Brooks Stemple ’22 showed up at Guilford College excited about majoring in Political Science. He left with degrees in Economics and Accounting. What happened in between?

The divisive, heated rhetoric of politics in America capped by the 2020 Presidential election.

“Everyday it was something new and not in a good way, you know?” said Brooks, an Associate on the Real Estate Investment Banking Credit team at JP Morgan Chase in Dallas. “After a while I just realized I didn’t like politics as much as I thought I would. In fact I was determined to stay out of politics as much as I could.”

Natalya Shelkova, a Professor of Economics at Guilford, suggested Brooks take a Macroeconomics class with Economics Professor Bob Williams. “After that class I was hooked,” said Brooks.

Brooks grew up in Kernersville, N.C., and was recruited by several colleges to play football. One school bragged about its new uniforms. Another mentioned the pretty girls on campus. “I chose Guilford because they focused on a lot of things that didn’t have anything to do with football like academics, the support you're going to have from your professors and your coaches, and getting a job afterwards. That really, really struck a chord with me.”

He's thankful for the opportunities and doors Guilford opened for him.

Brooks said that Robert Williams, retired John K. Voehringer Professor of Economics, told Brooks that Guilford offers students an education "just as good as any of those elite schools."

Brooks agrees. “I came from an average family and a public high school like a lot of kids," he said. "But the education I got at Guilford I couldn’t have gotten anywhere else. People think they have to go to an elite or Ivy League school to get that elite education, but I got that education at Guilford. Now I’m working with people who went to those elite schools.”

Want to know how Guilford can provide you with an elite education from faculty who support and mentor you? Contact Steve Mencarini.