Leadership lived: Transfer student takes full advantage of all UIS has to offer

 
Garrad Straube transferred to the University of Illinois Springfield to be part of the men’s cross country and track and field teams. The criminology and criminal justice major has taken full advantage of all that UIS has to offer and is currently completing an internship at the Illinois State Police Academy.

On campus, Straube works as a student ambassador for UIS Admissions where he gives prospective students and parents campus tours. He is also the treasurer for the Tau Sigma National Honor Society chapter at UIS, a member of Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

Straube started his career as a runner while attending Quincy High School. He ran at a junior college before transferring to UIS where he is now a leader on the team. He enjoys mentoring younger students on the team and helping them grow.

“Being a team captain for the cross country team has just been phenomenal,” he said. “It’s hard to say you’re a team captain when you’re with a bunch of guys who invest as much as you are, but being a team captain, being a leader, on the cross country team, being able to bring them along has been just awesome.”

As an intern at the Illinois State Police Academy, Straube completes administrative tasks and has also been able to ride along with troopers on the ground and in the air. He’s also interned with the SWAT team and other departments within the state police.

Following graduation from UIS, Straube would like to become a police officer and hopes to work for the Illinois State Police.

“I think in law enforcement you can’t be afraid to do the right thing,” he said. “That’s kind of my emphasis that I want to do the right thing. I want to be a pillar in the community and I want to be a person that people can say ‘yeah, he’s a good cop or a good person’. That’s my goal.”

As a UIS student ambassador, Straube says it’s often his job to “sell” UIS to prospective students and parents. He says that’s an easy job.

“I came here my junior year and I’ve been able to find my own home within UIS. I love it here,” he said. “It’s so easy to sell a school where they invest in you as much as you invest in them.”