Averett Sells Athletic Facilities

Seeking financial stability, Averett University has sold its North Campus athletic facilities in an $18 million deal that will allow it to lease back the nearby 70-acre site, Cardinal News reported.

The property is located about a 10-minute drive from Averett’s main campus in Virginia.

The site was purchased by local entities: the Danville Regional Foundation and the Danville-Pittsylvania Regional Industrial Facility Authority, which each own 50 percent of the property, according to Averett’s announcement. Averett will pay annual fees to lease the site and will have the opportunity to buy the campus and facilities back at the original purchase price. 

The deal will free up much-needed cash for the embattled university, which has struggled with a shortfall attributed to financial mismanagement that was discovered in July 2024. Officials have blamed the shortfall on a former employee who made unauthorized withdrawals from the endowment. While administrators have said there was no evidence of embezzlement or theft, they filed a lawsuit last April alleging the former chief financial officer and an investment firm colluded to hide budget deficits and drained the endowment of almost $20 million.

Fallout from the financial shortfall prompted Averett to enact pay cuts shortly after it was discovered and subsequently axe jobs and programs as officials tried to plug budget holes.

Averett president Thomas H. Powell described the sale as a win for all parties involved.

“This partnership is crucial for the long-term stability of Averett University. As the city’s only four-year college, Averett is richly embedded in the fabric of the region and is a key economic force in Southside Virginia,” Powell said in a news release. “With this partnership, Averett will now be able to continue to grow and evolve into a university that better serves the community. Averett is becoming a new, more efficient and focused university that has always changed with the times and will provide wide-ranging benefits and advantages to the Dan River Region.”

Averett competes at the NCAA Division III level.