July 1, 2007

MEMPHIS, TENN. - The University of Memphis Tiger Scholarship Fund continued its nine-year streak of record-setting contributions when it was announced that over $5.6 million in unrestricted monies was donated to Tiger athletics last year. TSF is the athletic department organization charged with raising scholarship dollars for U of M student-athletes.

"This is a tribute to our fans, supporters, the Memphis coaches and the staff of the Tiger Scholarship Fund," said athletic director R.C. Johnson. "When we arrived at the University, we had donations of less than $1 million annually. We thought that $5 million was an achievable mark for our fund-raising efforts. Now we have surpassed that figure for the second-consecutive year but must continue to raise the bar in order to keep pace with the rising cost of higher education."

During the 2005-06 fiscal year the Tiger Scholarship Fund raised $5.0 million in unrestricted donations for the first time in school history. This year, associate athletic director Bill Lansden and his staff, have raised the total donation mark to more than $5.6 million in unrestricted dollars. Monies raised by the Tiger Scholarship Fund are used to offset the cost of scholarships for the over 350 Tiger student-athletes.

"I would like to thank all of our Tiger fans for their generous gifts and commend the efforts of Bill Lansden and his entire staff for the job they did this year," Johnson continued. "The Tiger Scholarship Fund is faced with the task of raising donations, while growing our donor base."

In addition to the $5.6 million in unrestricted funds, the TSF office also generated $2 million in gift-in-kind donations bringing the year's total donation to $7.6 million.

The Tiger Scholarship Fund staff is made up of director Lansden, assistant athletic director Steve Stroud, Judy Gupton, athletic development/events coordinator, development coordinators Kenneth "Ziggy" Siegfried and Carl Evans, administrative assistant Donna LaRiviere and staff assistant Esther Hollie.