In her final year as an undergraduate at Louisiana State University (LSU), Kimberlin Butler knew she wanted to continue her studies but hadn’t decided where. The Maxwell School was on her short list for its top-ranked master of public administration program and the caliber of its alumni, who included then-LSU Chancellor Mark Emmert ’76 M.P.A./’83 Ph.D. (PA).

In the thick of her studies late one night, Butler sent an email to Emmert asking him about his experiences at Maxwell and sharing her aspirations to be a changemaker. One of 25 students chosen to be part of a prestigious leadership program, she had recently had dinner at his home.

She got a quick response and invitation to his office for a meeting.

“He said, ‘You’d be a perfect candidate for the Maxwell School,’” recalls Butler. “That was step one for me in determining I wanted to go to Maxwell. From the beginning, it felt like home.”

Twenty years after earning her Maxwell School M.P.A. as a Ronald McNair Fellow, Butler is returning “home” to deliver the keynote address to the program’s latest graduates. On June 29, she will tell the M.P.A. graduates about her educational and professional journey to become the first senior director of foundation engagement at Mathematica. And, she will urge graduates to consider their role in advancing democracy and making the world better for all through connection, leadership and service. 

The M.P.A. convocation ceremony begins at 10 a.m. in Hendricks Chapel and will also include remarks by graduates Isabela Kent ’22 B.A. (PSt) and Jessica Whitley, who earned a bachelor of fine arts from the Syracuse University College of Visual and Performing Arts in 2018.

Eric D. Campbell ’87 M.P.A. will receive the Maxwell Alumni Award and lead faculty and graduates in the recitation of the Athenian Oath, the Maxwell ethos inscribed on the wall in the first-floor foyer of Maxwell Hall.

Campbell is a senior practitioner in residence in the public administration program at the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University. He served as city manager of Harrisonburg, Virginia, overseeing a municipal operation of 800 employees and budget of approximately $300 million. Prior to Harrisonburg, he served as an assistant city manager in Dallas, Texas, and Charlotte, North Carolina, respectively.

The yearlong M.P.A. program runs from July to June and has continually been ranked No. 1 by peers surveyed for U.S. News and World Report. The first program of its kind in the nation, it blends theory and practice to prepare service-oriented leaders for careers in a wide-range of fields in the public and private sectors.

Butler says the program gave her the tools to build bridges “across communities” and challenged her to work outside of her comfort zone. While a student, she gained exposure to the innerworkings of government, politics and public administration in Washington, D.C., and while advising Jamesville-DeWitt School District Superintendent Alice Kendrick to make data-driven decisions. She also soaked up the lessons from professors such as the late William Duncombe, who invited social work students to engage with her social policy course and inspired what has become a mantra to Butler—“data has a heartbeat.”

“I take that to my work today,” says Butler. Mathematica harnesses data, analytics and technology to help its public and private sector clients address social challenges such as education and health disparities. “It’s all about caring for those we are privileged to engage in research. It’s about doing the research with them—not for them,” she adds. “They own the story because they are living the experience.”

For Butler, that has involved spending time in the communities she’s seeking to support through authentic listening, partnership and gaining up-close understanding of their challenges. “We can theorize all day, but until you understand at all levels, you’re really missing an opportunity for deeper impact,” she says.

Butler recently earned a doctorate in educational and organizational leadership at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education.

Previously, she served as an advisor on philanthropic alignment to former U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. She supported the launch of federal place-based collective impact initiatives for the Obama administration as part of the White House Community Solutions Team agenda, and she hosted a White House convening to address the issue of chronic school absenteeism.