What the club is
The Ironclad Club is the membership and giving program for people who want to support Ironclad teams beyond buying a ticket: alumni, parents, former players, local businesses and a surprising number of retired faculty. It was founded in 1972 as the Millwright Boosters and renamed with the teams in 1994. Dues are processed by the UW–Porter Falls Foundation, so they are tax-deductible to the extent the law allows, minus the fair value of any tickets or meals received.
Membership runs July 1 to June 30. You can join or renew at any time through the online giving form by choosing "Ironclad Club" and, if you like, a specific team.
Membership levels
| Level | Annual gift | What members receive |
|---|---|---|
| Student Ironclad | $10 | Club T-shirt and a Forge Bowl student-section wristband |
| Young Alumni | $40 (graduates of the last ten years) | Window decal, member newsletter, member rate at the golf outing |
| Iron | $100 | All of the above, name in the football program, a members-only Forge Bowl ticket window before public sale |
| Steel | $250 | Plus one reserved parking pass for home football in the paved stadium lot |
| Forge | $500 | Plus access to the Ironclad Club tent at home football and an invitation to the Hall of Fame dinner |
| Anvil | $1,000 | Plus two all-sports season passes and the athletic director's preseason briefing in August |
| Founders' Circle | $2,500 and up | Plus a listing on the donor wall in the Ironclad Fieldhouse concourse |
Gifts designated to a single team count toward your level the same way. Matching gifts from employers count too, which is how a fair number of Iron members become Steel members without noticing.
What the dues fund
In 2025–26 the club raised $186,400 from 1,312 members. The department spent it this way:
| Use | Amount | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Team travel above the base budget (hotel nights before long conference trips, meals) | $50,300 | 27% |
| Equipment and uniforms | $41,000 | 22% |
| Sports medicine equipment and rehab supplies | $28,000 | 15% |
| Academic support: tutor hours and the Fieldhouse study room | $22,400 | 12% |
| Strength and conditioning | $18,600 | 10% |
| Student-athlete development, including SAAC service projects | $13,050 | 7% |
| Hall of Fame induction and recognition events | $13,050 | 7% |
Dues are separate from gifts made on Ironclad Giving Day, which sent $214,700 to athletics and club sports this spring (results). One concrete example from the dues side: the Fieldhouse study room now stays open until 11 p.m., Sunday through Thursday, because the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee asked for it and the academic-support line paid for it.
What the dues cannot fund, and the booster rules
Porter competes in NCAA Division III, which does not allow athletic scholarships. Club money never pays for aid tied to playing a sport. (The Ironclad Athletics Booster Award is a merit scholarship administered by Financial Aid and is open to any incoming student with a high-school athletics background, whether or not they play here.) Dues also do not pay coaches' salaries.
Once you give, NCAA rules treat you as a "representative of athletics interests." In practice that means:
- Do not contact recruits or their families about attending Porter; refer them to the coach.
- Do not give current student-athletes anything not available to other students: meals, rides, cash, discounted rent or a job at a better-than-usual wage.
- Inviting a team to your restaurant is fine only if it is arranged through the department.
When in doubt, call compliance director Brent Vosberg at (715) 555–0206 before acting, not after. More on the compliance page.
Ironclad Club Golf Outing
The club's one big fundraiser is a four-person scramble at the Porter Falls Municipal Course, home course of the Ironclad golf teams. The 31st outing, on Monday, June 8, 2026, drew 132 golfers and netted $38,900, most of which went to the travel line above.
- 2027 date
- Monday, June 7, 2027; registration opens March 1
- Format
- 11:00 a.m. shotgun start, four-person scramble, dinner at the clubhouse
- Cost
- $125 per golfer, $460 per foursome; Young Alumni $95
- Hole sponsorship
- $250, with a sign on the tee box
- Contests
- Closest to the pin on No. 7 (over the water), longest drive, and the coaches' putting challenge
Current coaches play in the outing; current student-athletes work the registration table as volunteers and, per the rules above, do not get a free round.
Fictional information
UW–Porter Falls is a work of parody. The Ironclad Club, its levels, budget figures and golf outing are invented; there is nothing to join and no gift will be processed.