A first-generation American citizen, Scott Andrews (BSB, 2007) has learned the hard way how to manage his time, prioritize his goals and find his leadership style. But life, as they say, is a good teacher. So are the right mentors. 安德鲁斯目前在贝克斯菲尔德担任助理城市经理, California, 一位曾在安德鲁斯进入市政府工作的道路上提供指导的导师看到，他以前的学员现在也在做指导:

“每一份成功的事业都需要三种忠诚的关系:一位年长的人成为你的导师, 一些忠实的同伴与你同行，一个更年轻的人(继承)你的遗产,” observes Randall Reid, Southeast Regional director of the International City/County Management Association.

“Scott has been the younger professional for me, 我看到他现在成功地为当地政府的其他专业人士扮演了这些角色.”

安德鲁斯目前的职位是助理城市经理，他习惯于与人打交道. 他坦率的举止和爽朗的微笑强调了仆人式领导最重要的部分:用爱接近每个人.

Accordingly, 安德鲁斯在工作的每一部分都带着富有同情心的视角, 无论是通过预算还是为贝克斯菲尔德打造品牌. 通过这种方式，安德鲁斯觉得他可以在他喜欢的角色中增强自己的影响力.

安德鲁斯说:“地方政府不仅仅是一份职业，而是我的使命。. “So many people get fired up over Biden, Trump, Obama, etc. However, the biggest impact can be felt at the local level. 我们在我的社区通过了一项近8亿美元的预算，而公民的投入却很少. It’s disappointing, 但这也是我做我所做的事情的原因:帮助人们，在他们所在的地方，在我的小世界里产生影响.”

According to Andrews, that impact can be profound. City managers, he says, do “what most people think a mayor does.” That is to say, they oversee day-to-day operations of a city, including police and fire services, public works, utilities providers and airport operations.

City management is a natural fit for him, Andrews says. But it is a role he had to work hard to attain.

安德鲁斯在佛罗里达州长大，他经常和祖母维奥莱特在一起. (His parents immigrated to the U.S. from Canada and had been young when they had him.) After high school, Andrews headed to a state university, but the freedom and the parties led him astray. He failed out of the university and, later, a community college. Instead, he prioritized earning money as a personal trainer.

“When I got to be 23, 我在大学和学院的学分加起来连副学士学位都没有。,” Andrews recalls. “I started seeing my friends graduate, and that’s when it kind of hit home that, hey, I’d better get this together or that same $30,000 or $40,000 [I’m earning] will probably be my ceiling.”

安德鲁斯住在自己的车里，住在朋友家，生活很艰难. 这个低谷给了他重返学校的动力. “当我不再责怪其他事情时，我把功劳都揽在了自己身上, that’s when I finally got my act together,” he says.

He enrolled at University of Phoenix, where he completed a bachelor’s degree in business in 2007.

“My ‘four-year degree’ took me almost 11 years,” Andrews says, “但后来我(在不同的学校)用了7年的时间完成了MPA和博士学位.”

在这样的教育背景下，安德鲁斯踏入了当地政府的大门. 他笑称，自己第一次加入HOA董事会是在18岁(而不是18岁), for the record, as an actual homeowner). He’d also originally planned to major in political science.

These interests culminated when, as a small business owner and personal trainer, 他成为了佛罗里达州坦普尔露台市的健身协调员，作为公园的一部分 & Recreation Department.

Andrews got married, moved to Georgia and then to California where, as assistant city manager, he currently helps oversee California’s ninth largest city.

在此过程中，他还学会了一些管理时间的技巧，直到今天他还在利用这些技巧. Time blocking 他说，设定期望是完成所有工作的关键. 这样的策略使他不仅能维持自己的全职事业，还能指导他人, manage his consulting firm and, in 2023, launch a nonprofit organization as well.

The last of these, The Violet Movement, was founded in memory of Andrews’ daughter. Born in January 2023, 她以他祖母的名字命名，但在出生两天后就去世了. The Violet Movement offers eight different scholarships.

女儿的离世震撼了安德鲁斯的世界，促使他写了一本关于悲伤管理的书, which he hopes to complete this spring.

Andrews isn’t done yet. 他在之前的城市管理岗位上完成了一定的目标, and he has plans for Bakersfield. While California’s bigger cities struggle with crime, homelessness and population decline安德鲁斯说，贝克斯菲尔德经历了人口增长和凶杀率下降.

令人高兴的是，安德鲁斯和他的妻子将在今年3月迎来他们的第二个孩子.

自始至终，安德鲁斯对他所接触的一切都带着一种开放和真诚. 这些品质在一开始就给里德留下了深刻的印象，并使他相信安德鲁斯会大有作为.

“我很快就对斯科特留下了深刻的印象，因为他非常积极、友好，性格外向,” Reid elaborates. “Scott further impressed me as … emotionally intelligent, dedicated to public service and, by nature, a remarkably humble and earnest man.”

正是这种谦逊帮助安德鲁斯在25岁左右改变了他的生活. It’s what led him into a career in public service. 现在正是这种精神指引着他努力在贝克斯菲尔德和, perhaps down the road, in the world at large as a consultant, teacher and author.

All you need, after all, is love.