University of Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez and School of Nursing dean Katharyn May announced Monday the UW football spring game will now cost $5 to attend with the proceeds going directly to the nursing school in order to help fund a new school building.

The spring game, scheduled for April 23, was previously free for fans to attend, but according to Alvarez, he and head coach Bret Bielema have been anxious to help the campus community and felt the spring game served as a viable fundraiser.

“Bret and I have been talking about doing something with the spring game and possibly tying it with some unit on campus, getting them involved and allowing them to benefit from the spring game,” Alvarez said. “This is about us being part of the campus and supporting the campus. … This is one way for us to give back and say thank you.”

The money collected from the spring game will aid the Nursing School’s efforts to break ground on the new building. May explained that the fundraising efforts have been tough in the current economic climate, but they are getting close.

“We are within striking distance,” May said.

May is also excited about the opportunity to increase the Nursing School’s exposure thanks to the partnership with the football program.

“Ticket sales will benefit our campaign, and the event, as well as the publicity leading up to it, gives us a chance to tell a bit of our story to the wider community – to folks who love UW and football, but may not have heard much about UW nursing,” May said.

Alvarez and Bielema have been looking for ways to increase attendance for the UW spring game over the past few seasons. The Badgers typically draw around 20,000 fans for the event, while a school such as Alabama plays in front of a nearly sold-out stadium.

“I see spring games all over the country where stadiums are nearly sold out,” Alvarez said. “So, hopefully, this will be another incentive.”

“I think this is one idea, or one way we can have a different group of people (at the game),” Alvarez added. “If we have those in the nursing school promote and sell tickets, there’s someone else who may be interested.”

As for future spring games, Alvarez plans on reaching out to a new part of campus each season to help raise money in a partnership between athletics and academics.

“Our plan is to move this around to different units on campus each year,” Alvarez said. “Bret and I will decide.”