Page 48 - Southern Oregon Magazine Summer 2021
P. 48
neck of the woods | prof ile
Q: AND HAS THAT BEEN SUCCESSFUL? Q: HOW DID YOU COME TO BE A COMMUNITY COLLEGE
PRESIDENT?
CATHY: Extremely successful. SOHOPE (Southern Oregon
Health Occupations Poverty Elimination) was a $15-million CATHY: I grew up in Illinois. I attended a community college right
grant designed to provide wrap-around services to support very out of high school, against my will. I was the youngest of four, the other
needy students. The goal was to take people who live in multi-genera- three had all gone to universities. My parents had this interesting idea
tional poverty and get them into a living wage healthcare career. In the that as the youngest child, I was going to stay home and take care of
five-years of the grant, we successfully placed over 300 students into them, because that happened in both of their families. I wasn’t having any
healthcare careers. SOHOPE taught us that instead of expecting them of that. I was very interested in the sciences, specifically environmental
to come to us college-ready, we come to them student-ready. science, biology and forestry. So begrudgingly I attended my local com-
munity college. It was the best thing that could’ve ever happened to me!
I was in small classes. My instructors saw my interests and encouraged
me to do special projects and put me in touch with people like me who
Q: IS YOUR TYPICAL STUDENT A 19-YEAR-OLD HIGH were interested in the sciences. I wound up transferring to Illinois State
SCHOOL GRADUATE?
University and finished two degrees there. By then, I was connected with
CATHY: It’s a mix. We have dual credit students who are still in high researchers who were guiding me about a major and research areas. I
school. We also have a fairly significant younger population of students worked in the residence halls to pay my way through college. I was totally
who are right out of high school. But only about half of our high school on my own. And I got through a master’s degree with no debt.
graduates in Jackson and Josephine Counties go directly to college.
And then we have an adult population that’s 24 and older, who typically I started work as a biological researcher on a Department of Energy grant
didn’t go to college right after high school and got into career paths in Southern Louisiana. I worked with some great scientists. I learned how
that fizzled or didn’t pay a living wage. Perhaps now they don’t make to do research, how to publish and how to present at conferences. I spent
enough to support their family. That’s where we come in, taking adults five years doing research on the environmental impact of the Strategic
and retraining them for the living-wage jobs that are available regionally. Petroleum Reserve. It was great fun, and I met some wonderful people.
46 www.southernoregonmagazine.com | summer 2021