Fittingly, his own journey began with that same process of discovery at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College.
Fava arrived at MGCCC in 1986 planning to become a pharmacist, following in the footsteps of his grandfather. As a boy, he had spent summers behind the counter of his grandfather’s small-town pharmacy, fascinated by the science of compounding medicines and the extraordinary trust his grandfather shared with the people he served.
But career exploration experiences during his early college years allowed Fava to see the profession firsthand and realize the career he had imagined was not the future he wanted. A chance encounter with his first-grade teacher, Carol Paola, in whose classroom his lifelong love of school had begun, helped point him toward education instead.
After transferring to The University of Southern Mississippi to study science education, Fava began his career as a science teacher before moving into career and technical education. There, he discovered the value of connecting classroom learning with business and industry, mentors and authentic real-world experiences.
That philosophy became a defining thread throughout his career.
Fava established Mississippi’s first robotics competition team through FIRST, For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, an international STEM organization that sponsors robotics programs and competitions. The team gave students opportunities to work alongside engineers, technical professionals and subject-matter experts. He later served as a Career and Technical Education director and worked with educators, administrators and community partners to help develop the Academic Institutes at Gulfport High School.
Retirement from public education did not end his work with students. Fava helped launch P3, Passion, Purpose, Paycheck, a career-coaching initiative serving students in Jackson County and the surrounding region. The program brings education, business and industry, workforce organizations, nonprofits and community partners together to help students understand and experience the opportunities available to them.
Through P3, Fava’s journey with MGCCC came full circle.
Believing Career Coaches could not effectively introduce students to opportunities they had never experienced themselves, he approached College leaders about immersing coaches in MGCCC’s programs and pathways. What began with approximately 17 participants grew into what has affectionately become known as the “MGCCC Worldwide Tour,” exposing hundreds of Career Coaches, counselors and educational leaders to the College’s academic, career-technical, workforce-training and scholarship opportunities.
The institution that helped Fava explore his own possibilities as a young college student has, nearly four decades later, become one of his strongest partners in helping a new generation explore theirs.
For Fava, those years of service have always centered on the young people whose futures he has worked to expand.
“I have always loved kids and wanted to do whatever it takes to help them be successful,” Fava said. “That’s my life’s work, and it is something I am proud of.”
Through a career spent connecting education with opportunity, Fava has helped generations of students see not only what comes next, but what might be possible.
