In “Economic Sociology,â€� Charles A. Dana Professor of Sociology Francesco Duina presents students with a social and philosophical question. 

“I ask, ‘How many of you like a lot of inequality?’ Usually none of them raises their hands. But then I say, ‘How many of you would want perfect equality?’â€� He shakes his head. “Nobody raises their hand. They’ve never thought of that.â€� 

Duina brings questions like these to his classes, never revealing much about his beliefs because his focus is on helping students examine their own tendencies. 

“So, where are you and why? Why do you accept some degree of inequality?� he asks.

Students are thus encouraged to understand or at least see their own ways of justifying the world around them, including inequalities. His most recent book has a similar aim. 

The Social Acceptance of Inequality: On the Logics of a More Unequal World (Oxford 2025), a collection that Duina co-edited with Luca Storti, an associate professor of economic sociology at the University of Turin, Italy, dives in deep on why people across the world accept economic inequalities (understood to be those related to income and wealth). The question is all the more salient because over the past several decades economic inequalities have in most cases grown a great deal. In other words, the real issue is actually not why small inequalities are accepted, but why massive amounts of inequalities are in fact accepted, and even approved of, by significant amounts of people. 

Using four logics of acceptance as a framework for the vastly different contexts across the globe from which their 19 contributors write, the book makes visible to readers the assumptions, biases, and worldviews that people bring to their thinking about inequality. 

This interview with Duina has been lightly edited for clarity and space. 

Meredith McCarroll: You write, in the introduction, that while there is a range of feelings about increased economic inequalities, the aim of the book is to focus on “the logics by which these inequalities are accepted.â€� How did you and your co-editor come to determine the need for this volume? 

Francesco Duina: Inequalities have gone up in most cases, and so we chose this because there’s so much written about how bad these things are and why they’re bad and what we can do about it. And there isn’t a whole lot written about why people accept them when they do. We were very eager to understand that acceptance — it is, after all, a major factor that sustains those inequalities and something that we may want to grasp if we in fact want to do something about those inequalities.  

MM: So why an edited collection? 

FD: Because matters are so complicated. If you’re really interested in the question of why economic inequalities are accepted across the world by a wide variety of people, you need extensive knowledge and expertise. No single person can have that. Who am I to write about Southeast Asia and Latin America and Scandinavia and the United States and China? We figured that if we collect various perspectives and voices, and we get a much bigger umbrella and better coverage, then we can really figure things out a little bit.

Of course, we recognize that there are works in different disciplines, such as economics or psychology, that point to single logics of acceptance. Our goal was to identify and contrast and compare all the major logics, and to see what we can conclude by doing so.  

MM: You outline in the introduction four logics of acceptance: market/economic, moral, group, and cultural. Can you briefly describe those four logics? 

FD: Sure. In a shorter piece that we are publishing about the book, by the way, we are actually calling them “justificationsâ€� for the inequalities. The term might be a little easier to grasp than ‘“logicsâ€� of acceptance. 

So, when it comes to market/economic logics, people accept inequalities because they believe that they are byproducts of a well-functioning economic system. Trying to eliminate inequalities would mean that wealth production overall would be reduced, investments would go to the wrong places, innovation would be discouraged, and philanthropy would suffer. Importantly, these sorts of logics do not see inequalities as desirable but as inevitable outcomes to be tolerated given what else is being promoted.

Next, we have moral logics, which are based on notions of fairness and justice. In this case, inequalities are seen as actually something that is desirable. There is something good in them. For instance, if you worked hard you deserve to have more. And of course they take different articulations, including inheritance, where one might say, “Well, it’s my grandfather’s.â€� If asked, what does it have to do with you, we hear, “Well, in the end, it is fair that it comes to me rather than to somebody else because I am of that lineage.â€� 

Group logics offer a third ground for acceptance. These are the hardest to see in practice … at least in their purest form. They are predicated on the idea that a group is, by virtue of who they are and not necessarily what they have done, entitled to more. The clearest example I can think of is the caste system in India. It’s preordained religiously. So the upper caste should have more — it doesn’t matter if they sit around and just do nothing — by virtue of who they are. You see articulations of this in Scandinavia. The Danes believe they are more entitled to the welfare system than immigrants. For instance, they resist giving those immigrants many years of unemployment benefits. Why? Well, some would say that it’s “because we’re Danes. They’re not.â€� Of course here many would quickly add that they have worked hard to contribute to that system — and in this regard their logic is also moral. 

Racial distinctions are also at work in group logics. Gender distinctions, age distinctions, and even class distinctions fit into this mindset. 

The fourth set of logics is cultural. In the case of the United States, for instance, the American Dream is a pervasive set of ideas that most people know about. Most of us grew up with it, and assume it is a fair description of what life in this society is like. You’re going to go from poor to rich if you do the right things. It is easy to see how someone who is born and raised in this cultural milieu might be quite likely to tolerate inequalities. Inequalities “make sense’â€� given what Americans know about their society and world. 

MM: What is new about your volume? What contributions do you see it making to the field or beyond?

FD: Multiple perspectives and an appreciation for the fact that income and wealth inequalities manifest themselves in different settings. And that the same inequality means different things in different places, comes from different places, is or is not problematic in different ways, and is sustained in similar or different ways. Sometimes we find the same logics at work across the world. Others can be more very peculiar to a place. The collection offers an ability to see how the logics themselves compare to, and differ from, each other.

MM: What role do you hope the book might play in terms of solutions to this problem of growing inequality? 

FD: There is already so much written on solutions. We knew that if we wanted to stay consistent with the message of the book, we needed to focus on the logics. We are therefore asking whether there are things in the logics themselves that someone interested in reducing inequalities could tackle. Are there unfounded biases in the logics? Are there faulty assumptions? If the logics themselves inherently have contradictions and or faulty elements, highlighting those things could dissuade some people at least from embracing them  

MM: Are there ways that this approach shows up in your teaching? Is part of your work making the invisible visible? Just allowing students to see that this is part of what’s shaping their core understanding of inequality or fairness? 

FD: Yes. I think my role is to shed light on things. Then students can draw their own conclusions, but the light helps to dissipate the cloudiness and the fog. That’s my goal.

For Mother Jones, in a Sept. 24 article headlined “,â€� journalist Evan Mandery named ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ as an outlier — for its emphasis on meaning and purpose. Mandery writes that a focus on finding meaning “suffuses the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ curriculum,â€� unlike many other elite colleges that he covered in his story.

In looking beyond the classroom, Mandery points again to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½: “One notable exception is the Center for Purposeful Work at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College, launched in 2017 and framed around principles of developmental psychology. The center’s work is predicated on a simple premise: ‘If you’ve got wellbeing in your career,’ explained director Allen Delong, ‘you are twice as likely to have wellbeing in all the other areas of your life.’â€�

The article points to the college’s commitment to supporting students seeking meaningful work, noting that ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ subsidizes around 600 internships each year, “about as many as Harvard, though its endowment is less than 1 percent as large,â€� and notes that this commitment shows up in outcomes: “15 percent of its 2023 graduates went into education (five times the rate of Harvard grads), 16 percent entered the health field (more than twice the rate of Harvard grads), and 5 percent joined nonprofits.â€� 

With the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College Museum of Art’s Ralph Steadman exhibition due to close on Oct. 11, interviewed co-curator Andrea Harris about the exhibition. Harris co-curated the exhibition, “And Another Thingâ€�, with Steadman’s daughter, Sadie Williams. Not quite a retrospective, the exhibition spans 65 years and is drawn from 15,000 works of art. The reporter asked Harris, “How did you get this to come to little old ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College in Lewiston, Maine?â€�

“Well, Ralph is all about collaboration and he gets around,â€� Harris said. “He’s been to the United States several times and has been meeting people throughout his career. One of the meetings he had, he was up in Aspen, Colorado, where he met with Dan Mills, who was the director of the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College Museum of Art. And Dan was always a fan of Ralph’s, had always had a great feeling that bringing the art to Maine would be an incredible experience for the community. “

Initially the exhibition was slated to open in 2020 but was delayed because of the pandemic. “And here we are having this incredible opportunity in Maine and it’s been wonderful,â€� Harris said. “The ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Museum of Art is this beautiful space. It’s just absolutely incredible for the college students, for the community, and again, available to everyone to come out and enjoy.”

The exhibition opened in June and will close on Saturday, Oct. 11. Harris will offer a lecture to the public on Friday, Oct. 10 at 4 p.m. and will be present on the closing day to engage with visitors. The ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College Museum of Art is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Stephanie Kelley-Romano, professor of rhetoric, film and screen studies, was featured on The Chronicle of Higher Education’s podcast College Matters, a series that examines “how higher education pushes students to wrestle with big ideas.� Kelley-Romano’s popular course, “Conspiracy Rhetoric: Power, Politics and Popular Culture,� was highlighted in the podcast episode “� as one of  “the most intriguing and popular courses on the nation’s college campuses.�

 â€œConspiracy Rhetoric,â€� which Kelley-Romano is teaching again this fall, focuses on the ways that rhetoric — the art of effective (and often persuasive) communication —  shapes conspiracy theories. Kelley-Romano explains that “when students understand how things function rhetorically, then they can see and create rhetorical campaigns.â€� She told the Chronicle that the course often helps students understand that “when more people have more rights and more support, the entire society does better.â€� 

Leigh Weisenburger, vice president for institutional affairs and secretary to the Board of Trustees, was featured in a Portland Press Herald article about ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ dropping its application fee for all students. (In the past, students could ask for a waiver for the fee based on their financial needs). In , Weisenburger, who played a role in the elimination of the application fee, said, “It just seemed like the right moment to press play on something that we know to be a barrier and will provide relief, economically for families, but also de-escalating any stress a student might have in the process.â€� ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ anticipates more applications in the coming year, following a record 10,029 applications in 2024, and is prepared to accommodate the potential increase with a higher number of adjunct readers. 

Vice President for Finance and Administration and Treasurer of ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College Geoff Swift was recently featured in the Sun Journal’s .â€� Swift was interviewed about Lake Andrews, his role in nurturing the campus’ physical environment, and ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½â€™ responsibility for the wildlife that makes its home around the Puddle. “We’re stewards of this place,â€� Swift said. “ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ sits on 133 acres, much of them occupied by residential buildings, sports fields and academic facilities. But the green spaces, from the quad to the wooded areas, are also under our charge and we take that seriously. Respecting wildlife is part of that. There are limits to what we can or should do.â€�

Sports Business Journal of Jeff Price ’87 ±Ê’29 as the inaugural CEO of the Heisman Trophy Trust. Prior to this role, Price served as chief commercial and philanthropy officer for the PGA of America. “I see plenty of opportunity to build a larger commercial enterprise and support the Trust’s charitable goals, which were also a passion of mine at the PGA,” Price told Sports Business Journal. Price, who played football at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ — as quarterback and wide receiver — is also a parent of a student in the Class of 2029. Price was recently on campus for the 150th Football Celebration at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½. 

News of Associate Professor of Art and Visual Culture Carolina González Valencia’s grant of $50,000 to finish her film How to Clean a House in Ten Easy Steps was covered in . The Sundance Institute funded 32 projects this year.

In August, Deadline covered Gonzalez Valencia’s , which supports filmmakers in developing their pitches, and invites them to present their works in progress to a panel of funders and distributors at Camden International Film Festival. The film, which is being shot in the U.S., Colombia, and Mexico, is a “hybrid documentary� in which a domestic worker and her filmmaker daughter co-create the fictional character of a writer to uncover the slippage between truth and fantasy. It tells a story about immigration, labor, dreams, and the power of fiction to spark emancipation.

This week ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ President Garry W. Jenkins joined Stefanie Manning, Maine Trust for Local News’ managing director, for a public conversation about his leadership and journey to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½.

Held at the Roux Institute in Portland, the Sept. 17 conversation was the latest installment in , which invites local business and community leaders for conversations about their work, including challenges they’ve faced and lessons they’ve learned along the way. Lewiston Mayor Carl Sheline and a number of ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ alumni were among the more than 100 attendees.

One theme of discussion was the value of education for Jenkins, both personally and universally. He spoke of his early years in the public school system, and his experiences at the private liberal arts school he attended, Haverford College, as well as the large public universities he worked at prior to coming to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ in 2023. He described the powerful, formative impact growing up with parents who were educators themselves had on him, and reflected that his own experience steered him toward ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, a place that quickly felt like home to him, and which has given him a sense of optimism. 

“The students are kind,â€� Jenkins said. “They’re thoughtful. They are interested in making a difference in whatever way that means for them, and they’re open to that exploration. That makes me excited for the future.â€� 

Watch the full conversation embedded below.

During an open Q&A, an audience member asked how ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ is meeting a new reality, when the value of higher education is being called into question by some in both government and the public. “The public seems to be much less supportive, much more skeptical, [and] has much less regard for colleges and universities than was the case previously,â€� the attendee said before asking: How is ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ handling this new reality? 

Jenkins acknowledged that shift in public perception. “To be honest, for a long time, the college degree, its importance, the value, was almost taken as given,â€� he said. That value hasn’t changed, he said, but it can’t be taken for granted that others see it that way. ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ is trying to “communicate more and communicate better about the value that we add,â€� Jenkins said. 

ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ has a mission to educate the whole person and prepare students to be leaders, he said. “College is not about teaching people what to think,â€� Jenkins said. “It’s about teaching people how to think. That’s really important. I think we’ve lost the thread a little bit on that.â€�

The public needs to be aware of these myriad benefits of higher education, Jenkins explained, and this can only be achieved collectively. None of these perceptions developed overnight, he noted, citing the steady erosion of support for public institutions, including state funding, over the course of his own career. 

“Boy has that changed over the past, what, 40 years, 50 years? Right?â€� Jenkins said. Immediately prior to coming to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, he served as the dean of the University of Minnesota Law School. Looking at how the percentage of funding that came from the state 40 years ago compared to how it is now represents a dramatically different scenario, he said. “When I left the University of Minnesota Law School, the percent [of school funding] from the state was in single digits. So this is part of a much longer narrative, and we’ve got to really dig in and work together to change that, but it’s not an overnight type of solution.â€�

“This is going to require citizen to citizen action,â€� Jenkins told the audience. “And so what we can do is we can enlist others to join us in this fight and in talking about the value, the importance that college had to you, to your life, to your family, and really tell that story.â€� He encouraged attendees to “talk to our politicians, talk to your neighbors,â€� to help bring about a cultural shift. “Because that’s what we need.â€� 

Eight young ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College alumni, including seven new graduates, have been offered Fulbright Student awards for 2025–26. 

ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ has been recognized as a Top Producer of Fulbright Student awards for 14 straight years, most recently in February for 2024–25.

“These accomplished Fulbright recipients embody the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ mission of commitment to responsible stewardship of the wider world,â€� said President Garry W. Jenkins. “We are immensely proud of and thrilled for our awardees, whose academic achievements, passion for intercultural understanding, and joy in exploration will enable them to build powerful connections between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.â€�

This year’s awardees have been offered Fulbright English teaching assistant grants for Germany, Rwanda, Spain, Switzerland, and Taiwan, and a Fulbright research award for Slovenia.

Each year, the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program offers over 400 awards in more than 135 countries for U.S. citizens to teach, conduct research and carry out professional projects around the world. 

“I have been inspired this year by seeing ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ students and our young alumni lean into our world’s accelerating complexity,â€� said Robert Strong, director of national fellowships and lecturer in English. “It’s good to know that these ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Fulbrighters will be around the globe, representing the positive, problem-solving spirit of American leadership in learning and research.â€�

The ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Fulbright Committee described these internationally minded young leaders as humble, enthusiastic, personable, curious — and exceptionally knowledgeable.

Claire Bohmer ’25

Claire Bohmer ’25, a biochemistry major from Steamboat Springs, Colo., has been offered a Fulbright study/research grant for Slovenia. 

Research Experience Includes: Bohmer studies Lyme disease with a place-based approach that combines lab research and local knowledge. At ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, she was a researcher in the lab of Paula Schlax, Stella James Sims professor of chemistry and biochemistry, as a National Institutes of Health INBRE fellow, investigating RNA and protein behavior in the Lyme disease–causing bacterium. 

ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and Community Activities Include: Biology teaching assistant, STEM scholar, AESOP trip leader, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Public Health Initiative participant, and president of Chicks on Sticks women’s ski club.

Fulbright Research Purpose: To compare the primary bacterial transmitter of Lyme disease, Borrelia burgdorferi, as it appears in Europe versus the United States in order to better understand the pathogen’s structure and function, which could help establish more effective therapeutic treatments for Lyme disease.

In collaboration with the University of Primorska, in Koper, Slovenia, Bohmer will also observe how Slovenian communities combat Lyme disease using public health initiatives and disease research, to determine if such methods could serve as global models for other countries to implement as tick-borne diseases grow increasingly prevalent under climate change.

Plans for Host-Community Engagement in Slovenia: To volunteer at the Science Centre at the University of Primorska to share science with the general public, connect with local schools in Koper and work with elementary students to better understand the local knowledge of those living in tick-populated areas, and run with the Obala Ultra Trail group.

Plans After Fulbright: To attend medical school for pediatric care or pursue a master’s degree in biotechnology.

What the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Fulbright Committee Said: “Both her academic endeavors and her extracurricular activities keep her engaged in her community: She always seeks to connect what she loves to what she does.â€�

More About Bohmer: During a semester spent studying climate science in Patagonia, Bohmer stepped outside the lab to learn directly from ranchers, fishermen, and storekeepers, discovering that place is defined less by landscape than by the people and stories that shape it. 

As an emerging scientist with an interest in research, intervention, and disease management, Bohmer is driven by that sense of connection. “Genuinely connecting and listening to others may just be the solution to changing scientific narratives that no longer serve communities at large.�

Charles Breyfogle ’25

Charles Breyfogle ’25, a double major in politics and French and Francophone studies from Columbus, Ohio, has been offered a Fulbright English teaching grant for Switzerland.

Relevant Experience Includes: French-English translator with Maine’s Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project, French language teaching assistant, sailing instructor, and soccer coach.

ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and Community Activities Include: Center for Purposeful Work peer advisor, former varsity soccer team member, and volunteer at Trinity Jubilee Center.

Plans for Host-Community Engagement in Switzerland: To join a community soccer team, coach or volunteer with youth soccer players, join outing clubs, offer English tutoring outside of the classroom, and volunteer for social service or environmental organizations.

Plans After Fulbright: Earn a law degree and work as an immigration lawyer serving French-speaking populations.

What the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Fulbright Committee Said: “Charlie is a quiet leader who makes the groups he is in much stronger through his skills in mediation. He will be a model for his students regarding community engagement and civic responsibility.â€�

More about Breyfogle: An avid traveler, Breyfogle has connected with friends around the world through the universal language of soccer. He joined Kansai Gaidai University’s team during his semester abroad in Japan and, despite knowing little Japanese when he arrived, became friends with Japanese students through bonding over the sport.

“Soccer has allowed me to create friendships and learn more about other cultures, whether immigrants to the U.S. or while traveling abroad. I now have a plethora of friends waiting to open their doors to me around the world — I too would do the same for them.�

Maple Buescher ’25

Maple Buescher ’25, a politics major from Cleveland Heights, Ohio, was offered a Fulbright English teaching grant for Spain. For 2025–26, she has chosen a different path and will serve as a Spanish teaching apprentice at the High Mountain Institute, a wilderness-based semester school in Colorado.

Relevant Experience Includes: Teaching assistant at an afterschool program for children from underserved populations in Spain, youth mentor with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Mid–Maine, and counselor at Reaching Heights orchestral camp. She completed an honors thesis analyzing nationalist rhetoric and changing understandings of nationalism in Galicia, Spain, from 2016 to 2024.

ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and Community Activities Include: Ladd Library student access specialist, editor-in-chief of The ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Student 2023–24, Outing Club trip leader, and club sailing team member. She graduated magna cum laude, with honors in politics and Phi Beta Kappa membership, and received the Charles A. Dana award.

Wes DeOreo ’25

Wes DeOreo ’25, a double major in politics and German from Westport, Conn., earned a Fulbright English teaching grant for Germany.

Relevant Experience Includes: Research aid studying transatlantic history at the University of Freiburg, in Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany; English teaching volunteer at the Carl-Shurz-Haus in Freiburg; and head coach of PTSV Jahn Freiburg Pumas Lacrosse.

ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and Community Activities Include: AESOP leader, rugby club president, Athletics student assistant, and Davis Fitness Center attendant.

Plans for Host-Community Engagement in Germany: Join community sports teams and reconnect with German friends and family.

Plans After Fulbright: To pursue a career in public service.

What the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Fulbright Committee Said: “Wes has a strong sense of service. Wes also has an impressive sense of humility and is eager to learn from his students through this experience.â€�

More about DeOreo: While teaching English during his semester abroad in Germany, DeOreo fielded students’ questions about life in America, including questions about gun violence, particularly sensitive to DeOreo in the aftermath of the October 2023 shootings in Lewiston.

“It will be my job to encourage my students to embrace their curiosity and see the classroom as a place where they have freedom to seek answers to these challenging questions.�

Ale’ia Gallego Calle ’25

Ale’ia Gallego Calle ’25, a politics major with minors in Chinese and Japanese from Waterbury, Conn., was offered a Fulbright English teaching grant for Taiwan in July.

Relevant Experience Includes: English tutor for elementary-aged ELL students, online private tutor, 2022–24 president of ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Chinese Club, semester spent studying in Shanghai.

ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and Community Activities Include: Office of Intercultural Education peer educator, first-generation peer mentor, co-founder of the Korean Intercultural Association.

Plans for Host-Community Engagement in Taiwan: To establish or support a bilingual storytelling club at a local library, organize field trips for students to local farms to support local agriculture and deepen students’ appreciation for how their food is created, and establish or join a program assisting students in pursuing higher education abroad.

Plans After Fulbright: Work with international organizations on humanitarian and social justice initiatives, ultimately pursuing a career in medicine and academia.

What the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Fulbright Committee Said: Ale’ia’s “experience organizing cultural events reveals her ability to engage diverse communities, crucial for positive representation. Her adaptability, evident from her study abroad experiences, ensures she can navigate cultural differences gracefully. These qualities, combined with her knack for cultural exchange, make [Ale’ia] an ideal ETA.â€�

More about Gallego Calle: Gallego Calle’s passion for cultural exchange and language learning began as a young child, when her family moved to the U.S. from Colombia and Gallego Calle taught her younger sister English by telling her stories.

As an English teaching assistant, she’ll again utilize storytelling to help her students learn. Gallego Calle says she is “not just aiming to understand Taiwan; I want to become a part of its story. By embracing new experiences, celebrating cultural differences, and finding common ground in unexpected places, I’ll bring the Fulbright mission of fostering mutual understanding as an ambassador to life.â€�

Madeleine Kwei ’25

Maddy Kwei ’25, a psychology major from Pasadena, Calif., earned a Fulbright English teaching grant for Taiwan.

Relevant Experience Includes: English teaching assistant in France and Nicaragua, psychology teaching assistant at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, and creator and leader of a six-week English language learning program with Families Forward Learning Center in Pasadena, Calif.

ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and Community Activities Include: Over 100 hours of community-engaged learning experience mainly with youth in afterschool programs and classroom settings, community outreach fellow with the Harward Center for Community Engagement, women’s varsity golf team member, and Ladd Library access desk worker.

Plans for Host-Community Engagement in Taiwan: To encourage students to play sports with an emphasis on gender equality and volunteer with Special Olympics.

Plans After Fulbright: To pursue a master’s degree in counseling psychology, with the goal of working as a psychologist for diverse youth and people with Asian backgrounds.

What the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Fulbright Committee Said: “Maddy is passionate about working with youth and learning more about adolescent development, and skilled at communicating and efficiently solving problems.â€�

More about Kwei: Kwei spent several years of her childhood in Beijing, where the friendships she formed at her international school informed her passion for intercultural communication from an early age.

While showing Danish friends she met in Beijing around Maine, Kwei became aware that “Americans hold a high regard toward celebrating regional cultures and integrating diversity into everyday life. Learning to recognize the values and beliefs that make me an American (and the blind spots that I still have) deepens my curiosity to learn more about the world and how I can contribute as an informed global citizen.�

Helena Raddock ’24

Helena Raddock ’24, a politics major from Warren, Vt., has been offered a Fulbright English teaching assistant grant for Rwanda.

Relevant Experience Includes: Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition intern with the Rwandan Association of Maine; English language learning mentor to elementary school students; Lewiston High School tutor; Vermont Council on World Affairs participant; field organizer; study abroad in Cape Town, South Africa, with a human rights and multiculturalism program.

ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and Community Activities Include: Center for Purposeful Work peer advisor; Snaggletooth literary magazine contributor; peer tutor for First-Year Seminars; “Get Out the Voteâ€� fellow for Harward Center for Community Partnerships. At commencement, she received the Maung Maung Gyi Award for Excellence in Politics with membership in Phi Beta Kappa, completing an honors thesis on “The Construction of Coloured Identities: Apartheid Nostalgia and the Politics of Memory.”

Plans for Host-Community Engagement in Rwanda: To offer career-guiding workshops for Rwandan citizens at the U.S. Embassy, create an English language learning book club, and volunteer with women’s empowerment organizations such as Rwanda Women’s Network or Empower Rwanda.

Plans After Fulbright: To pursue a master of arts degree in global affairs with a focus on gender, conflict, resolution, and peacemaking.

What the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Fulbright Committee Said: “Since learning that Rwanda has the world’s highest proportion of women in government positions, Helena has wanted to live in Rwanda and learn more about the role of women in Rwandan education and society.â€�

More about Raddock: Raddock’s passion for helping others learn languages is largely informed by her experience living with a host family in South Africa, who welcomed her and encouraged her as she learned the isiXhosa language, which was no easy task.

Last summer, she attended Middlebury College’s French language immersion program, which “deepened my passion for language learning and cultural immersion.�

“My goal is to foster an atmosphere where language learning is viewed as an opportunity for growth and connection, just as it was for me during my time with my homestay family.�

Emma Seitz ’25

Emma Seitz ’25, a double major in theater and history from Brooklyn, N.Y., has been offered a Fulbright English teaching grant for Germany.

Relevant Experience Includes: Study abroad and research assistant at Berlin International University of Applied Science, teacher assistant at the Grace Church Theater Department in New York City, children’s summer camp leader in New Paltz, N.Y., during COVID-19.

ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and Community Activities Include: Merimanders a cappella, Musician Union treasurer and secretary, club volleyball, AESOP leader.

Plans for Host-Community Engagement in Germany: To facilitate cross-cultural communication through open discussions on contemporary issues and topics, join a music group and a theater group, and provide tutoring for several subjects including English and history.

Plans After Fulbright: To work as a teacher in the U.S. while pursuing a career in playwriting and script writing for television and film.

What the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Fulbright Committee Said: “Since returning from study abroad, Emma continued to read German news, watch German media, and speak the language whenever she could. She wrote her history thesis on the difference in generational guilt surrounding the Holocaust between East and West Germany. Emma will arrive in Germany with an excellent knowledge of its history, culture, and current events — and with an excitement to learn more.â€�

More about Seitz: While studying abroad in Germany, Seitz produced a short film for a final project in just three weeks, which required her to use her still-developing German to secure a filming permit from Berlin’s main transit company.

The experience was “hard and rewarding work,” she said. “I wanted to continue teaching and collaborating with Germans because of the challenge.â€� She’ll bring her experience studying and working in German to her role as an English teaching assistant, aiming to make her students feel supported and understood in the classroom.

The vote by the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ faculty, 40 years ago in the Filene Room in Pettigrew Hall, wasn’t even close: 58–27 in favor of making the submission of SAT scores optional for admission.

It was the vote heard ’round the country. Within two weeks, thanks in part around the nation, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ had entered into, and would ultimately become a leader of the national conversation about the value of standardized tests in college admission. Today, around 80 percent of U.S. four-year colleges and universities do not require ACT/SAT for admission.

Six years after the 1984 vote, then-Dean of Admission and Financial Aid Bill Hiss ’66 called the vote “a bold move and one we haven’t regretted.â€� Entering its fifth decade as a test-optional pioneer, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ still has no regrets, says Leigh Weisenburger, vice president for enrollment and dean of admission and financial aid. 

“Standardized tests and a student’s subsequent scores are rooted in inequity,� she says. “Our test-optional admission policy removes a barrier for many talented and promising students, and we see it as a natural extension of our progressive history and mission dedicated to access and inclusion.�

Followup studies over the years have supported what ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ believed to be true in 1984. Standardized tests are no better than a student’s high school grades as a measure of academic potential. At worse, they can filter out and discourage talented students who are already underserved by U.S. higher education.

In retrospect, the 1984 decision to go test-optional seems obvious — a slam dunk. But thanks to a first-year reporter’s account for The ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Student, the only record of the discussion, we know that there was staunch opposition to the proposed legislation on that Monday afternoon in the Filene Room.

Specifically, two titans of the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ faculty were firmly opposed to making SATs optional. One was Dean of Students Jim Carignan ’61, who had joined the history faculty in 1970 and was appointed dean of students about a decade later by ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ President Hedley Reynolds. The other was Carl Straub, who had joined the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ religion faculty in 1965 and was named dean of the faculty in 1974. 

Covering the October faculty meeting for the Student was a cub reporter, Howard Fine ’88, included telling quotes from Reynolds, Carignan, and Straub. 

With a formidable disdain for flash over substance, Straub said that a decision to drop the SAT requirement had nothing to do with education. “It is more a marketing issue. I see no evidence that convinces me that the proposed [legislation] will increase the number or quality of applicants.�

In his quoted remarks at the meeting, Reynolds agreed that the legislation had a marketing angle, but one “which will, in the long run, bring more good studentsâ€� to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½. Indeed, the prospect of good publicity for ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ was a selling point, Fine recalls. “There was an awareness among the faculty that if SAT scores were made optional for admission, it would garner national attention since so few schools around the country had taken that path.â€�

Meanwhile, Carignan argued that “moving away from the SAT signals a retreat� from an important measure of academic strength at a time when “we are making real strides in strengthening our [application] pool and advancing the image of the college as academically strong.�

Professor Emeritus of Psychology John Kelsey was in the room that day, and he recalls agreeing with some of his colleagues that SAT scores were helpful predictive tools. Forty years after the vote, he’s aware of the privilege of that perspective. “As majority white and male academics, we had the bias that SATs measured something quite important: ‘What was your SAT score?'”

Kelsey has long experience as adjunct application reader for ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Admission. While not recalling his own vote that day, he does remember the “highly persuasive argument that SATs were highly correlated with socioeconomic status, and thus biased against a variety of groups we all wished to attract to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½.”

The fall of 1984 at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ was a typically busy time on campus in light of local, national, and global events. There was the visit to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ by Lisa Birnbach, author of The Official Preppy Handbook, to do a TV segment for NBC’s Today show, then hosted by Bryant Gumbel ’70.

There were incoming ripples from the looming Reagan–Mondale presidential election. On campus, a mini-controversy erupted over the two state liquor inspectors who, posing as construction workers, raided a Milliken House party.

But the drama of the SAT vote rose above them all. “It was regarded as a big deal,â€� recalls Fine, who went into journalism after graduation and is a longtime reporter with the Los Angeles Business Journal. 

Despite the opposition from Carignan and Straub, the legislation passed easily. Kelsey described the faculty sentiment this way: “We agreed to do a kind of experiment. And I judge that experiment to be largely a success.”

One reason the legislation sailed through, perhaps, is that the faculty Committee on Admissions and Financial Aid, chaired by Anne Thompson of the English department, had done its work. 

Supported by Hiss, whom Reynolds had plucked from the faculty of nearby Hebron Academy in 1978 to lead the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Admission team, the committee presented a compelling 20-page report to the faculty, the result of five years of research. (Drake Bradley, Dana Professor Emeritus of Psychology, made major contributions to the college’s statistical research before the vote and in follow-up studies.)

The report presented what is now a consensus in the college admission world: that SATs are “not critical to making good admission decisions� and that the use of standardized tests like the SAT presents a series of ethical issues. Those include troubling correlation of test scores to family income; the rise of SAT coaching, again benefiting wealthier students; and how high school teachers were beginning to alter their curricula to, in the words of one high school teacher, “to teach kids how to take the [SATs].�

After the vote, a ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Magazine story noted that ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ students with weaker test scores, including minority students, rural students, and poor students, “have made great contributions once enrolled at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½.” That fact, according to Thompson, “cast a great deal of doubt on the fairness of using the tests for admission purposes.”

The report included results from a questionnaire sent to guidance counselors at 95 high schools, which indicated that SATs were hurting the college’s efforts to build a larger and stronger applicant pool. Increasingly, students were using a college’s mean SAT scores, as published in guidebooks, to opt out from applying. If a student’s score was below the mean, they didn’t apply (too hard to get in); if their score was above the mean, they didn’t apply (too easy to get in).

“By not requiring SATs,â€� the report concluded, “ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ could encourage a greater diversity of students to apply [and] who are capable of succeeding at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, but who, for cultural or financial reasons, have not scored well and are currently being discouraged from applying.â€�

In 1990, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ dropped all standardized test requirement, including achievement tests. In a followup article in ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Magazine that year, Hiss noted that the academic strength of a study body isn’t a measure of who is admitted, but who applies. And when ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ dropped the SAT requirement, applications jumped by a third, and the quality of the application pool remained high.

(Growing the applicant pool also had the additional benefit of improving ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½’ selectivity, as published in college guidebooks, a hoped-for result of an optional-SAT policy that Kelsey recalls being in the air and was also noted in Fine’s reporting in fall 1984.)

Sharing his thoughts recently, Hiss said that the growth of the pool meant success at meeting a charge from his boss. “When I was hired, Hedley, in our first conversation, gave me a one-sentence charge, which I remember verbatim and have many times quoted to our staff and others over the years: ‘Take the applicant pools up and down the social and economic ladders, and spread out geographically.’

“He thought we were too narrowly middle class and too narrowly New England. He was right on both counts. So the optional-testing decision, six years later, was one step among many in having ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ become a national college and then an international one, with a much more complex array of student backgrounds.â€�

The charge also reflected what Reynolds and others saw coming, a decline in New England’s share of the U.S. population. Expansion was a business decision in addition to an educational and mission-driven one.

By any measure, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ in the 1980s was indeed growing stronger and expanding its reputation under Reynolds, whose focus was on enrollment, facilities, and, especially, support for the faculty, which took the shape of a near doubling of its size, strengthening academic credentials, and lowering the student-faculty ratio, from 15-to-1 to 13-to-1 (today it is 10–1). 

And this might be a second reason that the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ faculty responded positively to the SAT legislation: respect for Reynolds’ forward-looking leadership of the college.

A former history professor and dean at Middlebury, Reynolds “understood faculty governance, he understood the intellectual life, he understood the importance of faculty scholarship, and faculty support — everything,â€� recalled Hiss in a 2005 oral history for the Muskie Archives and Special Collection Library. Compared to prior ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ leaders, he was “far more of a visionary about ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, far more willing to change ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ in profound, systemic ways.â€� 

“This is not the time for rigidity,� Reynolds said. “It is not a time for the college to stand proudly looking backward.�

A day after the faculty vote, Hiss was in Boston with Admission colleague Wylie Mitchell (later to become ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½â€™ admission dean), attending the annual conference of the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC). 

There, the pair met with Ted Fiske, education reporter for The New York Times, who had just begun what would become the highly influential Fiske Guide to Colleges. “We had lunch with Ted, and he broke the story,â€� recalls Hiss. On Oct. 9, with ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ prominent in the lead paragraphs and throughout, Fiske’s story ran in the Times under the headline, “Some colleges question usefulness of SATs.â€� 

Meanwhile, The ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Student had broken the news four days earlier, in its Oct. 5 edition. Fine’s story offered perhaps the most telling quotes about how ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ rolled under Reynolds. “This is not the time for rigidity,â€� Reynolds said. “It is not a time for the college to stand proudly looking backward.â€�

Today, around 80 percent of all four-year colleges and universities . Many have been influenced by various follow-up studies conducted by ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, often supported by members of the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ staff and faculty, capped off by a 30-year study co-authored by Hiss and Valerie Wilson Franks ’98 in 2014. 

“It’s been a 40-year commitment for me,â€� said Hiss, who retired from ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ in 2012. “But maybe the larger story is 40 years of ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ people doing the work to make the college a major force in changing American definitions of promise and intelligence.â€�

​â¶Ä‹

Malcolm Hill will step down as dean of the faculty and vice president for academic affairs on June 30, 2025, announced ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ President Garry W. Jenkins on Monday.

Hill, a tenured biology professor at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and widely published scholar on the evolutionary ecology of marine invertebrates, will return to the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ classroom in fall 2026 after a sabbatical in the 2025-26 academic year.

Hill, who joined ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ in 2018, is the architect of significant academic innovations that have strengthened the college and its national reputation while expanding support for student and faculty success, said Jenkins.

“I am extraordinarily grateful for all that Malcolm has done for our college. I am so appreciative of his deep commitment to his work, to our faculty and students, and to our collaborative efforts as a senior leadership team. Malcolm’s work has profoundly shaped our academic programs and strengthened the college’s position as a national leader in the liberal arts and sciences, and his dedication to advancing inclusive, equity-driven, and innovative best practices has left an indelible mark on our graduates and our college.�

Jenkins added, “During the pandemic, under pressure and uncertainty, Malcolm worked with faculty and senior staff colleagues to help lead this college through unprecedented challenges, modeling values of collaboration and resilience. Malcolm has been a terrific partner these past 14 months, and I look forward to continuing to work closely with him for the remainder of the year. We are excited to see him return to his research and teaching and to continue contributing to our students’ and to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½â€™ academic excellence.â€�

In his announcement, Jenkins said that the college will develop and announce plans for a search for Hill’s successor later in the fall after broad consultation with the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ community.

As a member of the college’s senior administrative team and chief academic officer, Hill holds leadership responsibilities in the areas of curriculum and academic initiatives; faculty recruitment, review, tenure and promotion; and nurturing faculty career development in the arenas of instruction, scholarship, and community engagement. Hill’s office oversees the Registrar, the Harward Center for Community Partnerships, the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Dance Festival, the Museum of Art, and the Office of Sponsored Programs and Research Compliance.

Under Hill’s leadership, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ has made remarkable progress in embedding equity and inclusion into its academic fabric, enhancing both faculty and student success.

“I am proud of the strides that ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ has made to strengthen and expand opportunities for student success at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and how we have supported faculty in developing the tools to be effective in their work,â€� said Hill. “I am particularly proud of our progress in embedding equity and inclusion into the academic fabric of ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, a firm foundation that will continue to support our community for years to come.â€�

He added, “I am exceedingly grateful to the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ faculty for their amazing capacity to fully engage not only in their teaching and in their scholarly and creative work, but in the behind-the-scenes work as advocates for the quality and integrity of our academic programs. I am indebted to our faculty for their embrace of institutional goals and their willingness to collaborate for the betterment of our students’ academic experience.â€�

Over a two-year period ending in 2021, Hill provided leadership support for substantial modernization and improvement to the process for faculty reappointment, tenure, and promotion. During Hill’s tenure, criteria that define faculty excellence have been strengthened and now incorporate equity and inclusion in essential ways.

To support the faculty’s professional development in this area, Hill advocated for, and helped establish in 2022, the Center for Inclusive Teaching and Learning. The new center introduces current research findings and modern approaches to help faculty and staff educators develop and refine professional, reflective, innovative, and inclusive pedagogies.

A year later, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ completed a comprehensive reorganization and expansion of its academic student support programs, resulting in two new centers, the Student Academic Support Center and the Student Writing and Language Center. Located in the new Peer Learning Commons space on the ground floor of Ladd Library, the centers have streamlined resources and enhanced peer tutoring across disciplines.

This achievement reflected a larger success in improving student advising, including major improvements to the management of the First-Year Seminar program so students retain their pre-major advisor through their first two years.

Other transformational efforts to energize and inspire teaching and research include facility investments exceeding $75 million in state-of-the-art spaces including Bonney Science Center, renovations to Dana Chemistry Hall, and improvements to Carnegie Science Hall. By the time Hill leaves the office, the college will have hired more than 75 new permanent faculty colleagues across all academic divisions. Hill’s work to achieve a net increase in the size of the faculty through the addition of eight new tenure-track faculty lines represents an important investment in the academic enterprise.

In April 2023, the faculty approved a new general education requirement to engage students with issues of race, power, privilege, and colonialism. Student advocacy, faculty collaboration, and institutional commitment ensured that ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ students will be equipped to understand the history and legacies of racism, and prepared to address systemic inequities in the world. To support ongoing curricular discussions, Hill called upon the faculty to engage in Foundational Dialogues, a structured platform for ongoing, critical conversations to promote thoughtful engagement across disciplines, foster collaborative learning, and guide the faculty toward continuous academic improvement.

Through a 2018 grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Inclusive Excellence Initiative, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ faculty have adopted new curricula and pedagogical approaches in STEM that have yielded dramatic results in improved retention outcomes for all students and particularly within the college’s Black and Hispanic students. In addition, the Mellon Curricular Grants project has brought a focus to the faculty’s capacity to teach and mentor a diverse student population in the humanities and humanistic social sciences.

While serving as dean, Hill kept his hand in the classroom and research. In recent years, he has taught courses in evolutionary biology and biostatistics, as well as a First-Year Seminar, guiding students in the college’s equity-driven STEM Scholars program that was developed through the HHMI grant.

Hill joined ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ from the University of Richmond, where he was the Clarence E. Denoon Jr. Professor of Science and held leadership roles in the School of Arts and Sciences. He received a bachelor’s degree in biology and environmental science from Colby College and a doctorate in evolutionary ecology from the University of Houston.

When Alan Wang ’24 studied abroad in Kyoto, Japan, as a junior, he relished the seamless transportation options — bicycle, bus, train — that delivered him to classes at Doshisha University. 

But when Wang worked for the Maine Secretary of State’s Office last summer, he had to drive from Lewiston to Augusta, and it was a different experience. “Exhausting,� he said.

The following semester, Wang read Better Buses, Better Cities. “One of the takeaways is people don’t use buses because buses don’t make themselves known to people,â€� said Wang. “A lot of students don’t even know the bus stop at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ exists. Building a bus shelter is the best way to remind them.â€�

Those experiences sparked an interest in public transportation advocacy, so he went to work, doing research and turning to the college’s Green Innovation Grant program, which awards funds to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ community members for projects that make ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and the community more environmentally sustainable.

In the spring, Wang received a $2,000 Green Grant — one of four grants totalling $8,000 dispersed from the program this year — to help fund the construction of a more prominent and welcoming bus stop for the new Portland–Lewiston commuter bus line . The project was one of four Green Grant projects funded this year.

The enclosed bus stop will be built near Gomes Chapel by the Maine Department of Transportation in conjunction with the Lewiston-Auburn Transit Committee. While the $2,000 grant will pay for a fraction of the final cost — around $40,000 to $50,000 — of the new ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ bus stop, the private funding from the college also will help secure other matching state or federal transportation funds.  

Wang has met with community leaders in Lewiston and Auburn in his effort to bring an attractive public bus stop to campus, one of several new enclosed bus shelters in the two cities. 

�His advocacy for transit is strong,� said Larry Allen, the Lewiston-Auburn Transit Committee director. “Alan espoused the benefits of consolidating transit activities between the two lines at one location on campus. This eliminates confusion and allows for the bundling of resources, such as infrastructure and capital resources.�

With a ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ politics degree now in hand, Wang, who is from Jiaozuo, China, will test his new interest in urban planning this summer in the Lincoln (Maine) County Regional Planning Department as a transportation planning assistant. “This internship will give me a great lens on if I actually want to pursue this as my career,â€� he said.

A second funded proposal from Gianluca Yornet de Rosas ’24 of Mendoza, Argentina, who used his Green Grant to team up with Facility Services to add the first bird-safe window treatment at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½. The idea came after he witnessed bird fatalities from strikes on the windows of his residence. 

Yornet, who hopes to go into environmental conservation work, grew up in the South American region around the Andes Mountains, where he was fascinated by the Andean Condor, the largest raptor in the world. The environmental studies major also knew that bird strikes on windows are a leading cause of avian mortality — resulting in up to an estimated 1 billion bird fatalities annually, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 

Because of the reflective and mirror qualities of window panes, birds often can’t detect the glass barrier. Yornet’s $2,000 grant funded the purchase and installation of several adhesive bird-safe window treatments that use tiny patterns to alert birds to the window.

He hopes it’s a good start. “Maybe if it stops the birds from colliding with the windows and dying, other students might continue the project, or this will be adopted into other buildings. I wanted to make sure it got done, even if it doesn’t solve the whole issue.�

Another Green Grant grant will fund the installation of signage aimed at lessening contamination in recycling in residences. The idea was the brainchild of Caroline Mayer ’26 of Wolfeboro, N.H., and Sarah Smith ’26 of Severna Park, Md., two EcoReps who worked the past year on improving recycling habits around campus.

The signage will be placed right where students live: their rooms. “We have good signage in all of the trash and recycling rooms, but the sorting is happening in the dorm room, not once you’re down in the trash room,â€� said Tom Twist, assistant director of sustainability at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½. “By then, it’s already done.â€�

The signs, affixed to the back doors of rooms, spell out the recyclable material — cardboard, plastic, paper containers, glass, and metal — and that all other items should go to the landfill. “When in doubt, throw it out,â€� say the signs designed by Smith and Mayer, who plan to target first-year residences to instill good recycling practices at the start of their time at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½.

Liza Bell ’26 of Putney, Vt., won a GIG to resupply tools for the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ bike shop, a much needed purchase after a theft last summer depleted the supply.

The grant helped fund 30 new tools as well as a new lock system for the nine loaner bikes available to students. In addition, Bell said the grant helped keep those loaners in the Ladd Library gear library in good working order. As a result, usage increased this spring, with all nine bikes checked out much of the time.

“This project will contribute to the school’s green bike share program which makes biking on campus more accessible. By having the necessary tools and locks we will be able to continue to expand and improve the program,â€� Bell explained in her proposal.

This story was updated on November 3, 2025 to reflect more recent information on the number of birds killed each year from window strikes.

ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Professor of Politics Ã�slaug Ã�sgeirsdóttir always wanted to return to her homeland of Iceland — but only if she could contribute in a meaningful way. Ã�sgeirsdóttir got her wish this spring when she was offered the rectorship of the University of Akureyri, a role in Iceland equivalent to president. Her rectorship begins July 1, 2024.

“This is the right opportunity at the right time. I was never going to move back just because I wanted to,â€� Ã�sgeirsdóttir said. “It always had to be because there was also an interesting opportunity to contribute to higher education in Iceland.â€� 

As Ã�sgeirsdóttir did a Zoom interview last week, a group of students showed up at her office with a huge bouquet of flowers. She returned to the interview clearly touched by her students’ gesture. That’s a big part of why she will miss the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ community: her work guiding students, and her close interactions with ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ students.

“I’ve gotten to do a lot of different things at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½. You have a lot of freedom at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ with what we call the educational journey with students. And I’ve just always loved that about ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½,” she said.

Ã�sgeirsdóttir, who joined the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ faculty in 2001, is a widely published expert on ocean governance, including the settling of maritime boundaries. She taught courses at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ that included “International Political Economy,â€� “Ocean Governance,â€� and “The Arctic,â€� and advised senior thesis students.

In addition to her teaching and research, Ã�sgeirsdóttir has made significant contributions to faculty governance at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, including a term as associate dean of the college, said Malcolm Hill, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty.

“We are all very excited to see Ã�slaug take on this important leadership opportunity,â€� said Hill in his announcement to the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ faculty. “I am deeply indebted to Ã�slaug, having benefited from her strong and unflappable leadership and wise counsel as associate dean. She tackled several important initiatives including introducing improvements to the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Faculty Development Fund, revamping the departmental review guidelines, and guiding a successful proposal to strengthen principles of faculty governance and committee work.â€�

The University of Akureyri, located in the town of Akureyri in the north of Iceland, offers undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs in the health sciences, business, natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities for about 2,800 students.

“I think what I bring to the table is an outside perspective, a different view,â€� said Ã�sgeirsdóttir, “but also a great deal of experience and deep experience in managing people, overseeing projects as well as years of experience teaching and publishing.â€�

Ã�sgeirsdóttir plans to get to work ensuring continued educational access on the Nordic island — which means something different in Iceland than it means in the U.S. In Iceland, public education is free, but that still doesn’t always translate into easy access to education as towns are far away and people often work while taking classes, Ã�sgeirsdóttir said. 

The University of Akureyri, which is a pioneer in blended learning in Iceland and has a reputation for educating teachers and nurses, among other professionals, also faces some of the same challenges as U.S. universities, such as the complexities presented by artificial intelligence and the role on-line learning will play in the future. 

�sgeirsdóttir is eager to work with faculty and staff to help the university navigate its way through the uncertain times in the world and in Iceland, which is a country roughly the size of Ohio with a population of nearly 400,000 people.

“How do you continue to provide great educational offerings and ensure that the quality of what you’re doing is great? There’s a lot up in the air, but it’s a great institution with a great reputation and I would like to carry that forward,â€� she said.

Studies have identified a troubling gap in U.S. higher education between the percentage of students who arrive at college hoping to major in a STEM field (science, technology, engineering, and math) and the much lower percentage who graduate with such a major. 

Statistics show that the fall-off is even higher among Black and Hispanic students.

At ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, new approaches to teaching STEM subjects have yielded dramatic results over the last six years: improved retention outcomes for all students and particularly within the college’s Black and Hispanic students.   

“This is exactly the kind of institutional change we want for our students.”

ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ President Garry W. Jenkins

The ratio of ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ students who enter with STEM hopes and are able to stay with a STEM major is now higher than national averages, including when compared to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½â€™ peer institutions, highly selective four-year institutions. 

STEM-interested ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ students who are Black are now more than 50 percent more likely to earn a STEM degree than they were in 2016, according to data from ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES).

“This is exactly the kind of institutional change we want for our students,“ said President Garry W. Jenkins.

“Our STEM faculty has been intensely focused on creating more equitable educational opportunities. These findings show how successful their innovations have already been. It’s exciting for our institution, our students, and prospective students. The data shows that ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ is one of the absolute very best places in the country to study mathematics and the sciences, and every student interested in STEM should give ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ very serious consideration. â€� 

April Horton is the Wagener Family Professor of Equity and Inclusion in STEM at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and a national expert in equity and inclusion in the sciences. Horton said that ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½â€™ effort to improve equity for marginalized students and be more inclusive has led to improvements in outcomes across the board.

“Our classes are changed for everyone,� said Horton. “If you look at the data, you see that the white students do better, too. Everyone does better because you have a way of teaching that really engages every student and that has a variety of ways that people can learn.�

Horton came to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ in 2018 from the University of Richmond, where she chaired the biology department and helped create more equitable STEM programs. She arrived at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ confident in her methods for building more inclusive teaching, and found many willing partners, but together, they faced an uphill battle.

At the time, “STEM at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ had a negative reputation,â€� Horton said, citing past student surveys and data that showed Black students leaving for other majors. “And I think we’ve worked really hard to change that.â€�

Last November, Horton present the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ findings at an American Association of Colleges and Universities conference focusing on transforming STEM higher education. Afterward, she was approached by other academics who expressed surprise at how quickly ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ improved its methods and outcomes.

“They were saying, ‘I just didn’t think you could do this in just a few years, but you’ve shown that you can,’â€� said Horton. “And it’s my belief that if a school changes their practices and the way that their curriculum is set up with the existing populations of students, they can increase the number of students that are persisting and not just persisting but actually doing really well in STEM.â€�

ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ has found that making changes in the teaching approach in various areas of STEM courses, such as diving into real life research problems in introductory courses, can make a real difference in serving diverse populations well in academia, Horton said. 

Horton credits her ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ colleagues across all STEM subjects, who, beginning in 2017, took a hard look at student surveys and outcomes and saw a problem with how they were getting through to marginalized students, for doing the hard work of changing the curriculum. “I have a huge amount of admiration for my colleagues here,â€� Horton said.

Changes in introductory ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ courses with longstanding reputations as the kind that “weededâ€� students out are particularly striking. Once lecture-based, those courses focused on textbooks, “cookbook labsâ€� (where the outcomes are known) and high-stake exams.

Among the changes were how faculty approach teaching these courses, by emphasizing a growth mindset that focuses on . 

The faculty also focus on skill building and active learning, with real-world problems that were unresolved. (Such as would feeding dairy cows seaweed reduce the harmful methane emissions from dairy herds that contribute to climate change?) And they offered multiple paths through the core curriculum in the biology department.

When it came time to assess the new courses, the equity gap had not only narrowed sharply, but success rates for all students had improved between 2019 and 2023.

The Data Says…

To evaluate its progress, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ has compared its retention of students who are interested in STEM majors with data from the National Center for Education Statistics. The results suggest impressive progress.

This table compares the most recent national data (2017) for highly-selective four-year institutions to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ data. The percentages represent those arriving with an interest in a STEM major and then graduating with a STEM major:

Within ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ data, notable finding is that Black students interested in STEM are 50 percent more likely to graduate with a STEM degree at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ than they were prior to the curricular revisions.

Today, even the way ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ students talk about their STEM education reflects progress, said Horton. “During the first year of our program, when students were asked to describe the culture of STEM at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, two of the most frequent words used were “competitiveâ€� and “challenging.â€�

But last year the most frequent words used to describe the culture of STEM at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ were “inclusive,â€� followed by “collaborativeâ€� and “supportive.â€�

When Adriana Salerno won her biggest award to date, from the the Mathematical Association of America, the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ professor had two unusual responses to what amounts to a lifetime achievement award.

Her first was, “Wait, I’m not finished” — a thought that Salerno, a professor of mathematics at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ since 2009, spoke to directly as she accepted one of the MAA’s highest awards at its annual MathFest in August.

“A really important part of being a math professor is that you know you don’t know everything and that you still have a lot to know and to learn and to grow,â€� she told the audience. “And so getting an award, this is always like, but why? I’ll be better later.â€�

The second thought was that an individual award didn’t feel quite right. Speaking from Washington, D.C., where Salerno, is now serving as a temporary program director at the National Science Foundation during a leave from ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, she explained that everything she does is in community, with her students and with her colleagues at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and beyond.

“The other thing that’s weird about getting an award is that I feel like it’s a community activity, teaching. Your students are thought partners, and so are your colleagues. I rely on so many other people and I’ve learned so much from other people.

“So what I feel about this award is it’s not just an award for me, but for me and my network and my community and my students.â€�

Salerno is one of three college professors nationwide to receive a , described by the MAA, the world’s largest community of mathematicians and students, as one of its highest awards.

“Adriana innovated from the start. Along the way, she devoted herself toward building math communities at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and beyond.”

Professor of Mathematics Meredith Greer

The award honors professors who are widely recognized as extraordinarily successful and whose teaching effectiveness has been shown to have had influence beyond their own institutions, which is how Salerno’s colleagues characterize her work: challenging teaching norms, working with the surrounding community, and serving as a faculty leader in efforts toward greater inclusion, diversity, and equity.

“Adriana innovated from the start, and she put tremendous resources into figuring out how to make her ideas work,” said Professor of Mathematics Meredith Greer, who joined the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ faculty in 2002. 

“Along the way, she devoted herself toward building math communities at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and beyond. She is a champion for the success of every student, and her influence has led to changes at levels from ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ to nationwide to international. Her students say they feel included and respected, and that they have valuable things to contribute in her classes.â€�

Introducing Salerno as she accepted her award, MAA President Hortensia Soto of Colorado State University remarked on Salerno’s “tireless� work to create an inclusive classroom for her students and an inclusive community for all mathematicians.

Soto noted that Salerno co-founded and was the first editor of a blog for the American Mathematical Society that “played an important role in getting the mathematics community to critically examine its practices.”

Salerno’s acceptance speech at the awards ceremony was titled “Teaching Math Is Hard,� a reference to the teaching statement she came up with 15 years ago, which started with the words “math is hard.�

Salerno’s remarks in accepting her Haimo award starts at the 23:45 mark:

That still holds true, along with the proviso that it is also worth learning. That thesis for her teaching career was inspired by the writings of Rainer Maria Rilke in “Letters to a Young Poet,â€� which Salerno had received as a gift from her older sister when she was 15. 

“I still go back to it every once in a while. This is from the letter that he writes on love, and in that he says that difficult things are usually also really meaningful things and vice versa, that really meaningful things are hard by nature. And so this was my thesis and my teaching statement was, ‘Math is hard but it is worth the effort.’�

She shared stories from her ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ courses, like the way she approached a type of course known as “Preparation for Industrial Careers.” Her goal was to engage students in applied mathematics, “but in a way that is very clearly going to be helpful to them in the workplace.â€�

In the course, she paired her students with local nonprofits. “The students got problems from the nonprofits and they had to figure out how to answer those questions. It was very messy. One of my students said, ‘This is a great class, but mostly I was cleaning data,’ and I’m like, this might be what you end up doing for work anyway, cleaning data sets.

“It was a really, really fun class to teach in the sense that this is mathematics that is relevant to their employment later on. This is math in the use of their future.â€�

For Salerno, the question of how mathematics can be used to make a better world is never far from her mind. Mathematics, she believes, can and should be for the public good. In her acceptance speech, Salerno told the audience about the course she and ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ colleague Katy Ott developed around the concept of math for social justice, inspired by earlier course-design work of Professor Emerita of Mathematics Bonnie Schulman.

“The students are responding so well to it because they’re just desperate for ways in which to connect mathematics to the world,â€� said Salerno. In fact, Shulman is coming out of retirement to teach the course again this winter.

Salerno is completing the final year of a three-year position as an NSF temporary program director, known as a “rotator” position, in the Visiting Scientist, Engineer and Education Program. Temporary directors serve as mentors, make funding recommendations, and influence new directions in research and teaching.

At the NSF, she’s on the team that oversees the Research Experiences for Undergraduates Program, which supports active research participation by undergraduate students in any of the areas of research funded by the NSF.

“I’ve been trying to get on the stuff that relates to my experiences,â€� Salerno says. “So I’ve been trying to carve out some space for not just research, but the liberal art part, as well.â€�