Our History - Save UNCW Swimming

In May 2013, UNC Wilmington’s men’s and women’s swimming & diving teams were slated for elimination as part of a cost-cutting proposal. A university review committee recommended cutting five sports (including both swim programs) to address a projected $600,000 athletic budget shortfall​

This was shocking given the teams’ success – the men’s squad had a 12-year championship streak in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) and a dominant 101-5 conference dual meet record​

The recommendation was hard to fathom not only because of the teams’ competitive and academic excellence but also because swimming had one of the lowest cost-per-athlete profiles at UNCW​.

Faced with this sudden threat, the swimming community sprang into action instead of accepting the program’s demise.

Rallying a Grassroots Campaign

William “Billy” Rinehart, a UNCW Swimming alumnus (2001–2005), emerged as a key leader in the fight to save the Seahawks’ swim program​

Drawing on deep passion and alumni pride, Rinehart helped organize a broad grassroots campaign virtually overnight. Previous and current swimmers – led by alumni like Rinehart and team captains on campus – mobilized to inform and unite supporters.​

They launched a dedicated website (SaveUNCWSwimmingDiving.org) providing information on the proposed cuts, a link to the full review report, and personal testimonies from past team members​

They also started an online petition titled “Save UNCW Swimming and Diving,” which quickly went viral. Within days, the Change.org petition amassed over 12,000 signatures (eventually topping 14,500) as the hashtag #Fight4UNCWswimanddive gained traction on social media​

Notably, the team’s supporters even engaged sports celebrities to retweet their message, vastly amplifying its reach despite the swimmers themselves having modest followings​

Rinehart and fellow organizers encouraged everyone to not only sign the petition but also email the Chancellor and other officials directly to voice their opposition to the cuts​.

Local media outlets picked up the story, with coverage in the Wilmington Star-News and SwimSwam highlighting the outcry and momentum building behind the “Save UNCW Swim & Dive” movement​

Challenges Faced and Strategies

Organizers like Rinehart faced an uphill battle on a tight timeline. The recommendation to cut the teams was announced on May 15, and decisions would be made soon after. This gave the Save UNCW Swimming campaign mere weeks to reverse a process that typically might have seemed final. A major challenge was addressing the administration’s financial rationale. UNCW’s Chancellor and Board were chiefly concerned with revenue shortfalls and Title IX balance. Rinehart and the campaign countered this by marshalling evidence of the program’s strengths and community backing. They pointed out that cutting swimming would only save a “minute fraction” of the budget​, while the fallout – lost tradition, alumni goodwill, and student opportunities – would be immense. To prove swimming’s worth, the group not only touted the team’s academic and athletic record, but also secured pledges of financial support. In a matter of days, alumni pledged thousands of dollars to back the program if it was retained, and the UNCW Seahawk Club (athletic booster organization) saw a surge of new members earmarking donations for swimming. Social media savvy was another crucial strategy: by using Twitter and Facebook, Rinehart and the team engaged public figures and the wider swim community to apply pressure. “The relentlessness of their campaign” and how deeply they involved the community “paid a huge factor in the decision,” one team leader noted. In other words, Rinehart’s strategy of making the fight highly visible and impossible to ignore – through constant updates, creative advocacy (like “Save UNCW Swimming” T-shirts), and widespread sharing – helped sway opinion​.

A SwimSwam report on the saga later observed that the campaign’s high level of community engagement clearly “showed the Chancellor a lot” about how much support existed for the team. Throughout the effort, Rinehart and allies also collaborated with coaches and university insiders to seek solutions. Longtime head coach Dave Allen met with Chancellor Gary Miller multiple times to discuss alternatives to cutting the sport​. These talks, bolstered by the public outcry, explored ways to make the program more sustainable – from raising new funds to restructuring budgets. The unified front between passionate alumni (external pressure) and coaches/athletes (internal advocates) was a pivotal strategy.

Outcome: Program Saved and a Lasting Impact

Against the odds, the campaign succeeded. Within two weeks, the overwhelming support forced a reversal. On May 30, 2013, UNCW’s Chancellor announced that no sports would be cut, explicitly citing the outpouring of community support as a deciding factor. In a statement, Chancellor Gary Miller acknowledged being moved by the passionate response and called for continued community involvement to support athletics instead of elimination​.

All five threatened teams – including men’s and women’s swimming & diving – were reinstated, a decision hailed as a major victory for students and alumni. Local news headlines captured the jubilation; “UNCW won’t eliminate sports” declared one, noting that grassroots efforts had prevailed. Rinehart’s role did not go unnoticed: later media coverage pointed to him as an integral figure who “helped the Seahawks” avert the cuts​. The success story even resonated beyond Wilmington. It became a model for other college teams facing cuts. (In 2020, when East Carolina University shut down its swim program, Rinehart stepped in to advise and assist their “Save ECU Swim & Dive” initiative – a testament to his expertise in sports advocacy​.)

The immediate impact at UNCW was profound. The very next season, the men’s team went on to win their 14th straight conference championship, a “storybook finish” that almost never happened​. Athletes, who had feared their careers ending prematurely, were instead fitted for championship rings in 2014​. More importantly, the campaign sparked long-term positive changes. The swimming & diving program, grateful for the lifeline, doubled down on community service and engagement once reinstated. They launched new outreach programs (like “Seahawk Splash” swim lessons for local children and master’s swimmers) and dramatically increased volunteer hours to give back to the region that had supported them​. At the same time, UNCW’s supporters organized into a formal booster club specifically for the swim teams – the “Swimming Dub Club” – which raised over $40,000 in its first few months to help fund the program’s needs​

In sum, Billy Rinehart’s impact on saving UNCW Swimming was transformational. His leadership and the campaign he spearheaded not only preserved a pair of championship-caliber teams, but also galvanized a network of alumni and supporters whose effects are still felt today. The strategies employed – from harnessing social media to organizing alumni and appealing directly to decision-makers – showcased a blueprint for how to save a college sports program with grassroots advocacy and unwavering persistence.​

Now Rinehart and fellow swimming organizers want to help save teams across the nation. If this advocacy sounds like something you’d be interested in, please fill out this form to join us at Save Our Teams!