Kevin Bryant was raised by a hard-working, single mother in the small, nurturing community of Waynesville, a town in western North Carolina, which even today, has an African American population of less than 2 percent. So, it’s no surprise that he grew up without an experience of diversity in health care providers and wonders to what extent the lack of diversity might have impacted health outcomes in his own family.
It was decades later, in the 1990s, when a now-deceased, esteemed Meharrian, and the first African American surgeon in Greenville, South Carolina— Levi S. Kirkland, M.D. ’54— proudly shared Meharry’s legacy with him. Bryant was formally introduced to Meharry in 2015 when, in a professional matter, Meharry Board of Trustees Vice Chair Milton H. Jones Jr.; CFO LaMel Bandy Neal and General Counsel Ivanetta Davis Samuels, asked him to review healthcare professional liability and employer sponsored health insurance coverages for the College.
The result: a $2-million savings over two years. Bryant has continued to acquaint himself with Meharry’s mission and accepted the invitation to be a member of the Board of Trustees in 2021. Bryant said he firmly believes in the power of education in any field to transform lives. “Knowledge is power,” Bryant said, and he doesn’t take for granted the opportunity a full athletic scholarship and nurturing professors and coaches at Furman University afforded him. Bryant said he feels a responsibility to give back.
Giving, of his treasure and time, is core to his character. He can’t recall a time in his life, he said, when he didn’t feel that way and suspects the values are rooted in his faith and spiritual upbringing, believing “to whom much is given, much is required.”
Bryant serves on the Board of Trustees at his alma mater, Furman University, where he has been a significant donor. There, he has established the Kevin and Mitzi Bryant Endowed Scholarship and has made significant contributions to Furman’s Athletic Fund, the Paladin Club. Many African American students from disadvantaged backgrounds have benefited from these scholarships. He began his giving upon graduation from college and has consistently given every year since.
He and his wife are also generous supporters of Meharry, through the Kevin and Mitzi Bryant Endowed Scholarship Fund, along with other funding areas. As a member of Meharry’s Board of Trustees, Bryant is equally passionate and committed to Meharry’s mission.
It’s a role he easily embodies because he believes Meharry is an incredible institution with amazing students. He recounted how thrilled he was to recently sponsor—along with his employer, Marsh McLennan—a community day of service initiative organized by the Physician Assistant Sciences Class of 2025. The event exposed elementary students to hands-on science activities, food and fun and provided free school supplies.
Bryant stresses that success is a process, requiring an awareness that no matter the room, there will likely always be someone smarter. With a strong work ethic and tenacity, you can persevere, he said, taking to heart the quote from James Baldwin: “Not everything faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.”
