TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – More than 1,700 articles of clothing have been collected during the past year for distribution to impoverished children in Third World countries, thanks to the combined efforts of The University of Alabama’s Students in Free Enterprise and Cintas Corp.

The collection of clothing, from students, faculty and staff, made the local Cintas Corp.’s “Clothe the Kids” program the most successful in the company’s South-Central Region history.

“Clothe the Kids” was started in 2003 by Cintas Corp., in conjunction with Matthew 25 Ministries, to raise awareness of the need for children’s clothing in foreign countries. The program collects donations of slightly used clothing and/or money for new clothing to help impoverished children in Third-World countries.

Since the program began, more than 500,000 items of clothing have been donated. This year with the help of the UA student team, known as SIFE, Cintas, Tuscaloosa expects to be in the top-10 collections in the nation.

Stacey Bledsoe, human resource manager for Cintas, was instrumental in helping the SIFE team reach its goals. “With SIFE’s help, we were able to exceed our goals for this year,” Bledsoe said. “I look forward to having SIFE and UA’s help again next year.”

The University of Alabama, a student-centered research university, is in the midst of planned, steady enrollment growth with a goal of reaching 28,000 students by 2010. This growth, which is positively impacting the campus and the state's economy, is in keeping with UA's vision to be the university of choice for the best and brightest students. UA, the state's flagship university, is an academic community united in its commitment to enhancing the quality of life for all Alabamians.