The College of Western Idaho is charting an unconventional path to launch intercollegiate athletics, planning to rely on a fully-endowed funding model that requires raising roughly $5 million per team before fielding competitors. The approach represents a significant departure from how most colleges finance sports programs, and Athletic Director Mahmood Sheikh said he is aware of no other two-year institutions employing this strategy.
Sheikh, hired in late May, is tasked with building out CWI’s athletic offerings from the ground up. The endowment-based model means the college will not start any team until its perpetual operating costs are completely funded through invested reserves, rather than relying on annual budget allocations that have proven challenging for the Idaho’s largest two-year school.
Tight Budgets Drive Unconventional Strategy
CWI has operated on constrained budgetary margins for nearly two decades, making traditional sports funding difficult. Some potential CWI teams could function on budgets as modest as $200,000 annually, yet achieving full endowment requires substantial fundraising. The college’s size—with 34,000 students, 98 percent from Idaho and 77 percent from Ada and Canyon counties—gives it a strong regional foundation to build athletic interest.
Sheikh outlined the rationale behind the endowment approach: “We’re going to be doing the same, in finding what excites folks from an intercollegiate athletics perspective.” He noted that successful teams would draw fan engagement across geography. “Students will want to come watch them compete, no matter where they live,” Sheikh said.
Early possibilities for CWI athletics include rodeo, men’s basketball, and women’s basketball. Football and women’s lacrosse are considered unlikely additions. Before launching intercollegiate competition, CWI plans to establish club-level and intramural sports programs to build campus culture and athletic participation.
Community Input and Campus Life
The college has opened a dedicated email address—athletics@cwi.edu—to solicit community feedback on athletic priorities. Student surveys have indicated demand for campus offerings that foster a sense of belonging, with two-thirds of respondents citing that as a priority.
CWI’s student population presents both advantages and constraints. The college operates no dormitories and has no plans to build them, meaning athletes will commute from surrounding communities. This limitation shapes which sports are feasible and how teams must be structured to serve a non-residential student body concentrated in the Boise metropolitan area and surrounding counties.
Broader State Athletics Landscape
CWI’s athletics initiative arrives as Idaho’s higher education athletic landscape undergoes broader examination. In June, Governor Brad Little assigned a task force to evaluate Idaho’s position within college athletics, signaling state-level interest in how community colleges and universities coordinate athletic offerings.
NCAA transfer rules are also shifting the dynamics of community college athletics. New regulations will allow student-athletes to transfer after two years at a junior college, creating both opportunities and challenges for CWI as it builds its program. The college will need to develop competitive offerings that attract and retain student-athletes while balancing its primary mission as an affordable, accessible educational institution.
What Comes Next
Sheikh and the CWI athletics team will focus on fundraising for an initial endowment, likely beginning with one or two sports. Club and intramural programs are expected to launch sooner, providing stepping stones toward full intercollegiate competition. The college’s ability to secure $5 million commitments—either through donors, grants, or community partnerships—will determine the timeline and scope of its athletics expansion.