The Boettcher Foundation Scholarship is a highly-competitive scholarship that provides a full ride to any four-year nonprofit college in Colorado. The scholarship is awarded to 50 Colorado seniors every year, who receive one of two models of the scholarship. The Boettcher Foundation website describes the goal of the scholarship as encouraging “our most dynamic thinkers, doers, and difference makers to stay in Colorado so they can positively impact their communities.” The scholarship is merit-based, with Boettcher defining merit as “superior scholastic ability/intellectual curiosity, leadership, service, character, and more.” This year, two Salida High School seniors received the Boettcher scholarship: Finn Blackburn and Amelie Keyser.
Applicants must fill out detailed submissions including their transcripts, community service experience, involvement in extracurriculars, and a few personal essays by November 1. Those selected to move forward from there must submit two letters of recommendation. The 100 students who are chosen from that pool of applicants then complete an interview, which decides the final 50 recipients. Blackburn said the application process was “simple, but a lot.”
Blackburn described himself as a driven person, who will work towards his goals until he achieves them no matter the time or energy required. Blackburn said that his love for talking to new people was one trait that helped him when he was applying; this allowed him to be “comfortable despite the stressful circumstances.”
In preparing for the application process, he simply focused on living life to the fullest. “The faithful volunteering, sports accolades, and commitment to school over the course of years was what got me this scholarship. All other interview . . . preparation was solely to ensure I could highlight the most important pieces of my story succinctly,” Blackburn explained.
His advice to students who might be looking into this scholarship was similar to the way he prepared; he encouraged students to diversify their resumes early, stating that the work begins in a student’s junior year if they want to be competitive in these scholarships. “Get volunteer hours, work a cool job, take CMC courses,” Blackburn said. He also noted that having a variety of activities will help in the future, even if you don’t get a scholarship like the Boettcher.
Keyser described themself as someone who has intense care for everything they do. “I have a wide range of passions, from sports to science, to the arts, to activism, and I care deeply about everything I do,” Keyser said. “That intensity has allowed me to discover so much beauty in the world around me as well as play an active role in cultivating it,” they added.
To prepare for applying to this scholarship, Keyser spent a few weeks on the written application, carefully forming their profile. As the scholarship applications progressed, Keyser did two mock interviews, which provided some practical experience. Keyser also spent a lot of time gathering their stories and saying them out loud. “For someone who wouldn’t speak a word for days if left alone, it was a really strange experience to be constantly talking to myself—on runs, washing dishes, in the shower,” they explained.
Keyser’s favorite part of the application process was looking back and reflecting on their high school experience. In looking back on their high school career, they were able to fully appreciate their personal growth. “I feel so incredibly lucky to have been shaped by some of the very best members of our local and state-wide community,” Keyser said.
Keyser similarly recommended that students pursuing this scholarship get involved in their community and are passionate about what they are doing.
For both Blackburn and Keyser, the most difficult part of the application process was the interview. Applicants are interviewed by a panel of nine people for 15 minutes. Blackburn explained that conveying everything he wanted to was very difficult in the short time period. Keyser said, “I struggled with everything from eye contact to fidgeting to answering concisely to stammering to completely freaking out and running away. These were skills I had to practice over and over and over, and even in the real interview, I didn’t execute perfectly.”
Both worked long and hard, building up their experience and contributions to the community over the course of their high school careers, to earn this scholarship. With the Boettcher scholarship, Blackburn will be attending Colorado State University for a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. He also plans on continuing to earn his master’s in the same field. After hiking the Pacific Crest Trail this year, Keyser will also be attending Colorado State University for a degree in environmental chemistry. Both Blackburn and Keyser are sure to continue aiding their communities and are on route to a bright future.
