Election Day 2004 put Kenyon in the national spotlight, with the news media reporting on epic waits at the Gambier polls and praising the hundreds of students who endured those waits with determination and spirit. But for Matthew Segal, that was only half of the story.

"I was happy that we persevered the way we did, but I thought the media did a disservice in painting only the heroic story," says Segal. "I think many of us were very angry that we had to wait in a 10- to-12-hour line."

Segal decided to channel his anger into motivation. First, he spoke about election irregularities at a voter reform discussion at Kenyon. Later, he addressed more than 500 people in a Columbus church at a forum sponsored by an organization called the National League of Pissed Off Voters.

His speech captured the frustration and lingering sense of impropriety that many voters felt about the election. Subsequently, Segal received an invitation to testify before the House Judiciary Committee in Washington, D.C., with the proceedings carried live on CSPAN. That caught the attention of Ohio Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones, who asked Segal to speak at a Cleveland forum on voting reform endorsing Senator Hillary Clinton's "Count Every Vote" act. Segal was struck by the "determination" and "vision" of Clinton when he met her, qualities that he works to emulate.

"I've always felt strongly about social issues," he says. "We had voters who were disenfranchised, and that compelled me to get to work. Kenyon fosters an environment that encourages you to look at issues, examine everything closely, and take a stand. I tried to do that."