Our Founder:
Tutan Reyes
Tutankhamen (Tutan) Reyes knows what it is like to
have a strong desire
for a college education,
as well as the fear
that his family’s financial situation
would render such a goal
impossible. Reyes was raised in
Jamaica,
Queens by a single mother who was driven to
help her son pursue both his athletic and his
academic goals.
As a youth, Reyes had two vastly
different
dreams for his future: he wanted to play
professional football, and he fantasized about
putting on a business suit and attending important
meetings in a gleaming city skyscraper. As a child
growing up in the inner-city he didn’t know which
fantasy was less realistic.
Despite the odds, Reyes earned All-Queens honors at
August Martin High School and was selected to the
Coaches All-City Football Team in 1994. His
commitment to athletics and academics did not end in
Queens. After graduation, by way of an athletic
scholarship, Reyes attended The University of
Mississippi where he made the Dean’s Honor Roll and
was the SEC All-Academic Honor Roll Choice in 1996
and 1999. After four years, Reyes graduated with a
degree in Business Management and was drafted in the
NFL’s fifth round by the New Orleans Saints. From
the Saints, he went on to play with the Carolina
Panthers, Buffalo Bills and the Jacksonville
Jaguars.
When
not in his football uniform, tackling the obstacles
that stand in the way of the quarterback, Tutan
pursues his other long-held dream. He dons his
business suit and attends meetings with others who
share his commitment to removing financial hurdles
from the dreams of all college-bound students.
Now a devoted family man, a respected athlete, a
savvy entrepreneur and an active philanthropist,
Tutan Reyes is fully aware of how much his own
academic opportunities have contributed to his
enviable successes in life. This fund was created
by a man who understands firsthand how the advantage
of a higher education can carry a person out into
the world and . . .beyond the boroughs.