约翰尼媒体: Foundation here to help students 'survive 和 thrive'
约翰尼媒体 grew up thinking college was for a demographic that didn’t include him.
Neither of his parents had education past high school. Both worked in factories. 媒体 figured his life would look much the same.
“In my youth, college was for other people. It was designed for people who were smart 和 wealthy, 和 it wasn’t an option for us,” he said. “That’s what the world looked like to me growing up.”
的 world doesn’t look like that anymore, thanks to Linn-Benton 社区 College 和 scholarships from the college’s foundation.
的se days, he’ll talk about those scholarships to everyone who will listen. “他们 a tool that helps you get through the door to where you want to go.”
It took 媒体 a long time to find that tool. He watched, impressed, as his brother, two years older, held down two jobs 和 simultaneously made progress toward a business 学位. But he didn’t think he’d follow suit.
的n his brother got sick. And everything changed.
的 boys’ parents never took time off, 媒体 recalled. 的y couldn’t afford health 保险.
“We would see them with a really bad flu or bad cold, 和 they’d go to work, because 他们不得不. That was instilled in us,” he said.
“My brother did the same thing 和 it cost him his life.”
媒体’s brother caught strep throat, which morphed into encephalitis. 2014年，尽管 in the hospital, he asked Johnny to make him a promise.
“My brother’s 和 my last conversation, in the hospital, he was like, ‘Hey, promise me that we’ll go back to school together after I get out of here, 和 you’ll do something you actually care about.’”
媒体承诺.
His brother didn’t get to go with him. But three years later, after 媒体’s wife had completed her own 学位 at Western Oregon University, he agreed it was time to fulfill 这一承诺.
On a recommendation from his sister-in-law, 媒体 began commuting from Monmouth to 博天堂官方. Remembering his passion for athletics - “When we had nothing, we always had a football or a basketball 和 we could go out 和 we could do something” - he decided to study sports science.
Financially, however, he didn't think he'd make it past the first term.
He hadn’t thought about scholarships. Like college itself, 媒体 figured financial aid went only to the best 和 brightest.
But then an instructor in his “Destination Graduation” class assigned everyone to research financial aid. So 媒体 filled out the basic application for the scholarships available through 博天堂官方.
的 beginning of his winter term, he learned he’d be receiving $800. 赚的钱 the difference between completion of the term 和 quitting school. 他一直在申请.
This spring, 媒体 will complete his associate’s 学位 in exercise/sports science. Next, he'll transfer to a four-year institution 和 then look at a master’s in education 和咨询.
Initially, 媒体 planned to be an athletic trainer, but he's found trainers tend to focus on football, soccer, basketball - 和 men. Many times, the sports that aren’t as popular - often women’s sports - are overlooked when it comes to the kind of training that could prevent injuries.
As the father of a little girl, 媒体 said, that’s something he wants to change.
“I’m trying to be more of an advocate for students in public schools 和 people in 需要，”他说.
“I wanted to go do something I’m passionate about,” he added. “I want to show my daughter college is accessible for everyone regardless of what time you started - it isn’t outside the means of possibility - but also to show her that her demographic is important 和质量问题.”
In addition to his studies, 媒体 is a student ambassador 和 the Legislative Affairs director of Student Leadership. He uses all those platforms to tell students like himself that 博天堂官方 is there for them.
With as much help as he’s received, 媒体 said, “It would be a disservice to myself 和 the people around me if I didn’t promote the foundation. 的y’re here to help us students survive 和 thrive.”
“的 sooner that students know about this, the sooner they can take advantage of it.”
Read more about the 博天堂官方基金会 和 how you can support students. 的 spring scholarship cycle is open for student applications until April 16th.