麻豆传媒高清

By Kyle Hobstetter on August 21, 2024

Matt Lenno has been at Towson University for more than 13 years in the Division of Student Affairs.

And for most of that, he commuted every day from his home in Delaware. He鈥檚 gone through four cars, driven thousands of miles and spent more than 12 hours a week traveling back and forth between campus and his home.

When asked why he kept making that long commute, Lenno鈥檚 answer was simple.

鈥淚t鈥檚 because of the types of students we have here at Towson University,鈥� he says. 鈥淲hen I wake up in the morning, I鈥檓 excited to go to work. I have students who come to me saying they want to raise $100,000 to help a charity or start an organization.

鈥淚t鈥檚 all about student success and helping students navigate through life. When you wake up to that every morning鈥�it鈥檚 fun. You don鈥檛 dread coming to work on Monday.鈥�

His solid connection with students goes beyond the few years they spend at TU.

鈥淲atching students take everything we have helped them with during their time at TU and apply it to their real life [is extremely rewarding],鈥� Lenno says. 鈥淎nd then watching them have kids or get that next great job or come back to our office and tell us how we made them a better person鈥�It鈥檚 wonderful to watch how successful they become. That鈥檚 what gets me going.鈥�

Lenno has had a long journey at Towson University. He came to TU in 2011 as the inaugural director of the Office of Fraternity & Sorority Life. During his time working with Greek life students, many of TU鈥檚 chapters had won national awards for their work on campus and in the community.

In 2017, Lenno was named the interim assistant vice president of student affairs. Then after several months and a national search, the interim tag was lifted.

Lenno鈥檚 team is composed of a variety of groups across campus, including:

• Student Activities
• Student Leadership
• New Student & Family Programs
• Events & Conference Services
• Dining Services

鈥淚 think I lead with authenticity,鈥� Lenno says. 鈥淚'm about well-being and I'm about making sure that my staff and students put themselves, their family and their health first. Their job comes second. And I try to lead by example. I鈥檓 never going to ask anybody to do something that I wouldn鈥檛 do.鈥�

One way he has led by example is focusing on his own health. During the early part of his career at TU, Lenno admitted he was overweight and unhealthy. Then at one point during lunch with a colleague, Lenno fainted.

After that, he took his health seriously. More specifically, he started going mountain biking. What started out as a way to get healthy turned into a passion, going from a few miles a day to 50- and 100-mile rides.

Through diet, meeting with a health coach and mountain biking, Lenno lost 65 pounds.

鈥淚 like to get tattoos that highlight transitions in my life,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 lost all this weight, so I got a tattoo on the back of my leg that has bike chains.鈥�

But something happened during a training session one day. Lenno found himself unconscious on the trail, with a woman tapping him while he lay on the ground.

He didn鈥檛 wreck but realized that he blacked out. So he picked up his bike, rode it home and couldn鈥檛 help getting emotional about the situation.

鈥淚 was sitting in the garage just sobbing,鈥� he says. 鈥淢y wife said to me, 鈥榊ou鈥檙e usually gone for two or three hours, but you were only gone for like 15 minutes.鈥�  For about six months after that they couldn't figure out what was going on with me.鈥�

A few months later, while doing some yard work with his son, he blacked out again. He then failed a stress test, and an angiogram showed that one of his heart valves (known as the Widow Maker) had been 100% blocked for almost six months.

This led to Lenno having open heart surgery to replace that valve.

As he recovered, his passion for cycling never died. Two weeks after open heart surgery, Lenno found himself riding again鈥攐n a stationary bike with heart monitors, an oxygen mask and more precautions to stay safe.

Then almost a year later, Lenno competed in a 50-mile race.

As he started to ride again, he looked back on what cycling meant to him. He also wanted to share that passion with others.

鈥淚 started taking some classes here and there, and I told my wife, 鈥業 think I want to be certified as a spin instructor,鈥欌�� Lenno remembers. 鈥淎nd my wife told me I was nuts. I have these 10-year bucket list items鈥攇et a motorcycle license, pay off my house, write a book and other things. And after everything I went through, becoming a spin instructor was one of them.鈥�

After getting certified, Lenno now teaches a spin class once a week at Burdick Hall. And it鈥檚 very popular among staff and students, with many of the classes filling well in advance.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a stress outlet, which is part of health and engagement,鈥� Lenno says. 鈥淚 get to combine the two best parts of my life. I鈥檓 getting healthy but having a lot of fun with the people I work with and engaging with our students.

鈥淢y goal is do the class 100% while talking and yelling through the whole thing. And I cannot be out of breath at the end, then I鈥檓 good.鈥�