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After working full-time at the White House as assistant to the deputy director of intergovernmental affairs from January through May, Marquis Scholar Benton Wilmoth ’05 of Marysville, Ohio, is gaining more internship experience in the nation’s capital this summer at the Export-Import Bank of the United States.
Highlights of his work at the bank so far include working with the Department of Commerce to develop a project that he and others will present to more than 1,000 state legislators at a conference in Seattle.
A double major in government & law and international affairs, Wilmoth is a recipient of Lafayette’s Neil D. Levin ’76 Public Service Fund, which honors the late executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, who perished in the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center.
He is among five Lafayette students gaining significant working experience in public service this summer through Lafayette internship endowments.
The Export-Import Bank is a federal agency that finances U.S. exports expected to lead to domestic job creation. Lending both strategic advice and financing tools for U.S. businesses of all sizes, the bank helps finance the sale of U.S. exports to emerging world markets through loans, guarantees, and insurance that the private sector is unable or unwilling to provide.
As an intern in the Office of Congressional Affairs, Wilmoth is assisting the professional staff in financial analysis, economics, business development, international finance, communications, accounting, and information technology.
“I am charged less with monitoring the mechanics of economic transactions than I am with keeping a sufficient flow of information on the bank’s activities to our partners on Capitol Hill and state and local governments,” he says. “However, in keeping that flow of information, it is nonetheless essential that I have a sufficient understanding of how and why the bank operates from an economic perspective. It’s quite an experience to watch as the federal government, foreign economies, and politics collide on behalf of U.S. businesses, small and large.”
The bank has given Wilmoth a “tremendous amount” of responsibility, leading him to feel more like a staff member than an intern at times. His current projects include outreach and educational initiatives to governors and state legislators across the nation.
“I’ve been given a great deal of personal independence on these projects, in part because of my similar work at the White House,” he says. “I am presently in the middle of conferences with the governors’ D.C. offices, where I meet with their directors and educate them on special projects being put forth by the bank to help businesses in their state. In addition, I am working with the Department of Commerce on a project that I, and others from the bank, will present in Seattle, Washington, to an annual gathering of 1,200 state legislators.”
In his previous internship he served in the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, one of several offices under the direction of Senior Political Advisor Karl Rove, which serves as the liaison between state and local governments and the federal government as led by the President. The office works closely with state and local elected officials and the organizations that collectively represent them, including the National Governors Association and the United States Conference of Mayors.
During his time at the White House, Wilmoth served as aide to Special Assistant to the President Jim Kelly. They coordinated the White House’s outreach to the nation’s state legislators, including presidential travel, White House visits, and policy presentations.
“Because state and local elected officials were essentially the office’s constituents, I was likewise charged with the task of seeing to their various requests, where I periodically led White House tours and secured Presidential acknowledgements on their behalf,” says Wilmoth.
One of his most significant assignments involved organizing two White House policy presentations, giving him the opportunity to work with state legislators as well as members of the President’s cabinet and their support staff.
“Such presentations were my personal responsibility under the close monitoring of senior White House staff, where I secured presenters from among the President’s cabinet members, working with their support team to coordinate speech topics,” Wilmoth explains.
“It gave me great pride to serve in the capacity as intern,” he says. “Though my time there is complete, I will continue to work with the White House on a limited part-time basis through the election. I have volunteered to do political advance work in coordinating the President’s travel while he visits the northeastern region of the country.”
Wilmoth has been deeply involved in politics since arriving in Easton, working on numerous local and state election campaigns. He holds an elected position on the Northampton County (Pa.) Republican Committee and has received the Northampton County Republican Committee Outstanding Volunteer Award and Lafayette’s Paul Tully Memorial Prize for State and Local Political Activism.
He corresponded with Eastern European government officials in EXCEL Scholars research with Katalin Fabian, assistant professor of government and law, on domestic violence legislation in Eastern Europe. Wilmoth also conducted EXCEL research with Fabian on evolving societal perceptions towards women’s equality in a variety of nations throughout Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America. He analyzed and explained numerical trends in internationally recognized scholarly data relating both to women’s societal empowerment and quality of life relative to men.
In Lafayette’s distinctive EXCEL Scholars program, students assist faculty with research while earning a stipend. The program has helped to make Lafayette a national leader in undergraduate research. Many of the more than 160 students who participate in EXCEL each year go on to publish papers in scholarly journals and/or present their research at conferences.
“Lafayette has prepared me well,” says Wilmoth. “I enjoy more substantial assignments than would typically be found in most internships thanks to the skills of organization, analysis, and communication that Lafayette has instilled in me. One such example would undoubtedly be the EXCEL Scholars program, where I was able to work directly with professors to hone my research and investigative skills.”
Interpreting data and drawing conclusions about the status of women’s rights was only part of the learning experience in EXCEL.
“EXCEL research more importantly introduced me to an analytical process that causes me to communicate more thoughtfully and critically – skills that will serve me well in any field or profession,” he says. “Moreover, I am most appreciative for the advice and support of a select few professors, administrators, and alumni who have become close friends and mentors and encouraged, if not facilitated, my rich political experiences both in Washington and in Easton — particularly the family of Neil D. Levin ’76, whose most thoughtful gift has made much of my time in Washington possible.”
While interning in Washington, Wilmoth also volunteers at the Washington National Cathedral and was a volunteer at the World War II Monument dedication ceremonies.
“I am convinced that no other college in the nation can provide their undergraduates with comparable access to professors for the research opportunities that I am experiencing at Lafayette,” he says. “Lafayette’s small size, in combination with outstanding professors and immense resources, make it the perfect atmosphere for one-on-one contact with faculty. When I speak with my friends from high school who chose larger schools — even some of the Ivies — they are amazed by the opportunities I’m afforded at Lafayette, experiences only available to their schools’ graduate students.”
Named to the Dean’s List each semester at Lafayette, Wilmoth is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa and Delta Phi Alpha (German) academic honor societies. This fall, he will join the McKelvy House Scholars program, which brings together Lafayette students with a wide range of majors and interests to reside in a historic off-campus house and share in intellectual and social activities.
He is a founder of Lafayette’s College Fed Challenge team, which made a presentation Nov. 17 at the Baltimore Branch of the Federal Reserve of Richmond. Fed economists and officers evaluated the performance of students from colleges in the region.
Last fall, Wilmoth received an Outstanding Attorney Award at the Brown & Roger Williams Second Annual Mock Trial Tournament. Lafayette squads earned fifth and eighth place at the 26-team event.
Before his White House internship, Wilmoth served as president of College Republicans and was a volunteer tutor for Shawnee Success Academy, an after-school mentoring program for seventh- and eighth-grade students. He has held the positions of vice chairman and treasurer of German Club, serves on the Experience Lafayette Committee, and is co-coordinator of the Lafayette College Voter Registration Drive.
Chosen from among Lafayette’s most promising applicants, Marquis Scholars such as Wilmoth receive special financial aid and distinctive educational experiences and benefits, including a three-week, Lafayette-funded study-abroad course. Marquis Scholars also participate in cultural activities in major cities and on campus, and mentoring programs with Lafayette faculty.