RIVER FOREST, ILL. — Growing up, Corey Dooley (Dallas, TX) had dreams and aspirations of being a big time college football player and eventually, a National Football League (NFL) star. But for Dooley, a lot of that came to an end when he was shot four times in his Dallas garage, forever changing his life. Now a graduate of Concordia University Chicago (CUC), Dooley is looking to run for 29th Ward Alderman and become the youngest member on the Chicago City Council.
"My dream was to be an All-American, go to the University of Texas, and eventually get drafted into the NFL." Dooley states, "[I was] shot four times and my mother twice, all while my brother witnessed from the backseat. Doctors gave me less than a 1% chance to live." After Dooley healed from his injuries, he graduated from South Grand Prairie High School and came to CUC to play on the football team as a wide receiver.
In his time as a Cougar, Dooley excelled and helped the CUC football team to many victories. During his career, he amounted to 1209 all-purpose yards, 83 receptions, and four touchdowns. His largest single game high came on October 6th, 2018 against Aurora, where he completed 123 reception yards.
"The good part is, I was taught to work collectively in a team setting, it kept me in excellent physical shape, I built long-term relationships, and I learned to balance my life (school, work, social life, etc.)." Dooley explains how being a student athlete affected his professional career, "The not so good part is after football I found it hard to navigate a life without sports. When I played football, my schedule was always set for me. I was always told where to go, what to eat, when to workout and how to study. I didn't have to find my purpose because the coach told me my purpose. I didn't have to find my identity because my identity was being a student-athlete. After sports I had to find my own purpose and my own identity."
After graduating with a degree in Political Science from CUC, Dooley is now working on his second master's degree from Arizona State University. As he looks forward to his election for 29th Ward Alderman, he wants to be someone younger people can look to as a leader. He has worked on creating jobs in the community, creating youth programs, and working to make the communities safer. He attributes a lot of his success to the resources he gained by being a student-athlete at CUC, "It started off with a relationship at UIC John Marshall Law School, connected me with the Austin African American Business Networking Association(AAABNA), then got connected with the College Mentoring Experience, next was the Chicago Police Department, City of Chicago, and the State of Illinois."
When asked about his advice to young student athletes looking to use their leadership skills, Dooley had this to say: "Create a diverse network by building and keeping relationships with the people around you and the people you meet. In life it is not about what you know, but who you know, show me your network and I will show you your net-worth, you are an average of the 5 people you hang around the most." This advice is what brought Dooley from student athlete to political candidate.
Dooley has now submitted petitions to the Chicago Board of Elections to qualify for the ballot in February. His campaign is focused on improving the lives of the 29th Ward residents and creating a more people-powered community. For updates on Corey Dooley's election, check out his Instagram @CommunityCorey. Click here for more information on his election campaign and what he is doing for the 29th Ward.
