@Claflin: Claflin University is Tom Joyner School of the Month

The World Needs Visionaries

Note: Claflin University will be closed for the holiday season until Wednesday, January 2, 2019. The offices will reopen on Thursday, January 3, 2019.

Claflin Prepares for Tom Joyner Foundation® 2019 School of the Month Program

Claflin University will be recognized as the January 2019 "School of the Month" by the Tom Joyner Foundation®. The Foundation, formed by the nationally-syndicated radio personality Tom Joyner, chose Claflin as part of its on-going effort to provide scholarships for students attending historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs).

As a Tom Joyner Foundation® "School of the Month," Claflin will be promoted by the Tom Joyner Morning Show in January 2019 and will work with the Foundation to raise funds from listeners, alumni, and other supporters throughout the entire year. The show, which can be heard in more than 90 markets around the country, reaches more than 10 million people through its various media platforms.

All funds raised through this initiative at Claflin will support FOCUS100 Scholarships. Gifts of $2,500 or more to the campaign in January, whether made by individuals or given by alumni chapters, affinity groups, or organizations may be highlighted that month on the Tom Joyner Morning Show with a 1-2 minute taped segment that will be broadcast and share online.

Donations for this initiative can be made directly to Claflin University, via any of the University's existing means, or through the Tom Joyner Foundation by:

MOBILE PLEDGE: Text ClaflinPanther to 41444 to donate via credit card.
CROWDFUNDING: Text ClaflinPanther to 71777 to donate or become a Fundraiser for Claflin. Visit the Foundation's Crowdfunding Page to learn more.
DONATE ONLINE: Visit TomJoynerFoundation.org/donate (select Claflin University in the drop-down menu)
MAIL A DONATION: Send checks made payable to The Tom Joyner Foundation, Re: Claflin, P.O. Box 630495, Irving, Texas, 75063-0495

For more information or to volunteer to help with Claflin's 2019 School of the Month initiative, please contact Barbara Chappell, major gifts officer, at (803) 535-5349 or [email protected].

Five Hercules Scholars to be Named in January

Every Thursday in January, the Tom Joyner Foundation® will announce a new Claflin University recipient of a Hercules Scholarship.

The Hercules Scholarship is named after Joyner's father, the late Hercules Joyner, who was a strong supporter of higher education. To be a candidate for the scholarship, students must be male, attend a Foundation "School of the Month," have a grade point average of at least 3.5, and be a campus leader involved in the community with a career goal toward making a difference in the quality of life for his race.

The scholars each receive a scholarship grant of $1,500 that is paid directly to their school to help offset their college expenses.

Additional Scholarship Opportunities Available through Tom Joyner Foundation

In addition to Hercules Scholars, perhaps the Foundation's highest profile award, the Foundation is responsible for presenting numerous other prestigious scholarship awards throughout the year.

These include:

Tom Joyner Foundation Full Ride Scholarship
Al Joyner Memorial Scholarship
Annie Lee Memorial Scholarship
Denny's Hungry for Education Scholarship
Ruby L. Bailey Scholarship
TJF Fine Arts Scholarship

Stay tuned for information on how Claflin students will be able to apply for these scholarships.

Tom Joyner Foundation 2018 Day of Giving

Thank you to each of you who supported the Tom Joyner Foundation Day of Giving this month.

Your support will help make critically important FOCUS100 Scholarships available to students in need in 2019. Indeed, your gift could well be the difference maker that enables a deserving student to realize his or her dream of obtaining a Claflin University degree.

If you made a gift to the campaign on December 6 and have not yet claimed the thank-you gift associated with your donation, please contact Barbara Chappell at (803) 353-5371 or [email protected] .

Board of Visitors Special Gifts Campaign for FOCUS100 Scholarships

Established in 2004 by the Claflin University Board of Visitors, the FOCUS100 Scholarship Fund provides emergency need-based assistance - individual awards of up to $600 - to students who might otherwise be forced to withdraw from school. Specifically, the FOCUS100 Scholarship Fund provides support for tuition fees, housing fees, book stipends and coverage for other unexpected school-related financial emergencies.

In 2017, the Claflin University Board of Visitors accepted a challenge by President Henry N. Tisdale to raise $1 million in five years to ensure FOCUS100 Scholarships could continue. This past June, however, following the announcement of the President's upcoming retirement, the decision was made to accelerate the campaign. They set a new goal of completing the campaign before his tenure ends on June 30, 2019.

To date, gifts and pledges to the FOCUS100 campaign from individuals, foundations and corporations total $744,572.10 .

To learn more about the FOCUS100 campaign or to make a contribution, please click here.

New Year's Resolutions Made Simple: Automatic Draft Form

As the HBCU with the highest alumni-giving rate in the nation, and the 5th highest alumni-giving ranking of any college or university in the nation, per US News & World Report's 2018 Rankings, we can fairly say that Claflin alumni are deeply committed to supporting their alma mater.

Even so, there is a big difference between wanting to give and getting it done before the next New Year rolls around.

If being the best Claflin supporter you can be makes it to your 2019 New Years' Resolutions list, one way to make sure your worthy goal doesn't slip away is to use an Automatic Draft Form (ADF).

Completing this one-page form is simple. Click here for Claflin's ADF or call the Division of Institutional Advancement at (803) 535-5628 for more information.