Tuesday, December 31, 2024
Law student learns to appreciate education at CVTC
Grant Magnuson, 21, of River Falls, credits his start at Chippewa Valley Technical College as a high school student for his success as a law student at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota.
Grant Magnuson is in law school now, but it wasn’t long ago when he was an eighth-grade student at River Falls Middle School contemplating jumping into the world of college credits.
When he discovered the high school Business Management Academy at Chippewa Valley Technical College, his mom was skeptical. She wanted to make sure his transition from middle school to high school was smooth.
But Magnuson had his mind made up, and he says the experience of taking CVTC classes throughout his four years of high school and then graduating with an associate degree in Business Management set him up for success.
“This was a wonderful opportunity to get (an associate degree) knocked out in high school,” Magnuson said. “It made me really excited about education. It gave me a level of confidence, like, I can do this. I can finish college, and I have this ability to apply myself.”
Because Magnuson doesn’t love school. He knows that seems like an oxymoron – a law student who doesn’t like school. But liking school isn’t a requirement. Getting an education is the goal, and Magnuson had his eye on the litigator prize.
“I always knew I wanted to be an attorney,” he said. “I don’t know if it was just the way social media portrays attorneys wearing the nice suits or having a big role in court where they stand up and yell ‘objection,’ but that was always an interest of mine.”
Getting his associate degree in high school set Magnuson up to attend UW-Stout after he graduated from high school. His CVTC credits transferred, so he was already two years ahead of others who were just starting their college journey.
He majored in business management with a minor in project management, and he credits CVTC for getting him there.
“CVTC provided me a really great foundation to build into a four-year program and be able to launch out and be successful to do it,” he said.
He graduated with his bachelor's degree from UW-Stout when he was just 20. He took the LSAT – Law School Admission Test right away and entered his first year of law school at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota, still at the age of 20.
“That was definitely interesting navigating my first semester of law school at such a young age,” he said. “I’m very proud of the fact that I was able to come in and say, ‘Hey, I’m not good at school. What can I do to come in and be successful and take advantage of this education?’
“I think my beginning, my CVTC education at such a young age, was necessary for me to build the confidence to be able to excel in a four-year university environment. And I really needed those instructors who were committed to hands-on education and small class sizes. That really set me up for success.”
