Laura Pearl Teasley-Farwell

Tennessee State University alumna Laura Teasley-Farwell (class of 1958) was the first in her family to graduate high school and attend college; her uncle Simon Teasley helped with tuition by working in one of TSU’s boiler rooms. Sixty years later, Teasley-Farwell donated more than $300,000 to establish the Teasley Family Endowment Fund, providing scholarships for students in significant financial need. The gift made Teasley-Farwell a member of the Lifetime Society Century Club, recognizing donors who have given more than $100,000 to Tennessee State University. She is one of only ten alumni in a society of nineteen donors. “I give because I’m in a position to do it,” Teasley-Farwell says. “It was hard for us. If I can make it easier on someone, then I’m doing what I’m supposed to do.” Teasley-Farwall lives in Los Angeles and remains very active in the Far West Regional Los Angeles Chapter of the Tennessee State University National Alumni Association and her beloved Zeta Phi Beta sorority.