David Tumlinson, a leader in the Brownsville and Rio Grande Valley community, has been welcomed to Texas Southmost College as the Director of Foundation and Community Outreach, bringing with him an extensive career in public justice and fundraising.
“I’m excited to begin in this new role at this stage of my life,” said the Brownsville native. “I’m in a position to make a difference and propel success. Everything we do at TSC changes lives and positively affects local families. This is what I live for.”
Over the past two decades, Tumlinson has worked as the Deputy Director for the Cameron County Juvenile Justice Department in San Benito, where he started as a probation officer in 2001.
With a heart for giving back and effecting change, working with juveniles within the criminal justice system was his chance to make a difference.
“For me it was about helping lost youth,” he said. “I made it my job to ensure they kept on a straight and narrow path and that they remained safe. I wanted to see them make a life for themselves and leave behind the unfortunate events that life dealt them.”
During his career, Tumlinson also worked as the operations manager and facility administrator at the Darrell B. Hester Juvenile Detention Center in San Benito.
Tumlinson said he knows he only led such a successful and rewarding career because of the education he was able to obtain, and he wants to make those same opportunities available to South Texas students.
In 2002, he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science with a minor in Public Justice from St. Mary’s University and went on to earn a Master of Science in Criminal Justice Leadership and Management from Sam Houston State University in 2015.
After graduate school, in 2016, he went on to become an online adjunct instructor with his alma mater in Huntsville teaching Juvenile Delinquency and Juvenile Justice; Victimology and Fundamentals of Criminal Justice, classes he still teaches to date.
“Education is important,” said Tumlinson. “It helps you find a path, and that’s what TSC is doing for the thousands of students who graduate from the college. I want to work to ensure that many more are able to have TSC as part of their legacy and I’ll do that by making sure there are scholarships to help these students pay for the education they seek.”
In addition to a successful career within the criminal justice system, Tumlinson has also used his skills in developing successful grant and fundraising campaigns for his places of employment and local charity organizations.
In 2019, he successfully wrote a grant proposal for the Texas Juvenile Justice Department to fund the implementation of the Dialectical Behavior Therapy Training Program for $500,000.
He has also served as board president for Moody Clinic in Brownsville and Leadership Brownsville and as a board member for the United Way of Southern Cameron County assisting in fundraising that collectively brought in more than $13.5 million dollars.
Tumlinson currently serves on two boards – Mr. Amigo Association and the Juvenile Justice Association of Texas. He is also the safety co-coordinator for the Cameron County Juvenile Justice Department in conjunction with the Cameron County Safety Committee and Rancho Viejo Alderman.
For his fundraising efforts and volunteer work, Tumlinson has received several awards that include Employee of the Year for the Cameron County Juvenile Justice Department, Leadership Brownsville Alumnus of the Year and Volunteer of the Year for the United Way of Southern Cameron County.
“TSC is a new adventure within my extensive career and volunteer work, and I look forward to raising awareness of the workforce training and academic programs TSC offers and showcasing how our scholarships make a difference in lives,” said Tumlinson. “I’m fortunate that TSC has a strong Board of Trustees and administration that believe in the scope of this mission.”
Tumlinson added that he hopes to create signature events that bring in funds for student scholarships and raise awareness on how donors are making a positive change in the lives of TSC students and graduates.
“The return of investment that happens when donors help our students is astronomical,” he said. “Our scholarship fund is what helps students continue their education, graduate and gain employment, which in turn pushes the Lower Rio Grande Valley forward.”
For more information on how to donate, visit the TSC Foundation.