Beau Underwood serves as the VP for external affairs and a senior editor with Word&Way, where he coauthors the Substack newsletter A Public Witness. A proud alum of Eureka College, the University of Chicago Divinity School, and the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy, he has long been fascinated by the intersection of religion and public life. He has pastored congregations, led the advocacy and communications efforts of faith-based organizations out in Washington, DC, staffed congressional campaigns, served as a community organizer, and worked as a hospital chaplain. He is currently working on a doctorate in public affairs at the University of Missouri. An ordained minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Beau has held a variety of leadership roles within the denomination. He is passionate about the work of Christian formation in ways that engage both the minds and the hearts of those seeking to follow Jesus.