Budget Update – 4/11/25

Dear Colleagues,

Over the past several days, we’ve had the opportunity to meet with many of you to discuss the steps we are taking to address our ongoing budget challenges. We appreciate your thoughtful and candid questions and the care you’ve shown for our entire community as we plan for the future of Middlebury.

We recognize that the decisions we’ve shared are difficult and that reactions span a broad spectrum. Some have expressed disappointment, frustration, and concern, and we want you to know that we hear you. We know these changes have real impact on individuals, teams, and our entire community. We would not have made these moves if we were not confident that these structural changes will situate Middlebury to withstand the headwinds of today and lead us to a stable, vibrant future. Our intent with this message is to provide greater clarity, answer as many of your questions as we can, and invite you into the ongoing work of shaping our way forward.

FAQs Now Available

We’ve developed a list of Frequently Asked Questions based on the conversations we’ve had since the announcement. These are organized to cover topics such as the following:

• Eligibility for the Vermont Staff Retirement Incentive Program
• Changes to the retirement contribution
• Workforce structure and organizational changes
• Use of the endowment
• Programmatic and operational decisions

We hope this document helps to clarify many of the questions we’ve heard and provides a reference for those who were unable to attend a session.

Your Ideas Matter

In nearly every session, someone asked, “Where can I share an idea for addressing the budget challenges?” We are grateful for that spirit of contribution and creativity. We invite you to share your ideas here: Submit a Budget or Structural Change Idea 

All submissions will be reviewed by the appropriate teams, and we will do our best to share how your ideas are being considered.

More Communication, More Flexibility

We’ve also heard from many about the need for more information to be shared, more notice to be given before meetings, and greater flexibility in how those meetings are held. We are committed to ensuring that more people can participate meaningfully in these important conversations.

In support of all of this, we will offer several opportunities for continued engagement:

• Tuesday, April 15, Virtual Meeting for Staff and Faculty, 11 a.m. EDT/8 a.m. PDT, Zoom. We will host this session via Zoom only. We especially welcome those unable to join previous meetings to attend. Please sign up here to receive the Zoom link.
• Monday, April 28, Vermont Meeting for Staff and Faculty, 9 a.m., Wilson Hall. This will be an opportunity to follow up after several weeks of continued discussion, provide updates, and answer questions.
• Monday, April 28, Virtual Meeting for all Staff and Faculty, 4 p.m. EDT/1 p.m. PDT, Zoom. This will be a similar session to the above 9 a.m. in-person meeting in Vermont, but held on Zoom. Please sign up here to receive the Zoom link.

Looking Ahead

We will continue to share updates with the entire community throughout the spring semester, including providing new information, reflections on what we’re hearing, and additional opportunities to contribute to the conversation.

Thank you again for your thoughtfulness, your questions, and your commitment to Middlebury. We’ll keep the conversation going.

Sincerely, 

Steve Snyder
Interim President

Michelle McCauley
Executive Vice President and Provost

David Provost
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer