Earlier in her career, Berger-Sweeney did proof-of-concept work on galantamine (brand name Razadyne), the second-most used drug to treat Alzheimer's disease.

Later in life, at her first commencement ceremony at Trinity College, Berger-Sweeney asked civil rights leader and former Holman UMC pastor Rev.

Berger-Sweeney completed her doctoral work in neurotoxicology with Joseph T. Coyle at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health[8][9] in 1989.

Berger-Sweeney did proof-of-concept work on galantamine (brand name Razadyne), showing that the drug reversed memory deficits in mice.

[10] She also led the creation of the Bridge to Liberal Arts Success at Tufts (BLAST) program that supports college students from underserved high schools.

In April 2019, professor of sociology Johnny Eric Williams tweeted "whiteness is terrorism," drawing criticism from alumni and others.

[12][13] Berger-Sweeney released statements affirming Trinity College's support for "academic freedom and free expression and inquiry.

[15] Conservative media argued that the hashtag was in response to a post about the Republican Congressional baseball practice shooting, in which Steve Scalise was shot.

Smith called African-American, Asian-American, Latino, Muslim and Jewish culture houses on campus “tribal enclaves,” which drew criticism.

Her statement read, in part: "We have an unshakable commitment to free expression and inquiry, open debate and discourse, and the valuing of all voices.