It didn’t take Chris Droske ’11 long after touring the UMN Morris campus to decide he wanted to be a student here. His visit was shortly after the first wind turbine was installed, and he found the campus’s emerging focus on sustainability intriguing. “I knew UMN Morris was where I wanted to go.”
“UMN Morris’s small class size and first-name basis allowed staff and professors to really get to know you as a person, your interests, and your educational and career goals.” Chris says from there, they made him aware of many opportunities that matched his interests and would provide the experience he needed to be set up for a great job upon graduation. “I was blessed with the opportunity to participate in undergraduate research, perform wetland monitoring as a summer internship, and be a two-year part-time member of the Minnesota GreenCorps working on energy conservation during my time in Morris.”
Currently, Chris is serving as the energy manager for the City of Minneapolis and is managing the implementation of solar photovoltaic arrays across city-owned buildings to help Minneapolis reach its goal of 10% renewable energy generated on-site.
Chris feels like the opportunities he had outside of the classroom were also a big part of his career success. “What I liked most about UMN Morris was the campus community and ability to participate in so many different extracurricular activities.” He noted that some highlights were being a radio show DJ, participating in intramural sports, like badminton and floor hockey, and playing on the men’s tennis team. “I’ve made some friendships in Morris that will last a lifetime, and I’ll always cherish the memories we shared.”
Chris has two siblings who also attended UMN Morris, and says they also received a high quality education. “My brother majored in history and then became a lawyer, my sister majored in French and is now a French professor, and I majored in chemistry and am working as an energy manager. A degree from UMN Morris will set you up well no matter what your future holds.”