TAMPA, Fla. — In this week’s Everyday Hero story, we are featuring a school monitor who has a special heart for the job.

What You Need To Know

  • Phillip Hawkins is a beloved school monitor at Largo Middle School

  • Hawkins helps to make sure student needs are met

  • School resource officer says Hawkins has a calming influence on students    

  • Hawkins decided to become a school monitor because of positive school role models at his high school

When you see Phillip Hawkins walking at Largo Middle School with School Resource Officer Scott Simcox, Hawkins is hard to miss. He’s a big, physically imposing man.

But when you see him encouraging students, you see and hear the soft-spoken side. His job is to look after the students’ needs.

That includes making sure they’re not falling behind in their studies. The kids love him, getting him to sign their yearbooks and even their shirts.

Hawkin’ experience as a student back in the day at Boca Ciega High School is his motivation for the job. He missed out on playing with the state championship basketball team because he was academically ineligible.

But encouraging coaches and teachers helped him so much, he won a turnaround student award.

Asked how it feels to help a struggling student turn things around, he said, “Well, that’s like many success stories. I’m a success story myself. It brings a lot of joy to my heart when i see them accomplish their goals.”

Simcox said having Hawkins around makes his job easier.

“He’s really good at de-escalating situations where I don’t have to be involved at all,” Simcox said.

Hawkins has been helping eighth-grader Ava Bliss with her basketball skills.

Hawkins means a lot to her.

“I was definitely scared of him at first,” Bliss said. “But warm heart, definitely a sweet person.”