President Baucom Outlines Top Priorities to Board of Trustees

President Ian Baucom outlined his priorities for the coming year and beyond during the October 21–24 fall meeting of the Middlebury Board of Trustees. These included advancing the College’s 10-year strategic plan, Excellence. Purpose. Joy., with a focus on affordability, supporting first-generation and low-income students, and strengthening Middlebury’s position as a leading global liberal arts college.

Baucom also emphasized the importance of community, belonging, and seeking to ensure that every student has access to a global experience and a funded internship—supported by comprehensive advising and mentoring through a proposed Career and Life Purpose Lab. He underlined the importance of the faculty’s work in considering the future of the College’s curricular requirements in a dynamic moment of higher education, stressing the value of liberal arts learning in a time of machine learning and Middlebury’s commitment to the vitality of human intelligence in an age of artificial intelligence.

“All of these goals are aligned with our strategic plan and our goal to be the best residential liberal arts institution in the world,” said Baucom. “I want Middlebury to shape the future of liberal arts education.”

Developing a comprehensive plan to ensure both affordability and the success of first-generation and low-income students is a top priority in the year ahead, Baucom said. Middlebury took a major step forward in this initiative with the September announcement of no tuition for students with family income up to $175,000 beginning with next year’s entering class. Baucom shared his goal to increase the number of Pell-eligible students and support their thriving at Middlebury.

The Global and Schools Committee discussed the strategic plan’s objective to ensure that every student has access to a funded global experience such as study-abroad, winter-term, and short-term faculty-led courses abroad, and greater access of both undergraduates and public school teachers to Language School programs. The committee also discussed the potential for Middlebury to develop a set of global hubs in a range of cities around the world.

The Student Experience Committee focused on student engagement, mental health, career readiness, artificial intelligence, and ways for trustees to connect with students. Baucom emphasized the importance of a vibrant and joyful campus through academic and cocurricular experiences for all students, regardless of income. Plans for a new art museum and, in the coming years, a new student center, will help bring this vision to life.

Director of Athletics Todd Phelps shared a 10-year facilities plan to strengthen Middlebury’s reputation as one of the premier Division III athletic programs in the country. His broader vision, developed with staff input and aligned with the College’s strategic plan, includes opportunities to expand student access to sports and recreational facilities, with an emphasis on four guiding principles: respect, integrity, teamwork, and accountability.

Baucom updated trustees on several other priorities:

• Work will begin on a follow-up plan to Energy2028—Middlebury’s response to the climate crisis—to advance the College’s climate and environmental commitments.
• Middlebury will develop a comprehensive plan to work more closely with the town, county, and state on economic development, innovation, and faculty-driven policy solutions informed by student research.

Many of the College’s top priorities are supported by For Every Future: The Campaign for Middlebury, which closed June 30, 2026, after raising $649,715,712 and exceeding its $600 million goal two years early. Dan Courcey, vice president for advancement, reported that donors contributed $133 million for Academic Excellence, $105 million for Experience, $190 million for Access, $74 million for Capital, and $142 million for Unrestricted Support across the campaign’s five priorities. The campaign also achieved 82 percent undergraduate alumni engagement. 

Middlebury’s recent financial performance is expected to provide additional support for strategic plan priorities. David Provost, executive vice president of finance and administration, told trustees that the College is on strong financial footing. Driven by the success of the fundraising campaign and strong endowment earnings as well as difficult budgetary decisions made in the last two years, Middlebury achieved a balanced budget for the first time in years. Looking ahead, the multiyear budget models project annual surpluses that can be invested in the College’s core mission.

The Board of Trustees will next meet February 4–6, 2027.