

"The center's study space right next to the locker room reminds players they are student athletes, not just athletes," said Mike Dee, head baseball coach for UIC."  “This sends an important message, that this is not just a baseball program, but an outstanding institution with high academic expectations.”  

"Student athletes face a unique challenge, having to excel in both a sport and academics, and they can do both," said Dee, "Curtis Granderson is the epitome of the successful student athlete."

Granderson made the grade on the field and in the stacks.  He signed with the Tigers after his junior year at UIC and continued to work toward finishing his degree, which he earned only one semester late. 

The new center will help future athletes excel on and off the field.  "It helps you to win when you're in a clubhouse you can call home," Granderson said.  And Dee agrees, commenting, "A space that's ours and ours alone gives us a sense of ownership and cultivates an environment of family."

The Center opens in September to meet the comprehensive needs of players.  Coaches will be available for mentoring, tutors will be on hand to assist in academic areas and meeting spaces will host team gatherings and weekly leadership training.  Players will have easy access to computers and quiet study areas, while the coaching offices nearby allow the staff to monitor the players’ activity.   

Granderson believes in UIC’s mission of becoming the premier urban public research university in the nation.  Projects such as the Peggy Colvin Baseball Center for Excellence reflect that mission by meeting a need that encompasses all aspects of the student experience. As he says, “This center will help students, faculty and teammates build bonds.  It will let everyone know what UIC stands for.”