Jonathan Sheperd-Smith ’18: Leadership in Classroom and Community
March 12, 2025
- Author
- Caroline Roy ’20
Members of the Davidson College football team with Jonathan Sheperd-Smith ’18 (#12)
Before Bonner Scholar Jonathan Sheperd-Smith ’18 chose Davidson, his mom fell in love with the personal attention and care their family received from coaches and staff.
A William Holt Terry Scholar, football player and first-generation college student, Sheperd-Smith will always remember the way Davidson’s staff walked him through the application process and helped him make informed decisions.
“I could tell they really cared about my future,” he said. “I came in expecting to focus on football. I was thinking about college as a vehicle to a future career, but I quickly started to see it as a more holistic experience.”
Encouraged by professors, coaches and friends, he became involved in many facets of campus life — he was captain of the football team, president of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. and a leader in the Students Together Reaching for Individual Development and Education (STRIDE) program, to name a few.
Through STRIDE, Sheperd-Smith met Professor of Anthropology Fuji Lozada, who encouraged him to take anthropology 101 the following semester.
“Davidson was a big adjustment for me, socially,” Sheperd-Smith said. “The Anthropology Department helped me feel at home and gave words to a lot of the feelings I had. The faculty really worked to engage me, and they were interested in me as a person rather than just what I had to offer.”
Terry Scholars’ Reunion 2025
As his on-campus involvement grew, he began thinking about how to extend Davidson’s resources to the greater Charlotte community. He created and launched the DuBoisian World Scholars Society, a partnership between Davidson students and West Charlotte High School. He and a group of volunteers worked to bridge learning gaps — providing tutoring, career advice and help with college applications and financial aid forms.
After graduating, Sheperd-Smith joined Teach for America and returned to teach at West Charlotte.
“I was passionate about educational equity and wanted to continue my work with DuBoisian,” he said. “I already had a strong connection to the community at West Charlotte, but teaching really changed the way I define success. It was so meaningful and transformative getting to be a positive influence, even for just one student.”
With the help of fellow Davidson alums Ryan Leak ’17 and Mikayla Binter ’20, Sheperd-Smith took his students on a field trip to Wells Fargo in Charlotte.
Giving Back to Davidson
As an anthropology student, Sheperd-Smith’s independent study focused on the history of Black laborers on Davidson’s campus. When Byron McCrae, the vice president for student life at the time, asked if the newly-formed Commission on Race and Slavery could pay him for this research, he agreed. He was later invited to sit on the commission as a young alum representative, a natural fit that allowed him to take an active role in shaping the future of the college.
Since graduating, Sheperd-Smith has also continued to serve as a staff advisor to the DuBoisian Society and volunteered on his 5th reunion committee. He’s also found time for a career change, and with help from his growing Davidson and Charlotte networks, Sheperd-Smith decided to enter the world of finance after his stint with Teach for America. Now, he works with healthcare clients at Wells Fargo, a role that allows him to use the problem solving and teamwork skills he learned as a scholar-athlete.
Now, more than ever, he looks for ways to give his time and energy back to the communities that shaped him, and at the top of that list is Davidson. Last month, he helped plan and lead the Terry Family Reunion on campus — a chance for William Holt Terry Scholar alums to celebrate, network and honor the legacy of the program.
“Davidson’s culture is so strong, and alums carry that with them wherever they go,” Sheperd-Smith said. “When I’m talking to Davidson people, I assume a baseline of thoughtfulness and morality. I’ve learned there are so many ways to influence the college and our communities after graduating.”
