Resources and information related to the teach-out of the Middlebury Institute programs can be viewed on the Resources and Community Messages sections of this website.
Additional information will be added and updated as it becomes available.
The MIIS campus, both in-person and virtual, is a busy place as we approach spring break later this month. Celebrations of Mardi Gras and the Holi Festival brought community members together for food and fun. Our Middlebury Institute Online students have begun their “Spring B” terms. This weekend we welcome students and faculty to our annual International Strategic Crisis Negotiation Exercise (ISCNE).
We are in the third week of the spring 2026 semester and we welcome back continuing students, as well as new in-person and online students. I write with updates on several fronts.
Last month, the Institute Board of Advisors met in Middlebury. The three constituent advisors shared updates with the IBA about the impacts on students, staff, and faculty of the decision to wind down MIIS’s degree programs. Their dispatches were thoughtful, well-researched and heartfelt, and the IBA leadership acknowledged the contributions after the meeting in a letter to the MIIS community sent on November 10.
MIIS is a set of graduate programs based in Monterey, California, and an academic part of Middlebury College. MIIS’s master’s degree programs cover a range of internationally focused disciplines to support the Middlebury mission to educate professionals to advance understanding, promote peace, and drive change in pursuit of a more just world.
Like many graduate programs across the country, MIIS has experienced overall declining enrollments over the past 15 years due to a variety of external forces. Middlebury has invested significant effort in new and innovative programs as well as a major marketing effort. Even with these measures, MIIS programs have experienced a continued and unsustainable decline in enrollments. The board considered multiple options, including continuing programs that were successful or absorbing some programs into other Middlebury areas. Ultimately, the decision to end the master’s degree programs and operations based in Monterey over two years was the only financially viable option and the board approved President Baucom’s recommendation to do so.
As of fall 2025, MIIS will no longer accept applications for two-year degree candidates. We will continue to provide resources for students to complete their degree programs through May 2027.
We are now more than a full year into a business plan that was implemented in spring 2024, and we have not achieved the intended targets for enrollment and program growth. Instead, we have seen a downward enrollment trend with no signs of reversing, even with the addition of new programs and an aggressive marketing campaign. These challenges will make it impossible to achieve the overall targets of the four-year plan.
Middlebury has included MIIS programs and initiatives in its comprehensive fundraising campaigns under two presidents and has also considered multiple options—including maintaining successful programs or absorbing some of the programs into other Middlebury entities—before reaching this decision. Ultimately, the enrollment decline was too significant and showed no signs of reversing. This created ongoing deficits that increased the challenges for philanthropic fundraising.
All employees will be employed through the end of the 2025 calendar year. Middlebury will honor faculty contracts. Any faculty who stay beyond 2027 should anticipate a new assignment of responsibility at that point. As the academic programs conclude over the next two years, MIIS will maintain the faculty and staff needed to ensure our students may complete their degrees, are provided with the same high-quality education, experiential learning and superb career support MIIS is known for. Employees whose positions will be phased out will receive at least four months’ notice. We will begin notifying staff employees August 29 and the first phase of position eliminations will take effect on January 16, 2026.
Yes, a team from Human Resources, the Provost’s Office, and Student Affairs is in Monterey this week and will continue to provide support and resources to employees whose jobs will be affected during the next two years. Employees will receive outplacement career support, as well as support from Middlebury’s Human Resources and can access our Employee Assistance Program services.
Some summer programs held at MIIS, including the Middlebury School of the Environment and Bread Loaf School of English’s program, will continue to run in Monterey for the upcoming year. The English Language School has been suspended and will not run in Monterey this year. We will use the next year to finalize plans for summer programs in other locations for subsequent years.
The online master’s degree programs in International Education Management and TESOL will be discontinued on the same timeline as the residential degree programs in Monterey.
Online degree programs in cybersecurity, localization project management, MPA in sustainability, and organizational leadership are not affected by the board’s decision.
We are committed to supporting our currently enrolled students, so that they may successfully complete their programs, with a full array of on-campus resources. MIIS credits are transferable to other institutions in accordance with the other schools’ transfer credit policies.
Middlebury will maintain MIIS students’ academic records in perpetuity.
Middlebury is committed to supporting our current students, including those starting in fall 2025, to be able to complete their degrees, with the curricula, student services, and career resources that have benefited all previous MIIS students. However, students who wish to withdraw and have their tuition (and where applicable, Munras housing fees) refunded may request a refund through Student Financial Services. The deadline for a full refund is September 15, 2025. Students should communicate with Student Financial Services for any related questions.
Because Middlebury encourages all our students to complete their MIIS degree programs through June 30, 2027, all financial aid awarded by Middlebury will continue to be available to students through that period.
We understand that students will have more questions, and we will be offering information sessions and drop-in office hours to allow students to discuss their individual questions and concerns.
Middlebury will maintain its status with SEVIS and as long as students continue to meet all eligibility requirements (i.e., remain enrolled full-time and in in-person courses), and this should have no impact on their SEVIS record and visa status. Furthermore, students will get all the necessary support to acquire their Optional Practical Training (OPT) prior to their degree completion as long as they meet all eligibility requirements. Students with questions about their particular situation should email ISSS or make an appointment with International Student and Scholar Services.
Several online programs and some shorter in-person programs are accepting enrollment in 2026. Visit our program availability webpage for more details.
MIIS students will remain Middlebury alumni for the rest of their lives and be part of the Middlebury’s global network of approximately 80,000 living alumni.
Alumni will continue to have access to:
Manycurrent faculty will be eligible for emeritus status, which allows them to keep their middlebury.edu email addresses indefinitely: you can write to them at the email address you already have for them. We also encourage students to connect with faculty on LinkedIn as a secondary point of contact.
All tangible property—including books, artwork, and technology — is intended to stay on campus as long as students are present. Afterward, there will be a process to determine next steps for these items, which may include sale, donation, or return to original donors.
Together with library staff, we are looking into ways to increase the library opening hours; some of those ideas have been proposed by students. We plan to consult with Student Advocacy Council leaders on these proposals, and will share more details with all students when they are available.
Institute leadership is committed to providing regular opportunities for students to provide meaningful input on consequential aspects of the transition plan. This will include consultation with Student Advocacy Council members. Moreover, members of the Board of Trustees and Middlebury senior leadership have reiterated their availability to meet with the students during the teach-out period.
We are committed to ensuring that all students, in both in-person programs and online programs, have access to the classes they need to finish their degree within the time frame in place when they enrolled – or sooner, in some cases. We are working with continuing students and faculty going into the 2026-27 academic year to ensure a roster of courses that makes this possible for students in in-person programs. Students in online programs that are closing will be able to finish their degrees by the summer of 2027 with courses already scheduled, if they maintain half-time status during the remaining terms.
