We recently connected with Tavis Myrick and have shared our conversation below.

Tavis, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you talk to us about serving the underserved.

Tavis Myrick makes the Tampa Bay community better and was recognized by Fox13 Tampa Bay in a featured news story for “What’s Right in Tampa Bay” (see article 1) which aired on August 9, 2021. The news story highlighted Mr. Myrick’s work to help boys without fathers navigate life because he grew up without a father in his home. In the story he explains, “I recognize without having a father in the home, the value of a man being a part of these young men’s lives. There are certain things that a man has to teach young men that women can’t.”

His passion for his work shined through in the news story when he said, “It brings me great joy to see the light bulb go off in a student’s head when they understand the concept that they’ve been struggling with or when they finally realize that success is attainable, is achievable, when they finally obtain the resources that they’ve been struggling to obtain to attend college. All of that just brings me joy to be able to serve our youth.”

Mr. Myrick changes the lives of young men by helping them realize success is attainable. He always starts with new students by asking them to set goals. He supports them and encourages them to make the right decisions that will bring them closer to their goals. The Life Class curriculum he developed, with 44 lessons, helps students realize their full potential, make positive choices regarding their academics and behavior, and equips them with the skills necessary to become productive citizens. Students meet once a week for three hours and Mr. Myrick is their instructor. He also ensures they have transportation to the class and tutors available to them four days a week in core subject areas and Spanish.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

Mr. Tavis Myrick is a Business Leader and Educator with a multi-faceted impact on youth in underserved communities through his innovative nature and passion for education. As an educator, Mr. Myrick is dedicated to guiding students to succeed while inspiring an insatiable passion for learning & culture for success. He believes that given the necessary resources and opportunities, every youth has the potential to realize his or her dreams.

Mr. Myrick has written contracts and grants totaling over $1.1 million that he has been awarded to establish programming for youth in the Tampa Bay area. Mr. Myrick has created student-centered programs that expand opportunities and support for low-income students in the development of college readiness skills and to increase the number of students that are prepared to enter and successfully complete post-secondary education.

Mr. Myrick is a native of Fort Pierce, Florida. In 2007, he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from the University of South Florida. In 2010, he earned his Master of Arts degree in Mathematics Education from the University of Tampa and in 2012, he earned his Educational Specialist degree from Nova Southeastern University in Educational Leadership.

Mr. Myrick began his educational career in the Tampa Bay area in 2008 as a math teacher and later became an administrator in a local high school.

Currently, Mr. Myrick is the Executive Director of the Gentlemen’s Quest of Tampa Inc., a program for males at-risk of graduating high school. He works tirelessly with students and endeavors to help them realize their full potential as students, make positive choices regarding their academics and behavior, and equip them with the skills necessary to become productive citizens after they graduate. Additionally, he is the Director for Educational Services for Manifestations Worldwide Inc., a Tampa-based nonprofi organization.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

When Mr. Myrick was in second grade he took a “late bus” home from school. Instead of playing on the playground like other second grade students while waiting for the bus, he spent time with his second grade teacher who taught him the math lesson for the next day. Then, she ate her lunch the next day in class while he taught the math lesson to his peers. This was the turning point for his inspiration to one day become a math teacher.

For ten years, he taught math at three high schools in Hillsborough County and also served as an Assistant Principal. His passion for teaching led him to seek an Educational Specialist degree, become certified in Educational Leadership for all grade levels and was recognized by the Florida Department of Education as a Level 5 Highly Effective Educator, the highest level possible. As a school leader he understood how a revolving door of educators was not beneficial to the school’s sense of community and took action by developing monthly professional development workshops, which increased teacher retention rate from 40% to 95%.

While working as a teacher in an inner city school, he noticed a disproportionate number of minority students being suspended or expelled from school for activities that took place outside of school and this had a negative impact on their academic achievement. Mr. Myrick also saw how no one was there to advocate for them or show them opportunities that would curb their self-destructing bad behaviors. This was the inspiration for starting his mentoring program and offering students a chance for a brighter future. As a result of creating the mentoring program, schoolwide discipline incidents decreased by over 50% and students who were part of the mentoring program showed an increase in academic achievement.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

Students who graduate from the program Mr. Myrick created have ALL received a high school diploma and ALL students entered college, a trade school, or enlisted in the military. Nearly 200 students have participated in Life Class or the mentoring program over the past eight years. One of the most valuable outcomes of Life Class for the community is NONE of the students were arrested a second time, if they came to the program with an arrest on their record. A zero recidivism rate is quite an accomplishment for the young men influenced and guided by Mr. Myrick.

The data speaks for itself and it does not lie.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.mr.myrick.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tavismyrick/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tavis.myrick
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tavismyrick/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/myricktavis
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ITMATTERSGQ