NBA legend shares passion for aiding Sudan
Rochester connection with pollster John Zogby brings to campus
mgrecolo@ur.rochester.edu
Before his lecture at the Interfaith Chapel, Manute Bol visited children at the Mt. Hope Family Center.
John Zogby, a noted political pollster, has been a frequent guest at the University. Giving public lectures on the pulse of the American people, speaking to political science classes on polling techniques, and inviting Rochester undergraduates to apply for summer internships with his company, Zogby has become a familiar face on the River Campus. This past Election Day, Zogby returned to Rochester, but when he took the stage at the Interfaith Chapel, instead of sharing his predictions on who would win at the polls, he spoke about a person who is making changes around the world, NBA legend and humanitarian.
“He is a genuine hero on the world stage,” is how Zogby describes Bol. “This is someone who is doing something special, something huge for thousands of people every day.”
While Bol is famed for his record-setting shot-blocking skills and notorious three-point shot, Zogby wasn’t praising Bol’s athletic prowess, but instead, his passion for and dedication to a reconciliation project in his hometown of Sudan.
Organized by Curt Smith, senior lecturer in the Department of English, the presentation garnered interest from students, faculty, staff, and community members. Bol addressed the crowd, discussing his partnership with the group Sudan Sunrise to build 41 schools in Manute’s war-torn home village of Turalei, in southern Sudan. Children now attend class outdoors, sitting on the ground underneath trees, using sticks to practice their penmanship in the dirt. When the six to eight month rainy season comes, class is not held.
“I didn’t know about education until I came to America,” says Bol, who did not have any formal education until arriving in America at the age of 17. “Now I see it’s important to succeed, and I want to bring education to my people.”
The idea for Bol and Zogby’s visit to Rochester formed while Smith and Zogby worked to place University undergraduates in Zogby’s summer internship program. Four Rochester students were chosen to spend eight weeks in Utica, working at Zogby International, analyzing data gathered from Internet polls, blogging about trends, and creating written reports of their research.
“John Zogby is first in his field, a good friend of the University’s, and an inspiration to students,” explains Smith. “The English department is pleased with this relationship that lets students work with and under him. All of us are equally proud to support Manute building schools for children—truly, a cause larger than ourselves.”
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