Tavon Does it All

A Baltimore native, Tavon Mason has an impressive history with football, education and the community. Mason was standout at Woodlawn High School where he played tailback, defensive back and quarterback. He earned All-State, All-Metro, All-County and  All-City honors and was chosen as his team’s Most Valuable Player and team captain three times. He was inducted into the Woodlawn High School Scholar-Athlete Hall of Fame and participated in the Chesapeake Classic and the Mason-Dixon Shriner’s All-Star Game.Tavon was a standout at the University of Virginia, where he also earned his Bachelor’s degree. Following his NFL dreams, he was signed as a rookie free agent by the New York Jets on Apr. 26, 2002. He spent the 2002 and 2003 training camp with the Jets, appearing in all eight preseason games, but was released following both. Off the field, Mason is the CEO and founder of the Tavon Mason Loves the Kids Foundation to promote health, fitness, and education. He is also a paraeducator at Parkville High School and a part-time instructor at Trellis Services.Keep up with Tavon and his organization at www.tavonmasonlovesthekids.org.Ashlee Chesny known as  "Mrs. Ashlee" is the founder of literacy nonprofit called Genius Patch and a 5x published children's author. She is an award-winning literacy advocate, as well as an advocate for woman and children of color. Learn more about her work and other books at www.geniuspatch,org.