2022 KENAN STADIUM EQUITY SEATING PLAN
GA ME D AY I N C H A P E L H IL L . YOU CA N FEEL I T, SEE I T, TASTE IT.
From the buzz of excitement around campus … to the thousands of Tar Heels decked out in that wonderful shade of blue … to the tents and tailgates welcoming families and friends. Gameday means Carolina is coming together to cheer on our guys in beautiful Kenan Stadium. Rams Club members like you make up the team that makes it all possible – with your generous gifts in support of the best student-athletes in the country, and with your cheering voices letting them know you have their backs on the field. And as a Rams Club member, you have the opportunity to enjoy those great fall Saturdays from the best seats in the stadium! In 2022, you once again have the opportunity to personally select your season ticket locations (and parking when applicable) based on your generosity and longevity as a Rams Club member. In keeping with the regular three-year cycle of the Equity Seating process, the 2022 selection process will secure your seats and parking (based on rules detailed in this publication) for the next three seasons. The Equity Seating process at its core is straightforward – you get to pick your seats and parking based on your membership rank in The Rams Club. However, that kind of process admittedly comes with plenty of “rules” you need to know and boxes you need to check. While this publication presents a lot of information shared through a lot of words and lists, you are encouraged to read through it fully so that you can best understand the process and know what you need to do to make sure you get the best seats and parking you possibly can. And when all is said and done this summer, we can then get ready to load up that tailgate, grab those blue and white pom-poms, and head to campus for our big Carolina Family reunions – football gamedays in Chapel Hill! Go Heels!
GUIDING PRINCIPLES OF EQUITY SEATING The Equity Seating process was first implemented in 2011 to give Rams Club members the ability to choose their own season seat and parking locations most fairly for Carolina Football. By basing seat and parking selections on membership rank, members have access to seats corresponding to their years of membership and giving in support of our Tar Heel student-athletes and our 28-sport program. The Equity Seating process stands upon three guiding principles: 1. FAIRNESS The selection process should be fair – providing each Rams Club member the same opportunity to select seats and parking based on the same set of guidelines as other members. 2. RECOGNITION OF LOYALTY AND GIVING Carolina enjoys the support of some of the most loyal and generous fans in college athletics. You offer your support as Rams Club members – and that support is a primary factor in getting you the best available seats and parking for gameday. For more than 40 years, the Priority Point System has determined membership rank among all Rams Club members. That same system is used in the Equity Seating process, and allows Carolina to reward you based upon not just a single gift, but a lifetime of giving. 3. THE CHOICE IS YOURS The Equity Seating process puts the decision on seat and parking locations in your hands. You will have the chance to use an online selection website (or call us or come visit in person) to choose your seats and parking at your selection time – and to find just the right location for you.
IMPORTANT DATES _______________________________________ APRIL 15
Deadline for ordering your season tickets
Deadline for locking in your membership level and priority points for selection rank
FIRST WEEK OF MAY
Appointments announced based on April 15 membership ranks and ticket deposits
MID MAY-LATE JUNE
Selection process takes place
THE PRIORITY POINT SYSTEM Your membership level and membership rank determine when you are able to select your seat and parking in the Equity Seating process. The Rams Club utilizes its well-established Priority Point System to determine rank among donors – rewarding years of loyalty and level of support. Members earn priority points in the following ways: • 1 point for every $100 donated through The Rams Club • 3 points for every year of membership in The Rams Club • 15 bonus points for 10 years of membership, 30 points for 20 years of membership, and so on. The Rams Club utilizes two point totals to allow members to potentially maximize the tax deductibility of certain gifts. These two point totals were established since the last Equity Seating process in response to the 2017 tax law changes:
LIFETIME POINTS Lifetime Points are accumulated as they have been for more than 40 years – through years of membership and for all gifts made in support of Carolina student-athletes. Lifetime Points will be used for all priority rankings except home seating – including parking selections.
HOME POINTS Home Points accumulate the same as Lifetime Points – through years of membership and gifts made. Your Home Points total can be lower than your Lifetime Points total if you opted to decline membership points for a gift in order to preserve tax deductibility for that gift. Home Points will be used for seat selections in the Equity Seating process since they apply to home game seating (a distinction made by the 2017 tax law changes). PLEASE NOTE: The large majority of members will have the same point totals for Lifetime Points and Home Points – and, therefore, will have one selection appointment time as a result. If a member has different point totals for Lifetime and Home Points, the member will receive two appointment times to select parking (based on Lifetime Points) and tickets (based on Home Points) separately.
PRIMARY FEATURES OF THE EQUITY SEATING PROCESS The Equity Seating process operates on three primary features that determine your selection time and how many seats and parking spaces you can select: 1. SEAT AND PARKING SELECTION TIMES ARE BASED ON YOUR MEMBERSHIP RANK. The best ticket locations in the main bowl of Kenan Stadium and parking locations on campus will be made available for personal selection by active members of The Rams Club with a season ticket order. Seat and parking selection appointment times will be based upon a member’s membership rank as determined by the Priority Point System as of April 15. 2. THE NUMBER OF SEATS AND PARKING YOU CAN SELECT ON PRIORITY ARE DETERMINED BY YOUR MEMBERSHIP LEVEL. A member may buy as many tickets as he/she chooses, but the number of tickets available for priority selection is determined by membership giving level. Members will fall into one of two priority groups, and their membership level will allow them to choose a maximum number of tickets “on priority” in the following increments:
PRIORITY GROUP A: Made up of members at the Rameses level and higher, sorted by rank: Endowed Scholarship up to 20 tickets Legend up to 20 tickets Champion up to 20 tickets All-American up to 16 tickets Coaches Circle up to 15 tickets Super Ram up to 11 tickets Battering Ram up to 11 tickets Strutting Ram up to 7 tickets Big Ram up to 5 tickets Rameses up to 3 tickets ____________________ PRIORITY GROUP B: Made up of members at the Ram and Tar Heel levels, sorted by rank: Ram Tar Heel
up to 5 tickets up to 3 tickets
“SURPLUS” TICKETS: If a member has a ticket order greater than his or her membership level maximum allows, these “Surplus” tickets will be assigned the best available location by Athletics Ticket Office staff after Priority Groups A and B have completed selections but ahead of the general public assignments. For example, a Big Ram who wants 8 tickets may order 8 tickets, but will have 5 available for selection in Priority Group A and 3 for assignment in the “Surplus” group. If that Big Ram was a Battering Ram, all 8 tickets would be available for selection in Priority Group A.
3. SELECTIONS WILL LOCK IN YOUR LOCATION FOR THE NEXT THREE SEASONS. The next Equity Seating process will occur in 2025. This 2022 selection process will lock in your seat and parking locations for the 2022, 2023, and 2024 Carolina Football seasons as long as your membership level does not decrease between 2022 and 2025. IMPORTANT “RULES” & ADDITIONAL GUIDANCE FOR SELECTIONS Zone pricing for seats in Kenan Stadium means your total amount due for season tickets will not be known until your selections are made. For that reason, season tickets will be sold through a deposit of $150 for each seat you want. Balances due will be collected at the conclusion of your seat selection. Members in Priority Groups A and B will be able to personally select their seat location. Members in Priority Group A will choose first; Priority Group B will follow. General Public locations will be assigned by Athletics Ticket Office staff. Premium seats (Pope Box, Koury Boxes, the Mezzanine and the Blue Zone) are not reassigned as part of the Equity Seating process. However, parking selection is part of the Equity Seating process. Premium seats do not count toward priority limits on season tickets. For example, a Super Ram with 4 Blue Zone seats can still select up to 11 seats in the main bowl. Seats and parking assigned under a small number of previously written contractual agreements are not subject to the selection process. A Rams Club member must be active at the Big Ram membership level or higher and have a Carolina Football season ticket purchase to qualify for parking selection. Members at the qualified giving levels may purchase one parking pass with their season ticket order. A second parking pass will be provided if the season ticket order is for 6 tickets or more; a third pass is included for orders of 10 or more, etc. The same “Surplus” rules will apply for parking passes (priority parking passes will correspond with ticket priorities). Parking purchases will take place during the selection process, and will not be part of the season ticket order in advance of selection. Balances due for parking selections will be collected at the conclusion of your parking selection. If two or more members want to select seats together, they must inform The Rams Club by April 15. The selection priority for all members involved in a group that wants to have corresponding selection appointments will be based upon the lowest priority rank of the members involved.
WHAT’S NEW IN 2022? A handful of differences are in place since the last Equity Seating process in 2018. Please note these important changes: THE RAMS CLUB MEMBERSHIP YEAR NOW RUNS FROM JULY 1 TO JUNE 30. Members will make selections in May/June 2022 based on their anticipated membership level for the 2022-23 membership year (July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023). Members should confirm their 2022-23 membership level by April 15, but will have until June 30, 2023 to complete their gift commitment. MEMBERSHIP LEVELS HAVE INCREASED WITH THE 2022-23 MEMBERSHIP YEAR. Membership level minimums increased for all members at the Ram level and higher starting with the 2022-23 membership year. Please consider the new gift required when confirming your membership level for 2022-23 and this spring’s selection. For more information on giving level changes, please visit ramsclub.com/membershiplevels. TICKETS WILL BE SECURED WITH A DEPOSIT WITH THE FULL PURCHASE BALANCE DUE AFTER SELECTIONS. With zone pricing for seating (detailed in this publication), the full amount due for season tickets will not be known until your selections are made and your zone is locked in. For that reason, season tickets will be sold through a deposit of $150 for each seat you want. Balances due will be collected at the conclusion of your seat selection. PARKING PASSES ARE NOW AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE. Beginning with the 2022 season, parking passes will be available for purchase on a season basis. Parking purchases will take place during the selection process, and will not be part of the season ticket order in advance of selection. Balances due for parking selections will be collected at the conclusion of your parking selection. YOU MAY HAVE TWO SELECTION APPOINTMENTS (ONE EACH FOR TICKETS AND PARKING) IF YOU HAVE TWO POINT TOTALS. Tax laws changed in late 2017 ( just before the last Equity Seating process), leading The Rams Club to establish two priority point totals for each member dependent upon the deductibility of the member’s gifts. You may have different point totals for Lifetime Points (used for parking priority among other things) and Home Points (used for home venue ticket priority) if you chose to decline points on a recent gift to protect the tax deductibility of that gift. If so, you will receive two different appointment times for parking selection (based on Lifetime Points) and seat selection (based on Home Points) to maximize your priority. The point totals are detailed in this publication.
HOW YOU CAN GET READY To prepare for your selection, it is important that you confirm your membership level so it matches up with your desired number of priority tickets and/or parking passes. Your membership level should match up with your ticket order by the priority deadline of April 15. Reminder: Parking selections are available to all members with a ticket order at the Big Ram level and higher. Your rank and membership level as of April 15 will determine your selection time. You can confirm your giving level and monitor your rank by logging in to your account at ramsclub.com.
ZONE PRICING FOR FOOTBALL TICKETS Carolina Athletics utilizes zone pricing for football season tickets and parking passes. Zone pricing sets a price based on the seat location within Kenan Stadium (for season tickets) or on campus (for parking). Rams Club members will choose their ticket and parking locations during the Equity Seating process from any available location at their appointment time, and the price of that selection will be determined by the zone in which the seats and/or parking are located.
KENAN STADIUM ZONE PRICING FOR SEASON TICKETS Rams Club members will secure their season tickets by making a deposit of $150 for each seat they want to purchase. That deposit is due by the ticket order deadline (and the Equity Seating deadline) of April 15. When selections are made during the Equity Seating process, a member can choose from any available seat in the stadium. Members will have the opportunity to opt for the best seats available for them, whether closer to the 50-yard line (more expensive) or in another part of the stadium. Each seat selection will have a total ticket price as indicated on the zone map on the next page. The balance due (difference between the deposit of $150 and the chosen seat) will be due upon confirming seats at the end of a member’s selection process. Tickets will be delivered in August as in years past. Reminder: Seats in premium seating areas are not subject to re-selection, and should be purchased in full before April 15.
ZONE PRICING FOR ON-CAMPUS PARKING Season parking passes will be available for purchase in 2022 for all members at the Big Ram giving level and higher with a season ticket purchase. Parking lots are also in a zone pricing format, with lots closer to the stadium having a higher purchase price. The purchase of parking passes will take place at a member’s selection time, and will not be part of the orders due by April 15. Any balances due will be collected at the checkout process during selection.
SAMPLE MEMBER SCENARIOS Below are a handful of case scenarios that may match up with your membership status or concerns heading into the Equity Seating process. 1. Don is a Big Ram member ranked #440. He currently has 4 seats in the main bowl and a parking pass (because of his Big Ram level). His Lifetime Points and Home Points are the same. Don will receive an appointment slot that allows him to choose both items at the same time based on his rank. 2. Don from Example 1 estimates that he will not get the seats he desires but thinks he could get the seats he wants if he had 30 more points (thus possibly improving his rank). Don can make a gift of $3,000 by the priority point deadline of April 15 to get those 30 points. His gift does not guarantee his rank or seats but will likely improve his standing. 3. Anne has 4 seats in the main bowl and a parking pass. She has different totals for Lifetime Points (320 points) and Home Points (288 points) because she declined points on some of her gifts to maintain tax deductibility. Anne will receive an appointment time to select her parking based on her 320 Lifetime Points – and will receive a separate time to select her seats based on her 288 Home Points. 3. Steve is a Rameses member who has bought 2 seats in the past but wants 4 seats in 2022. Steve will need to increase his membership level to Big Ram by the priority deadline of April 15 to choose 4 seats together. If he does not and remains a Rameses level member, he will have the chance to choose up to 3 of his seats on priority in Priority Group A, and have any remaining seats assigned in the “Surplus” tickets group (resulting in two separate locations).
4. Frank is a new donor who wants 2 seats in Kenan Stadium, and joins at the Rameses level. He will be able to choose seats in line with other members with 9 points (6 points for his $600 gift and 3 points for a year of membership) in Priority Group A. 5. Melanie is a Coaches Circle member who currently has 8 seats in the Pope Box and 10 seats in the main bowl. Melanie can have up to 15 tickets on priority in the main bowl as a Coaches Circle member. Will Melanie have to give up any of her 18 seats? No. Melanie’s seats in the Pope Box are considered premium seats and do not apply to the limit to purchase up to 15 seats on priority. She will choose the location of the 10 seats in the main bowl based upon membership rank within Priority Group A. 6. Alan has 4 seats in the Pope Box. Will his seats within the Pope Box be reassigned within the Pope Box? No. The Pope Box seats are premium seats and are not subject to re-selection. Alan will need to select parking if he does not have a space guaranteed by an existing contract. 7. Sharon is ranked #2902. Her friends with whom she currently has neighboring seats are ranked #2210 and #3814. They want to choose their seats together and have notified The Rams Club of this intention. Each member in the group must be in the same Priority Group and will choose based on the lowest-ranked member – in this case #3814. Their appointment times will be simultaneous. 8. Jim has been attending games at Kenan Stadium with his parents for many years. He wants to maintain seats in the same area as his parents. Can he inherit his parents’ priority? Rams Club policy does not allow points and ticket rights in Kenan Stadium to be passed down. To maintain similar priority as his parents, Jim will need to make gifts to build his points to a level consistent with his parents’ rank.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS WHY ARE THE RAMS CLUB AND CAROLINA ATHLETICS RESEATING KENAN STADIUM AGAIN? The Equity Seating process occurs every three years to most fairly allocate seats and parking for Carolina Football while recognizing loyalty and giving. By utilizing the well-established Priority Point System – which rewards Rams Club members for years of membership and lifetime giving – The Rams Club can equitably allocate seating and parking. Additionally, the financial challenges facing Carolina Athletics are significant. This process rewards donors who step up to help meet those challenges with new and creative giving. WILL I BE ABLE TO RETAIN MY OLD SEAT LOCATION? To most fairly allocate seating assignments, no members are guaranteed that they will be able to retain their old seat location. HOW DO I KNOW WHERE I WILL SIT IN 2022? Members will choose their own seats as part of the selection process in May/June. The Rams Club cannot predict the rank level needed for a given seat location, as member preferences will play a huge role in determining which seats are chosen first. HOW WILL I CHOOSE MY SEATS AND PARKING FOR THE 2022 SEASON? Online selection of seats for the 2022 season will be available at kenanseats.com. This site will launch in late April/early May. Additionally, members who choose to not select online will have an opportunity to visit campus to choose their seats, submit a proxy request in writing so that a staff member can choose their seats, or call the selection center at their appointed time. Information on these options will be forthcoming to all members with a season ticket order. WHEN WILL I KNOW MY APPOINTMENT TIME? Members with a season ticket purchase will be notified of their appointment time in early May. The first appointment will be in mid-May, and selections will run through most of June. WHAT HAPPENS IF I WANT MY SEASON TICKETS ALIGNED WITH A GROUP OF FRIENDS? Members can “group” their season tickets with other friends who are Rams Club members. If you want to choose your seats at the same time as your friends to guarantee that you will sit next to one another, your appointment times will be based upon the member with the lowest rank in your group. For example, a group of members with rankings of #542, #1095 and #1568 will choose at the slot for #1568.
HOW OFTEN WILL I HAVE TO MOVE MY SEATS? With the 2022 selection, you are locking in your seat and parking locations for the next three seasons as long as your membership level does not decrease in that timeframe. The next selection process is scheduled before the 2025 season. WHAT DO I DO IF I WANT TO ORDER MORE TICKETS THAN MY GIVING LEVEL ALLOWS? Members may order as many season tickets as they want, but will only be allowed to choose on priority the number of tickets their giving level allows (the corresponding list is included in this publication). Any tickets ordered beyond your priority limit will be assigned by Athletic Ticket Office staff after Priority Groups A and B have made selections.
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