New scholarship helps alumni share their values

Jeff (BCE 1979) and Ann Johnson Stewart (MS 1994) are celebrating their careers as civil engineers by endowing a scholarship that sustains their values while encouraging students to see the opportunities in civil engineering and to see the joy in giving back. 

They have endowed the Jeff and Ann Johnson Stewart/PE Services Scholarship, a $50,000 scholarship to support civil engineering students who share their passion for engineering and for service. PE Services is the company that Ann founded in 1995. Jeff came to work with her there in 2010, and they recently sold the business, which opened the door to greater giving. Their commitment to the University, to the future of engineering, and to students who are involved in service fits extremely well with what they envision for the next generations of students who would be involved in service to humanity through engineering.

“For us, it just was not hard for us to write those checks at all.
We enjoy being generous with our careers that have been so generous to us.” 

The couple actually endowed three scholarships, one at the University of Minnesota where they both attended, one at Platteville where Ann earned her Bachelor's degree, and a third one at the high school where Ann graduated and where her mother and father taught (and her father was the football coach).

Talking with these two, it is easy to see that they view engineering as something more than just a really great job. Ann and Jeff value their roles as civil engineers, providing reliable infrastructure that promotes community development and independence. They speak with passion and emphasis as they describe their shared passion for engineering.

“Infrastructure changes lives!"
"Have you ever been in a sewer? Now that is interesting!”
"We both love the smell of new asphalt."

Jeff delights in his involvement in large, visible projects. He enjoys driving past structures he has worked on, whether that is the many smaller airports around the state or the highway intersections near his house. He enjoys knowing he was involved in creating them and that they are useful to people every day. 

Jeff: “I want my legacy to be that I taught people practical skills. I learned practical skills from my father, who was a mechanic in college and worked on cars, and my grandfather, who was a carpenter and a logger. I hope that, at some point in their lives, the students will say, I’m really glad that I learned how to do that, even though that wasn’t in my major. I was able to expand my knowledge on some everyday things.” 

Ann feels great joy in her career as an engineer. She embraces the variety of activities from designing, mathematics, and fundamentals, to applications. Ann sees herself as a teacher who offers much more than CADD and surveying skills. She also trains groups in the trades and workforce. She sees the great potential for engineering skills and business development skills to help people move into challenging and interesting careers. 

“My passion is to make sure that everybody in the world gets to enjoy the same benefits of clean water, sanitation, and an opportunity to live a good life. And so, I want my legacy to be that I helped other people elevate their living conditions or their work or their profession. I want to be remembered as a teacher, as somebody who used her skills as an engineer to make life better for lots and lots of people.”

“I want to be remembered as a teacher, and as somebody who used her skills as an engineer to make life better for lots and lots of people.”

The Jeff and Ann Johnson Stewart/PE Services Scholarship is available to students who demonstrate engagement in student and community life through volunteer or service work, through student organizations such as Engineers Without Borders. Both Ann and Jeff have served as mentors for the University of Minnesota Engineers Without Borders (EWB) student chapter. They have traveled to Guatemala, Bolivia, and Africa. They see EWB as extremely valuable for the opportunities it provides students, to bring clean water to areas in need, to develop engineering and leadership skills, and to work collaboratively to create a better world. So, their new scholarship supports civil engineering students who share these passions and take part in such opportunities.

"Students are extremely smart. So, when I work with them, a lot of times I just stand back.  I just love to see the students’ hearts for service. The work is just joyful!”

Ann: “Engineers Without Borders helps students understand the importance of implementation. They get a great education at the University, and EWB is a place for them to test that training and their knowledge. I think the implementation and the problem solving that happens on EWB projects that’s the really important part.”

Jeff: “Students learn to adapt to unplanned situations, and, you know, that’s life. You plan something and then when you go to implement it, things change; and then you have to react to that. That’s what we try to teach the students.”

Ann: “EWB is such a good program. What really brings the fun for me is the students and their energy and their naiveté as to what they can get done. Sometimes we have to say, okay, you know, one phase at a time.”

Ann and Jeff chose to invest their philanthropic dollars here because they both have a strong desire to give back to the University of Minnesota. "And we saw a need. There are not as many civil engineering students involved in EWB as we would like to see. CEGE students have certain skills [like the CADD skills and surveying skills that Ann teaches] that would really benefit the chapter. We put our scholarship money toward this endeavor to entice more civil students into EWB.”

"We love engineering, and we love that we can do it. We love that we just get more opportunities. Engineering is really important, and it's really fun!"

The first Jeff and Ann Johnson Stewart/PE Services Scholarship will be awarded in the 2024-2025 academic year.

If you are interested in contributing to an existing scholarship or in establishing a new fund, contact: 

Shannon Wolkerstorfer
External Relations
swolkers@umn.edu
612-625-6035