The Barometer Online

Issue date: 2/26/09 Section: News

Media Credit: Annie Miles Jonathan Riley helps set up for the Black History Month Dinner on Wednesday. Riley is the president of Oregon State's Black Student Union.

OSU's president of the Black Student Union, Jonathan Riley, grew up in Fontana, Calif., playing football. Yet unlike most young men who dream of becoming professional athletes, Riley had an ulterior motive for spending countless hours in the weight room.

"As black males in my community, you needed to be an athlete to get out," Riley, 23, said.

While some use sports as a one-way ticket to a better life, Riley saw it as a stepping stone.

He loved football, he said, but academics and a college education were his priority.

Riley was offered football scholarships to Nebraska, Fresno State and the University of Washington, while several other colleges made efforts to recruit him.

But when it came time to sign, the Kaiser High School graduate decided he didn't need the pigskin. He said he thought he could rely on a 3.2 grade point average and solid SAT scores to get into college.

That's when the rejection letters started coming in.

"There I was, the time to sign to colleges is gone, the time to apply is gone," Riley said. "I was really depressed."

Following a friend's suggestion, Riley tossed up a Hail Mary and applied to OSU for the fall term of 2004. He submitted the application a month after the deadline.

"The only thing I knew about Oregon was Oregon Trail," he said.

Two weeks later, the large orange envelope that is infamous to OSU students came in the mail.

"This is where I felt God wanted me to come," Riley said.

Riley is a firm believer. The things he's been blessed with cannot come from any man, business, or sum of money, and can only be attributed to the man upstairs, he said.

At OSU, Riley has taken on several roles. Under his leadership as president of Kappa Alpha Psi, the fraternity incorporated's grade point average has soared. In 2006, their academic grades ranked them 24th of all 25 fraternities represented on the OSU campus. This year, the Kappa's are number two on the list.

"We don't have a house or numbers, but we have dedication and heart," Riley said. "My fraternity has shaped me to be more of a leader, and my fraternity brothers are like my blood here. I rely on them for everything."

According to Riley, his involvement with the fraternity has made him a better man and brought him closer to his beliefs.

"I encourage people to get involved," he said. "It's what you're paying for, to become a better person, not just a better student."

Despite the hardships that come with being black on a predominantly white campus, Riley said the underdog experience has made him more appreciative of what he's done and the business degree he'll walk away with this June.

As for retiring his cleats? This Riley is happy without football.

"It's refreshing to know that I'm a leader on campus and I don't wear a jersey or a helmet," he said.



Taryn Luna, senior reporter

news@dailybarometer.com, 737-2231

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