Tim Cook could be using his vacation time to rest up before the fall semester starts. Instead, he’s pounding the pavement to help students.
Cook, president of Clackamas Community College, is on a 50-day, 1,500-mile run throughout Oregon. During the journey – dubbed Running for Oregon Community College Students (ROCCS) – he’s stopping at all of the state’s 17 community colleges.
He’s raising money to help students facing food and housing insecurity. He’s also raising awareness about the struggles students face in meeting their basic needs, and the need for increased state funding to support these students. It’s become “dire,” Cook said.
Follow Tim Cook live on his blog (run routes, stats, photos and more)
“I’ve been thinking about this for a few years, thinking about the numbers of students struggling with food and housing insecurity,” he said. “I needed to do something to try and raise awareness.”
Cook has been running marathons for nearly 20 years and has even completed some ultra marathons. He had some hesitancy going into this trek, but the cause is an important one for him.
“I tried to think of ways I can get people’s attention,” he said. He needed “something audacious” enough to make people want to listen and care.
And people do care. As of July 18, more than $84,000 has been raised. The goal is to raise $150,000. Donors can choose which Oregon college they want their money to go to. (Sponsors are helping to cover costs, including Nike as his shoe sponsor.)
Cook is raising awareness, too, through a dedicated Instagram feed tracking his journey. And each college he visits plays a role in awareness-building with marketing before his arrival, and a special event when he crosses onto their campus.
Cook only stays for an hour or two, talking about the cause and telling people how they can support it. He poses for photos and chats with faculty, staff and students, community members and sometimes legislators. Then he’s on his way, trying to get his 30 miles in before nightfall.
Taking it mile-by-mile
Cook says he is enjoyed getting to see the “flavor” of the different places he passes through. Occasionally, runners will join him for a bit – sometimes students or Clackamas faculty. He’s even been joined by tractors and combines. But, mostly, it’s him and his playlists or podcasts.
He’s not totally alone, though. A donated sprinter van is nearby, with his wife, Paddy Cook, inside. She provides navigation, keeps him fed, bandages his blisters and cheers him on.
“When Tim told me about this, I couldn’t believe what a great idea it is,” Paddy said. “I had to be part of it.”
Though the Cooks are exhausted – both physically and mentally – it’s been “exhilarating,” she said. Knowing the difficult choices students have to make each day to better their lives “keeps Tim and I both motivated,” she added.
Cook wants other college leaders to know that they don’t have to run long distances to raise money and awareness. They just have to get creative, he said.
Pedaling with purpose
John “Ski” Sygielski also hit the road this summer for a good cause. Earlier this month, Sygielski, president of HACC, Central Pennsylvania’s Community College, completed a two-and-a-half-day, 213-mile bike ride through HACC’s service area to raise money for student scholarships.
“The horrific stories I hear about what students have to do to get to college … if I can raise a little money to help ease the burden, I’ll do it,” Sygielski said. As of July 16, the ride had raised about $6,300.
This isn’t Sygielski’s first time hopping on his bike to raise money for community college students. He’s done a marathon bike tour nearly every summer. But, as he inches closer to retirement, this has been billed as his “farewell” bike ride.
During this year’s journey, Sygielski visited HACC’s five campuses, as well as the public schools, a hospital and other various organizations and businesses. He talked with students and alumni, community partners, company CEOs, superintendents and more.
This has been a “celebratory” ride, Sygielski said. Along the open road, drivers would pull over to tell him about the positive difference HACC has made for their families. While visiting a local hospital, nurses stopped him to let him know they attended HACC. A maintenance worker told him about a son who learned welding at HACC and now makes good money as an underwater welder.
“Every president has stories like this,” Sygielski said, but these are the stories that helped him stay motivated.
And he’s happy his ride didn’t only raise money but helped to raise the image of HACC.
“I love the college. I’m proud of the college,” Sygielski said.
