Matthew Ragsdale
Degree: BS Planning, Public Policy, & Management, Minors in Environmental and Legal Studies
Graduated: Spring 2020
I’m From: Las Vegas, NV
Why I Came to the UO and How I Chose My Major
I chose UO because I love the greenery in this state. Coming from Vegas, I wanted to find a place where I can be connected to nature and can easily access it. I also decided to move West because it tends to be a bit more queer friendly. As a transgender individual, I value welcoming locations whether I’m living there or just visiting. The University of Oregon’s queer-friendly campus and resources additionally provided me with a safe space where I am able to be myself.
I love the experience I can get as a student within the College of Design. The classes that are avaliable to me have real life applicability (especially Real World: Eugene!). These classes have been instrumental in allowing me to feel prepared to graduate and enter the working world.
I have always been interested in environment and local government. I see local government as the best vehicle to making tangible change in communities. Grassroots environmental campaigns inspire me to work within the government framework to better advocate through policy and planning tools to restructure our cities and communities to be more sustainable and maintain their connection to nature, especially in Oregon.
Unique Qualities I Bring to My Studies
I believe my identity is crucial to my work. It may seem mundane for me to only be a transgender person in the public sector, but I would be one more person in the public sector than there was yesterday. I believe that it is crucial to have a more reflective public sector. I want other trans folks to see they can make a difference in their cities at the local level as well. Our existence is important and necessary.
My Influential Professors
Bethany Steiner, who teaches a class called “Real World Eugene,” really made a huge impact on me. She’s so passionate, dedicated and truly cares about her students. She worked with me and my team through a rough term where we were stuggling to understand the content and feeling disgruntled, and she was there with us until the end when our amazing projects were implemented. She showed such enthusiasm that in the end, it was hard to recall which of us had a rough time. She’s an amazing professor, and any student is lucky to know her.
My Greatest Learning Experience at UO
I’ve learned that I am a capable young person in the professional world and my perspective is necessary. The younger generation that I am a part of cares more than ever about who runs their lives and how it is run. I inspired to take part in this change to ensure necessary perspectives, such as mine, a young transgender man in the professional world, is heard.
After Graduation
In an ideal world, I want to graduate and maintain my current position at LTD for another year. I have moved around a lot in my life and would like to maintain some stability for a while. Concurrently, I’d like to begin an Online Master’s Program in Planning. My degree from the College of Design will continue to make me a unique individual in the eyes of employers, thanks to all the unique classes and experiences I have from courses I have taken. I am excited to finally dedicate my life to my passion of city planning and public affairs.
Your Gift
This scholarship gives me the confidence that I am a capable individual and am able to achieve my dreams of becoming a young professional in government. As someone who never meant to stumble into this major, this award makes me feel this is where I am truly meant to be. I appreciate this scholarship in alleviating the load of paying out of state tuitiong. But more thn anything, this scholarship helps me continue to focus my energy on working and studying hard as my time at UO is up soon.
As a recipient of this scholarship, I wanted to thank you and the School of PPPM for awarding me this scholarship. I was very excited to learn that I have been selected as a winner of the scholarship. I am appreciative of your support of my education. I am currently in the senior year of my bachelor’ss degree at the University of Oregon. I intend to finish my studies in 2020. After finishing my undergraduate studies, I plan to be work in the public sector while completing an online master’s program in city planning. Currently, I am interning with the Environmental Protection Agency to aid in water quality document standardization and have just recently began my role as the 2020 Business Commute Challenge Assistant with LTD in January. Thanks to you, I am one step closer to reaching my education and career goals.
Thank you again for your investment in students like myself and our education. By awarding me the Diane M. McKeel Scholarship in Public Affairs, you are allowing me to focus on the most important aspect of school, learning. Continuing my studies wouldn’t be possible without the generous support from scholarship sponsors like yourself. Thank you for making this possible.