Alum’s Rich Experience in Life Pays off for Local Citizens in Need
Michael Robinson II ’06 was born into an Air Force family so as a youngster, he lived in North Carolina, Greece, southern California and in Okinawa, Japan. As a sophomore in high school in Okinawa, he attended Kadena HS with over 5,000 students of American military personnel. When his father was getting ready to retire as an Air Force jet engine mechanic, they transferred to Travis Air Force Base outside the Bay Area in northern California. There, he excelled in football playing a variety of positions on offense and defense and played in the East- West Shrine game as a senior. He received recruiting interest from Langston University in Oklahoma but chose to stay local and played at Solano Community College (SCC) in Fairfield.
Michael made his way to SOU after he met a girl at SCC and they attended a jazz festival on the SOU campus summer of 1999. He was impressed with the size of the school and stadium facilities. And something felt familiar. The year prior, Michael had a dream of playing for a team with red and black uniforms and the buildings had slanted roof tops. Once he asked staff about the school colors and saw the slanted roof tops of the Greensprings residence halls, he knew SOU would soon become home. He enrolled for the fall term in 2000, wanting to play football and study music.
After his first year of school, where he redshirted in football, he had a $12,000 tuition bill because scholarships and loans didn’t cover his out of state tuition. Due to financial hardship, he was forced to leave school. Not wanting to give up, he decided to take an AmeriCorps volunteer position working with local at-risk youth and the reducing adolescent pregnancy program. After two years and 6,000 volunteer hours, he earned a $10,000 scholarship and repaid his tuition debt. Michael reenrolled for school fall of 2002 and changed his major to Health and Physical Education. “Sometimes, when you step away from something you love, you gain a better appreciation for it and the wisdom to make positive changes,” he said. In 2002, he was the starting fullback for our NAIA national quarterfinal team that lost to Carroll College in Helena, Montana.
Michael speaks highly of the faculty in his academic program at SOU, namely athletic trainer Mike Stevenson ’84 and anatomy and physiology professor Richard May. After making the honor roll his last year of school, he decided to leave school early to pursue an opportunity to play football for the Arena Football League’s Memphis Explorers in Tennessee. After an injury, he returned to Ashland and graduated with his bachelor of science degree in health and physical education spring of 2006.
After graduation and with a love for working with at-risk youth already cemented into his mind, Michael worked as a counselor for the Jackson County Juvenile Justice Center for two years, then began work for the State of Oregon’s Child Welfare Division, working with law enforcement to investigate reports of alleged child abuse or neglect and made final determinations on initiating court actions or closure of cases, when no safety threats were identified. In 2012, he entered the master’s in social work (MSW) program at Portland State University (PSU). PSU would fly the MSW professors down to Medford and they taught on SOU’s campus, so he was able to work full time and provide for his family, while earning his graduate degree. He earned his MSW in 2015 and completed two years of service repayment as a supervisor for the Josephine County Child Welfare Branch. In 2017, Michael began a new job as a social worker for Accent Care, Asante Home Health, serving homebound patients with loss of independence due to physical or mental illness. He sees 20-25 patients per week from Cave Junction to Glendale to Central Point, performing comprehensive assessments of their support needs, working with the patient’s family, their support system and other health service providers to coordinate an individualized plan for in-home medical equipment, transportation, meal plans, counseling or other follow-up treatments. Further, he works closely with the patient’s physician to ensure the patient recovers and achieves optimal health and well-being.
“In my career dealing with at risk youth and as a social worker, there were many times I would visit homes in rural settings with no cell phone coverage. As a black man, traveling into rural areas with a predominantly white population, some might think I was foolish. But I always made it my personal policy to be transparent, open and loving to all people and this approach helped me to bridge the gap in those communities. I never had one problem on visits,” said Michael.
Michael thinks highly of his entire SOU experience in class and on the field. After the terrorist attacks of Tuesday, September 11th, 2001, SOU decided to go ahead with its game for the following Saturday. Michael had the honor of singing the national anthem that evening, something that was a highlight in his life. “The anthem, the ovation after and the game were so emotional for me. Only at a small school do you get those kinds of rich experiences and share them with people you love. SOU provided that for me and I will always be a Raider for life!”
Learn more: Accent Care Home Health