“On top of training up to three hours a day, my major in algorithmic mathematics is very demanding and leaves little time to hold a job,” McGregor said. “I’m grateful for Brooks and Marion Reid’s support and hope to pay it forward someday, especially in math or athletics.”

McGregor's appreciation of the Reids comes from being the recipient of both the Reid Athletic Scholarship and the K. Brooks and Marion Reid Student Achievement Award in Discrete Mathematics. These scholarships are just two of the many ways that the Reids have contributed to Cal State San Marcos over the years.

Founding faculty members Brooks and Marion Reid have been champions of student success since CSUSM’s earliest days. Brooks, a mathematics professor emeritus, and Marion, the university’s founding dean of Kellogg Library and now dean emerita, have contributed to initiatives across campus, from academics and research to athletics. Brooks serves on the College of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (CSTEM) Advisory Council, staying connected to students like McGregor.

"It was exciting to be part of CSUSM from the very beginning,” the Reids said. “The library and mathematics have always been close to our hearts, and we’re proud of how the university has flourished over the years. We had fulfilling careers here, and giving back is a way to honor that legacy and help future generations thrive.”

In addition to scholarships and mathematics awards, the couple supports the annual Reid Lecture Series, which invites the campus and local community to experience the beauty of mathematics through continued support for programs like the Mathematical Association of America Institutional Membership, the Putnam Mathematics Competition and the San Marcos Informal Mathematics Colloquium.

Thanks to the generosity of donors like Brooks and Marion Reid, CSUSM students have the resources to thrive both academically and personally. Their gifts also contribute to the university’s $200 million “Blueprint for the Future” campaign.

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Eric Breier, Interim Assistant Director of Editorial and External Affairs

ebreier@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7314

Sure, Brant prefers a good pair of headphones because it sounds better, but it’s not unusual for him to take phone calls or listen to music and have it play directly in his head. 

“The sound is basically going straight into my brain,” Brant said. “I think about it, and it trips me out. I get a mini existential crisis. It’s like, ‘How does this work?’ ” 

The technology may be complex, but it’s something that occurs through Brant’s cochlear implants, which were surgically embedded about eight years ago to help him hear. He’s used to telling the story. It’s something he often does when he meets a new group of people. It’s one of the first things he did when he moved into North Commons to begin his freshman year at Cal State San Marcos last August. And it’s something his teammates on the Cougars track and field team know. 

Brant was born with what he describes as mild to profound hearing loss. In his case, it was difficult to hear high frequency sounds. Some sounds, like “sh,” he couldn’t pick up at all. 

But Brant learned at a young age to decipher clues in his communications with others, and his lip-reading skills are excellent. He was so adept at it that, despite some speech issues, no one realized the extent of his hearing loss until he had a routine hearing test when he was 5. The results helped explain the speech challenges and the frustration he sometimes showed when he couldn’t convey what he wanted or people couldn’t understand him. 

“When you're younger, elementary school kids can be borderline evil,” Brant said. “I would get made fun of for the way I would speak or how I would say certain things, because I definitely have a unique voice.” 

Those difficulties led Brant to find one of his passions. Reading was among his escapes from the taunts of classmates (it remains a passion and is one of the reasons why he chose to major in literature and writing studies at CSUSM). 

Brant wore hearing aids for about five years, but when he was 10, his family explored cochlear implant surgery. He underwent two separate procedures, one for each ear, in which an electronic device was implanted in his head. The cochlear implant bypasses the damaged areas of the ear and delivers sound to the auditory nerve. Brant then wears external transmitters that are magnetized to attach to the side of his head. The external devices are covered by Brant’s hair, making it virtually imperceptible until he removes one to show somebody. 

The cochlear implants led to improved hearing and speech, but came with a trade-off – he’s now completely deaf if he’s not wearing the external unit. 

“It was worth it,” Brant said. “I have much clearer audio hearing everything.” 

Post-surgeries, Brant needed several weeks of recovery before “activation day,” the moment when his audiologist enabled him to hear through the cochlear implants. 

“It doesn't sound completely normal right away,” Brant said. “I just remember everyone sounding like Mickey Mouse for probably that first day. But it was still really cool to have that set up. I remember just smiling a whole bunch.” 

While the hearing aids Brant wore in his early elementary school days amplified the hearing that he had at the time, the cochlear implants were a vast improvement. 

And with improved hearing and speech came added self-assurance. The difficulties Brant endured in elementary and middle school gave way to increased confidence when it came to making friends and socializing in high school. That included competing in sports. 

In an era of sports specialization, Brant was a three-sport standout at San Diego High School on the baseball, basketball, and track and field teams. 

“As I got to high school, I started talking to more people,” Brant said. “I was still very nervous, but I started to gain a little more confidence. And then I was like, ‘Oh, I can make friends. I can do this.’ ” 

When the pandemic hit, Brant found himself focusing more on track and field. One of the reasons he chose CSUSM was for the opportunity to compete on the track and field team in the high jump, long jump and triple jump. And, already, he is making an impact. 

“The thing that stands out most about Ripley is his attitude and consistency,” said Torrey Olson, CSUSM’s head track and field coach. “He is always attentive, focused and positive in an era where these qualities are tough to come by.” 

Media Contact

Eric Breier, Public Affairs Specialist

ebreier@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7314

“I didn’t think I was going to make it, but I did,” said Jackson, a Cal State San Marcos track and field coach. “When I got into the stadium, I walked around the corner toward the ring and we made eye contact. He gave me a nod.”

The reassuring bop of Ndoto Strong’s noggin was all Jackson needed.

“I never want to let my coach or my team down,” said Strong, a CSUSM junior.

What came next on Strong’s final throw didn’t surprise Jackson at the recent Aztec Invitational, which was spread over two San Diego college campuses.

“There is never a doubt he is going to do what he needs to do,” Jackson said, “because he puts in the work.”

The 6-foot-5, 284-pound Strong flexed his considerable muscles and heaved the shot put 16.75 meters to set a CSUSM standard. It also gave Strong his third NCAA provisional qualifying mark of the season as he continues to rewrite the Cougars’ record book for throws.

Strong already owns the school’s top discus mark at 47.57 meters.

“He’s also a beast in the weight room,” Jackson said. “If we kept a record book in there, he would have destroyed it.”

One glance at the menacing Strong brings with it two reactions: he’s big enough to block out the sun and built in a manner that causes college football coaches to salivate.

“I played football in high school but I tore up my ACL,” Strong said of a knee ligament. “So I didn’t want to play anymore.”

Instead he turned to track and field after growing up in rural Washington. It was on a farm where his family raised llamas that Strong learned the meaning of hard work and hard knocks.

While Strong was a standout in sports he struggled in the classroom. A learning disorder meant he had to read book passages “three or four times,” he said, before comprehending the subject.

“It’s hard, not easy,” said Strong, whose disarming smile is as welcoming as it is bright.

With his academic challenges, classmates often looked at Strong askew. And when they saw his special-needs sister, the blowback couldn’t be ignored.

What they didn’t know was a cherished lesson the wise Strong learned early.

“If you have a family member that has a disability, that can actually make you a better person,” Strong said. “It can make you more compassionate toward people. It can make you relate to people and their feelings.”

Strong, who like his sister was adopted, could hear and sense the ridicule behind his back and it never left him. Now he’s involved with San Diego Sibshop, a support group for siblings of those with disabilities.

“I didn’t have anyone to talk to and just kept it bottled up,” Strong said. “This group is a great idea to help these kids. I don't want them to lash out at people and cause more problems for the family. I can be their teacher.”

Strong, a psychology major, also tells of wrestling with academics, needing to assert twice the effort to produce similar results to other students. Instead of rolling around in pity, Strong rolled up his sleeves.

“That is what is most impressive about him,” Jackson said. “He has to put in so much extra time to maintain his athletic eligibility.

“He works with a mentor and has a definite regimen he follows when he does his homework and studies. There is a lot of work he does behind the scenes so he is able to be in athletics.”

Strong’s relationship with Jackson has a foundation. After Strong moved to California he enrolled at San Diego Mesa College. Eager to continue in sports, minus football, he went out for track and field where he met Jackson.

When Strong heaved the shot put for Jackson, it was clear he had potential. When putting air under a discus, it was clear Strong had no clue.

Enter Jackson’s plan for action: Strong competes in both throwing events, although he had thrown a Frisbee disc more than a discus.

“I taught him the discus from scratch, which at the college level is unheard of,” Jackson said. “It took a long time and he was coming off a pretty severe knee injury. It was difficult, to say the least. But he put in the work and it could end up being the better of his two events. He is really close to a big throw.”

Everyone is close to Strong. He’s a motivator for teammates. He serves as an inspiration to classmates. He contributes to the community by leading youngsters facing challenges similar to his.

“No one should be judged just because of the way they look or act,” Strong said. “I always tell them that I will be there for you no matter what.”

He’s a rock, and that doesn’t go unnoticed. Jackson left San Diego Mesa after Strong received his two-year diploma, but not before presenting Strong as a role model.

“He’s the first one here and the last one to leave, but more than anything else he cares about his teammates,” Jackson said. “He’s a special kid in so many aspects of his life in that he’s overcome a lot to get where he’s at. But you never hear him complain because he is just a positive guy.”

Jackson was certain he had seen the last of Strong after their parting at San Diego Mesa. CSUSM head coach Steve Scott asked Jackson to join the Cougars’ staff and Strong was bound for Western State College in Colorado.

Then word came that Strong was shy a class to transfer. In an academic mix-up not of his own doing, Strong’s admission to Western State was rescinded.

Jackson got wind of that and pounced in the name of CSUSM.

“When I heard he was available I didn’t hesitate contacting him because he is definitely one of my favorite athletes that I had ever coached,” Jackson said. “When he left San Diego Mesa I gave a speech about him because he lives and dies for his teammates.”

Strong shows his strength in many ways. His love and caring of those around him equals what he displays by tossing shot puts, discuses or hoisting weights others can’t budge.

“For me, it’s all about the team and doing my job,” Strong said.

In and out of the throwing ring, it’s a job well done.

Media Contact

Eric Breier, Public Affairs Specialist

ebreier@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7314