About Our Founder & Executive Director

Tay Neal is a husband, father, educator, activist, and community builder with a heart for all children, especially Black and Brown boys, and a vision for liberation through mentorship, literacy, and character development. A proud Kansas City native, Tay grew up primarily in the project housing at 7 Oaks near 39th and Elmwood, an area deeply impacted by gang violence, drugs, and systemic disinvestment. He received his early education in the Kansas City Public Schools and the Center School District. Raised in poverty, relying on government assistance, and with a father who was incarcerated for most of his childhood, Tay’s early years were marked by a long list of traumatic exposures, including alcohol and drug addiction, family mental health struggles, domestic violence, community murders, incarceration, food insecurity, and generational trauma. He knows firsthand the silent toll that adversity takes on children just trying to survive.

In the later part of his primary education, Tay’s family relocated to the suburbs of Blue Springs, Missouri, through a Section 8 housing voucher. This shift gave him a powerful change in perspective and a firsthand understanding of how environment, access, and opportunity shape outcomes. After graduating high school in 2010, Tay returned to Kansas City for most of his adulthood and navigated many of the same challenges still facing Black families today. His story is one of survival, resilience, and the choice to become what he never had.

There was a chapter in Tay’s life when hardship and poor choices led him down a dark path. He has had run-ins with the law and moments that could have ended his story early. But those experiences became fuel for transformation. With love and support from people across all walks of life, backgrounds, demographics, and ethnic origins, he did the hard work to change the trajectory of his life. Now, he uses that same energy to uplift young men facing similar crossroads.

Tay’s academic journey includes a combination of degrees, domains of study, academic credentials, and advanced certifications across multiple fields, including elementary education, special education, liberal arts, surgical technology, nursing science, marketing, administration, applied behavior analysis, and psychology. He has studied at MidAmerica Nazarene University, Anthem College, the University of Central Missouri, and the University of Missouri–Kansas City. He holds dual Bachelor of Science degrees in Elementary Education and Special Education and is currently completing his sixth academic milestone, a Master of Science in Educational Leadership from Northwest Missouri State University, to be conferred in December 2025. He is also pursuing a doctoral degree in educational or nonprofit organizational leadership.

As a sixth-grade teacher in the heart of Kansas City, activist, community leader, nonprofit founder, and member of the prestigious Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Tay moves with purpose in and out of the classroom. He has mentored people across the country and shows up with the same energy whether he is teaching a lesson, performing as a musical artist and poet, facilitating a session, or helping a young man navigate pressure and pain. His approach is not about fixing people. It is about pouring into them, protecting their potential, and walking with them through the work. Tay understands that just because he overcame the statistical predictions placed on Black boys, it does not mean others should have to do it alone. It takes more than determination and luck. It takes a village, protection, mentorship, and perspective-shifting opportunities. That is why The Talk KC exists, to give Black and Brown boys the extra eyes and broader vision they need to see that there is more to life than what meets the eye.

Under Tay’s leadership, The Talk KC blends barbershop culture with life-changing conversations, warm meals, mentorship, and monthly check-ins designed to raise the standard for how we love and lead Black and Brown boys. The program runs nine months out of the year and provides free haircuts, affirming guidance, and a sense of belonging that many young men have never had.

Tay’s vision does not stop at serving Black and Brown boys. It extends to a variety of marginalized and disenfranchised groups, including but not limited to Black and Brown girls, single mothers, individuals recovering from drug and alcohol addiction, incarcerated youth, youth seeking affirming spaces, people affected by poverty, the underinsured or uninsured who are living with cardiovascular conditions and diabetes, and those living with mental health challenges. The Talk KC is only the beginning of many initiatives Tay plans to launch in pursuit of equity, healing, and opportunity for all systemically disadvantaged peoples, not just Black and Brown individuals.

Tay is committed to building a village where every Black and Brown boy knows he is loved, valuable, and capable. He also honors the strength, stability, and creativity of his late mother, Ebony Neal, who instilled in him the spirit of hustle and the ability to make something out of nothing. Her example and love continue to shape his work, his vision, and his belief that no child should be counted out. And he is just getting started.