Ally Davis graduated cum laude with a degree in political science and public policy administration, and she will be pursuing her master’s degree in political science beginning this fall. (Photo by Derik Holtmann)

Ally Davis celebrated her commencement last month at the University of Missouri–St. Louis alongside her closest friends and in front of a large contingent of her family – parents, sister, two sets of grandparents and even her boyfriend and his family.

But Davis, who graduated cum laude with her bachelor’s degree in political science and public policy administration, is happy she won’t be moving on from UMSL just yet. She is pursuing her master’s degree in political science over the next year as part of the Accelerated Master’s Program before applying to law school.

“I’m already enrolled and have been part of it, so I’m excited,” Davis said. “I have my classes picked out and am looking forward to it.”

Davis, who grew up in Barnhart, Missouri, in Jefferson County and graduated from Windsor High School, feels at home at the university after two years on campus. She has assembled a network of friends through her involvement in organizations such as the Political Science Academy, the Student Government Association and the UMSL chapter of Associated Students of the University of Missouri, and she has built strong relationships with faculty members, particularly David Kimball and Anita Manion in the Department of Political Science.

She had had some trepidation transferring to UMSL after earning her associate degree at Jefferson College in 2023.

“UMSL was kind of intimidating, just from going from a small college to a bigger university,” said Davis, who chose UMSL because of its location and the reputation of its political science department but hadn’t toured the campus before she started taking classes. “I felt a little overwhelmed.”

Fortunately, those feelings subsided quickly. She recalled being taken with how many events were happening on campus and how inviting different student groups were as they set up tables in the Millennium Student Center. She also became fast friends with fellow political science student Grace Desjardins, who helped her get involved within the department and around campus.

“I made all the connections that I feel like I needed,” said Davis, who has received the Casey Communications, Inc. Undergraduate Scholarship and an UMSL Red Scholarship. “Obviously, with professors, it takes a little bit more time, but I definitely started building my circle and putting myself out there more.”

She credits Desjardins for connecting her to the Political Science Academy and UMSL’s ASUM chapter. Desjardins, UMSL’s 2024-25 Newman Civic Fellow, served as president of both organizations this year while Davis was the vice president of the former and undergraduate representative for the latter.

Though her involvement with ASUM, Davis has enjoyed getting to meet regularly with fellow counterparts from across the UM System and learn about issues facing students on each campus. Some are unique but many are shared and help direct the organization’s lobbying efforts.

“It’s just cool to see everyone get together and everyone have similar interests in helping students,” Davis said.

She has spent just as much time working on behalf of PSA on UMSL’s campus, sharing her own interest in politics and policy through efforts to help increase civic engagement and voter participation. She was a regular contributor in tabling activities to help students register to vote and provided nonpartisan information about upcoming elections, often bringing donuts to grab the attention of her peers walking by on the MSC Bridge.

“She’s a person who’s very, very active on campus and very engaged in student life, especially involved in voter registration efforts on campus,” said Kimball, who chairs the Department of Political Science.

Kimball, Manion and Patricia Zahn, UMSL’s director of community engagement and outreach, nominated Davis for the 2025 ALL IN Student Voting Honor Roll, which is meant to recognize students from around the country who work to institutionalize nonpartisan democratic engagement and increase college student voter participation. She was one of 232 students nationwide named to the honor roll in April.

Davis’ interest in politics and the political process has been enhanced by her coursework at UMSL. Last semester, for example, she took part in a Survey Research Practicum course, taught by Kimball, in which students conducted exit polling from the St. Louis Mayoral Election in April.

“The big goal for me is to get students involved in a research project from start to finish, designing and writing the questions for the survey and then carrying out the exit poll on Election Day and analyzing the data and writing a report,” Kimball said. “I enjoy teaching that, and I hope the students like it too.”

Davis certainly did as she joined Desjardins at Buder Elementary School to gather voter opinions on Election Day.

“It was really cool to see,” said Davis, who was impressed by some of the questions her classmates developed and enjoyed the interaction with voters in the field. “To calculate the data, we went back through all of the forms that we had and entered the information on an Excel spreadsheet and figured it out that way.”

Davis has also supported other students’ learning over the past year while working as a supplemental instructor.

Her ultimate goal is to go to law school. She’s getting a closer look at the legal profession this summer while working as an intern at the St. Louis County Courthouse.

Davis found out about the opportunity while participating in another internship program this spring at the World Affairs Council of St. Louis. She was helping support the Council’s International Visitor Leadership Program, in which participants from all around the world travel to the United States and St. Louis and connect with American counterparts while exploring societal issues. On one outing, they brought visitors to the St. Louis County Courthouse so they could get an up-close look at the American legal system. While chatting with a member of the courthouse staff, Davis mentioned her interest in law school and was told about the internship and encouraged to apply.

She expects to sit in on a few trials and also learn about the process the courts use to review and accept cases.

As she works toward her master’s in the upcoming academic year, Davis plans to prep for the LSAT and will sit for the exam before she applies to law school. Having the advanced degree can only strengthen her candidacy.

“It’s a heavier workload, more reading, writing and analytical thinking,” Kimball said. “I think those are things that all would help prepare someone to apply for law school.”

She knows it’ll be a lot to juggle, but she’s also confident she’s on the right path.

“I want to see it through,” Davis said. “These classes have made me realize it’s all I want to do. The professors have helped too. Everyone at UMSL has helped me pursue my law journey the way I want it to go.”