A quarter century of budget cuts had resulted in the acute deterioration of physical education and sports facilities at New York City public high schools across the five boroughs when we helped conceive of and funded Take the Field. Its mission was to rebuild 43 New York City public high school athletic fields in five years. Take the Field accomplished this goal on time and on budget.
Take the Field was conceived of as a public-private partnership and launched with initial grants from us, the Greve Foundation, and Robert Tisch. Operating as a privately-run design and construction company, it raised a total of $133 million: $36 million from the private sector and $97 million from public sources.