The road to a degree in higher ed is often compared to a journey; a path marked with challenges, climbs, plateaus, and a rush of adrenaline that comes with reaching the summit. Capella University student Samantha Mangum understands that experience perfectly. She has climbed Mount Kilimanjaro and Mount Kosciuszko, the tallest mountains in Africa and Australia respectively, and hopes to conquer the highest peaks on the remaining continents shortly.<\/p>\n
In early 2017, Mangum, who is in the Master\u2019s in Mental Health Counseling<\/a> program at Capella, will attempt an ascent of Mount Aconcagua, just shy of 23,000 feet, in Argentina. It\u2019s her second try at tackling the mountain (her first effort was ended by bad weather just steps from the summit), and she has only grown more determined to succeed as time has passed. This time, her trek will raise money to help integrate people with mental illness back into their communities.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In 2002, it seemed unlikely that Mangum would ever be able be able to walk across a room\u2014let alone climb a mountain. The Texas native was injured in a car accident and had to undergo surgery to repair a shattered hip and pelvis. During recovery, she also struggled with PTSD, depression, and survivor\u2019s guilt (a friend riding in the same vehicle had died in the crash). \u201cI realized that some people live in dark places,\u201d Mangum says. \u201cThey have to struggle with mental challenges every single day.\u201d<\/p>\n Rehabilitation eventually gave Mangum the chance to walk again, and in 2008, she traveled to Africa to climb Mount Kilimanjaro and spent a week working in an orphanage in an effort to give something back to the country she was visiting. Over time, an idea grew: Was there a way she could use her climbs to fund charitable causes she supported?<\/p>\n Mangum eventually moved to Colorado and currently works as a recovery care coordinator with Boulder Mental Health Partners. Her South American climb in January will support some of its clients. \u201cThe effort connects my vocational goals and my avocation,\u201d Mangum says of her project. \u201cAll the funds I raise go directly to wellness classes for clients \u2014yoga, hiking, support groups\u2014and educating the community about mental health.\u201d She has set a goal of raising more than $50,000 for her Rise Above Stigma<\/a> campaign\u2014and, she notes, every dollar raised will go to support the effort to end the stigma of mental illness.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n When she\u2019s not working or training for her trek in the foothills around Boulder, Mangum is pursuing her master\u2019s degree, accessing the Capella courseroom from wherever she happens to be at the moment (though, she notes, it\u2019s not always possible to get a Wi-Fi connection at base-camp level!). \u201cI\u2019m a sponge. I love learning. And from the beginning, I was impressed with my professors. I knew I was exactly where I needed to be.\u201d<\/p>\n Mangum eventually hopes to climb all Seven Summits<\/a>, as the tallest peaks on each continent are collectively known. But even if she doesn\u2019t reach the top of every one, she knows that\u2014as with her education\u2014she\u2019ll learn something from the journey. Every step forward is, in some way, a miracle\u2014a second chance after the car accident she suffered. \u201cIt\u2019s a little strange,\u201d Magnum says. \u201cI went through something that was truly terrible, but it ended up being one of the best things that could happen to me because it transformed my life.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery day I have the opportunity to make the world a little better.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Learn more about Capella\u2019s <\/em>MS in Mental Health Counseling<\/em><\/a> program.<\/em><\/p>\nIt Started with a Crash<\/h4>\n
Higher Aspirations, Higher Education<\/h4>\n