Each year, our sophomore Tower Scholars sit down with the NexPoint Tower Scholar seniors to interview them so that they can create a “Senior Spotlight” blog post highlighting the senior’s unique story. Seniors share their journeys to develop a well-informed perspective on policymaking and international affairs through a combination of theory and practice in the program, alongside their multidisciplinary major courses of study. The conversations captured reflect the experience of our scholars and their learnings not only in the Tower Center but at SMU overall.

Zoe Mukendi ’26 interviewed Abby Herrera ’24 to learn more about her time as a NexPoint Tower Scholar to understand how the program could help her understand and apply the importance of health policy and how she can be a part of implementing change for the better.

A senior graduating in 2024, currently majoring in public policy and health and society and minoring in biology, neuroscience, and PPIA through the Tower Scholars Program, Abby Herrera hopes to close the inequity gaps existing in healthcare and pharmaceutical policy because “if we don’t [handle these respective policies] right, people suffer!”

Please tell me a little bit about yourself and why you chose SMU? 

I am a first-generation student, and I am from Springdale, Arkansas! I am also the oldest daughter in my family. In high school, I participated in a robotics program and had a mentor, who happened to be my boyfriend’s dad. My boyfriend was planning on coming to SMU Lyle to major in computer science and that’s how I had first heard about SMU. After some research, some of my biggest motivations for choosing SMU were that I wanted to get out of Arkansas to be in a new environment, I could make a significant amount of connections through SMU, and the Tower Scholars Program was very interesting and exciting to me. At the time, I had an already growing passion for health policy and thought that the Tower Scholars Program would be a great way to explore and study it.

Why did you want to be in the Tower Scholars Program?

When I was researching SMU in high school, the Tower Scholars Program was extremely interesting to me, and I thought it would be a great way for me to better study and understand policy so that I could apply it to health policy. My passion for health policy stems from the time when I worked as a pharmaceutical technician to help pay for the veterinary costs of my injured cat. Through my time at the job, my interest in pharmaceutical policy grew significantly because I could see the inequity and how tough it was for people regarding health care; I concluded that I wanted to see a change and realized that because health care is so important, if we don’t do it right, people suffer! I also recognized that the Tower Scholars Program would be a great center of connection and networking, both professionally and personally.

What are you involved in here at SMU, and what has it taught you?

I am in a sorority called Kappa Delta Chi and I serve as the vice president; I have gotten great friends and sisters through the sorority and it helped me adjust to being here at SMU. I am also a student representative on the Board of Trustees and I have seen it as such a great way to serve SMU; it has given me insight and experience with real-world applications of policy analysis and implications, how decisions are made, and getting comfortable with networking.

This role has shown me the importance of having a trustworthy team that centers itself around the fact that people matter and that the head of any team shouldn’t be micromanaging; it has also taught me the importance of remembering that our perspective is not the only one that exists! And being able to see how President Turner delegates responsibilities has shown me the source of any efficient team. I also work in the Hughes-Trigg Student Center and having worked there since my first year here has given me another kind of family and helped me learn how to manage others and my time. Lastly, I serve as the president of SMUSH and was previously an RA for MHPS for two years. Being an RA, and now the president of SMUSH, has shown me the importance of managing my time and genuinely caring for others!

What are some of your hobbies? How do you like to spend your free time?

When I have free time, I really love going out to eat with my friends. I also love getting out and discovering coffee shops and trying new chai teas at the shops. When I can, I also like taking day trips and driving to different places to explore! I love driving and enjoy the time spent traveling and exploring the parks or sites I visit. I hope to do that more often!

Lastly, what have you gained from your experience as a Tower Scholar? Any advice for Tower Scholars now?

I have learned a lot from being a Tower Scholar. One thing that I learned was the importance of effective technical writing skills; I had to learn memo writing and how to do so in a condensed, concise way while communicating ideas well. I also learned the importance of keeping up with the news and international and foreign relations. A lot of the time, knowing what was going on in the world helped me with my Tower classes and gave me more knowledge and present events from which to draw. I have also learned a lot of real-world skills, including professional speaking and being a real-world practitioner; being able to network with the Tower Center faculty, mentors, significant individuals in D.C., and my peers helped build these skills and allowed me to learn about people, their work styles, and how to schedule well. My advice for new and existing Tower Scholars would be to plan and manage your time well; I use my Outlook calendar and a physical calendar to keep track of everything, so find what works for you and use it! Also, prioritize your work and do what you’re assigned when you get it if you can; more importantly, understand what can give and what can’t because that helps you understand what you should keep on your plate and what you shouldn’t. It really helps combat procrastination and allows you to use your time wisely and put it towards your passion! Lastly, remember that your peers are your friends and that the Tower staff and faculty are amazing people to get to know! All of them know what you are doing and going through, so creating great relationships with them is beneficial, both professionally and personally.