In Memoriam: Timothy Light

Dr. Timothy Light, 14th president of Middlebury College, died December 14, 2025, in Kalamazoo, Michigan, after a long illness. He was 87 years old.

Light was born in Kalamazoo on November 5, 1938, and was raised in that city. He earned a bachelor’s in English from Yale University in 1960 then served a two-year stint as an English as a second language (ESL) teacher in Hong Kong through the Yale-China program. He went on to earn an MDiv from Union Theological Seminary, an MA in teaching English as a second language from Columbia University, and a PhD in linguistics from Cornell University. He began his professional career at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, holding teaching and administrative posts from 1966 to 1971.

He went on to build a distinguished career as a scholar and academic leader in East Asian studies in the United States. He held teaching positions at several universities, including the University of Arizona and The Ohio State University, where he chaired the Department of East Asian Languages and Literature. In 1990 he accepted the role of president of Middlebury, succeeding outgoing president Olin Robison. He was inaugurated on October 13, 1990, and served until the fall of 1991.

He returned to Kalamazoo, where he took a position as a distinguished visiting professor at Western Michigan University (WMU). He was granted tenure in 1992 and taught

comparative religion, building on his years of study of Chinese religions during his travels. From 1993 to 2000, he served as provost of WMU, and, in 2008, became professor emeritus of Chinese religion. In 2010, his family donated $1 million to WMU to establish the Timothy Light Center for Chinese Studies.

Light was very involved in community engagement while living in Kalamazoo, serving in leadership roles for several organizations, including as a trustee and board chair for the United Board for Christian Higher Education in Asia.

He is survived by wife Joy, daughters Ann and Claire, and granddaughter Sunny.