Johnny Media: Foundation here to help students 'survive and thrive'
Johnny Media 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. Media figured his life would look much the same.
“In my youth, college was for other people. It was designed for people who were smart and wealthy, and it wasn’t an option for us,” he said. “That’s what the world looked like to me growing up.”
The world doesn’t look like that anymore, thanks to Linn-Benton Community College and scholarships from the college’s foundation.
These days, he’ll talk about those scholarships to everyone who will listen. “They’re a tool that helps you get through the door to where you want to go.”
It took Media a long time to find that tool. He watched, impressed, as his brother, two years older, held down two jobs and simultaneously made progress toward a business degree. But he didn’t think he’d follow suit.
Then his brother got sick. And everything changed.
The boys’ parents never took time off, Media recalled. They couldn’t afford health insurance.
“We would see them with a really bad flu or bad cold, and they’d go to work, because they had to. That was instilled in us,” he said.
“My brother did the same thing and it cost him his life.”
Media’s brother caught strep throat, which morphed into encephalitis. In 2014, while in the hospital, he asked Johnny to make him a promise.
“My brother’s and 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, and you’ll do something you actually care about.’”
Media promised.
His brother didn’t get to go with him. But three years later, after Media’s wife had completed her own degree at Western Oregon University, he agreed it was time to fulfill that promise.
On a recommendation from his sister-in-law, Media began commuting from Monmouth to LBCC. Remembering his passion for athletics - “When we had nothing, we always had a football or a basketball and we could go out and 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, Media figured financial aid went only to the best and brightest.
But then an instructor in his “Destination Graduation” class assigned everyone to research financial aid. So Media filled out the basic application for the scholarships available through LBCC.
The beginning of his winter term, he learned he’d be receiving $800. The money made the difference between completion of the term and quitting school. He kept applying.
This spring, Media will complete his associate’s degree in exercise/sports science. Next, he'll transfer to a four-year institution and then look at a master’s in education and counseling.
Initially, Media planned to be an athletic trainer, but he's found trainers tend to focus on football, soccer, basketball - and 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, Media said, that’s something he wants to change.
“I’m trying to be more of an advocate for students in public schools and people in need,” he said.
“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 and matters.”
In addition to his studies, Media is a student ambassador and the Legislative Affairs director of Student Leadership. He uses all those platforms to tell students like himself that LBCC is there for them.
With as much help as he’s received, Media said, “It would be a disservice to myself and the people around me if I didn’t promote the foundation. They’re here to help us students survive and thrive.”
“The sooner that students know about this, the sooner they can take advantage of it.”
Read more about the LBCC Foundation and how you can support students. The spring scholarship cycle is open for student applications until April 16th.