HATTIESBURG, Miss. (AP) - Tyson King has been involved in politics and community service, was elected governor and was given the key to the city of Hattiesburg - all before graduating from high school.
King, 17, hopes to be a role model for students at Hattiesburg High, where he is a senior, but he’s also a role model for other teens around the state.
“Tyson’s a pretty influential person,” said Shakira Hall, 17, a senior at Jefferson Davis County High.
Hall and King have been friends nearly three years and have a lot in common. Both are active at school. Hall was elected attorney general at Girls State. King was elected governor at Boys State.
Hall said King is someone a lot of other teens look up to.
“Tyson’s a pretty mature guy - he’s that type of person you can go to for advice on any situation,” she said.
Winning the governor race at Boys State isn’t an easy feat, especially for a candidate without a political party to back him. But King persevered and was able to persuade voters he was the right man for the job.
“He was the first student in the history of Boys State to be elected to the governor’s seat as an independent,” said Scott Waldrop, speech and debate coach at Hattiesburg High. “I think that says more about his character and his ability to work with others - that he understands the value of all of that and how to put it into play.
“I look for him to be highly successful.”
Waldrop said King works at the school in several areas and does a lot of outreach and community service on campus. But he still puts in the time needed to be successful at speech and debate.
“Through the forensics department, he is the lead mentor,” Waldrop said. “As a senior, he has a lot of responsibilities in the department - mentoring incoming freshmen from N.R. Burger, working with first-year students in this department - that’s a huge responsibility.”
Speech and debate takes a lot of time and effort, and with only one coach and budget cuts, mentoring by King and others is invaluable, Waldrop said.
“He and his partner (Michael French) are the next best hope we have for contending for a national championship,” he said. “King and his partner were in the top 12 in the nation. They’re looking to have a strong finish this year.
“But along the way, he is reaching back and pulling kids up. As a coach, that’s all you want.”
Because other students look up to him, King was chosen one of 15 teens to serve on a statewide youth advisory board with Partnership for a Healthy Mississippi.
“Creating opportunities for youth to develop leadership and advocacy skills has been one of the most effective tools in our effort to reduce the youth smoking rates in Mississippi over the past two decades,” said Sandra Shelson, executive director of Partnership for a Healthy Mississippi.
The teens on the board made a commitment to spend one year informing other teens about the dangers of using tobacco products and e-cigarettes.
“Nicotine is one of the most addictive drugs in America,” King said.
But it goes further than that. Generation FREE Youth Advisory Board members assist with the planning and coordination of academies, conferences and other events. They also are actively supporting raising the legal age for buying and using tobacco products to 21, King said. And while e-cigarettes often are touted as harmless, they can lead teens to take up smoking tobacco.
“We want to get e-cigarettes labeled as harmful tobacco products because now there are so many of them that appeal to children,” King said. “We’re trying to raise awareness of that.”
According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 37.6 percent of the state’s high school students said they had tried tobacco or e-cigarette products in 2015. Nearly half of those students said they are smokers.
“About 95 percent of smokers start before the age of 21,” said Michelle Borho, Generation FREE youth program coordinator. “Of those smokers under the age of 18 and living in Mississippi, 68,000 will die prematurely from smoking.”
King said teens talking to each other can help prevent someone from starting smoking and encourage those who smoke to quit.
“I feel like coming from somebody their age, rather than someone who wasn’t born in their generation, that will be more beneficial to them because I can relate to them more,” he said.
Other teens seem to listen and learn from King, Waldrop said.
“I think a lot of has to do with the fact that he is really good at making connections with people, and that is really key,” he said. “He can reach out to people and connect with people.”
In addition to competing with the Hattiesburg High speech and debate team, he is on the youth leadership council at HHS and served on former mayor Johnny DuPree’s youth leadership council.
He enjoys politics and public policy and is considering becoming a lobbyist. He plans to attend the University of Mississippi.
His mother, Theresa King, is his motivator and inspiration. She has helped him get involved in activities, including the Trent Lott Summer Leadership Institute and Boys State.
“I want him to experience things here in our community,” she said. “Once you are able to do things in our community - I want him to experience it here in southern Mississippi - and then I think he has something he can take other places to help other people.”
Theresa King said she and her husband, Mark, have always encouraged their three sons to be active in learning and participate in activities outside of sports and school.
King was an avid reader, even at 2-3 years old, she said. She would take him to the bookstore to get books to read, but his hobby became too expensive so she introduced him to the library.
King, even at an early age, demonstrated strong leadership qualities.
“He has always been that one who wanted more,” his mother said. “If he says he’s going to do it, he will give you not just 100 percent - he’ll give you 150.”
Theresa King said she also raised her sons to be their brothers’ keepers, to look out for each other and help where needed.
“I take care of home, and while I am taking care of home, I take care of others,” she said. “And that is the philosophy I tell my kids.”
King worked on Kathryn Rehner’s election campaign in which she sought the District 102 seat in the Mississippi House of Representatives. He will spend the summer in Washington, D.C., interning with Rep. Bennie Thompson, before heading off to college.
Before joining Rehner’s campaign, King asked questions about her thoughts on the Mississippi Adequate Education program and where she stood on public education. He wanted to make sure her values aligned with his before committing to helping her.
“He is an impressive kid,” she said. “He just blows me away.”
He canvassed neighborhoods and talked to teens and adults about why they should support Rehner and why they should be concerned about public education in Mississippi and other issues important to him and Rehner’s campaign.
At campaign meetings, King was comfortable talking with the adults and offering suggestions.
“He articulated things very well,” Rehner said. “He added value and depth to our campaign and what we were about.”
Rehner said she expects King has a bright future ahead and he will be one to bring others along for the ride.
“He’s gonna make great things happen for folks,” she said. “I really believe that.”
Tyson King
Age: 17
Hometown: Hattiesburg
Education: Senior at Hattiesburg High School; plans to attend the University of Mississippi, majoring in public policy or political science; was awarded a summer 2018 internship in Washington, D.C., with Congressman Bennie Thompson, D-Mississippi
Interests: Speech and debate, politics
Family: Parents, Mark and Theresa King; two older brothers, Steven and Marcus, who attend Mississippi State University
Why he wants to make a difference: “I feel like coming from somebody their age (teenagers) . that will be more beneficial to them because I can relate to them more.”
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Information from: The Hattiesburg American, http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com
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