Alumni's Career Helps Inner City Youths

life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives." Northside's 1985 graduate, Michael Boyd, has the kind of life that mirrors this famous quote from the late Jackie Robinson. His counseling and mental health careers have allowed him to have an impact on the lives of others.

Boyd grew up in the New Chicago area of North Memphis. Although he lived in the Manassas High School district, Boyd took a vocational transfer in Printing Vocation to attend Northside High School. "I thought Printing would be a good vocational trade for me because there would always be a demand for publication and advertising print."

Time Spent at Northside

Boyd was very active in football and baseball at Northside. He played running back in football during his freshman year. Under coach Bonds, Boyd was named MVP in baseball at the end of his senior year. The thing he remembers most at Northside was the faculty and staff. Ms. Ginny Thomas, English teacher, was his favorite teacher because she prepared him for the challenges of college. He also remembered Ms. Washburn because of her frankness and no nonsense disposition. "She could be strict with her students and also be a friend to them," says Boyd.

After graduation, Boyd set his sites on graduating from college with a degree in Printing. He had an opportunity to attend either Pittsburgh State in Pittsburgh, Kansas or the University of Arkansas in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Boyd's preference was Pittsburgh State because it had one of the largest university graphic art's facilities in the United States. Boyd decided to attend Lincoln University because it was the only school that offered him a 4-year Scholarship. While attending Lincoln University, Boyd enlisted in the Army Reserve. "I joined the Army Reserve because it gave me the means to earn extra income and provide a career option," says Boyd. After college, Boyd continued working in the inactive Army Reserve until 1996.

A Chance Encounter Leads to a Career in Youth Counseling

In 1992, Boyd was working for UPS and a local bookstore when he became interested in youth counseling. "I became interested in counseling when I ran into one of my fraternity brothers that informed me about an opportunity to work with troubled kids for the State of Missouri," says Boyd. In order to work with troubled kids, he had to past the State Merit test to get on the register. His fraternity (Alpha) brother had tried several times too past the test but was unsuccessful. However, Boyd passed the test on his first try and was placed on the register. Boyd found his new career very rewarding. He has worked in different aspects of the mental health and counseling field.

He began working in 1999 for Missouri Alliance St. Louis, Missouri and currently works as the Care Manager Supervisor in the St. Louis office. His responsibilities involve dealing with various agencies, courts, and mental health professionals in providing the best quality service and care for a child and his/her family. These services provide an alternative to psychiatric hospital care as well as residential care. Missouri Alliance provides a service that is known as "Wraparound". Boyd likes the flexibility and creativity in Care Management that his job gives him. "We have flexibility in our funding and creativity by not having to 'cookie cut' services for families. We look at the family needs and strengths. Sometimes families don't always need therapy because of an extended family support base. With many State agencies, once all the paid professionals are out of the picture, the family deteriorates. However, my employer maintains a family's support base, so that families don't have to deal with state agencies that dictate things in their home." Boyd's love for helping children is prompting him toward entrepreneurship.

Plans for The Future

Currently, Boyd is looking to start an early learning center in the St. Louis area. "Child Care has traditionally been sphere-headed by women. I have an opportunity as a black male to have a positive impact on children. Some children only get a chance to see women as the primary caregiver. My learning center will give those children an opportunity to interact with a male on a different level and put a different twist on early learning." Boyd wants his students to be influenced by the male and female perspective. His learning center will consist of children from 2 ½ to 16 years of age. He is in the process of completing his business plan and has found a location for the center. "I'm working on getting everything ready for inspection for such things as the exits, the playgrounds and water temperature regulations," says Boyd. Boyd is looking forward to getting his business solvent enough to open a new location in the future. The center is set to open tentatively in September 2002. Boyd knows the importance of education.

He is currently pursing his Master's degree in Counseling from Lindenwood University and hopes to one day complete a Ph.D. program. "I realized that I have acquired a lot of skills and training but not the necessary papers to support them. I'm always looking to better myself through my aspirations and dreams. When the time comes for me to advance to the next level, I do not want to be told that I'm not qualified."

Boyd is authoring a book, which deals with male and female relationships. The book will focus on the real intent or agenda of entering into relationships. He believes that many people enter into relationships with false hopes and dreams, but in reality it is just a dream. He hopes to complete the final chapters by the end of the year. The research for the book comes from his personal relationship experiences, along with experiences from friends and his work in family therapy. "All of us have experienced how the novelty often wears off in a relationship. Sometimes people get involved in secret love affairs and try to keep it on the 'down-low' and keep this drama going on. This leads to people getting out of one relationship and into another without healing the wounds from the previous relationship. People need to reassess themselves after ending a relationship to make things better the next time around."

Giving Back to the Community

Boyd is always ready to give back to the community. He does volunteer work through the Court system of Illinois as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) on the weekends. As a CASA worker, Boyd works as the eyes and hears for the Courts. He goes into the schools and homes to see what is happening with the kids he is assigned. "For the children that are wards of the State, we go into the home to see that the kids needs are being met. We assess the children's medical needs, nutrition, housing and try to recommend that the children be returned to their natural parents." Recently, he was elected to the Presbyterian Children's Home Board.

Family and Leisure Time

In the future, Boyd plans become more involved with his children's extra-curricular activities. He has three children, 13-year-old daughter Carolyn Boyd, 8-year-old daughter Myka Boyd, and 3-year-old son Christopher Harmon. Both daughters are doing extremely well in school. Carolyn has been involved in majorette activities and is starting to show an interest in volleyball. Myka was recently tested for entry into a gifted student program. Although Christopher is only three, he already has aspirations of becoming a pro-football athlete. "My son Christopher will not hesitate to get into a three-point stand or run you over," says Boyd.

In his spare time, Boyd enjoys working in the yard and listening to music. He also enjoys socializing with good friends and spending time with his significant other. Boyd visits his hometown of Memphis about three times a year. With the passing of his mother in the year 2000, Boyd still has a younger brother and a host of relatives that still reside in Memphis. "I usually go back to Memphis to visit the old neighborhood. It helps me get refocused and grounded again and gives me an appreciation for my roots." Boyd has not made it to any of his class reunions, but he looks forward to one day reuniting with classmates. "I would love to come back for a reunion, even if it means taking off from work," says Boyd.

Michael Boyd appears to have kept his cougar pride intact even though he now lives hundreds of miles away. He is continuing to prepare himself well for his bright future. Only the best and brightest things are in store for this fellow cougar.