To engineers, Benton Struchtemeyer is a politician.

 

To politicians, he’s an engineer. But Struchtemeyer has found a way to do both, thanks to the Innovation for Public Service Industry Knowledge Certificate. The public service certificate, available through Purdue University’s Office of Professional Practice (OPP) in collaboration with the NobleReach Foundation, can help students get from West Lafayette, Indiana, to Washington, D.C., state capitols and city halls, with technical engineering skills and experiences.

 

Its launch in August 2025 came during Struchtemeyer’s first semester in aeronautical and astronautical engineering (AAE). The certification combined his passion for civil service and Purdue Engineering from the start, even as a first-year student, when he learned from OPP public service Co-op and internship manager Sue Bayley that the certification was in the works.

 

Pursuing the fastest and newest innovation in space travel has been the sophomore’s dream since childhood, in tandem with his passion for politics, thanks to his engineering-educated father and English teacher mother.

 

“AAE represents, quite literally, the loudest and fastest things I want to make,” said Struchtemeyer, from Hartsburg, Missouri. “We make things that scream by us faster than the speed of sound. It’s hard not to go far and fast and be loud while you do it, which fits right with my personality and goals as an engineer.”

 

A crucial skill Struchtemeyer learned during his two senatorial internships in the summer of 2024 and 2025.  — and his first year of engineering — was the ability to see intersectional causes. His primary experiences have centered on policy development for aircraft maintenance technicians and tool-and-die manufacturers, where he contributed research and draft language to proposals aimed at strengthening those technical workforces. The roles he has played vary from taking phone calls and opinions to writing and proposing policy adjustments.

 

Engineering plays a vital role in these conversations. Projects, skills and priorities can steer large-scale change through public service programs and civic improvements, whether roads, bridges or skyscrapers.

 

Additionally, many of the skills needed in the political scene — like technical writing, teamwork and presentation — are just as essential in engineering. The overlap allows for required classes within Purdue Engineering to double as credits for the Innovation for Public Service certificate. The civil service internship experiences and communication classes also aid in discussing and evolving engineering ideas and the context in which they’re executed.

 

The combination may come as a surprise to most, but to Struchtemeyer, it was obvious. He met a professional in space law in the fall 2024, which cemented his love for government and engineering into a career path.

 

“They have always had something to do with each other,” Struchtemeyer said. “The height of human space travel began as a policy problem, because we had the cultural and political reasons to make progress no matter what.”

 

His ability to find these intersections is ideal for the public service certification, according to Bayley.

 

“His ability to think critically across disciplines reflects the very essence of what we hope to instill in our students: the importance of integrating technical expertise with a broader understanding of societal impact,” she said.“With the extensive experience he has already accumulated through public service internships and Boilers Go to D.C., Benton not only represents the program well but also inspires others to see how STEM students in public service can drive meaningful change in our local, state and federal government.”

 

Part of the public service certificate is either a related internship or a weeklong trip to D.C. on a Maymester. The trip, orchestrated through the Brian Lamb School of Communication, takes students involved in the Center for C-SPAN Scholarship and Engagement (CCSE) to the nation’s capital and pairs them with Purdue alums in public sector careers. As a part of both CCSE and Purdue Engineering, Struchtemeyer was curious about how he would be partnered with a mentor.

 

He was paired with Olawatobi (“Tobi”) Busari (PhD AAE ’21), who conducts and teaches rocketry research at Morgan State University, and the mentorship has continued.

 

According to Busari, the connection is mutually beneficial.

 

“Benton is a sophomore ... but he might as well be a senior with the clarity of his drive and vision,” Busari said. “In one of our conversations, (Benton) both encouraged me on my perceived strengths, provided me with networking contacts from his collection of contacts on (Capitol Hill) and spoke about a bill he intended to help develop in his short internship.”

 

Working in the policy hub of the nation was far less flashy than it seems on the news, according to Struchtemeyer. His internship showed him a reasonable, respectful side to law and politics — in part, thanks to his engineering education.

 

“Gaining niche technical expertise is difficult and legislators really respect it and want it on their teams, especially from Purdue,” he said. “It's good to see that the people who are supposed to help us are set on finding the right people to help us.”

 

With policy experience, a network that spans the political scene in D.C. and a robust engineering education, Struchtemeyer feels unstoppable.

 

“As slow as the government sometimes is, there’s always something loud and fast related to policy,” he said. “In AAE, I know that there's always an opportunity out there. Plus, I’ll have a Purdue Engineering degree. That’s a level of excellence all its own.”