At his student scholar showcase presentation on April 16 in Sydnor Performance Hall, Jake Gamble ʼ25 speaks softly, but with the confidence of someone who knows and cares about his subject matter.
His speech is titled “Building up Borders: Political Framing and Anti-Immigration Attitudes in Hungary and the United States,” and it details how xenophobic rhetoric negatively affects migrant populations.
It’s not the first time Gamble has presented his research to an audience. A year ago, he did so at Virginia Military Institute, and then more recently at Phi Alpha Theta’s regional conference, where he won the Second Place Award for 20th Century World History Paper.
But according to Gamble, speaking in front of a crowd wasn’t always his strong suit.
“I would say that Lynchburg has absolutely helped me develop these skills,” he said. “Freshman year, I gave a small presentation in Dr. Rachel Willis’ Writing the World course and it went horribly!
“So, for my next presentation in that class, I practiced endlessly to get it right. Sure enough, that presentation went incredibly well, and I’ve tried to base all of my future presentations [on] that.”
This drive to improve and grow — both in public speaking and in his research — has paid off. Gamble will attend Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service in the fall, where he will pursue a Master of Arts in German and European Studies, an opportunity which he credits to his Lynchburg education.
“I would say it has absolutely prepared me for my next chapter,” he said. “The international relations, political science, and history faculty have helped to ensure I could continue to grow in all aspects of my academic life.
“[They have] allowed me to reach for goals I may have never thought of before coming to Lynchburg.”
Gamble’s current goal is to study democracy and authoritarianism, security studies, and the history of relations between Europe and America.
As a Lynchburg student, Gamble traveled throughout Europe. He spent a semester in Berlin and volunteered for World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms, a renowned agricultural nongovernmental organization in Germany.
He even went to Iceland with a group led by Dr. Marek Payerhin, professor of international relations and political science.
“I teased him that he reached the Arctic Circle even before visiting New York City,” Payerhin said. “[His] is a remarkable trajectory, and I know the best is yet to come. … I am sure he will be an asset to Georgetown and beyond.”
In his sophomore year, Gamble took Payerhin’s Comparative Politics class, and it would inspire him to research authoritarian governments.
“While at Lynchburg, I decided to focus on affairs in the Global North, which largely concentrate around Europe, the U.S., and Russia, among others,” Gamble said. “Without this degree, I couldn’t have ended up at Georgetown.”
When asked what advice he would give to new students at Lynchburg, Gamble suggested fully pursuing whatever their passions.
“I would say new students should find a major or discipline they’re passionate about and put 100% into it,” he said. “Don’t try to think so much about where that degree will take you and instead just enjoy it.
“If you study something you love, surely it’ll take you on to great things.”
