The first time I helped a group of beginner swimmers take their first confident strokes, I realized how powerful guidance and support can be. That moment—seeing nervous children transform into confident swimmers—taught me that leadership is not just about direction, but about creating trust, safety, and opportunity. This is the same principle that draws me to a career in civil service: I want to be a reliable, steady presence for my community, helping people feel supported during critical moments in their lives.
I aspire to become a pediatric nurse practitioner, a civil service role focused on public health, safety, and well-being. My goal is to provide care for children and families, ensuring they have access to medical guidance and emotional support during some of their most vulnerable moments. In this role, I will combine clinical expertise with advocacy, education, and compassionate leadership—serving as a bridge between families and the healthcare system.
Swimming and diving taught me lessons that directly shape how I will serve others. As captain of the Becker High School Swim & Dive team, I organized our first-ever captain-led preseason practices, coordinating with certified supervisors, lifeguards, parents, and teammates. I wrote workouts, communicated schedules, and encouraged participation, which resulted in a record number of swimmers joining the team. Through this experience, I learned that creating safe, structured environments while empowering others requires initiative, clear communication, and accountability—skills that are essential in any civil service role.
In addition to my athletic leadership, I previously volunteered as a youth swim and softball coach, mentoring younger athletes and helping them build confidence and skills. I also assisted at school health screenings and contributed to charitable initiatives, always striving to make a meaningful impact on others’ lives. Each of these experiences reinforced the importance of dedication, reliability, and empathy—the core values I will bring to my future career in civil service.
I am financially responsible for my own education, balancing work, full-time PSEO coursework, and volunteer commitments. This responsibility has strengthened my discipline, time management, and resilience, which I know will carry over into my professional life. Civil service requires individuals who are committed, adaptable, and capable of prioritizing the needs of others—and these are qualities I have cultivated through years of athletics, academics, work, and community involvement.
Through my career as a pediatric nurse practitioner, I hope to ensure that children and families in my community receive compassionate, informed care. I want to be a consistent, trustworthy presence for them, just as mentors and coaches have been for me. By combining my leadership, experience, and commitment to helping others, I hope to make a lasting impact on the well-being and safety of my community, reflecting the dedication and values of civil service exemplified by Janet and Jim Boettcher.
The unique path I've taken makes me the most compelling applicant for the Jim and Jane Boettcher scholarship. I have built my own path independently to better prepare myself for my future. I enrolled in PSEO my 11th and 12th grade years. I knew I wanted to graduate high school with a two-year degree in business through PSEO. I wasn't sure how I would do it or if it was even possible when I first enrolled. However, I am proud to say that this May, I will officially graduate from St. Cloud Technical and Community College with an AAS in Business Management, nearly a month before I graduate from Becker High School, earning a college GPA of 3.6. I am the only student from Becker to have ever achieved this. I did this while remaining a student athlete and community volunteer, I was a boy scout in troop 13-volunteering at the St. Cloud Granite City Days doing trash cleanup and helping to build the gaga ball pit at the Becker City Park for my friend and troopmate John Hooper’s eagle scout project.
During this, I have also held two part-time jobs. For 3 years, I have worked for the City of Becker as a Lifeguard at the BCC. I've received numerous compliments from patrons for my work. Over the past three years I've taken several leaps in pursuit of passion; the one that has made the biggest difference in my life is my other job working at Granite City Aquaria. For context, I was previously determined to open my own aquarium store; in fact, it was the primary reason I pursued a degree in business at SCTCC during high school. I wanted a degree with no debt or wasted time. Simultaneously, I discovered that a new aquarium store, Granite City Aquaria, was opening in St. Cloud. I became the first employee there to gain unmatched experience for opening my own store and the team I have helped build since still makes an impact on every customer we serve.
I have found so much meaning working at Granite City Aquaria. Every positive development I’ve made over the last two years can be tied back to the store. But after nearly completing my business degree, I realized starting my own store was not the path I wanted to take. The time I spent working there taught me that I can make a positive difference in people’s lives with my effort. But I want more than to impact a niche community, I want to impact society as a whole. Due to the flexibility being a PSEO student offered, I started exploring independently in the Twin Cities when others my age were in school. An interest in cities developed into an obsession. I wanted to know everything about cities, especially the Twin Cities. This led me to discover urban planning.
I am driven to pursue urban planning because everyone benefits from it. It will build on my interests in cities and human geography, enabling me to create better physical spaces for all to live in. That is why I want to pivot from business to urban planning. I am attending the University of Minnesota for a master's in urban and regional planning-focused on public transportation. I'm seeking this scholarship to help offset the major cost of living that follows being a U of M student. I this career will directly tackle the high cost of living. My mission is to help create a more efficient and beautiful environment that is affordable for all to live in.
My name is Landon Gales, I hope I can make an impact on my community by being a sheriff's deputy at my local sheriff’s office. I want to do this to help others when they need it most. I am hoping to become a drone operator as part of the swat team. I also hope I can help as much as I can to show the public that law enforcement is not all about arresting people but helping people educate themselves about laws and keeping people safe. I chose this career path because I have an uncle who’s in law enforcement and I have always looked up to him, I also used to pretend I was a police officer when I was a little kid, I used to have a cozy cope police car that’s I used to pretend to patrol the sidewalks with, I have always gone out of my way to help people my entire life. I also have always enjoyed helping others even when there is no benefit for me. When I was younger I also used to think I saw a superhero every time I saw a person in uniform. I have worked at the Shepherd of Grace assisted living in Becker MN and I have loved every second of it. Another reason I chose this career path is because one thing you get to do is help veterans that are struggling and I want to help them as much as I can because they have put more on the line than I could as well as a lot of others. Another thing is I am excited to be able to help people who are unable to help themselves as well as keep people safe. I hope to also help other people understand that they do not need to be scared of law enforcement and that we are here for them for anything. I am hoping to continue the generations of my family in law enforcement my great-grandfather and uncle have both been in law enforcement. I am looking forward to becoming close to the other officers that I work with as well as the community. And becoming one of the officers that I used to see as a kid and helping them want to also become a police officer. I am very motivated to become a police officer for a lot of reasons and there is just a few
