Tony L. Manning, MPA, BA, RP

Tony L. Manning, MPA, BA, RP
Strategist. Fixer. Storyteller. Advocate. Father.

Tony L. Manning, MPA, BA, RP, is a strategist, fixer, storyteller, and community advocate specializing in crisis management, business and legal consulting, communications, and parliamentary procedure. With a sharp mind for structure and an unwavering commitment to people, Tony brings clarity to chaos and direction to uncertainty.

What distinguishes Tony is not simply his professional experience—it is his story.

Tony understands that life rarely happens in black and white. His experiences with adversity, consequences, judgment, growth, and restoration have given him an ability to recognize the grey areas where the real answers often exist.

And there is a chapter of his story he does not hide.

In 2002, while a senior in high school, Tony, then 18, was involved in a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old freshman. The relationship resulted in criminal charges, and following the advice of his court-appointed attorney, Tony pleaded guilty to third-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a person between the ages of 13 and 15.

That conviction is part of his record.

It is not the entirety of his life.

For more than two decades, Tony has lived with both the consequences of that conviction and the assumptions that sometimes accompany a criminal record. He does not ask anyone to erase his past. He simply believes his life should be evaluated in its entirety.

What happened afterward matters.

Tony pursued higher education, earning multiple college degrees and professional credentials. He built businesses, became involved in public policy and criminal justice reform, served communities, advised leaders, and committed himself to helping others navigate complicated circumstances.

From 2010 to 2012, Tony served on the Michigan Task Force for Alternatives to Incarceration under Chairman Fred Durhal, Sr. He has also served as a guest presenter in the School of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University.

Professionally, Tony has advised elected officials, including members of Congress and state legislators, as well as entrepreneurs and recognizable names in entertainment. Whether in a boardroom, legislative committee room, church, community center, or private strategy session, he remains grounded in one principle: understand the person, understand the problem, and determine what comes next.

His work has sometimes produced unexpected intersections. A person of faith, Tony has also provided legal research, business, financial, and strategic guidance to successful adult-content creators, including professionals working through platforms such as OnlyFans and Pornhub.

Yes, you read that correctly.

A minister once reminded him that regardless of someone’s profession or circumstances, everyone deserves someone willing to provide honest and professional advice. Tony never forgot it.

That philosophy carries into his work as a photographer and cinematographer. Behind the camera, Tony does more than capture moments—he tells stories. His lens has captured people celebrating, grieving, worshiping, serving, performing, struggling, and simply being human.

It continually reinforces something he knows personally:

People are more than a photograph, headline, label, mistake, or moment.

In 2019, Tony founded The Restorative Justice Project, a nonprofit focused on veterans, returning citizens, people experiencing homelessness, and marginalized and underserved communities. Since 2025, he has increasingly directed his time and resources toward expanding that mission.

For Tony, restorative justice is personal. It is the belief that accountability and redemption can coexist; that consequences do not eliminate human potential; and that communities are stronger when people are given meaningful opportunities to rebuild.

As 2026 comes to a close, Tony is preparing for his next chapter. In 2027, he plans to substantially reduce his private consulting work and devote more of his professional life to nonprofit service, restorative justice, and community impact.

Yet for all the degrees, credentials, businesses, clients, public service, and professional accomplishments, Tony’s greatest title requires no letters after his name:

Dad.

His daughter, Penelope—his beloved “Penny”—is his inspiration, responsibility, and legacy.

Tony is transparent about his past because he refuses to surrender ownership of his story to anyone else. There are chapters he is proud of and chapters he would write differently. They all belong to the same book.

More than two decades later, he is still writing.

His philosophy is simple:

“It’s not about meeting people where they’ve been. It’s about meeting them where they are right now—and helping them get where they’re going.”

Smart. Scarred. Still Standing.