Amscot Financial Contributes $15,000 To Academy Prep In Tampa

Tampa, FL – (June 17, 2010) – Amscot Financial, a leading provider of convenient, consumer-oriented financial services, has made a major contribution of $15,000 to Academy Prep Center of Tampa, a private school that serves children of low-income families in the Tampa Bay area.

Academy Prep Center of Tampa opened in the summer of 2003 in Tampa’s historic Ybor City. Academy Prep serves middle school children of good character from Tampa’s inner city who qualify for need-based scholarships and who have the work ethic and academic ability to succeed. Academy Prep’s 5th- through 8th-grade students:

• Must be eligible for the free or reduced-price federal school meals program, setting their income near or below the U.S. poverty line.
  
  
• Attend school up to 11 hours a day, six days a week, nearly year round in small classes of no more than 17 boys or 17 girls, with most classes taught by gender.
  
  
• Receive a full range of academics, including preparatory level English, literature, mathematics, science, social studies, writing, art, drama, library skills, 
  and computer lab.
  
  
• Participate each day in afternoon enrichment programs including classes and programs in dance, music, karate, chess, various sports, art, Scouts, career development, social skills, leadership skills, and community service. The day closes with a mandatory study hall from 5 to 6 p.m.

Fraser MacKechnie, executive vice president and chief operating officer, said: “We have come away from our visits to Academy Prep convinced that the faculty and staff are making a tremendous difference in the lives of Tampa Bay’s most outstanding students. We believe an investment in Academy Prep today will reap benefits for our community for many years
to come.”

Lincoln Tamayo, Head of School at Academy Prep, said: “The support of committed community partners like Amscot is the lifeblood of our mission.  On behalf of our hard-working students, faculty, and staff, I thank Amscot for this significant display of trust in what we accomplish at Academy Prep.”

Founded in 1989, Amscot Financial employs more than 2,000 associates who 
work at the company’s 174 retail branches and at the company’s corporate headquarters in Tampa. The company currently operates retail locations in Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, Hernando, Polk, Hardee, Highlands, Manatee, Sarasota, Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Lake, Volusia and Brevard counties.

Amscot Financial is The Money Superstore™, offering an array of convenience-oriented financial services, including the cashing of personal checks, out-of-state checks 
and government checks; cash advances; Western Union wire transfers, notary services, 
pre-paid debit cards, free money orders income tax preparation. Amscot Financial also
allows customers to make bill payments to more than 200 different utilities, municipal governments, cable and telephone companies.

About Amscot Financial
Headquartered in Tampa, Fla., Amscot Financial is The Money Superstore™, providing income tax preparation and electronic filing services, refund anticipation loans, prepaid debit cards, check cashing services, cash advance services, bill payment services, money transfer services and money orders. Amscot also offers the Amscot Card, a pre-paid debit card that allows owners to make purchases from any location that accepts MasterCard™. Amscot Financial currently operates 174 Money Superstores throughout Florida and employs more than 2,000 people. Amscot Financial has been recognized by the Tampa Bay Business Journal as one of Tampa Bay’s Best Places to Work for four consecutive years. For additional information, please visit the company’s Web site at www.amscotfinancial.com.