wfn.org | National radio program will urge support for Bethune-Cookman

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.UMC.ORG>]

May 27, 1999 News media contact: Linda Green*(615)742-5470*Nashville, Tenn.
10-31-71B{302}

By United Methodist News Service

A nationally syndicated urban radio show will provide a financial boost to
historically black Bethune-Cookman College by encouraging listeners to make
contributions.

The United Methodist-related college in Daytona Beach, Fla., has been chosen
by the syndicated "Tom Joyner Morning Show" to receive funds through the Tom
Joyner UNCF Black College Fund Foundation's "Dollars for Scholars" program
during the month of June.  

The four-hour syndicated program is heard daily on 96 stations of the ABC
Radio Network and on the Armed Forces Network. It features one of the
nation's 105 historically black colleges and universities each month to
support scholarships for needy students.

Throughout June, Joyner and "The Morning Crew" will encourage listeners to
contribute to Bethune-Cookman by calling (900) 255-GIVE. The maximum
contribution that can be made by telephone is $15, which is automatically
charged to the caller's telephone bill. Of that amount, the college will
receive $12. 

In February, the show featured another United Methodist-related school,
Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tenn. The professional school received
$18,880 from the "Dollars for Scholars" program for student scholarships.

In explaining why the dollars program and foundation was established,
Joyner, through his Web site, said he felt blessed to have received a
college education himself. "Now I, along with listeners, can give something
back." 

The foundation, located in Dallas, was organized in 1997 to award
scholarships throughout the academic year to college students based on
financial need, academic records and circumstances involving the student's
application.

"It is the belief of the foundation that the need to support young people is
more prevalent than ever, and we are determined to exhaust every effort to
invest in America's future," said Tom Joyner Jr., chief executive officer of
the foundation and son of the radio show host. "For that reason, the
foundation started the Tom Joyner/UNCF Black College Scholarship Fund."  

Money is raised through the foundation through individual donations,
corporate support, telephone call-in donations, partnering with minority
businesses, and matching support from the United Negro College Fund, he
said. Since its creation, the foundation has raised more than $400,000 for
more than 20 different historically black colleges.

Contributions received by the foundation will be matched 50 percent by the
UNCF and dollar for dollar by a challenge benefactor, according to Clarence
Childs, Bethune-Cookman's vice president for student affairs.

For Bethune-Cookman, that means a $100 contribution will net the college
$250, with a $50 match from UNCF and a $100 match from a Bethune-Cookman
challenge benefactor. 

There is no dollar limit for mail-in contributions to the foundation. All
money raised through the Dollars for Scholars program is used for student
scholarships. Nearly 300,000 African-American students are enrolled at black
colleges and universities in the United States.

Childs, who is spearheading the fund-raising effort for Bethune-Cookman,
said the Dollars for Scholars program is an opportunity for alumni, friends
and supporters to make a contribution to the college. Graduates of the
featured school also go on the air to challenge listeners of the "Tom Joyner
Morning Show" to support the students.  

For more information on the Tom Joyner Foundation, call (972) 448-3197.

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United Methodist News Service
http://www.umc.org/umns/
newsdesk@umcom.umc.org
(615)742-5472