This has been a difficult time for the university community, and particularly for the woman who brought this to my attention. When she reached out to me, my first concern—which I shared with her—was for her safety. I immediately reported to the athletic director for direction. All of us involved have learned that we have additional reporting responsibilities, and we will follow those procedures in the future. I had never been in a situation where one of my coaches was accused of abusing a spouse or partner. But, as the regents and President Benson recognized, I never acted in bad faith.
In the football program, I stress to our student-athletes and our coaching staff the importance of values, integrity and accountability. I accept the actions announced today by President Benson.
I am fully committed to the changes the university will implement. I have always had tremendous compassion for those who have been affected by domestic abuse. I am personally invested in being part of the solution and want to be a voice for those who have been victims. Therefore, I will donate $100,000 to addressing domestic violence in our community; $50,000 of those funds will go to programs that support members of the CU community who have been victims of domestic and dating violence. In addition, to help families who have been victims of domestic abuse I will support organizations that shelter victims and their families. I will be donating the remaining $50,000 to Gateway Domestic Violence Services. This is just the beginning of my ongoing involvement and support of these very important programs.
As I have said previously, I can assure the campus community, all CU fans and all of our student athletes and their families, that I personally will continue to build the rise of CU football on a bedrock set of values: decency, honor, excellence—with respect for women and all people being chief among them.
Mike MacIntyre,
Head Coach, University of Colorado
Head Coach Mike MacIntyre
