Peter Vogl was working a Secret Service detail protecting the vice president about five years ago when he noticed an agent with a familiar name. “You’re from Milwaukee, right? You went to Townsend Street School, right?” he asked the second agent. 

Right. Andrew McArtor was a Milwaukee Public Schools alumnus. Entirely by chance, the two men — who were classmates in 5th and 6th grade at Townsend in the 1980s — learned they both had made their careers with the Secret Service.  

Coincidence struck again in 2024, when each was assigned to the Secret Service’s Chicago Field Office as assistant special agents in charge, in offices next to each other.  

On Friday, May 8, Townsend Principal Ray Perine welcomed Mr. Vogl and Mr. McArtor to their old school so they could tell students about their path — meeting presidents and other significant figures and traveling to more than 20 countries along the way — and to offer advice about pursuing a career in the Secret Service. That career could be in law enforcement, like theirs, or in other areas, including computer engineering, human resources, civil engineering, dispatch, and communications.  

“If you like computers, stick with it. There’s a job out there that would be a great fit,” said Mr. McArtor, an alumnus of Washington High School of Information Technology who recommended the school. 

Mr. Vogl was interested in law enforcement from the get-go; his father and uncle had been Milwaukee police detectives. Mr. McArtor thought he would become a doctor but realized after graduating from college that his interest was in detective work.  

Standing on the stage in Townsend’s auditorium, the men explained to the school’s students in the audience that the Secret Service was formed during the Lincoln administration to tackle the rampant counterfeiting of money. The agency’s role grew to include protecting national leaders at home and abroad, but the Secret Service still investigates financial crimes in the U.S., around the world, and digitally. 

The agents showed photos from their careers, such as then Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen landing in China during the Biden administration and the Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo at the White House after the Milwaukee Bucks’ 2021 championship season. (“I was lucky to be working that day,” said Mr. Vogl, who was shown the championship ring.) Mr. McArtor’s photos included President Obama at the University of Michigan commencement ceremony in 2010; Dr. Ben Carson, for whom an MPS school is named, visiting his childhood home in Michigan; and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz during his run for vice president in 2024. 

In March, the men were involved in protecting former Presidents Obama, Bush, and Clinton when they attended the funeral of civil rights leader the Rev. Jesse Jackson in Chicago in March. 

Anyone who wants to join the Secret Service has to meet certain physical fitness standards, judged by the number of push-ups in a minute, sit-ups in a minute, maximum chin-ups (no time limit, but 11 would be considered excellent for a 20- to 29-year-old male, four for a female 20 to 29), and a timed 1.5-mile run. 

“Stay in shape,” Mr. McArtor advised. “Keep your mind sharp and your body strong.” 

A 3.0 grade point average or higher throughout high school and college also is required. 

Other advice the agents offered would apply to other careers, as well:  

• Be involved in school or community activities, or both. 
• Volunteer or take internships to gain career experience 
• Start planning early by researching the job and its requirements. 
• Follow rules and laws, and respect authority. 

The agents offered advice about what not to do, too: 

• Don’t take part in illegal or immoral activities. 
• Don’t bully others. 
• Don’t post anything on social media that would be embarrassing in the future. 
• Don’t give in to peer pressure. 
• Don’t do drugs. 
• Don’t break the law or associate with people who do. 

Secret Service applicants also must take a lengthy polygraph, or lie-detector, test.  

Numerous students lined up to ask questions after the agents’ presentation, such as: 

• “Do you ever work as a team?” (All the time.) 
• “Do Secret Service agents ever use disguises?” (Some do, but only sometimes.) 
• “Do you get to spend time with family?” (It’s encouraged, so agents can refresh and recharge.)  
• “Why did you choose the Secret Service?” (For the dual role of investigating and protecting, and to be near historic moments such as peace talks.) 
• “What’s the best part of your job?” (Meeting people like you and traveling.) 

After answering students’ questions, Mr. Vogl and Mr. McArtor met with 8th-graders in their classroom and then, on the playground, showed students specially built vehicles that the Secret Service uses, including a reinforced limousine for dignitaries. 

Townsend Assistant Principal Dr. Reshunda Stephens told students at the end of the agents’ presentation, “We know you have what it takes to do the right things.”