Tami Hansbrough resigns at UNC

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Tami Hansbrough, the mother of former North Carolina basketball All-America Tyler Hansbrough, resigned her position as a school fundraiser Wednesday as the school continued to study trips she took with Matt Kupec, UNC's vice chancellor for university advancement.

Kupec, a former Tar Heels quarterback, resigned Sunday night after an internal review showed he had charged personal trips with Hansbrough to the university. Hansbrough had been placed on administrative leave.

Chancellor Holden Thorp told The (Raleigh) News & Observer on Monday that Kupec and Hansbrough appeared to have taken non-university-related trips to destinations where Hansbrough's youngest son, Ben, was playing basketball for Notre Dame. Thorp did not say how many trips the couple took.

Hansbrough was hired as an associate director of development at the UNC School of Dentistry in December 2008, to serve as a fundraiser specializing in major gifts. Tyler Hansbrough was a senior at the time and helped the Tar Heels win the national championship later that season.

Thorp told The News & Observer that an audit of Tami Hansbrough's travel while she worked in the dentistry school found she had been traveling to cities in which Tyler was playing. However, Thorp said the trips were legitimate because she was raising money for the university -- and fans who made the trips likely would be donors.

He also told the paper that UNC's compliance office had reviewed Tami Hansbrough's travel information for compliance with NCAA rules -- and that he does not see the fundraising issue as an athletics department concern.

The questionable trips with Kupec apparently came after Tyler graduated, when Tami Hansbrough was hired as a major gifts officer reporting to vice chancellor of student affairs Winston Crisp. Kupec wanted to hire Tami Hansbrough as a fundraiser in 2010, but Thorp told The News & Observer that he knew of their romantic relationship, and that it would have broken the school's nepotism policy. Tami Hansbrough made $95,000 annually.

Kupec, who said he had raised $4 billion for the school, made $349,800 annually.

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Robbi Pickeral | email

College Basketball

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• ESPN.com UNC basketball blogger
• Joined ESPN.com in 2011
• Wrote for Raleigh News & Observer