'Southern 2021

What I learned on the Hilltop continues to
shape my personal and professional relationships,
my understanding of my community and the
world, and how I am called to make a difference
where I am planted.
Matthew Penfield ’92
I
remember when Dr.
Neal Berte came to
my hometown for a
recruiting event for
the College. I was in junior high,
and my parents had invited him
to dinner at our house afterwards,
and unbeknownst to me, he
took note of my collection of
college pennants. The following
week, I got a personal note from
him that said he couldn’t help
but notice the absence of a BSC
pennant on my wall and sent one
along for good measure. It got my
attention.
Several years later, as a high school senior interested in politics
and government, I participated in ’Southern’s Model Senate program
with 99 other students from around the Southeast. I was impressed
that the College’s political science department had created such
an interesting event that brought government to life for my fellow
senators and me. (I was Missouri Senator John Danforth, by the way.)
When it came time to choose a college, Birmingham-Southern was
one of several other well-regarded southern liberal arts schools on
my list. I was truly up in the air until late in the spring of my senior
year. In the final analysis, it was the people of BSC that tipped the
scales for me to the Hilltop. My brother was a junior history major
with an amazing group of friends, President Berte made a personal
impression on me, and for someone interested in politics, the
first-class faculty members in the political science department both
excited and intimidated me.
In retrospect, it was one of the best decisions I ever made.
Once on campus, I found my crowd and quickly made what have
become lifelong friends. On the academic front, I was able to focus
on my passion for politics while also exploring other areas of interest
like the theatre. The variety of a liberal arts curriculum suited me
and, as I’ve learned through the years, prepared me well for rich and
diverse experiences in life.
Ed LaMonte, through his Civil Rights & Justice class, taught me
things about my home state and its role in our country’s continuing
struggle with civil rights that opened my eyes to the past all around
me. Bob Slagter taught me research methods and statistical analysis
that I still use to this day in my career in politics and public affairs.
And the great Natalie Davis taught me not only how to think
critically, but how to turn theory into practice in the political realm—
all the while asking all the right questions to challenge me along the
way. When I railed about the cynical nature of many in the political
arena, she countered with optimism as the other side of the same
coin, and about the power to positively impact people’s lives through
the public policy process.
To be sure, it is easy to get cynical in today’s broken and divided
public discourse. But the academic, moral, and personal lessons
instilled in me at BSC equipped me well for my time in the political
arena. I consider myself lucky to fight for things that I care about like
access to better mental health care for all, preserving our planet for
future generations, advancing equality for LGBTQ people, and much
more. Like most professions, there are good days and bad days, and
it can be unnervingly unpredictable. But with gratitude for my time
on the Hilltop, I’m always ready for the coin toss.
• • •
Bill Smith ’96 serves as the co-founder of Inseparable, a coalition
organization advocating for better mental health policy through improving
access to health care, increasing research, and investing in prevention
and early intervention. Smith is also a founding partner of Civitas Public
Affairs Group, a values-based firm working on some of the most pressing
societal challenges of our day. He has more than two decades of experience
34 / ’southern