Stanton Named Director of Athletics at Baylor

WACO, Texas - Baylor University President Robert B. Sloan Jr. today named Tom Stanton to the position of director of athletics effective June 1.
The 46-year-old Stanton came to Baylor in July of 1995 as the university's director of athletic marketing and promotions following a 22-year career with Word Inc., an international Christian communications company. He held several positions at Word, among them director of telemarketing, vice president for marketing, vice president for operations, senior vice president for operations, executive vice president for finance and operations, and executive vice president for operations, direct marketing and international export. Word Inc. was acquired by Thomas Nelson Inc. in 1992 and in 1993 Stanton was named president of Nelson/Word Direct and Texas Operations. Stanton was responsible for three major divisions of the company and under his leadership, sales increased 35 percent.
"Tom Stanton fits the profile of the new generation of athletic directors," said President Robert B. Sloan Jr. "His extensive background in business, including marketing, licensing agreements and contract negotiations, along with his abilities related to personal and corporate sponsorships, make him a great fit for Baylor University as we move into the Big 12 and the 21st century. Also, Tom's knowledge of Baylor, his involvement in Baylor athletics, and his commitment to women's and men's athletics are added benefits. I look forward to working with him as we move to a new day."
Stanton holds bachelor's and master's degrees from Baylor and was a standout performer in basketball and baseball for the Bears, earning three letters in basketball and two in baseball.
He finished his basketball career at Baylor in 1972 with 954 points. He hit a full-court shot at the buzzer to tie a game against Navy in his junior season. His 10.8 scoring average earned him the team's Hustle Award three consecutive years, and as a junior he was second on the team in scoring behind All-American William Chatmon.
Since coming to Baylor, Stanton has been instrumental in several areas regarding the athletic department. Baylor set a record for football season ticket sales (more than 10,000), the

Baylor-Texas A&M game last season marked the school's largest-ever home crowd (51,218) and membership in the Bear Foundation has reached an all-time high of more than 2,100 members.
He has also been heavily involved in the Big 12 Task Force, a group of several hundred community and civic leaders who want to ensure a smooth and successful Baylor transition from the Southwest Conference to the Big 12 Conference.
Stanton and his wife, Kathleen, a Baylor graduate, have two sons, Clinton and Ryan.