With her quiet, graceful demeanor and ever-present smile, Professor Betsy Schmidt of UMass’ School of Public Policy (SPP) exudes an air of wisdom and class. Beneath her calm and unassuming nature, however, lay the impressive accomplishments of the self-described “workhorse.” With more than 20 years of experience working with nonprofit organizations as a corporate litigator and legal counsel, she has served as Director of the Center for Social Entrepreneurship at George Mason University and was an associate professor of law at Vermont Law School, where she taught courses on nonprofit law and property. Over coffee (that she insisted she’d pay for), we sat down to talk about all things college and career, and how being a woman in a male-dominated field has shaped her perception of the world.
Her Campus UMass Amherst: Where are you from originally?
Betsy Schmidt: I lived all over the place really. I live in Vermont now with my husband and commute to UMass on the days I teach classes, but I lived in England while working on expanding Guidestar International.
HC: Could you explain what Guidestar is and what your position was?
BS: Guidestar is a database of all the nonprofits in the United States, as well as abroad. My husband started the organization by merging his for-profit and nonprofit work experience. It is basically a catalog of the nonprofits’ tax forms, revenue sources, expenses—it’s like a collection of profiles of hundreds of organizations. I was Legal Counsel and Vice President of Business. All together we had 40 employees at the time. I started working at the organization about three years into its inception and left about seven years in.
“I remember having an observation very early on that there was such a weird path—you were either too feminine and not taken seriously, or too masculine and it was a turn off. At times it was like walking a tightrope. The masculine women were less likely to have a family to support them because they were so doggedly career driven. I distinctly remember having this realization that the path I was pursuing was potentially isolating.”
HC: What courses do you teach here at UMass, and what are your main areas of research?
BS: I teach a graduate course called Social and Environmental Enterprises as well as an undergraduate course called Creating and Running a Nonprofit. Both courses are through the School of Public Policy here at UMass. Throughout my career, I have focused my learning and expertise on nonprofit law, governance, management, policies and ethics.
HC: Where did you attend college and what was your college experience like?
BS: I went to Princeton for my undergraduate degree, and when I got in it was only the second year they allowed women to attend the university. The ratio was eight men to one woman. I was in a dorm that was two to one so it was more normal. We were the first “true” class that Princeton accepted women into, so that was pretty interesting.
HC: How do you think being part of such a landmark class, and being the extreme minority at such a prestigious school, affected your experience?
BS: I think that as soon as you get to know someone you are less likely to stigmatize them. That was pretty much my experience at the time. There is this perception of “otherness” that we often have, so before they began accepting women into the college, I knew of stories where a woman would walk into a dining hall on campus and the men would all start making noises and tapping their glasses with their forks. I never noticed the hostility towards women at Princeton, but that was just my own personal experience. There certainly were creeps on campus and I just thought, ‘Well, I don’t want to be friends with you.’ I met lifelong friends there, including my husband.
HC: What were your original plans upon entering college?
BS: I was in college during Watergate and I remember that lawyers and journalists were the ones making the biggest differences. But I actually thought I would go on to be an advocate for the disabled—which I still haven’t worked on yet but that is my next goal. I majored in history and then worked for a congressman for a year after. After that, I went on to attend Stanford Law School. I took it on as a challenge.
“[My dad] would ask, ‘Did you fall down today?’ If I said no, he would tell me, ‘Then you weren’t learning anything. You didn’t try something hard enough.’ I think he started saying this when I was first learning how to ski. He would say we would never get better if we were too afraid to fall.”
HC: What is one challenge you have faced as a woman in your line of work?
BS: I think the gender gap in both my undergraduate and law school experience was definitely something that was present. Certainly there were more men than women, but I never felt that I was discriminated against. In some ways it was so at the beginning of the women liberation movement that more doors were open at the time that have since closed. I do remember having an observation very early on that there was such a weird path—you were either too feminine and not taken seriously, or too masculine and it was a turn off. At times it was like walking a tightrope. The masculine women were less likely to have a family to support them because they were so doggedly career driven. I distinctly remember having this realization that the path I was pursuing was potentially isolating. It was like I had to choose between having a family and having this big career, but I knew that I definitely wanted to have a family.
HC: What would your advice be to current female college students?
BS: Just do it. Take that first step and really go for whatever goal you set. Even if it doesn’t end well, you’ll deal with it.
HC: What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
BS: It would probably be something my dad used to say to me. He would ask, “Did you fall down today?” If I said no, he would tell me, “Then you weren’t learning anything. You didn’t try something hard enough.” I think he started saying this when I was first learning how to ski. He would say we would never get better if we were too afraid to fall. But I find it’s so applicable to other situations and obstacles we face in life.
HC: You have such an impressive array of accomplishments. What are you most proud of?
BS: My kids and my grandchildren. Always.
HC: Finally, what is one thing you would like your students to know about you?
BS: That I’m on your team. I want you to be able to learn enough to fulfill your dreams.