Alumni Board Scholar Profile: Q&A with 2014 scholar Jared Russell

Members of the Boettcher Scholar Alumni Board are interviewing their fellow Boettcher Scholars to help the community get to know one another better. The following Q&A was compiled by Boettcher Scholar Angelique Diaz.

Scholar Year: 2014
Hometown: Pueblo
College(s), Degree(s), and Graduation Year(s):
Colorado College, majoring in political science and philosophy; minoring in music

What are you currently interested in pursuing after graduating?

Upon graduating from Colorado College, I plan on attending law school. Once I receive my J.D., I hope to work in a position that allows me to make a positive impact within my community. I would love to be a district attorney, and after some time, I wish to be appointed as a judge. My most ambitious of goals is to be appointed as a judge for the 10^th Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals. The 10^th Circuit includes the state of Colorado, and I would love to serve my state in such a capacity.

Tell us about what activities, groups, and/or organizations you have joined in college and why you joined them.

Due to my interest in law, I compete on CC’s Mock Trial team. Additionally, I co-founded a chapter of the Roosevelt Institute at CC, a policy-writing group that seeks to engage young people in politics while making a positive difference. I am also a member of the Honor Council at CC, as I believe that academic integrity plays a key role on every college campus. I wanted to be more active in student life, so I joined Student Government (CCSGA) as the Parliamentarian. In addition, I also serve as a Writing Center tutor and a member of the President’s Council.

Tell us about an important mentor you have had.

The first professor that I had at CC, and my current academic advisor, is a political scientist named Tom Cronin. The transition into college is always subject to a steep learning curve, and going from an underfunded public high school to a private university, I was quite overwhelmed. Tom, in addition to being a great professor, legitimately cares about his students. He remembers every detail that you tell him about your life. He has pushed me to be a better student and a better person, and I can attribute many of my collegiate successes to his guidance.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?

I interned at the District Attorney’s Office in Pueblo over the summer between my freshman and sophomore year of college. In that time, I spent several weeks assisting two deputy D.A.’s who were assigned to a murder case. As I helped them prepare for the case, I remember speaking with one of these individuals at length one night about why he became a D.A. He passed me a photo of the victim’s mother during the conversation, and said that no amount of money was worth the feeling he received for upholding justice in the community in which he was raised.

If you could have dinner with one person or a few people from history, whom would you choose and why?

The legal nerd in me will continue to shine through in this question, as I would love to have dinner with Chief Justice Earl Warren who sat on the Supreme Court from 1953 to 1969. He served as the Chief Justice during cases such as Brown v. Board of Education, Miranda v. Arizona (the foundation of Miranda Rights), Gideon v. Wainwright (the right to an attorney if you cannot afford one), and many other landmark cases in the history of the United States. I cannot even imagine where I would want to begin the conversation with this man.