Gift is Largest in Eastern Michigan Athletics History
YPSILANTI, Mich. (February 29, 2008) -- The Eastern Michigan University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics has received the largest gift ever to the department, EMU Director of Athletics Dr. Derrick Gragg announced today.

The gift, a $1 million dollar pledge from former EMU track and cross country competitor Daniel J. McClory, has been designated for the men's and women's track and field and cross country programs.

"This is the second historic gift we have received in two months," said EMU provost and executive vice president Dr. Don Loppnow. "We received the largest estate gift in school history in support of academics in January and now this gift will help our student-athletes continue their success in the classroom and on the field."

"Above all else, our mission is to guide, support and inspire our student- athletes in their pursuit of excellence, academically, athletically and socially," Gragg said. "Dan's gift will ensure that we will be able to do just that."

McClory, a native of Royal Oak, Michigan, earned his bachelor's degree in English Language from EMU in 1981 and followed that up with a master's in Language and International Trade in 1982. His wife, Florentina, is also an EMU graduate.

"The Eastern experience and participation on the track and cross country teams has been a difference-maker in my life," McClory said. "It's time to formally recognize that and give back to EMU and the athletic programs to maintain prominence of these nationally-ranked teams."

This gift, the largest-ever to EMU Athletics, comes on the heels of a record breaking fund raising year in athletics. In 2006-2007, the EMU Athletic Club raised $715,302 in cash and gifts in kind from 1,250 donors. The fund raising total, which was spearheaded by the leadership fundraising of the E-Gridiron Group, was an all-time record for the department, surpassing the previous mark of $705,241set in fiscal year 1993. The donor total of 1,250 was also of significance, as it marked an increase of 52.9% over fiscal year 2006.

The EMU men's track and field and cross country programs are rich in tradition over the past 102 years. The Green and White have produced 56 Division I All-Americans, 27 Division II All-Americans and 40 NAIA All-Americans. In addition, Eastern has had a profound impact on the Olympic Games, with 11 track and field athletes reaching the summer games a total of 15 times. Two of those former EMU standouts, Hayes Jones and Hasely Crawford, were both Gold Medal winners. Jones won the gold in the 110-meter hurdles in the 1964 Olympics and added a Bronze Medal in 1960. Crawford earned the title of the World's Fastest Man by winning the 100 meters at the 1976 Olympics. In addition to those two stars, former 800-meter runner Earl Jones was a Bronze Medalist in that event at the 1984 Olympics.

The EMU women's track and field and cross country programs, while not as old, dating back to the official start of women's athletics scholarships in 1976, have also enjoyed success in their short history.

One of the first EMU women's track and field greats, Sue Parks, was hired two seasons ago to restore the team to its past success level when the team captured 12 Mid-American Conference outdoor track titles from 1979-2003. EMU women track and field competitors have also won two NCAA titles, with Lela V. Nelson capturing the long jump title in 2005, Mireille Sankatsing winning the 800 meters in 1992.

McClory became a part of EMU's great track tradition in 1977 after graduating from Royal Oak Dondero High School.

While attending EMU, McClory was a three-time captain and four-year letterman on the men's track and field and cross country teams. He was also a writer for The Eastern Echo and a founding member of the University Ambassadors Society. He turned in his top performance for EMU as a junior cross country runner in 1979 when he was the top EMU runner and 45th overall at the NCAA District Championship. That same year, he finished 19th overall as EMU's third runner at the Mid-American Conference Men's Cross Country Championship.

For the past decade, McClory has provided U.S.-European-Asian corporate finance and administrative services. For the last five years, he has served as a managing director for Hunter Wise Financial Group, LLC, in Irvine, Calif., which provides mid-market investment banking services from offices in the U.S., the United Kingdom, China and Canada. McClory leads the Hunter Wise Small Cap Equities practice, which has assisted more than 50 American, Chinese and European companies in finding growth capital through the public markets, and acting on merger and acquisition opportunities.

McClory is a member of the Corporate Finance Faculty of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. In 2007, he was among the first group of investment banking professionals worldwide to be awarded the prestigious Corporate Finance Qualification sponsored by the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

McClory has completed IPOs on the London Stock Exchange's Alternative Investment Market (LSE-AIM, a Nasdaq Small Cap-like sub- section of their main board) for U.S. and International clients, and has others in registration for listings and fund raisers on the U.S. Over the Counter markets.

For the last 25 years McClory his wife, Florentina, and three children, have resided in Laguna Niguel, California.