Talkin' Tennessee with Yvonnca
Talkin' Tennessee with Yvonnca
Defying the Odds: Clarence Vaughn's Journey
What happens when life gives you a second chance? Clarence Vaughn's story is nothing short of extraordinary—a powerful testament to how faith, community support, and personal determination can transform even the most challenging beginnings into a life of purpose and service.
Expelled from high school after missing 86% of the school year with a shocking 0.7 GPA, Clarence could have become another statistic. Instead, he is now serving as Director for the Office of Access and Community Connections at the University of Tennessee's Haslam College of Business, Clarence has come full circle. He creates opportunities for young people just like his former self, including pre-collegiate summer programs that bring high school students to campus. His leadership philosophy is refreshingly grounded: "Small wins outweigh large victories," he advises, cautioning against the desire to leap from entry-level to CEO without experiencing the crucial steps between.
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Check us out to hear the latest on life in the volunteer state. Yvonca and her guests discuss everything from life, love and business with a Tennessee flair. It's a Tennessee thing, always relatable, always relevant and always a good time. This is Talkin' Tennessee, and now your host, yvonca.
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Speaker 3:Welcome back to Talking Tennessee with Yvonne Ca. I am your host and I am here with a dear friend named Clarence Vaughn. And welcome to Talking Tennessee.
Speaker 4:Thank you so much for the opportunity. It's my honor.
Speaker 3:Well, let me just say this everybody, this is a person that I have always watched him from afar and just been admired by all the things he does in our community and I've never seen you pat yourself on the back. I've always seen you always talk about other people and what they're doing in the community and you always pitch in, but you are always so humble on how you move, and so to me that just stuck out to me. So I saw Clarence at an event and it just aligned. I was like, can you come on the podcast? And you said yes, are you glad you came?
Speaker 4:I'm so excited to be here and also I think it's important to tell your story and we talked about that off record, offline because your story can motivate others but, also, it's bigger than you.
Speaker 3:It is bigger than you. Your story is to be told for a reason it is for a reason, and I think I tell people you know, even in the spiritual realm it's like a test comes with a testimony and a testimony is not quiet.
Speaker 4:Right.
Speaker 3:A testimony is something that you're supposed to share, to help uplift others, and I think your story is compelling and I want to be the one to tell it. So who is Clarence Vaughn in the professional world?
Speaker 4:So Clarence Vaughn in the professional world has worn many hats.
Speaker 4:So I started off my career in banking here in the city, so previously worked for Wells Fargo Bank, also SunTrust Bank, now Truist as a branch manager in the downtown Broadway area.
Speaker 4:Then had opportunity to work for our past mayor, mayor O'Hara and Madeline O'Hara was really a shero to me in regards to being a mentor worked under Abish Reid for community relations and then after that role I served as the director for the Police Advisory Review Committee after Abish and did a lot of work with the community our police department, then Chief Roush, now Director Roush for the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, and worked with many community leaders to really improve the safety of our community but also communication and having that dialogue.
Speaker 4:From there I came here at the University of Tennessee where I now serve as the director for the Office of Access and Community Connections, here at the Haslam College of Business, where I work to support our faculty, our staff, our students, really to do what it says access, to be accessible to everyone here in the state, really here in the country, in the globe, those seeking educational opportunities, those seeking opportunities to improve themselves when it comes to adding those credentials or disconnect with the university or the college, also for our faculty and staff as well. We do a lot of development from a professional standpoint, supporting conferences, things of that nature, so we really have a lot of touch points. The point I love the most is community connections as well.
Speaker 4:Still being engaged with the community right and being an advocate for many that's out there that may not have the resources. We can provide the resources to help them reach their potential the true potential and their goals.
Speaker 3:So what made you want to make that career shift and come to the Haslam School of Business? Was it a goal of yours or was it a certain thing that happened that made you want to come?
Speaker 4:Well, I'm a man of faith, so I'll say everything is happening not by happenstance. I mean, god puts people in your life and opportunities in your life for a reason and I got to honestly, he would probably get me for this, but Dr Ty V Small Ty Ve, has been almost like a big brother to me, even though we're a couple of years apart. We basically had a conversation. We talked about opportunities here at the university. He said you should consider that and I thought about it more because I've been blessed and fortunate to do a lot of things in this community, not for myself, to help others. I'm a servant. My mother is a retired social worker. She was a case manager for 34 years. My dad worked for the sheriff's department for 40 years, but he was a drug counselor.
Speaker 4:So I come from a servant family, so I've always served and I had a chance to serve from the financial side, financial literacy for our community, had a chance to serve when it comes to community relations, which touches workforce development, education, readiness Then to bring that here to university really like it's all coming together, it's all synchronous and it's tied together because I'm able to do that for our students, faculty staff, like I said again, but still support our community members as well, so that I prayed about it, thought about it and gave the opportunity to where I was selected as a finalist and also then selected to be service director after Dr Small, and it's been nothing but a reward for me to be able to give back in that capacity. We truly believe that volunteer spirit is really something we only believe in, but we practice it and we showcase it and that's one thing.
Speaker 3:I know that when you cut his arm, you see orange, not red.
Speaker 4:Well, I'm a Rattler, I'm a Rattler. You see a Rattler, do you?
Speaker 1:see a little orange and green.
Speaker 4:You see a little orange and some green. My home is Florida A&M University, Proud Rattler Fam. You gave me an opportunity where no university would have given me an opportunity, especially the student that I was coming and I was not prepared. But it gave me an opportunity and also another orange and blue. I graduated from Syracuse with my master's degree, but the foundation started with Florida A&M University, which I still have a very close affiliation with today.
Speaker 3:Well, let's go back to Clarence Bond the kid, the young man fighting his way. Tell me your story. This story is compelling to me and it sticks with me because so many young people need to hear that redemption is alive and well. Can you please tell us that story?
Speaker 4:Yeah, so I'm a preacher's kid preacher's kid on both sides. So my dad's dad was a minister. My dad was a minister. He passed about nine years ago. My mom's dad was a minister as well, so I grew up Kojic, church of God and Christ.
Speaker 4:Kojic is very very strict, let's say that's the best way I could say it when it comes to attending and the type of attire you wear and the way that you greet one another. But I grew up in South Florida, so Fort Lauderdale, florida, during the 80s and 90s, which was, I tell people, like Atlanta times 10. They think Atlanta, like Miami back in the 80s and 90s, was, you know, just the popular place to be. It was hot, it was everything was really about the Miami Beach area.
Speaker 3:I was in Miami a lot. Yeah, I was in Miami a lot.
Speaker 4:Yeah, so it was the place to be. It was a lot of people moving in. They also had people moving from different countries Cuba, different places like that. But while I grew up I mean the biggest thing we were trying to emulate what we saw in our community, right. So I was blessed to have role models in my family, but still being young and kind of rebellious, going against the grain, as they say most PKs do, I had that experience where I was chasing something that wasn't me and chasing something that wasn't a role model that God set in my life. And the role models for us then were those who were driving expensive cars, some illegal purposes and trying to glorify that lifestyle, and for me that was something that I know most people around me kind of just fell into. So from my high school experience, I was actually expelled from high school. So from middle school, Go back.
Speaker 3:I was actually expelled from high school, so from middle school. Go back. Wait a minute, go back. You were expelled, expelled and you're sitting on staff at the Haslam School of Business.
Speaker 4:Yep.
Speaker 3:Y'all let that sink in, for anybody that thinks that they cannot make it listen to this story.
Speaker 4:So expelled from high school, and it wasn't for the reason you think of. Oh, you're fighting every day, oh, you're doing this. I missed 86 percent of the school year. I never forget that number because I was sitting there and they said that my mom looked at me. I was like I don't know how many days I missed, I just missed.
Speaker 3:Did your mom know you were missing?
Speaker 4:No, so I was very, very, let's say undercover secret agent. You got dressed Well. I'll say this my high school was almost two blocks from the beach, so you can almost smell the beach, but I'm not making it excusable to anyone out there this?
Speaker 3:is my story.
Speaker 4:But it's two blocks from the beach. This is during the 90s, where Miami and Miami music started becoming popular the dress, so that was something that we sought out. So I would go to school, be with my friends. We're playing our day out, not our day about what classes we're going to go to. We're playing our day where we're going to. We can go to this spot, and back in that time you had truancy officers, so we knew the tr, we can get to the beach, what time we go to. So this was an everyday, so we had it all planned out.
Speaker 3:It was a really fun process.
Speaker 4:So got expelled and it hurt because my cousins came to the high school and this was my sophomore year, so I missed again 86% of the school year and I never forget. I have a printout still of it and I said about it today. I have a printout still of it and I should have bought it.
Speaker 3:today I had a .7 GPA .7?.
Speaker 4:I don't even know if it's possible to get to the .7. Okay yeah.
Speaker 3:But you missed 86%. Yes, exactly.
Speaker 4:So from there, of course, parents upset, everybody upset, everyone's like well, he's either going to end up in jail or dead, basically writing me off. My mom never did, though. She said that I had a praying mother.
Speaker 3:When people say praying mom and praying grandmother, that's real Praying mother. It really is. Keep going.
Speaker 4:I just said no matter what, you don't give up on yourself, I'm not going to give up on you, and God's going to get the final say yes. So we tried to go to schools within the county because then my parents figuring out ways I'm high schoolers, they had to get me to school and transport me and everything else, so we couldn't go to any school. I'm from Broward County, so I couldn't go to any school in my county. I tried to go to one school.
Speaker 3:That's why I used to hang out bro.
Speaker 4:So I had to go to a community center. It's called Holland Del Adel Community Center and I was fortunate to get into Holland Dillard Delk Community Center. The last year they were offering a diploma program. The year I came, the year after me, they only offered GED programs. So if I came one year later, or even really a couple months later, I wouldn't be sitting in front of you because I would have had a GED. So I got in the last cohort that were able to get the diploma.
Speaker 4:So you go into a classroom and basically the teacher walks in, drops a stack almost like a phone book on your desk and leaves. You have to go through each of those pages. That's your curriculum and your work. You have your coursework you have to do for the whole school year and you go page by page and you're sitting there in your desk. Never forget this. You got a pregnant woman here on your right. Never forget this. Somebody came in. I heard shackles. I'm like what is this? What's going on? Turn around. Somebody with their parole officer handcuffed them to the desk and said I'll be back here at the lunchtime to pick you up. I'll be here after school is over and sat them right directly behind me and I'm like, wow, where am I at? So and again, the grace of God. So I was behind almost two years academically. So, by the grace of God, I said you know what, this is not for me. And a couple of incidents happened where I knew this is not like I said.
Speaker 4:People I went into I was the one that was able to you know not be impacted by the environment that I was in, so work through two years I caught up in one year of two years of work to catch up and graduate from Honda Little Duck Community Center.
Speaker 4:Of course we didn't have a graduation ceremony to kind of mail you your diploma and I'm speaking for the sake of time but then I then got accepted into Tallahassee Community College. I couldn't go to. My dream school was FAMU. The reason FAMU was my dream school because my father was a charter member of the 100 Black Men in Broward County. They had a program called the Black Male College Explorer Program and I always said we were like the Bay-based kids, so you have Upward.
Speaker 3:Bound on campus.
Speaker 4:You have all the you know the academic students on campus. We would like to be a base kid. We would like to at-risk youth. That would give an opportunity to go to college campus. But that changed my life.
Speaker 3:Because a lot of times when you're going through something in life, it feels like you're the only one. No matter whatever it is, you feel like you're the only one, so keep going.
Speaker 4:Yeah, and I mean that too is we came from the same and we was from all different backgrounds, all different racist backgrounds or whatever have you, but we all were considered to be at risk and to see them thrive and move into those opportunities. Famu was my only choice, so that's why I went to Tallahassee Community College, because I was going to transfer to FAMU after two years, because that was the only school that I wanted to go to had, because I was going to transfer to FAMU after two years, because that was the only school that I wanted to go to had to start off with all remedial courses Ended up graduating from Tallahassee Community College of Honors.
Speaker 4:I bet you that was humbling. It was. I mean you starting because I was so far behind Then with the Florida A&M, graduated with honors, Was able to go to Syracuse and also graduate with honors.
Speaker 4:So not to say that to pat myself to show that, not tell people well, it's resilience, but also you have to also believe in yourself, have a plan, but you got to have a village around you. That's why I say family first, and family to me is only my blood family. I have mentors that were speaking life into me. That's why I'm really grateful for the work that I do now, because it can be one word or one conversation you have with a student or someone that can really literally talk them off the ledge from quitting from whatever they may be, and it changes the trajectory of their lives. And that happened to me. I had many people that spoke life into me and said, no, you're capable of doing this.
Speaker 3:And you have to surround yourself with people that are going to speak life into you. No-transcript to Knoxville and you think, oh, that's just 20, 30 minutes, but that was my whole life, you know, and so I really had to figure it out. You know, my mom and dad was going through the divorce, you know. But I had to figure out me and figure out. What I wanted to do, you know, and so I do agree with you is surrounding yourself with mentors and people that will speak life in you and just put time in you.
Speaker 3:If you think about the people back when you were truly messing up, you know they were doing the same thing you were doing. They want to speak life in you, but you had to change your surroundings. So what was that? What did it feel like once you got to family? So you finally got to the school that you wanted to be at, to the school that you wanted to be at. Did you feel like, oh, I'm here, or did it drive you more? What was that blend that you had that made you go to the next level?
Speaker 4:It definitely drove me more, for one main reason I met the love of my life, so I met my wife. It was from a freshman year, it was actually second. Who's your last name? Sarita Vaughn. So I have Sarita. Vaughn. I have three girls, so I would say, pray for me 15, 11, and five. My 15-year-old is Nia, 11-year-old is Jada, and five-year-old is Zion.
Speaker 3:She's got a beautiful wife and a beautiful family and they're very close-knit. So I love that, but keep going.
Speaker 4:Yeah, so she's always been again. It's funny because when you go away from home, especially when you go to school and you're at the university, you're really on your own. You got to everything that your parents and grandparents, uncles, instilled in you. You got to bring those to fruition Right and they're tried in many different occasions. So you got to make sure that you stay steadfast.
Speaker 4:But she was someone that I think we iron sharpens iron, you know, and having somebody there for you to, iron sharpens iron. So we both were student leaders on campus. We both kind of sharpen each other and challenge each other in a good way to say, hey, okay, what's next what you got going on, hey, what we doing here, and I think that helped me a lot throughout that person for you that said okay, we're not doing this, you need to do this, this doesn't fit what we're trying to accomplish and I believe, when it comes to couples, I think couples need to evolve together, because if only one is evolving, then there's resentment there, but if both are evolving, I think you can build so many things.
Speaker 3:And it sounds like that she was your builder. She helped you build, brick by brick.
Speaker 4:And literally saved my life. I had a good friend of mine who was a family member I didn't know at the time we were actually related through marriage and he unfortunately lost his life due to an unfortunate incident and me and him were together like every day. I would have been in that situation with him if it not been for having my wife say you know what, not tonight.
Speaker 3:You need to stay here.
Speaker 4:So I'll never forget that. I mean, he unfortunately lost his-. So basically she intervened, intervened and allowed me to not be in that atmosphere and that situation, so that helped. I mean I honestly wouldn't be here talking to you today. That's another situation where you got to have the right people around you to speak life but also sometimes say hold on. That's need to reconsider that.
Speaker 3:And the big one, your four walls. I truly believe. My father taught up at the University of Tennessee for 30 years. Shout out to John Landis, I love him. But the one thing that he taught me in marriage because they've been married 60 some years and been a great, you know representative representation of marriage in an example for good marriage. You know, not perfect, but good marriage.
Speaker 3:And one thing he taught me was your four walls. Your four walls is what matters and you have to consider the people that's in your four walls. Your four walls is what matters and you have to consider the people that's in your four walls and what's outside. Your four walls can't matter as much as what's inside, and it sounds like your wife helped you to figure out your four walls.
Speaker 4:Her and family. I had cousins on campus, my cousin Kevin on campus. We all look up to my cousin Kevin. He was the first to kind of really knock down a lot of walls that we did. We all grew up together. So my uncles, my aunts, my mom and that family. You know my family is very tight knit. We're Bahamian too, okay, so that Bahamian blood in us. We are really tight knit. So having that and all that support helped navigate situations where some people I know who don't have that support will fall in those pitfalls because they don't have that type of support.
Speaker 3:So what would you say to young people that is wanting to be a leader, but they feel overwhelmed because half of their friends are on that path and the other half is not? What would you tell a young person that is trying to figure out and find their way in that type situation? Because it seems like you were being pulled in two different directions and I would like the viewers to understand that this is what you suggest.
Speaker 4:Well, I think you got to go back to the core. For me, I went back to the core of who I truly am, who I was, and you find out who you are, who your parents say you are, who your community say you are. And that's why we got to be really careful what we say to our young people, even those who may not be on the straight and narrow, Because if we can speak life, the same thing we can speak death. So I say, go back to your core, Know that you're not alone, but also you're here for a purpose. You know whether you're a believer or not, everybody has a purpose in life to do something, to continue the work that was done before you. I never forget.
Speaker 4:Kendra Lamar said a lyric and he said to continue the work that was done before you. I'll never forget. Kendra Lamar said a lyric and she said I am the reason the ancestors sent me. And when he said that, it hit me to my core because I'm like we're here, because there's work unfinished. So I'll tell you, young people, there's work unfinished in your life, that your family's counting on you. You may not think people are watching, but they are watching you and you have a purpose on your life, but dig deep into what that purpose is and find your core and know that people are going to drive and push. You got some that's going to try to push you off the rails too, but some are going to try to keep you on the rails and give you a clear path to where you need to be. So go back to your core, stick to what your purpose is, but dig deep, you know, as far as what you have to offer, Everybody has something to offer.
Speaker 3:Find out what those skillsets are. What would you say to young people about overcoming setbacks? Because it seems like that you've had some setbacks but you basically pivoted and made sure that you didn't make the same mistake. What would you tell young people about? Hey, you're going to have some setbacks, but you got to get up and dust yourself off. What would you tell?
Speaker 4:them. I can't hear nothing about my grandma. I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired. And I say that because you go through situations you're like, man, I'm going to get it right the next time. Oh, I'm going to get it right the next time. You get tired of saying that I'm going to get it right the next time, or I that you got to do right the first time.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I think a lot of young people don't realize that, that it's okay to do the right thing the first time you know, and I I do speaking engagement and I tell people that because and one young gentleman came up to me, I said that he goes.
Speaker 3:I never thought of that and I said it's okay to do it right the first time. I said you have less heartache. And he said I just never thought about it that way. So tell me this In your position, how do you encourage young people to celebrate their small wins?
Speaker 4:Yes.
Speaker 3:Because we're in a world that we see big wins Okay and the older you get, hopefully you get wiser, and all that kind of things but as a young person, you're trying to find your way and your win may not be as big as Clarence Vaughn is today. What would you tell a young person about celebrating their small wins?
Speaker 4:I would say and I say this all the time I say small wins outweigh large victories. Because of small wins you're learning through the process. So I share this with our students all the time. They want to go, and many want to. We go from entry level to CEO very fast. I say that's fine if you do, but think about when situations come and you go down from CEO to the next level. You don't want to drop all the way down the ladder back to where you started unless you have small wins. Almost like climbing a ladder.
Speaker 3:I need you to say that one more time. Sometimes Go ahead.
Speaker 4:But sometimes, and some students or some people in general, want to go from entry level to CEO so fast. I want to be the head person doing things, which is great, and that does happen at times. It does, but in life also. Life is a pendulum shift.
Speaker 3:It is.
Speaker 4:When it's swift. The other way, you have to drop down. What steps do you have that you can walk down, if you?
Speaker 3:started from zero level to 1,000, let's say that level you don't experience level 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, all the way up, and you have to pay your dues I think you have to.
Speaker 3:I think you have you understand that paying your dues is not bowing down, it's just working towards something till God says increase. When God says increase, the increase comes and then you're going to celebrate it more. But if you never pay your dues, you're never going to be able to say you know, when you get in that CEO position I earn. That Earning a position is so much greater than if it's just handed to you because you will always wonder should I be there, should I not be there?
Speaker 4:Imposter syndrome and everything else.
Speaker 3:Exactly. And so tell me, when it comes to practicing habits good habits, bad habits what would you tell young people? How to persevere through the seasons. It's uncertain.
Speaker 4:Well, I think the biggest thing is who are you listening to? Who is in your corner? I call it my personal board of directors, so I actually talk about this on campus. These are people that you trust with your why. First, identify what your why is. And you want to build positive habits to get to your why. First, identify what your why is. You want to build positive habits to get to your why. My why in life is to be a motivation to others, provide said light into dark spaces and actually played this song at my father's funeral. They called him the lily in the valley because he was a drug counselor. He caught people in the valley in the darkest parts of their life and brought light to them right.
Speaker 4:So, that's my passion. What habits am I building to help me strengthen that as far as my why? So I tell young people, the habits you build is going to either make you what you are, or also make you what you're not.
Speaker 3:That is true. You just knew my next question, Because my question is how has your family influenced your values and leadership? Would you like to add more to that?
Speaker 4:Yeah, my family is key. It's just the reason I'm sitting here. Of course, was it for my mother, I wouldn't be here anyway. But my family, my moms, my uncles, my aunts, my cousins, we speak life into each other. Of course, any family they have, you know, division every now and then, but we always come back to the middle. And for my matriarchs, you know, in our key, my grandfather and my grandmother, nana and Dada.
Speaker 1:Francina and.
Speaker 4:William Martin. They instilled in us the importance of family and making sure we have those. They were the leaders that we saw. My grandfather dropped out of middle school I think actually elementary school Didn't finish elementary school but owned two businesses a furniture store in Brooklyn, new York, and also a fish store down in Miami, and it was probably the most, probably the smartest person I've known in my life. I mean, he can know the bottom excuse me, the Bible, verbatim almost. And he just really was intelligent and he taught my uncle accounting. And then my uncle became, and still today is very successful accounting by working in the fish market. My grandmother took all of my, my mom's siblings there's five of them.
Speaker 3:He worked in a fish market and he's an accountant.
Speaker 4:Yeah, so he did all the books, all the books, and everything else when the family you've come from.
Speaker 4:Yes, and then my, her siblings, my mom said worked with my grandmother and getting extra hours at the mental hospital where she worked at. So they worked there as high school students and also in college students. So we talked about if I have, we all have. But also you have to build yourself up. I can't have you in a nest for long. You got to get out of this nest and fly you do, but I'm going to equip you with what you need. So that's my leadership principle when I think about family. I'm old to pay it forward, but I got to strengthen my wings so I can make sure I carry my responsibility. I always pray, pray that God bless me to be a blessing, but bless me so I can take care of my household. I got three girls. My wife bless me so I can feed us, clothe us, you know, give us shelter, but also that way I can be a blessing to others as well.
Speaker 3:So let me ask you this and this is a new question for Talkin' Tennessee because so many people go on boards, so many people go on committees. So many people go on committees, but there's a board within your personal life. If you had to pick a board to help you with your personal life, who would be the three people that you would say? These three people sit on my board and this is who I would turn to name those three people.
Speaker 4:I'm glad you it's probably more people, but name three people.
Speaker 3:That's tough. Is that a good question?
Speaker 4:It's a good question, but I actually asked that question too here, but I phrased it differently. So I'll say on that board it can't be a spouse, okay, it can't be a partner, and for this I'm going to say I'm not going to lie, because there's so many people that's influenced, especially in this community.
Speaker 3:I think about Reverend, if he doesn't name you, don't get mad. I'm the one telling three.
Speaker 4:No.
Speaker 3:He would have been probably about 20. I think about many.
Speaker 4:I mean I got to say who's my current mentor. Alvin Nance is my mentor since I've been in banking. He's been my mentor. He said if you stay in Knoxville, you invest in the community, I invest in you. We meet regularly, Of course, my pastor, Pastor Arnold. I look at him as a spiritual father.
Speaker 1:Reverend.
Speaker 4:Harold Middlebrook it's so many people. One. That's the late Tank Strickland. We worked a lot together. He taught me the ropes when it comes to MLK Commission. He's named a legend.
Speaker 3:The leadership support.
Speaker 4:So I can go on and on, and I don't want to forget anybody, but this community. One thing I love about Knoxville even the Bob, the late Bob Bookers and even Avon Rollins and many people who are true servant leaders, and they are humble about their approach but have so much experience and things that they can bring and all you have to do is sit up under them and they will give you the knowledge and get you what you need. But they will call you to the table to say, hey, now you got to pay it forward to the next person, and you gotta have that.
Speaker 3:So let me say this you you spoke about Dr Tavis- Can't forget also Mama Nichols, Miss Phyllis. Nichols.
Speaker 4:But it's so many people I know I'm forgetting some names but it's so many people and I know that that's a good question. That's a tough one too.
Speaker 3:I'm like that's so many people. Cause there's so many people? I go on and on and on. Yes, there's so many Abbess Reed.
Speaker 4:I can keep going on and on.
Speaker 3:Abbess Reed on the podcast and when. I tell you, the spirit of her just really and truly fed my spirit you know that type thing. So let me say, is you were talking about it previously, about Dr Tybee Smalls and what he's done in your life and how he's been a big brother to you. Tell me, you know, if you could say one thing that Tybee Smalls has done for you, what would it be that really sticks out? And I'm just picking him because you said he was like a big brother to you.
Speaker 4:Yeah, yeah, I would say opening the door for me to be here and even having my mindset to say that not only can I be here here, being at the University of Tennessee Haslam College of Business, but also I have something to add value. And you think about my background, right? So my background coming from high school dropout, going to a community center to get my diploma, then going to Tallahassee Community College, FAMU, Syracuse and also I'm here leading programs with the assistance of my teammates, programs that got me interested in college, Pre-collegiate programs where students come on campus like I did at FAMU. I get to turn that table back, so it really comes full circle. So I think that he gave me the opportunity to see that opportunity as something I should thrive and strive to be. I had to, of course, apply, go through the process.
Speaker 3:I think that's probably one of the biggest things you had to put in the work, but he still opened the door. And the reason why I was asking you that I'm glad that you answered it that way because in this world, in certain positions, in certain different areas, some people feel like it can only be one person.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I think that's a great point. I mean, it can't only be one person, because I was always told to whom much is given, much is required and you have to pay it for it. And I'll say have to. It is you have to because you're given opportunity. I always remember some people would say you're just keeping the seat warm for the person next to you or after you to come into that seat and keep that seat going. So I'm just here to keep the seat warm. We have to keep the door open because we always talk about what is the succession plan.
Speaker 4:I think in many communities succession plans, you have people, who that's the person always, and that person moves or goes different places and that's a void for the community. We owe it to our community and ourselves to really consider succession plans. Who am I grooming? Who am I molding? So if I'm not here or I move or something changes in life, I'm not able to do what I'm able to do. This could continue to be a benefit and a blessing to our community, that's where you would step in Exactly, Exactly and honestly for example.
Speaker 4:Take strictly that. For me yes. You know, he was over the MLK Leadership Awards luncheon for many, many years, so I would sit under him and we would just talk about life most times, and then we'd talk a little bit about the luncheon. But he gave me the ropes of ours. Here's what you do, here's who you contact, here's how you sell the tables, here's how you do this. And I still use the same formula.
Speaker 3:Really.
Speaker 4:Same process and thanks to Tank, you know God rest his soul. It never fails and, honestly, god is in the mix, obviously because it's something that has a purpose.
Speaker 3:But having that fellowship To help us execute our plans.
Speaker 4:That's exactly right.
Speaker 3:That type thing. So let me ask you about collaboration. Can you give an example of a time when you collaborated with someone that you felt like it was a must? We needed to collaborate for the greater good. Can you think of anything?
Speaker 4:Yeah, I can think of a couple of things. I have to go back to the work I was able to do under Mayor O'Hara and working with Avis Reed and Tasha Harris and Bishop Kevin Perry. We collaborated as a team in a unit to help the city of Knoxville when it comes to, you know, they with Tasha and Kevin, with the Save Our Sons initiative under Mayor O'Hara's leadership, my work with Park, and it all flowed together because the bottom line was it was communities that were hurting and we still have communities hurting but, it's more than just one button.
Speaker 4:It can be food disparities, it can be wages and employment, it can be access to transportation so we're able to collaborate. Still was not the end. All be all but make impacts in the community, to say that, if we and also show others. If we come together, a lot can be done.
Speaker 3:So I think that's one example, you don't have to be from the same walks of life to come together. I think more you need to understand and listen more. If you just listen and try your best to humble your heart to understand where they're coming from, Hopefully they'll understand where you're coming from and you can come together to collaborate for the greater good.
Speaker 4:Do you agree with that? I agree with that 100 percent.
Speaker 3:What role does the community at the University of Tennessee play in building bridges and creating access? What do you think that brings the university and the school of business together?
Speaker 4:I think a lot of it is through a couple of things. So our pre-collegiate programs we have summer programs where we have high school students from used to be just in the state. Now we have them all over the country. They're here in the summer for residential programs. They stay on campus. They get to experience what it's like to be a student and honestly I'm not making this up, but it's life-changing for these students. Just the feedback we get from the parents they say my student has changed since they've been with you only for 10 days for some programs, six days for others.
Speaker 4:So I think it starts at the root and we talk about being a good steward and also being a good community stakeholder. In a sense we're community stakeholders because we're looking at our future leaders as well, how we can invest in them. These are free programs. We offer four programs each summer the month of June and July and they get a chance to meet with faculty see the city of Knoxville. Those maybe from Memphis Nashville majority are from Tennessee, but Memphis Nashville, chattanooga, different places and we invest in them. The investment in return is to come to University of Tennessee and hopefully aspire to get a degree in business, and then we in our office there's a wall.
Speaker 4:We have pictures, started, of course, by Dr Small early on with the programs. Now we've grown those programs and they can go back and see themselves 10, 15, 20 years ago. Well, 15 and 16 haven't been 20 years yet. And that to me, I think, is a key investment because you know you put your money where your mouth is and our money is going towards not only money, but money in the sense of resources and investment of time, collateral into the future. And the future, I think, is definitely our young people, even starting from middle school, as we have middle school programs. So starting there, I think we are definitely a great community stakeholder to help support community initiatives. We'll be looking at the most important and also all important, but you think about our young people. They're going to be the ones doing these roles when it's 20, 30 years from now right and it's our time to either retire and go to the beach or go back to.
Speaker 1:Miami, go back to Miami Beach and get ready to hang out again down in Broward County.
Speaker 4:So we have to put that investment. So I think we do it there. We do it in many other ways. We support, of course, like I said, MLK Commission.
Speaker 4:We now do the luncheon here on campus at the Student Union Amazing so having that you have over almost 600 plus people come into fellowship, where in many cases and years ago people didn't feel comfortable coming to the university. They didn't feel like it was their university and I think even through our leadership from campus wide and also academic colleges and people we have on campus, now it's opened doors to everyone to feel like this campus is for them and they belong here as well.
Speaker 3:All the things that I have been honored to get that stuck out more than anything, because Martin Luther King, all that he's done, you know his legacy, and then all that the commission has done for the community, that to me was like wow, you know, they really see me, you know. So I want to thank you for even considering me, because when I got the nomination I was like you know what? God, have your way If I get it, great If I don't. And so when I found out I was accepted, I was like that was like one of those moments.
Speaker 4:But big kudos to people like Chairwoman Deborah Porter yes, Many others, Of course Reverend Renee Kessler, who served before myself I served this past year as well and many, many others I served. Reverend Middlebrook, who was a founder of the commission and many others.
Speaker 3:These are some great people.
Speaker 4:So these people were still invested.
Speaker 3:They're still working. Still working, all of you are still working. So tell me, with your faith, how is your faith through leadership, your leadership journey, how can you say well, this is how my faith is intertwined with my leadership.
Speaker 4:A couple of things I think for me is that I always say it's bigger than myself. I don't get caught up in title. That's just not who I am. I wasn't raised to be that way. But I'm charged to do a work and I believe that the work that I'm doing, no matter what the work is, is that it's God-driven and it's for a reason and everything happens for divine intervention. So that leads me, as a leader, to make sure that one, I'm compassionate, but also stick to the fact that we have a job to do. You know we have work to accomplish, to get done. You can be compassionate. Some people are like, oh, we can just roll over this person. Like to get done. You can be compassionate to people oh, we can just roll over this person. Like, no hold on Compassionate. But also we have to be driven on what our goals are and what we have to get done.
Speaker 4:Another thing, too, is that it's okay, we make mistakes, we all fail. I'm speaking for myself. But what do you learn from that right? Do you continue to make the same mistake or do you learn from oh wow, I can do it different this time. Now I can have more impact. So I use different things that I may have as learning lessons, but also knowing that the end goal is what impact am I making? Am I in line with what I believe God has called me to be both, you know, personally, professionally, spiritually, because I believe personally it all intertwines because, if one is falling, it affects the other.
Speaker 4:So I believe it all intertwines.
Speaker 3:So how has your role at the business school, how has it made an impact on your life?
Speaker 4:It's impacted me greatly, honestly with our deans group, that we have here our leadership here at the university, our faculty and staff within the college, our students but, more importantly for namesake, the Haslam family. I mean who more philanthropic, who more a servant leader and truly give back to the community, not with just worries but also just by being actively involved. I mean, mr Haslam himself is greatly involved in many things. I'm even having a chance for our students to have luncheons with him through support, being scholarship recipients. So I would say it impacted me a lot to show me that again, like I'll say this again, it's bigger than me.
Speaker 4:You know what are you doing to make an impact to those in your community. What are you leaving? What legacy are you leaving behind? It doesn't define your legacy, but what legacy are you leaving behind for others to learn from and use as an example? So I think the Hazard family has definitely created a legacy that's continuing to flow in different families community, but they definitely started a legacy here in this community with this college and, more importantly, the work that I get to do here. It makes an impact because I'm able to help others. I'm able to help my own family. I had two nephews in my summer programs and now they're going to college and doing great things.
Speaker 4:So that helps me tremendously because I'm able to give back rights to my own immediate family, but also students that I see in the community. So it's definitely been a big role. But for me it's still bigger than that when, in a sense, we talk about, like I said again, I'm a God-fearing man, so I know that God opens doors for a reason, so I want to make sure I'm a good steward in this role while I'm here at this time.
Speaker 4:And being a good steward is making sure that we follow the footsteps of, like I said, those like the Haslam family, the leadership we have here, the faculty staff, our deans group, who truly are volunteers to the core and also servant leaders.
Speaker 3:And I think that they've made plans for so many years to come. The Haslam family. They give so much and I'm not talking about just in money, I'm just talking about their time. You know, I spoke off camera about our first orientation for Leadership, Knoxville. Mr Haslam came and his wife and him just sharing. He just stopped in the middle of it and was like, OK, you know, yes, I started at Leadership Knoxville, but let me tell you what my wife started and what really what she taught him in just leadership and how to be a servant leader in a different way and how to be hands on even more. And it was just a great speech and I left inspired because I'm like he's in his 90s and he is still giving back, he's still doing things you know to make this community better. Do you have a favorite scripture that you lean?
Speaker 4:on Not so much a scripture Every night, and since I've been. Actually, I was saved when I was five years old.
Speaker 1:Five years old.
Speaker 4:Watching TVN with my mother in the living room and gave my life to Christ and from that point was a prayer warrior at six for my church. But I say that to say every night. I believe in prayer, but every night since I've been that age I've always said the Lord's Prayer. You know, our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. And I said that with my kids and now they know it verbatim. So I think for me that constantly one it resets my day. It does.
Speaker 4:Because what we do here on earth is a pact in heaven, as God would like it to be, but also we serve. We're called to be witnesses. We are. We're called to be witnesses. We're also called to be a living example of God working through us. So I believe in that tremendously.
Speaker 3:We're supposed to be the walk, not the talk.
Speaker 4:And we still fall short. We fall short, but I think, and God said, we were going's a repetition. Also, I want to start in my family's life, and then my daughters now do every night, before they go to bed, they say their prayers, we sing a song and then kiss another good night and they have two songs. One is this Little Light of Mine, because Ziya's name means light, and Jada will sing is Lord, prepare Me to Be a Sanctuary, is her song.
Speaker 3:So can you tell me something that's behind the scenes, that God has done for you, that it just you're like God, you didn't forget me. Oh, I can, I mean we can all count the ways. There's many. Is there something that you could?
Speaker 4:say I would say one in relation to what we're discussing.
Speaker 4:So I remember I was terminated from a role here in town and you know, new baby, first baby, was here and we, you know God's always provided, so we never really struggled. But I was like whoa, time is getting it's six months now and I remember calling everybody I thought I should call and doing everything I thought I should do. And my devotion is music. I love old gospel music, like John P Key, reverend James Cleveland, shirley Caesar. I love the old, old gospel. That's kind of my thing. So I had music playing and at one point I just stopped and I went to my deck. I left my hands up. I looked up I said God, it's out of my control, I give it to you. And that was on a Saturday night. That Monday I had six job offers.
Speaker 3:Really, and that still gives me chills because I understand prayer and Adrienne said to me she says, mom, when you pray. She said your prayers are faster than Amazon Prime. And I'm like stop saying that it's not Amazon Prime.
Speaker 3:But I just believe in prayer and I love talking to God and just telling him how I feel. You know I talk to him like I'm talking to you. God, this is not a good day. Or God this is a good day, but it could be better. Tell me, what do I need to do to make that day better? You know that type of thing and who can I help and put a smile on their face? That type of thing. And I can imagine, you know, losing a job and then you having a family and young children and you're feeling like, okay, I've let them down. That type thing you know, but you seek God.
Speaker 4:Yeah, and so I mean I literally I felt I threw up, I said I give up, it's out of my control, you just got to surrender, you got that's right.
Speaker 3:So what is next? The last question is what is next for Clarence Vaughn, and what's the next thing that you say at the school? We're going to do this and we're going to make it shine.
Speaker 4:I would say the next thing is continue to be a light for those in darkness. Like I was saying earlier, one song that was played at my father's funeral was a lily in the valley, and then somebody called him a lily in the valley because he caught people in their darkest moments, um, people who were just going through difficulties in life, or in their lightest moment, and being the light that shines. So I think I'm my goal is, god, allow me to continue to be the light that shines, provide opportunities to our students, faculty staff, community, um be, uh, advocate in spaces where I need to advocate for others, yes, and also shed light on things that may be, you know, troublesome or difficult for communities and speak on that. When you're in spaces and give an opportunity to meet, you have to speak on that and share that and bring truth to light. So I think that's what I'm planning to continue to do.
Speaker 4:As far as who knows what the future holds. Again, I have three kids. I got an elementary school, a middle school age and then a high school age. So my goal is, of course, to make sure I get them prepared to continue to transition through the academic side of life and continue just this love, love life, love others and continue to work that God called me to do until it's the next phase in life.
Speaker 1:So we'll see what that may be.
Speaker 4:I'm not sure. I hope there's no time soon. I'm here for a little bit longer than that.
Speaker 3:Love the abundance that's over you. I'll tell you this that your spirit, you can tell you love the Lord and you can tell that you want to make a difference. You know what it was like when you were failing at something and you knew. 86% of the time you didn't show up, and the biggest thing I would say at the end of this is show up for yourself. At the end of the day, nobody can show up for you like you can show up for yourself. I thank you for sitting down with me. The door is always open. You know, I would love to have you on a panel discussion. This is Clarence Vaughn. Bye, guys.
Speaker 1:Thanks for listening to Talkin' Tennessee with Yvonca. Watch out for our weekly episodes from the First Family of Real Estate and check us out on the web wwwyvoncasalesrealestatecom. See our videos on Yvonca's YouTube channel or find us on Facebook under Yvonca Landis and Twitter at Yvonca Landis, and don't forget to tell a friend about us. Until next time. Yvonca signing off.