My College Tours was founded by Tommy O. Abney in 2010. Tommy has over 40 years of experience in counseling and organizing tours and has worked in the New York City Department of Education for 20 years as a Substance Abuse Counselor. While in this position, he has created numerous programs for New York City youth and worked with students in elementary, middle, and high school. Throughout his years in education, he was able to identify a need for college preparation and in that, My College Tours was born. Tommy has taken students to over 100 colleges and universities throughout the United States. Currently, he still serves as an advisor to community organizations that support and look to advance youth in New York City. In the summer of 2018 his eldest son, Olu Abney moved from Philadelphia to New York and My College Tours officially became a family business.

Olu Abney was raised in Brooklyn, New York. He attended Benjamin Banneker Academy in high school and after attending a college tour, realized that Morehouse College was the place he wanted to pursue his post-secondary education. Graduating Phi Beta Kappa with a degree in History, Olu sought to follow in his father’s footsteps and ultimately become an educator himself. Through Teach for America, he was placed in Philadelphia, PA where he became a Special Education teacher at Simon Gratz Mastery Charter High School and obtained his graduate degree in Education from the University of Pennsylvania. After 6 impactful years at Simon Gratz, Olu felt the calling to return back to his hometown and pursue the family business with his father.

Together, Tommy and Olu seek to improve the postsecondary preparation process by exposing students to the many opportunities they have at their disposal. They seek to support students in their search for the school that fits them – both personally and financially, while tracking students’ progress through their junior year in high school until college completion.