Bartholomae acknowledged there’s still uncertainty surrounding Spartan Ventures, saying the university needs to better define the initiative before explaining its long-term purpose.

“We have not done a good enough job explaining what Spartan Ventures is, explaining what it isn't and then letting everybody get on board with it so that they can explain it," Bartholomae said.

Bartholomae said he’s still learning about Spartan Ventures two months into the job. 

He expects Spartan Ventures’ direction to become clearer in early 2027. The fundraising initiative was announced in December 2025 and began on July 1 under Batt.

For now, Spartan Ventures remains a work in progress. New leadership, its purpose and potential revenue opportunities have yet to be determined. 

Spartan Ventures has been a point of contention between MSU trustees, fans and students over its role within MSU athletics and how it will generate revenue. Bartholomae said that defining the initiative falls under one of three priorities during his first month on the job: transparency.

“As I've sort of assessed where the challenges are here, I've put them into three buckets: transparency, consistency and competitiveness,” Bartholomae said. “The Spartan Ventures piece fits into the transparency bucket.” 

Two people were on campus this week interviewing for the vacant Spartan Ventures CEO position, Bartholomae said. Former CEO Jon Palumbo left for Kentucky on Sept. 8 to lead Champions Blue, the school's equivalent to Spartan Ventures. Palumbo was named MSU’s interim athletic director following Batt's departure in July.

Bartholomae also clarified that the Williams family's $401 million commitment will be used over a “long period of time” and is not immediately available for the athletic department to spend.  

“For one, it's not like you all of a sudden just wake up, and there's $400 million sitting under your pillow,” Bartholomae said. “That would be cool. I would take that.”

Bartholomae said MSU needs to better connect its FOR SPARTA fundraising campaign to specific initiatives, such as stadium projects, increasing football resources and investments in other sports.

The Serra family recently committed $10 million to FOR SPARTA with an emphasis on future Spartan Stadium renovations. 

Football will remain the athletic department's top priority, but MSU also needs to position its other programs to compete for national championships, Bartholomae said.

While its long-term structure is still being determined, Bartholomae outlined several ways he believes Spartan Ventures could help MSU generate revenue.

The conference's Big Ten media rights deal will expire in 2030, and Bartholomae said future revenue can be viewed as an asset before the money actually arrives.

The other opportunity is using Spartan Ventures as a separate business structure for revenue generation that may not fit within the traditional university structure. Bartholomae pointed to outside events, media events, event rentals and concerts as examples.