On October 1st Friends and Family of NBA referee Tony Brown launched a 10-day campaign to raise $100,000 for a Basketball Endowment Scholarship at his alma mater, Clark Atlanta University (CAU). The funds donated total more than $50,000. Brown had successful careers as both a Delta Employee and an NBA referee for 20 years, however on April 30, 2021, Tony was diagnosed with Stage IV Pancreatic Cancer and is currently in hospice near his home in Atlanta.
Tony received a full basketball scholarship and played at Florida A&M University his freshman year, but after visiting Atlanta and Clark College, he wanted to join their program. Unfortunately, Clark College didn’t have any scholarship funds to assist him with his education, so he elected to work his way through Clark College. Delta Airlines provided him with much needed employment in 1987, where he started by cleaning the outside of planes. Tony then cleaned the inside of planes, drove passenger carts from gate to gate, until he eventually became a flight attendant. Working at Delta allowed Tony to achieve his dream of graduating from Clark College in 1989 with a Bachelor’s degree in Finance. He retired from Delta in 2007.
Tony’s love of basketball continued to drive him towards his successful career as an NBA referee. As his career began officiating local games in Atlanta, he quickly gained the attention of conferences like the SWAC, MEAC, and SIAC. Soon he was in the CBA where he worked the 2001 Finals, the WNBA where he worked 2002 All-Star game and Finals, and as a part of the NBDL, he was hired as an NBA referee in 2002. In the NBA, Tony worked four All-Star games in 2006, 2017, 2018 and 2021. He reached his first coveted Finals game in 2020. Tony never missed a day of work as a college or professional referee. Tony is currently in hospice care in Emory Hospital. Wednesday night, with the assistance of the Black Man Lab Foundation, Tony and his family were visited by the Clark Atlanta University Basketball Team. The team brought Tony a signed CAU basketball jersey to remind him that although he did not have an opportunity to wear the CAU jersey during college, there will be students who do because of the endowment.
“Our entire family is grateful for the Clark Atlanta team coming to see Tony” states Tina Taylor-Brown (wife of Tony Brown). “We had a chance to meet the young men who will benefit from this endowment scholarship for Clark Atlanta University’s Basketball program. We want them to be able to focus on being student-athletes and not having to work a job. Academic excellence should be their job. We truly hope that Tony’s NBA and Delta family can help us achieve this goal.”
Clark Atlanta University is the largest of the Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCU) that comprise the Atlanta University Center Consortium. CAU was formed with the consolidation of Atlanta University and Clark College, both of which hold unique places in the annals of African-American history. Atlanta University, established in 1865 by the American Missionary Association, was the nation’s first institution to award graduate degrees to African-Americans. Clark College, established four years later in 1869, was the nation’s first four-year liberal arts college to serve a primarily African-American student population. Today, with nearly 4,000 students.
“Tony Brown embodies everything it means to be a Clark Atlanta basketball player. His hard work, determination, and perseverance are what set him apart from the rest because those qualities are hard to come-by these days,” says Coach Alfred Jordan, CAU Men’s Basketball Coach.
“People love Tony and Tina Brown deeply and this is a beautiful way to show our love by honoring Tony with an Endowment in his name at one of our great HBCU’s, Clark Atlanta University. We hope people around the world who have connected with Tony through Delta and the NBA will join us in this incredible effort”- Mawuli Mel Davis, Attorney-Activist.