Phillip Rakowski: LBCC Student, Mentor and Felon

Phillip Rakowski, 42-years-old, standing over six feet, muscular in build and with a shaved head, may fall into the stereotype of a guy you would expect to see behind bars. Well, he actually has been. For an accumulated 15 years, in fact. He collected 27 felonies along the way, most of them from his gang affiliation and drug use as a younger man.

He has essentially lived two lives. One known as "Thumper" on streets, using his hands to get his message across. The other in his new life, the dual-enrolled sociology major planning for graduate school and using his mind to get his message across.

"All my classes are no less than 400 level, I'm getting ready to graduate, looking at a free ride to grad school, and I'm a crackhead from the streets."

He uses grit and gumption and is hard to ignore. He sits on the Governors Reentry Council Subcommitte Implementaion Education Team, inspiring change in places he feels need more resources for felons trying to reintegrate into society.

"I could have gotten a felony-friendly job in waste management, but that was the easy way out," said Rakowski.

After serving his last prison term of 13 months, for a DUI in which he crashed a car and injured his friend, he had the goal of getting an education.

"I was 37 when I got out, and I really accomplished nothing in life. My grandfather challenged me, telling me, 'Boy, you better try something different because you're not a good criminal,' because I was always getting caught."

Sober since Feb. 4, 2010—the day he walked into his last sentence—he knew part of his transition was staying distracted by positive influences, meaningful tasks, and being productive. That mindset landed him at LBCC, although he had no idea what to major in until he took his first sociology class.

With a life-long struggle of anti-social behavior and bipolar disorder, he had his share of moments worth analyzing in such classes. After his first felony in Silverton, Ore. at the age of 12, his bad behavior got him kicked out of his house by the age of 13. Almost immediately he joined a gang.

"I got kicked out and that's who took me in. They became my family."

That family led him down a dark path, into a world of drugs, violence and intimidation for the next two decades.

"The disease of addiction is a progressive terminal disease. It will get you mentally and spiritually."

His acquired networking skills from the streets were important for the confidence needed to approach any situation, even some at LBCC. He knew how to talk to people to complete a task and how to find the right person to get that task done. He gives credit to mentors on campus stemming from administration to coaches to instructors, and even, the guy who washed towels in the locker room.

The first thing on Rakowski's agenda was to get the weight room open to all students. At the time, it was closed for class use only. He saw the weight room as a needed recreational activity for students that was healthy, a stress reliever, and free.

"I was told to write proposals. I had never written them before. It took two years and seven proposals and finally the administration decided they would allow an open weight room."

His exposure to the tedious process needed to inspire such change on campus landed him in the role of Event Coordinator on the Student Leadership Council. Involvement in student government carried over to OSU, where he is now an intern at the Office of Dean and Student Life.

Next on his agenda was one more personal to Rakowski. As a recovering addict, he had no resources on the LBCC campus for support. Last summer he met with Bruce Clemetson, associate dean of enrollment management. Clemetson advised Rakowski to show the need for narcotics anonymous classes and use his connections to draft a plan for meetings on campus.

Clemetson recognized that many recovering addicts have no credit, no money, the wrong friends, the lure of old habits, and hard decisions. LBCC and OSU counselors did a community health assessment a few years ago asking 150 students specific questions, and according to Clemetson, that group showed they were dealing with substance abuse.

"It certainly raised the profile to, 'Yes, we absolutely have people dealing with these issues.' So I was happy when Phillip came and had the connections to make it happen," said Clemetson. "Phillip comes from a different world than a lot of us come from, and he brought that here in a way."

This term, Rakowski successfully got NA meetings on campus. There are five to 10 regular attendees that meet from noon to 1 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays in NSH Room-105. The meetings are open to anyone and are a safe zone for complete confidence, with the exception of admission to harming others. All attendees have access to the advisor and counselor Charles Madriaga.

With the goal of being a mentor and working in the wellness field, Rakowski is proud to say that several of his former partners in crime, back in his gang days, are now attending LBCC.

"I was a real big mess up, a screw up, and a lot of people thought if I was going to school, they could too. I accepted who I am and changed what I was about."

His sobriety is so important to him that he carries a urine analysis kit in his backpack. The deal he has with his roommates is that they can give each other on-the-spot tests, and if they fail they move out.

"I have to stay around people who are clean and sober, and I regularly attend NA meetings. You have to be willing to put what you put into your recovery what you were willing to put into your addiction."

His purpose may have been blurred in his youth, but he has found the end to his story. It's a story of hope, strength, struggle, and pain. It is uniquely his story, yet a common theme shared by many.

"When we take a step back and look, everyone is recovering from something."

He defies the label some may give him as a 27-time felon. He is crushing the stereotypes of a man that many could have written off. He is a leader, putting his talents to good use, even if it took half a lifetime to realize the potential scope of his impact.