Striving for perfection in many parts of life
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PLACENTIA, CALIF.
What started off as a friendly rivalry between brothers resulted in 16-year-old Justin Gottula achieving perfect scores on both the ACT and SAT college entrance exams.
Justin, a member of the Placentia 2nd Ward, Placentia California Stake, likes to set high goals for himself. When it came time to take the ACT, he decided he wanted to outdo his older brother Brett's performance.
However, Brett, now a senior at BYU majoring in mechanical engineering, achieved an almost perfect score — a 35 — on the ACT. Thus, nothing less than a perfect 36 score would allow Justin to reach his goal.
On his first attempt, Justin scored a 33. Not content, he retook the test until he achieved a 36. Within a few weeks of that accomplishment, he also scored a perfect 2400 on his SAT exam, something he said he was not intentionally trying to do.
Justin, who will be a senior at El Dorado High School in Placentia this fall, said, "I know I have a lot of college choices" because of the test results. But, he said, his goal is to attend BYU and major in electrical engineering. He believes BYU's positive environment, plus flexibility when it comes to serving a mission, will allow him to achieve both his academic and spiritual objectives.
In high school this fall, he will be carrying a heavy academic load consisting mostly of advanced placement classes. In addition, he plays trumpet in his school's marching band, is a member of several campus organizations, attends seminary, is active in his priests quorum and is an Eagle Scout.
When asked how he gets everything done, he said, "I try to do the most I can possibly do. I don't limit myself. Whatever I commit to, then I worry about getting it done."
Justin is the son of Ron and Melanie Gottula. Brother Gottula is a mechanical engineer, which helped spark Justin's interest in engineering.
The Gottulas have five children. In addition to Brett, Justin has another older brother, Matt, and two younger sisters, Melissa and Kimberly.
Justin's achievements are even more remarkable when his family circumstances over the past couple of years are taken into account. His father is battling leukemia, requiring his parents to take extended trips to Houston for treatment on two occasions. During those periods, Justin has helped shoulder the load at home, preparing meals, providing transportation for his younger sisters and even taking full charge of the household for a couple of weeks when his older brothers were away at school.
