By Ana Rico (COM`24)

A native of Granger, Indiana, outside South Bend, Matthew Pruitt was drawn to BU for its fast-paced lifestyle, thriving arts community, as well as the diversity and global interconnectedness of the big city. But he initially struggled with the transition — from navigating public transportation to understanding the resources available at the University.

Matthew found support through the First-Year Student Outreach Project (FYSOP), a week-long program that welcomes first-year students to Boston University and encourages them to be more active citizens within the Greater Boston area. The program “opened up a lot of doors,” for him, he said, helping find a sense of belonging and “connect to his queer identity.” It also inspired him to become more involved with Boston’s communities and politics — and to become a leader on campus and within the city of Boston.

“Boston University empowered me to embrace my uniqueness and find my voice,” says Matthew. “Here, I was pushed to see myself as a leader. Getting involved all over the place helped me find my way.”

Matthew’s passion for politics was further fueled by the 2021 Boston mayoral elections. “I was very energized with Michelle Wu getting elected for City Hall,” says Matthew, “and was also excited by the progressive momentum at the local level”

Matthew’s interest in a more local approach to politics was solidified by Professor Cathie Jo Martin’s American Public Policy class, which he took during his junior year. This, combined with his aspirations of becoming a community leader, ultimately led him to switch his major from International Relations to Political Science, a field of study that focused on domestic affairs, which aligned more with his goals.

As a junior, Matthew was involved with the International Affairs Association, where he served as a Boston University Model UN outreach director. He secured sponsorships for BU’s conference for highschool delegates, making a special effort to forge partnerships with small businesses in the Greater Boston area. Matthew also helped expand the BosMUN grant to cover the travel and lodging expenses for five delegates. With this, he wanted to “help alleviate the barriers for students to participate in MUN,” creating a more diverse and inclusive environment.

Matthew’s leadership journey has also been influenced by various internships he completed through college, including organizations such as the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights, the National Consumer Law Center, and the Boston Municipal Research Bureau. He found his time at the Research Bureau to be an amazing hands-on experience. “I wanted to connect more with public policy issues, especially at the local level,” says Matthew, after he had the opportunity to “see policy analysis happening at City Hall in real time.”

In his most recent internship at the Brookings Institution in Washington D.C, Matthew focused on researching hyper-local economic development, and policy work promoting equity and inclusion. “It was interesting to combat false perceptions of what’s really happening around the country,” says Matthew, who helped compile data on crime in downtown areas across the US. His findings were used to write two articles published in the Philadelphia Inquirer and Vox, which aimed to challenge common perceptions on America’s public safety.

For Matthew, coming to Boston also meant exploring his passion for the arts, one of the things that drew him to this “big city” in the first place. With a lot of professional theater coming to town, and to BU, and student rush tickets for only thirty dollars, Matthew has been able to enjoy local theater and drag performances, while meeting others who also share his love of the arts.

Throughout his journey, Matthew helped build community on campus  as a leader in the College of Arts & Sciences, including as a mentor in CASFY101, a one-credit class that serves as a semester-long introduction to BU and college life and helps students create community, and, later a Dean’s host, where he “connected with students from all over who wanted to learn more about BU.” And as a senior, he had the ultimate leadership experience — the opportunity to dress as Rhett for the 150th birthday party of the College of Arts & Sciences.

He also continuously returned to FYSOP, where he ultimately took on roles as a staff leader and coordinator. His goal was to show other people what he discovered as a first-year. “I loved challenging myself to grow as a leader each time I participated in FYSOP,” he said. “It was great to come back to that community year-to-year.”