Before and during his time at Rowan, Anthony Raisley has shown what it means to be a passionate and dedicated student athlete.

Cross country and track are in his blood and have been as far back as the sixth grade. With his younger brother competing in the same two sports at The College of New Jersey, you could say it runs in the family.

A 21-year-old senior from Middletown, NJ, Raisley is majoring in history with a concentration in United States history. He is also minoring in international studies, new media and entrepreneurship. Just as well, he has two certificates in Italian and independent media.

With this being Raisley’s final year at Rowan, he hopes to achieve some major accomplishments both on and off the track.

“In my final year, I hope to have a spring track season to end my athletic career on a better note than how last spring ended,” Raisley said. “This semester I am taking my senior seminar for history, so I will be publishing my research paper later this year.”

This year, Raisley received both the Honorable Robert A. Harris and James Sr. Shornock Scholarships. Both scholarships are awarded for academic excellence and being an active member within the Rowan community.

“I am still extremely grateful that I was the recipient of the Robert A. Harris and James Sr. Shornock Scholarships,” Raisley said. “This is one of the greatest honors of my life, and I am so appreciative of the benefactors who were so generous to provide these for students. I owe them a huge debt of gratitude, and I hope one day I will be able to pay this generosity forward.”

The scholarships are definitely not where Raisley’s achievements end, another one being that he is a Rowan Scholar.

“Being on the Dean’s List every semester has been rewarding, as well as being a Rowan Scholar athlete every semester since freshman year,” Raisley said. “This year I was inducted to Chi Sigma honor society for student athletes.”

Along with being a student athlete, Raisley is an ambassador for the Office of Admissions and helps students decide whether to attend Rowan.

“Being able to help someone make the decision to attend Rowan is priceless,” Raisley said. “The fact I was able to help them make one of the biggest decisions of their life is rewarding to know.”

Raisley also works for Rowan’s social media team and provides content for those not on campus. “I enjoy making content for the Rowan community,” Raisley said, “so they can still see our campus even if they are unable to be there in person.”

With colleges around the globe being rocked by COVID-19, the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) had to cancel all conference cross country and track spring and fall meets; a devastating blow for Raisley and his teammates.

“Being a senior, this would have been my final college cross country season,” Raisley said. “So, unfortunately, that won’t be happening. However, the priority of the health and protection of others continues to be a top priority which I agree with.”

While there is a chance that fall sports could be back in the spring, it is uncertain if cross country runners would be able to participate during the spring track and field season.

Raisley credits coaches Dustin Dimit and Eric DuBois for helping him become a better cross country runner.

“The past few years I have been able to get better and better. The program they had prepared individually for us definitely goes a long way in the long run,” Raisley said.

To balance his studies with cross country and track, Raisley has adapted to planning, time management and adopting a support system. This has helped him continue to do well in classes and keep up his running over the last few years.

“I have been lucky to have a strong support system from my coaches, teammates, professors and friends, and everyone has been incredibly supportive whenever I needed help,” he said.

For future students, Raisley wants to leave them with some advice: “Keep up your academics. Ask for help if you need it. Reaching out for help does not make you look weak. You will look even stronger that you are reaching out so you can do the best you can.”

“I am so proud to be a student at Rowan,” Raisley said. “This school has given me so much that I will continue to be thankful for even after I graduate, and I hope to give back any way that I can.”

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