In some ways, summer is the quiet time at 乐播传媒. Students have mostly gone home, or off to explore exciting internships, research, work, or travel opportunities. Faculty colleagues are focused on research and preparations for the next academic year. Staff colleagues are tending to projects that get set aside in the busier months and taking well-earned vacations. 

On the other hand, campus remains a busy place. Contractors are working on projects that are more easily completed when there are fewer people around. Conferences, camps, and the 乐播传媒 Dance Festival bring hundreds to our beautiful campus for collaboration and exploration. Last month, the Trek Across Maine made its annual overnight stop at 乐播传媒, filling our lawns and tents with tired (and ravenous!) cyclists raising monies to support the American Lung Association. And, of course, 乐播传媒 employees continue to do the work that powers the college throughout the year.

I thought you might appreciate a quick update on that work, some of our shared accomplishments, and where we鈥檙e headed. After all, you make it all possible.

Campus Happenings

On May 31, we held the college鈥檚 160^th Commencement, celebrating the 480 members of the Class of 2026 and awarding honorary degrees to three distinguished individuals: H. Scott Bierman 鈥�77, Seema Hingorani, and Deborah Harkness, who offered the Commencement Address.

Two weeks later, more than 1,200 乐播传媒 alumni and family members returned to campus for . It was fantastic to see so many members of classes ending in 鈥�1鈥� and 鈥�6鈥� (as well as other alumni who wanted to support and see them) in Lewiston and renewing their connections to 乐播传媒 and to each other. We had a couple of perfect Maine summer days for a wonderful weekend of fun and festivities. 

We held a on May 1, beginning the work of creating a magnificent new space to support the overall well-being of our broader college community. It鈥檚 exciting to see for the college, which also includes substantial renovation of the beloved Alumni Gym (which turns 98 years old this year), begin to take shape. Thanks to the generosity of many alumni, parents, and friends, we have raised $29 million toward the total goal of $31 million in philanthropy to support this transformative $45 million capital project. We are so close to our goal鈦犫�斺仩if you have been considering a gift in support of this project or see its potential benefit, there has never been a better moment to make your mark on 乐播传媒 athletics and well-being for generations to come.

Other major changes to the physical campus include a long-needed renovation of the softball field, including the installation of artificial turf that will allow our team to play home games earlier in the spring and when weather conditions are less than ideal. This renovation is part of a multi-year effort to transition the three remaining grass competition fields used by our varsity and club teams to turf fields, making them safer and more playable for our students. And last August, from the path to Merrill Gym to a place of honor at the corner of Garcelon Field, where it is much more visible鈦犫�斺仩and much more accessible to the athletes and fans who touch it for good luck!

Speaking of athletics, we had an amazing year. The field hockey, men鈥檚 basketball, women鈥檚 basketball, track and field, swimming and diving, men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 rowing, and men鈥檚 lacrosse teams all made end-of-season NCAA appearances. For the first time, 乐播传媒 won three NESCAC championships in a year. We won two NCAA titles in men鈥檚 swimming and had a runner-up finish in women鈥檚 rowing. We celebrated with a double overtime win over Amherst, and we marked . The men鈥檚 swimming and diving team took the President鈥檚 Cup at the annual CATSBY award ceremony, in recognition of their excellence in athletic competition, in the classroom, and in the community. All this success resulted in 乐播传媒 finishing among the top 10 percent of Division III athletics programs nationally, placing in the top 40 of more than 400 institutions in the 2025鈥�26 Learfield Directors鈥� Cup standings, awarded by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics. 

Beyond the many on-field honors our student-athletes earned this year鈦犫�斺仩e.g., All-American and all-region recognition, All-NESCAC selections, and records broken across multiple sports鈦犫�斺仩乐播传媒 athletes continued to distinguish themselves academically as well as in competition. Literally hundreds of 乐播传媒 athletes were named to CSC Academic All-District and NESCAC All-Academic teams, a reminder that excellence in the classroom remains as much a part of the 乐播传媒 identity as excellence in competition.  

In October, we inducted the of Bobcat athletes into the 乐播传媒 Athletics Hall of Fame. , which includes five inductees and seven legacy honorees (individuals whose contributions and achievements occurred more than 50 years ago).

In the arts, 乐播传媒 students continued to shine in every aspect of creative production and performance. Highlights included outstanding a cappella concerts by the Merimanders, ManOps, Deansmen, Crosstones, and Take Note; magnificent offerings from the choir and orchestra; a breathtaking Marcy Plavin Spring Dance Concert; and a sold-out run of Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize winner Branden Jacobs-Jenkins鈥� play 鈥淓verybody.鈥� In the fall, a sold-out run of 鈥淢etamorphoses鈥濃仩鈥斺仩an extraordinary undertaking that required constructing an actual pool on the Schaeffer Theatre stage, reimagining the entire venue鈦犫�斺仩left audiences (and me) spellbound. And the student-designed and -produced 乐播传媒 Film Festival brought audiences from all over the state and region to both campus and to Portland to view and discuss more than two dozen films of national and international renown.  

We launched two critical community-building programs this year. The first is , which is designed to help us live more fully into our mission of 鈥渆ngaging the transformative power of our differences鈥� and enhance the discourse and expression of ideas, beliefs, and opinions that may be controversial or strongly opposed by others. Each semester, we will offer a program led by an outside expert that consists of two parts: a presentation by (or fireside chat with) our guest and a dinner and facilitated dialogue where participants can discuss what they heard and what they鈥檙e thinking about. In 2025-26, we welcomed Jamal Greene, Dwight Professor of Law at Columbia, to talk about freedom of expression on college campuses, and podcast host Shankar Vedantam (Hidden Brain), who spoke about dialogue across difference. 

On a related front, we are integrating the Constructive Dialogue Institute framework into the First-Year Experience and across student clubs and organizations. All members of the incoming Class of 2030 will participate in the program, as will other student leaders and professional staff, giving them useful tools to foster a culture of inquiry, dialogue, and free expression. 

The second community-building program is something we鈥檙e calling the Lake Andrews Series, which is designed as a semesterly event for senior leadership of the college to update colleagues on important initiatives鈦犫�斺仩as well as for members of the campus community to ask questions and provide comment. This program is a direct response to concerns expressed in a recent employee engagement survey in which staff expressed a desire for greater connection with and communication from college leadership. I鈥檓 pleased to say that the first iteration of the Lake Andrews Series, in March, was by every measure a great success, with robust turnout, strong engagement, and affirmative feedback from participants.

And we continue to make important progress on the sustainability front, another core commitment of the college. The new Stoddard Fitness and Well-Being Center is the first building on campus designed to 乐播传媒鈥� high-performance sustainability standards, and will use 80 percent less fossil fuel energy than a building of equivalent type and size. The center will also have a rooftop solar array鈦犫�斺仩the first photovoltaic array on our main campus鈦犫�斺仩that will significantly reduce the energy cost of the building. We will also add a new EV charging station in the next few months, bringing the total number of public charging hubs on campus to 18. 

Academics

The work of strengthening the academic core of the college to meet the needs of coming times is, of course, an eternal, ever-evolving project. In her first year as Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the Faculty, Joanne Roberts worked with faculty and colleagues across the institution to address myriad important aspects of the academic program, making meaningful improvements for the faculty and students of both today and tomorrow.

We welcomed 16 new tenured or tenure-track faculty in 2025鈥�26 in departments and programs across the curriculum. We hired 11 more for the start of the 2026鈥�27 academic year in high interest areas such as art and visual culture, biology, chemistry, economics, politics, and psychology, among others. This continues a robust and deliberate stretch of hiring over the past few years as we have sought to renew and expand our faculty and the offerings available to our students. 

In 2025鈥�26, in addition to their world-class teaching and dedicated mentoring of students conducting advanced research, 乐播传媒 faculty published 86 journal articles, 15 book chapters, and 4 books, as well as making almost 200 presentations on their work.

We have made important strides forward in both administrative processes related to academics and to academic requirements themselves. These include changing the course registration process to increase access for 乐播传媒 students and adding a second degree conferral date in December. We will still hold just one commencement ceremony in May, but December grads will no longer be held back in seeking employment or graduate school admission for the lack of an official graduation date. 

We expanded our general education program to include a global languages option. Students may now choose to complete a global languages Mode of Inquiry (MOI) as one of the five required MOIs among six options.

As some of you will know, the graduation requirements at 乐播传媒 in recent years have required a 鈥渕ajor plus one鈥濃仩鈥斺仩with that 鈥減lus one鈥� being either a second major, a minor, or a GEC, which stands for 鈥淕eneral Education Concentration.鈥� These thematic areas have allowed students to develop exposure to, and expertise in, topics such as applied mathematical methods, music and culture, or water and society. The problem is that the term 鈥淕EC鈥濃仩鈥斺仩commonly pronounced as 鈥済eck鈥� by 乐播传媒ies鈦犫�斺仩was not broadly legible beyond our campus.

Effective July 1, the term 鈥淕EC鈥� was officially retired and we will now simply refer to these as 鈥淐oncentrations.鈥� Concentrations will continue to be a space for faculty to develop new, innovative, and inter- or transdisciplinary programs that will help prepare students to make connections across their studies and to prepare for their futures. Offerings will include business analytics, law and society, public health, international business, learning and teaching, globalization, and design. (Some of these already exist; some are being launched this upcoming year.)

We have also created a new post-baccalaureate teacher certification program in which recent alumni can return to 乐播传媒 for an additional semester and complete the requirements for a Maine State Department of Education public school teaching certificate. This certificate makes the holder eligible to teach in any public school in the United States. We have long seen strong interest in teaching careers among 乐播传媒 students, but the state鈥檚 requirement that those seeking certification complete a full-time, 14-week student teaching practicum made attaining certification during the traditional four-year academic program at 乐播传媒 possible for very few.

As it is for seemingly everyone, artificial intelligence (AI) and other new technologies have been very much on our minds at 乐播传媒. We know that it is important to both understand how students, faculty, and staff are already using these new technologies and to offer guidance on their most appropriate and beneficial use. We especially want to make sure that students get the exposure, and develop the skills, they will need for life after 乐播传媒鈦犫�斺仩without sacrificing what makes a 乐播传媒 education special, or at the expense of developing the uniquely human capabilities that have always made 乐播传媒 graduates indispensable (and which become even more relevant in a world of AI).

I tasked an AI working group with developing a set of principles and guidelines around AI, which has been drafted, shared with the campus community for comment, and is being finalized this summer. Additionally, with donor support, we developed a series of AI innovation grants for faculty and staff, applicable to both pedagogy and campus operations, to help support AI adoption for those who see opportunity and want resources for exploration.

Admission/Enrollment

乐播传媒 remains in high demand! We had a record 12,009 applicants for the Class of 2030. That is a 45 percent increase since I first came to 乐播传媒 three years ago. 

We expect to welcome approximately 550 members of that class to 乐播传媒 this fall. Forty-three percent will receive financial aid; 14 percent are Pell-eligible and 13 percent are among the first generation in their family to attend college. Students in the Class of 2030 will join us from 40 states, the District of Columbia, and 27 countries besides the U.S. We will also enroll about a dozen new transfer students this fall. We will release more details about the class in September.

The Class of 2030 will also include our first cohort of QuestBridge Scholars (19 students). As we announced in early 2025, 乐播传媒 is partnering with QuestBridge, a national nonprofit that connects high-achieving students from low-income backgrounds with leading institutions of higher education, in order to more robustly fulfill our commitment to providing access to and support throughout a 乐播传媒 education.

And an honorary member, of sorts, of the Class of 2030 will be our newly-appointed vice president for enrollment and dean of admission and financial aid, Victoria Neason Wallace. Tori, who started at 乐播传媒 on July 1, is a terrific addition to our senior leadership team and an experienced and visionary leader in liberal arts enrollment. We鈥檙e glad to welcome her as one of our newest 乐播传媒ies.

Recognition, Honors, and Collaborations

乐播传媒 students won a whopping 16 Fulbright awards this year. Fifteen of those went to members of the graduating Class of 2026, which also included a Watson Fellowship winner, two Goldwater Scholars, and a Truman Scholar. Two members of the 乐播传媒 faculty, Elena Maker Castro (psychology) and Michel Droge (art and visual culture) also won Fulbright awards. This extends 乐播传媒鈥� extraordinary run as a top producer of Fulbright awards, which now spans 15 consecutive years. In addition, a recent alumnus was awarded a prestigious Schwarzman Scholarship (modeled on the Rhodes Scholarship) to pursue a master鈥檚 degree in global affairs at China鈥檚 Tsinghua University.

This year also saw the wonderful recognition of two members of our English department, Jessica Anthony 鈥�96 and Myronn Hardy, as Guggenheim Fellows, one of the most esteemed honors in the academy. Professor of Digital and Computational Studies Carrie Diaz Eaton received renewed support from the Hewlett Foundation for her work with the Institute for a Racially Just, Inclusive, and Open STEM Education in the form of a two-year $1 million fund for general operations. And Carolina Gonz谩lez Valencia, Associate Professor of Art and Visual Culture, won the Kirby Walker Documentary Award from the San Francisco International Film Festival for her film How to Clean a House in 10 Easy Steps.

In addition, Allison Brown, associate director of Counseling & Psychological Services, was named a 2026 Harriett Copher Haynes Leadership Mentoring Award winner by the Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors. 

Thanks largely to work driven by the Harward Center for Community Partnerships, 乐播传媒 was once again recognized by the American Council on Education and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching for its deep level of commitment to community engagement, an honor the college first achieved in 2008 and again in 2015. 乐播传媒 was also recently lauded by ACE and Carnegie for its success in providing paths for graduates to earn competitive wages. 

And even though the Bonney Science Center opened back in 2021, it keeps winning awards! In March, the Boston Society for Architecture gave its highest recognition, the Honor Award, to the Bonney Science Center for 鈥渆xceptional innovation, sustainability, and community impact,鈥� calling it 鈥渙ne of the premier examples of modern educational architecture in New England.鈥�

We have seen great interest in and success with our partnership with the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, which we piloted last year. We are exploring ways to sustain and expand the relationship supporting the 鈥淭uck Business Essentials鈥� practitioner-taught course offered during Short Term, making management and team-based leadership education experiences that complement the liberal arts available to 乐播传媒 students.

Engagement

I鈥檝e saved one of the best news items for almost last. It is looking as though, when final numbers are released in the fall, 乐播传媒鈥� endowment (for June 30, 2026) will be over $500 million for the first time ever.  

This is an incredible number and a major milestone for 乐播传媒. That is about double the size of the endowment from 2016. And it only happens thanks to careful management by the college and its fiduciaries鈦犫�斺仩and thanks to the generosity of many, many enthusiastic alumni and friends.

And that鈥檚 not the only good news from the fiscal year we鈥檝e just closed. 乐播传媒 alumni, parents, and friends invested $63.9 million in the college in 2025鈥�26. This includes a record $38.3 million in outright gifts (surpassing the previous record of $33.4 million set during the last campaign) and $25.6 million in documented pledges and future estate gifts. This outstanding result represents a 78% increase in total gift activity over the previous year.

Additional records set in this historic year include:

The 乐播传媒 Fund: We raised a record $9.27 million, marking our first time crossing the $9 million threshold.

Annual support of 乐播传媒 Athletics: Friends of 乐播传媒 Athletics set a new FBA Challenge record of $934,000, ultimately reaching a milestone of more than $1.7 million in total designated annual support for the year.

This is a phenomenal result for the college. And it demonstrates that 乐播传媒 people are showing up and giving their very best for 乐播传媒鈦犫�斺仩ensuring that the college remains a strong, world-class institution preparing leaders for coming times. It is beyond heartening to see this kind of excitement and energy among those who love and support the college, and we are going to do our best to keep that momentum going! Your collective ardor and devotion is propelling 乐播传媒 to new heights, benefiting today鈥檚 students and generations to come. 

In Closing

All this and I haven鈥檛 even mentioned our ongoing strategic planning work, which is, of course, a massive and critically important effort. Launched in earnest in 2025, more than 75 faculty, staff, and students worked throughout the past year on five working committees and a steering committee to develop recommendations for 乐播传媒鈥� next set of institutional priorities. We are currently bringing those recommendations together into a cohesive draft plan, which we will be sharing for comment in a few short weeks. Please keep an eye out for more on this front鈦犫�斺仩we want to hear your thoughts about our ambitions for 乐播传媒.

After all, there is no ambition without the confidence that what we are doing matters and that we are supported by all those who love 乐播传媒. Your investment in our future powers all that we do. And I couldn鈥檛 be more grateful.

Sincerely,
Garry W. Jenkins

President

I write to share the news that Tori Neason Wallace will join the 乐播传媒 community as vice president for enrollment and dean of admission and financial aid, effective July 1, 2026.  

Tori comes to 乐播传媒 after serving in the Office of Admissions & Financial Aid at Colby since 2020. There she held a number of roles with responsibility for everything from student and family communications to application review to campus visit and admitted student programs to strategic planning. Most recently, Tori was executive director of strategic initiatives for the office, leading the development and execution of a range of projects designed to support Colby鈥檚 admission goals. Prior to that role, she was deputy dean of admission at Colby, and spent six years in admission at Washington University in St. Louis.

This 乐播传媒 News story shares more about Tori鈥檚 appointment.

With both breadth and depth of experience, Tori will bring an invaluably informed and well-rounded perspective to the leadership of 乐播传媒鈥� enrollment work. She understands the specific complexities and particulars of that work鈥攁s well as how it relates to the mission of the college writ large. I look forward to welcoming her to 乐播传媒, to the admission and student financial services team, and to the senior leadership team.

I am grateful to the members of the search committee, chaired by Kristen Lainsbury and Robert Strong, for their thoughtful and thorough efforts in finding a new leader to serve our community. The committee received valuable assistance from WittKieffer, a top executive search firm.

I would also like to thank Mark Hatch 諝87 for serving as executive enrollment manager over the past year, along with the entire admission and student financial services teams, who put so much time, effort, and dedication into their essential work for 乐播传媒鈥攖his year and every year.

All my best,

   Garry

As we all begin the work of a new academic year, I want to share some thoughts on 乐播传媒始 plans and priorities for the months ahead. 

New Faces

It has been wonderful to see the campus fill once more with students and faculty, rejoining those colleagues who were busy on campus throughout the summer months. The new Class of 2029 comes to us from 23 different countries and 44 states, plus Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico. You can read more about the class here. We also welcome a strong cohort of 10 transfer students this year. 

We have 42 new faculty members joining 22 departments this academic year, 17 of whom are tenure-track faculty. And among our new staff colleagues are several key campus leaders who began their work with us this summer. They include Joanne Roberts, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty; Carrie Cushman, director of the 乐播传媒 College Museum of Art; and Stacey Bunting, director of athletics. Additionally, Leigh Weisenburger, who previously served as vice president for enrollment and dean of admission and financial aid, is now vice president for institutional affairs and secretary to the Board of Trustees. She succeeds Mike Hussey, who now serves as senior advisor to the president in a part-time capacity. As I recently reported, we have launched our search for Leigh始s permanent successor; meanwhile, Mark Hatch 始87 is overseeing Admission and Student Financial Services in an interim capacity.

Ongoing Work

Joanne Roberts, our new vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty, will work with colleagues to continue to support faculty development and the curriculum. We will be managing another year of significant faculty hiring, as well as working on ensuring that the expectations for promotion from associate professor to full professor are clear, well-known, and well-supported. We will also be moving forward with faculty recognition efforts that we have already initiated or identified, and we will be examining ways of strengthening faculty retention and support. On the curricular side, we will be taking a close look at our requirements and how we support our students through their academic journeys. 

We will be examining key areas of the student experience beyond academics as well, including assessing retention efforts, supporting international students, and preparing to welcome our first QuestBridge Scholars, who will enroll at 乐播传媒 in Fall 2026. And we were pleased to announce, earlier this week, that we will waive the application fee for all applicants to 乐播传媒, beginning with those applying this fall.

We will continue our efforts to enhance the athletics platform at 乐播传媒, building on progress in fundraising, facility improvements, and internal operations, and proudly celebrating our many wins. Continued fundraising and planning for a new Fitness and Well-Being Center will be the primary facilities priority this year, and we will also seek to make progress on other projects as well, such as turfing Lafayette Street Field (softball) and completing the second phase of work (of three) at Leahey Field (baseball). And we will celebrate the opening of the new 乐播传媒 Athletics Hall of Fame and the induction of its inaugural class during Back to 乐播传媒 Weekend (October 3-4), as well as marking the 150th anniversary of 乐播传媒 Football, as we did last week 鈥� capped by a .听

As I reported to you a few weeks ago, we will aim this year to implement recommendations made by the Employee Engagement Initiative working groups during 2024-25. Those we will focus on this year include:

• Launch a comprehensive supervisor professional development program this fall
• Enhance the performance development process, reviewing position descriptions, clarifying job responsibilities, and outlining measurable goals
• Structure consistent opportunities for networking, peer learning, and the sharing of best practices
• Expand the Ombuds Program to better support all employees
• Create a formal recognition program that celebrates employee achievement
• Introduce a wellness ambassador program

Other recommendations specific to staff-faculty relationships are undergoing further review and feedback before we announce additional initiatives related to that work.

Charting the Future

A major project for the coming year will be the continuation of the strategic planning process that launched in 2024-25. As I shared in a message to campus last week, we formed five working committees for strategic planning over the summer, each one organized around a broad area of focus developed by the steering committee. 

In the months ahead, and in consultation with a broad swath of the campus community, the working committees will generate the ideas that will form the substance of the strategic plan: identifying where 乐播传媒 can build on strengths, where we should set new priorities, and what choices we might have to make. Their recommendations will be submitted to the steering committee in April 2026, but the steering committee will receive regular updates from the working committees throughout the year as well. Opportunities to participate in the strategic planning dialogue will be shared via 乐播传媒 Now and 乐播传媒 Today.

Additionally, and as a key component of our planning effort, we will soon receive the findings of the market positioning study that we launched last year. These findings, which we plan to share with the campus community in February, will inform not only our strategic planning but our broader communications and marketing approach, especially with regard to admission.

In all of our planning work, we will not wait for the formal process to officially conclude before moving forward in ways that make sense for 乐播传媒. We will implement good ideas and marshal resources as opportunities arise, and as they are feasible.

乐播传媒始 Many Endowments

As I said the first moment I visited campus after being appointed president, back in March 2023, I was drawn to 乐播传媒 for many reasons, including its distinctive history, the vibrancy of the education it offers, and a culture that is grounded in care for one another, in inclusion and belonging, in civic responsibility, in sustainability, and in egalitarianism. 

In the past two years, I have continued to learn more and think deeply about this special 乐播传媒 culture 鈥� how it works, what it means, where we can grow. I find myself focusing on three key ideas: collaboration, innovation, and abundance. I spoke about the first two of these in my inaugural address in 2024. Let me return to those two concepts here for a moment.

Collaboration: 乐播传媒 people work together extremely well and at high degrees of functionality and effectiveness. But even here, it can be too easy for us to become siloed within our own offices and divisions. We know we do more, and better, when we work together, but we don鈥檛 always take advantage of the strengths and efficiencies we might find in collaboration. I think we will all benefit 鈥� and the college will benefit 鈥� if we make an extra effort to collaborate.

Innovation: Just as we need to be open to new partnerships and teamwork, we need to be open to new ways of doing things and improving or expanding how we deliver a 乐播传媒 education. The ideas that emerge from strategic planning will certainly include some important innovations. But we won鈥檛 wait for strategic planning to seize opportunities and explore compelling new ideas. Now is the time for us to take a look at where innovation might mean transformation 鈥� in positive directions that benefit the college now and in the future.

The good news is that collaboration and innovation are qualities that 乐播传媒 already has in abundance! While our financial endowment is making gains and yet still has room to grow compared to some of our closest academic peers 鈥� and while we must certainly continue to prioritize raising additional financial resources to grow it 鈥� I think it is also important to remember that 乐播传媒 is extremely well positioned and rich in many resources. Our mission-critical powers of collaboration and innovation are just two of these. I would add our exceptional faculty and staff, our creativity, and our strong sense of community (collectively our human and cultural endowment), our tradition of academic excellence and strong brand (our reputational endowment), and our beautiful campus (our physical endowment), among others, all of which are first-in-class. 

乐播传媒 is strong in so many ways 鈥� and I think we will be even stronger if we center more on our assets and strengths. I worry that it is too easy, sometimes, for us to fall into an unhelpful scarcity mindset 鈥� one that limits cooperation, flexibility, and experimentation; one that can be too tentative about change because it too readily equates change with loss. It will always be vital for us to be deliberate, thoughtful, and realistic, especially when it comes to our resources. But this shouldn鈥檛 limit our aspirations or our desire to work energetically toward them. 

A Place Worth Fighting For

We have so much to be proud of at 乐播传媒. To put it another way, as Professor Rebecca Herzig reminded us so eloquently at Opening Convocation, 乐播传媒 is a place worth fighting for: as an institution, as a community, as an idea, as an ideal. And I look forward to working with all of you to advance this place that is so important to so many 鈥� this college that has so much to offer. 

Warmly,

   Garry

What a genuinely great day to be a Bobcat!

And what a sight for sore eyes鈥攁fter a relatively quiet summer, our campus is full of students, staff, and faculty once again. It鈥檚 spectacular!

I鈥檓 Garry Jenkins, the 9th president of 乐播传媒 College (my pronouns are he/him), and I am so glad that you all are here, and ready to greet the new academic year at 乐播传媒.

If you are new to 乐播传媒: welcome! If you are a returning or continuing member of our community: welcome back!

And in particular to the our new students: welcome home! We are so pleased that you have decided to join our 乐播传媒 community, and we look forward to seeing all that you will do in the months and years ahead. Not just what you will accomplish鈥攖hough we know you will have countless wonderful triumphs in our classrooms, in our performance spaces, on our athletic courts and fields, and beyond鈥攂ut also how you will connect and contribute in ways that strengthen and enrich this college community.

Also, a warm welcome to our new faculty colleagues who join us here at 乐播传媒. Special greetings to you all and we look forward to the ways you will enrich our intellectual community.

This ceremony, our Opening Convocation, is the formal induction of our newest students into our incredible 乐播传媒 community. Let me give you the outline of our program today.

I will offer a few words, and the Class of 2029 and new transfer students will then be welcomed by your student government co-presidents, Zachariah Richards and Mohammad Zayd.

Zach is a member of the Class of 2026 from Princeton, Massachusetts. He is majoring in politics and economics. In addition to serving as a BCSG co-president, he is the co-president of club volleyball, a residence life team leader, a W-CAT (course-attached writing tutor), and treasurer for Model UN. 

Mohammad is a neuroscience major from the Bronx, New York, and a member of the Class of 2027. He is a STEM Scholar, a biology/neuroscience research assistant, a Students in Admissions coordinator, a Student Academic Support Center peer tutor, and a board member for the South Asian Students Association and the Muslim Student Association.

Following their remarks, we will have the convocation address, delivered by the wonderful and esteemed Rebecca Herzig, the Charles A. Dana professor of gender and sexuality studies. The convocation speaker is chosen by the outgoing senior class as a gift to the incoming first-year class鈥攁nd Professor Herzig was the choice of the Class of 2025 for the Class of 2029.

Professor Herzig joined the 乐播传媒 faculty in 1998, as the college鈥檚 first full-time faculty member in the program then called Women鈥檚 Studies. A scholar in the field of science and technology studies, she is the author, editor, or series editor of sixteen books, including Suffering for Science: Reason and Sacrifice in Modern America.

Her writing on science, technology, and medicine in American higher education, the subject of her current book project, can be found in a number of publications, including Liberal Education, Feminist Studies, and the Minnesota Review.

Here at 乐播传媒, Professor Herzig teaches courses cross-listed in multiple departments and programs, including 鈥淏lood, Genes, and American Culture鈥� and 鈥淭echnology in US History.鈥� Perhaps most important, in the winter of 2010, she chaired the sixteen-person committee of alumni, staff, faculty, and students who together developed the college鈥檚 powerful mission statement. We can look forward to hearing from her today.

Finally, at the end of the ceremony, Raymond Clothier, our interim multifaith chaplain, will lead us in a benediction, after which we will march out, as we marched in, led by the mace bearer and our faculty marshals. There will then be a brief tree planting ceremony honoring those members of our community who have died during this past year; we will gather on the College Street side of Gomes Chapel, just across the quad.

* * *

I would like to take this opportunity to say just a few words about how I am thinking about 乐播传媒, the current moment, and the year ahead.

We are all aware of the challenges of the current moment. Challenges to democracy and our institutions. To personal freedoms and democratic norms. To fundamental rights. Challenges to our sense of unity. Challenges to the ability of individuals to disagree鈥� or sometimes even converse鈥� with respect and civility, and to find points of commonality in spite of our differences or disagreements.

When we lose these critically important core values鈥攐ur democratic commitments, our liberties, our ability to live in community鈥攚e are diminished and we are, ourselves, lost. 

But here at 乐播传媒, we are rooted in these same values. They drive all that we do. 

Think of the very point of entry for every 乐播传媒 student: the admission process. Some of you may have even read this on our admission website: 鈥溊植ゴ解�� unique personality rests on the bedrock values of academic excellence, diversity, inclusivity, and social responsibility.鈥� We look for students who embrace these values, who show promise to develop them during their time on our campus, who will make our college even better and stronger through their presence, and then go on to make a difference in the world. And we know that it is not just one type or kind of student who will make a great 乐播传媒ie. It takes ALLLLLL different types and kinds of students, from a range of backgrounds, with a broad spectrum of experiences, to make up a class and to make 乐播传媒 the place that we are so proud it is. The same is true for the faculty and administrative staff that we hire. So from the very beginning, we are always looking to expand, enrich, and energize this community and this college. 

It鈥檚 not only in our admission materials, it鈥檚 in our mission statement. Some of you have heard this ad nauseum, but it鈥檚 worth hearing again on an occasion such as this, I think:

鈥淪ince 1855, 乐播传媒 College has been dedicated to the emancipating potential of the liberal arts. 乐播传媒 educates the whole person through creative and rigorous scholarship in a collaborative residential community. With ardor and devotion鈥�Amore ac Studio鈥�we engage the transformative power of our differences, cultivating intellectual discovery and informed civic action. Preparing leaders sustained by a love of learning and a commitment to responsible stewardship of the wider world, 乐播传媒 is a college for coming times.鈥�

There are so many beautiful and compelling pieces of that mission statement, but for now I draw your attention to the phrase… 鈥淭he transformative power of our differences.鈥� Remember this. This phrase defines 乐播传媒, and it guides us.

At its heart, we are talking about pluralism here鈥攄efined by scholars in a variety of fields in a variety of ways, but pluralism is the idea that multiple perspectives, ideas, approaches, groups, ways of life can coexist and make a society stronger rather than weaker. Pluralism recognizes that our differences鈥攚hen engaged respectfully鈥攍ead to a richness, opportunities for collaboration, to a freedom, to the flourishing of the potential of all. And of course, we didn鈥檛 invent pluralism at 乐播传媒鈥攖hough I do think we embrace it, do it, and talk about it, better than most. 

A small, residential college experience is also designed to embrace pluralism. Our communities thrive not despite diversity of thought and culture but because of it鈥攖hrough exchanges both in and outside the classroom, in late night conversations, and in exchanges of histories and values, we build empathy and move from rigid thinking to nuanced discernment. 

Also, the liberal arts are a pluralistic ideal. Don鈥檛 let me shock any of the newest among you by stating plainly that in making the decision to join a liberal arts college, you have signed up not for narrow exposure to one area of study or one point of view, but for experience in a breadth of disciplines, philosophies, questions, and perspectives that will help you better understand, and contribute to, the world around you. Promoting critical thinking and analysis and fostering independent thought. This is the liberal arts project, stretching back to the ancient world, and extending through today: a liberal arts education is designed to create informed, independent, contributing members of democratic societies. 

This is also the American project, at its best and as it is idealized, if not always realized. Let me be completely clear: I am not going to stand here and tell you that the Founding Fathers, all of them white men and many of them slave owners, were models of inclusive thinking. But they produced the foundational documents of the republic we live in today, which have several virtues, and laid a foundation with a unique proliferation of voluntary associations crafting a pluralistic civil society. 

In Federalist No. 10, 鈥淭he Union as a Safeguard Against Domestic Faction and Insurrection,鈥� James Madison wrote about cultivating an expansive society where people holding a range of views would live together and have the same degree of freedom and right to a diverse range of views. 鈥淓xtend the sphere,鈥� he wrote, advocating for 鈥渁 greater variety of parties and interests.鈥�

Several decades later, Alexis de Tocqueville would famously marvel at the myriad ways Americans would organize themselves and associate with one another, and how well this served democracy. He wrote: 鈥淎mericans of all ages, all conditions, all minds constantly unite. Not only do they have commercial and industrial associations in which all take part, but they also have a thousand other kinds: religious, moral, grave, futile, very general and very particular, immense and very small.鈥� The 鈥渁rt of association鈥� that Tocqueville observed represented a wide range of differing organizations each with their own missions, approaches, and constituencies apart from the both government and majority opinion coexisting civilly, enhancing and sustaining democratic governance.  

All of which is just to say that when we talk about the 乐播传媒 mission of engaging the transformative power of our differences, we are talking about not just our current priorities, but our college鈥檚 history, the liberal arts tradition, and the founding ideals of our nation. Welcoming, celebrating, and cultivating a range of perspectives and experiences is what we do here, what鈥檚 expected of us鈥攁nd, frankly, I think we鈥檙e among the best at doing it. Not perfect鈥攂ut among the best.

It takes all of us to do this work鈥攖o sustain this pluralistic community. It takes openness and respect for everyone and a generosity of spirit; it takes care and trust and goodwill. It takes all of us wanting to do better, and be better. It鈥檚 a never-ending project. But there鈥檚 joy to be found in the effort. And I know that all of you are up to that task. We certainly need it throughout our nation, in our communities, and here on our campus, too.

Let me stop there and turn the mic over to my fellow speakers. But Class of 2029, first I鈥檓 going to end, as has become my tradition, with four core words of advice I once received from my mom at the start of college. As you launch into your 乐播传媒 experience, just remember this: learn, care, share, and enjoy.

Now, please join me in welcoming first, your BCSG co-presidents, Zach and Mohammad, followed by Professor Rebecca Herzig.

It will come as no surprise when I say that the past year has been a challenging one for higher education. Our sector is facing profound and unprecedented threats at the federal level. Despite the challenges, in all that we do鈥攁s always鈥攚e act according to our mission and in the best interests of our students, faculty, staff, and all who know and love the college.

Indeed, even as new challenges arise and require response, our core mission remains strong. 乐播传媒 remains strong. We had another year full of joys and successes in 2024鈥�25, and I wanted to share some of this good news with you.

Admission and financial aid

Talented students, full of potential, continue to vote with their feet, telling us that 乐播传媒 is the college of choice for them. We had another banner year in admission in 2024鈥�25, with the second-largest applicant pool in the history of the college. We expect to welcome about 500 students in the Class of 2029 and nearly a dozen transfer students in just a few weeks, representing a brilliant spectrum of backgrounds, experiences, and interests. Forty-four percent of incoming first-year students are receiving need-based financial aid amounting to nearly $13 million. As is typical, more detailed information about the entering class and the admission cycle will be released in late August.

Fellowships

乐播传媒 continues to do extraordinarily well with prestigious national fellowships. The Fulbright selection and award process was complicated by federal actions this year, but 乐播传媒鈥攆or 14 straight years a 鈥淭op Producer鈥� of Fulbrights鈥攕till managed to secure awards for eight recent alumni.

Two 乐播传媒 students also received Goldwater Scholarships, the leading honor for undergraduates working in the natural sciences, mathematics and engineering, and a third received a Truman Scholarship, another highly competitive award granted to undergraduates with outstanding leadership potential and interest in public service.

Faculty news and accomplishments

乐播传媒 also continues to recruit and attract some of the most talented and dedicated teacher-scholars working today. In 2024鈥�25, we welcomed 13 new faculty from institutions such as Connecticut College, Harvard, Smith, Stanford, and William and Mary. Another 16 will join us for the coming academic year, with similarly impressive credentials.

Ten 乐播传媒 faculty were awarded tenure and/or promotion this year, and two were named to endowed chairs: Amy Bradfield Douglass, the Whitehouse Professor of Psychology, and Ther铆 Alyce Pickens, the Charles A. Dana Professor of English and Africana. 

In academic year 2024鈥�25, 乐播传媒 faculty published 73 journal articles, 10 books, 17 book chapters, and 51 artistic and professional productions while also giving 156 presentations, 55 invited talks, and 3 keynote addresses all around the world. 乐播传媒 senior lecturer Jessica Anthony 鈥�96 also found herself on the longlist for a National Book Award for her novel The Most. The book was included on .

A new major

In March, the 乐播传媒 faculty voted to create a new major in Digital and Computational Studies (DCS), which was previously offered as a minor. This will give 乐播传媒 students, beginning with those in the Class of 2027 (current rising juniors), the opportunity to focus their studies in a field in high demand, all within the unique context of a 乐播传媒 liberal arts education. 

This expansion of our curriculum is essential for the future. Computer science skills are in higher demand than ever, as nearly every industry and profession experiences a digital transformation and contends with new technologies like artificial intelligence. Computer science has moved to the mainstream; its tools are now vital well beyond the tech sector. We鈥檙e pleased to join the vast majority of the nation鈥檚 top-ranked liberal arts colleges in offering a DCS (or similar) major鈥攂ut we also acknowledge the need to move faster to meet (and fund) the areas of study our students find most compelling.

Student success

We began the 2024鈥�25 academic year with an eye on the upcoming presidential election and the democratic process with a thoughtful, expansive slate of 35 programs developed by faculty, staff, and students. Offerings included talks by nationally recognized scholars from across the political spectrum, a film series, and watch parties for debates and election night results. These programs provided valuable opportunities for our entire campus community to learn together and engage in dialogue鈥攄iscussing important issues, exploring shared goals and values, and finding connections across apparent lines of difference.

乐播传媒 students studied off campus in greater numbers in 2024鈥�25 than they had in decades鈥攁bout 60 percent of the Class of 2026 (this past year鈥檚 juniors) took the opportunity to expand their horizons, enrich their perspectives, and explore the world beyond our campus. 

On Sunday of Memorial Day weekend, we celebrated the accomplishments of the Class of 2025 in typically joyful 乐播传媒 fashion at our 159th Commencement. This year鈥檚 graduates are launching careers in medical research in Boston; in banking and finance in New York, Chicago, and San Francisco; in wilderness adventure leadership in Wyoming; in education in Bangladesh; in government in Washington, DC; and much more.  

In addition, many will continue their education in fields such as law, medicine, applied mathematics and statistics, counseling, international relations, nuclear engineering, and more鈥攁ttending leading programs at Columbia, Johns Hopkins, University of Chicago, University of Colorado, and University of Pennsylvania, among others.

In all of this, 乐播传媒鈥� signature Purposeful Work program has prepared these students to understand the full scope of possibilities before them. Through Purposeful Work, students connect with graduate programs and employers as they explore a variety of opportunities and align who they are with what they do. Purposeful Work continues to offer a holistic, developmental, mission-based approach to life and career that works powerfully for 乐播传媒 students. In the past year alone, 238 alumni and families offered job shadow opportunities to more than 400 乐播传媒 students; in summer 2025, 121 students are participating in internship experiences funded by roughly $500,000 from 乐播传媒. 

We also marked a very important milestone for 乐播传媒 in 2025: the 50th anniversary of the Puddle Jump! As always, 乐播传媒 students hurled their costumed selves by the dozens into frigid Lake Andrews in early February, but this year鈥檚 event was highlighted by the presence of three of the tradition鈥檚 founders: Chris Callahan 鈥�78, Scott Copeland 鈥�78, and Lars Llorente 鈥�78. It was a great鈥攁nd frosty!鈥攄ay to be a Bobcat. (No, I did not take the plunge.)

Three new strategic partnerships

In addition to the collaborations centered on Purposeful Work, 乐播传媒 has entered into several other key strategic partnerships in the past year.  

乐播传媒 is committed to bringing the most promising students to 乐播传媒 from all socioeconomic backgrounds. In January, we were very pleased to announce a partnership with QuestBridge that will help us connect with high-achieving students from low-income backgrounds and make a 乐播传媒 education possible for exceptional students we previously had a more difficult time reaching. 

QuestBridge is designed to support students who have excelled academically despite financial challenges. This year, with the addition of 乐播传媒 and Harvard as the newest partner colleges, all eight Ivy League and nine of eleven NESCAC colleges participate in the program. The first cohort of QuestBridge Scholars will join us in the fall of 2026. 

In February, we announced that we had transferred management of the college鈥檚 endowment to Investure, a full-service investment firm with an outstanding reputation that works with a select group of colleges, universities, independent schools, research institutes, and private foundations. 

The 乐播传媒 endowment鈥攚hich stood at $446 million at the close of FY24鈥攕ustains every dimension of the college: from essential operating support to transformative opportunities like student scholarships, funded internships, curricular offerings, athletics, academic research, and co-curricular programs. In 2023, 688 colleges and universities took part in the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) endowment survey. The average endowment market value among participating institutions was $1.2 billion. Our endowment is well below that average鈥攁nd below many of our closest peers鈥攚hich underscores the critical importance of growing and stewarding our endowment with care and purpose. To learn more, we invite you to explore our . 

Finally, we have also entered into an exciting new partnership with the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth to give 乐播传媒 students exposure to the world of business. Offered in collaboration between Tuck and 乐播传媒 Purposeful Work, the 鈥淭uck Business Essentials鈥� Short Term course filled up quickly, with 30 students enrolled and 15 more on the waitlist. The course, which is modeled on Tuck鈥檚 successful Business Bridge program,  is designed to prepare top liberal arts students to be successful candidates for internships and jobs. The program features a comprehensive curriculum taught by the school鈥檚 top-ranked MBA faculty and by 乐播传媒/Tuck alumni, including career exploration modules and a capstone team project.

Arts

One of my greatest joys over the past two years has been discovering the depth of talent and passion in 乐播传媒鈥� arts programs. There is so much great work being done in the studio arts, in music, in theater, and in dance. Some of this year鈥檚 highlights included the 乐播传媒 College Choir鈥檚 performance of 鈥淓arth Song,鈥� the theater department鈥檚 production of Chekov鈥檚 鈥淭he Seagull,鈥� and extraordinary exhibits at the Museum, including 鈥淎cross Common Grounds鈥� (contemporary art) and the current show, a showcase of the works of Ralph Steadman.  

This year鈥檚 Senior Thesis Exhibition featured stunning work by seven senior studio art majors, including everything from painting to textiles to mixed media.

We were thrilled to learn this spring that six 乐播传媒 dancers had been selected to perform at the internationally renowned Jacob鈥檚 Pillow Dance Festival this summer. And of course, more locally, the continues to bring talented artists and eager audiences from all over to enliven our campus this summer鈥攂e sure to if you can!

Athletics

It was another great year for Bobcat athletics, with significant triumphs for teams and individual athletes. Our successes were reflected in a top 50 ranking for the 2024鈥�25 Learfield Directors鈥� Cup for overall Division III athletics success. Among the top headlines were a national championship in the 100 freestyle for swimmer Max Cory 鈥�26 (a biochemistry major from Dublin, California); men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 rowing both finished third in the country in their respective national championship races; and NCAA or equivalent tournament appearances by the field hockey, women鈥檚 basketball, and men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 swimming teams.

Several teams finished the season nationally ranked, including field hockey, women鈥檚 basketball, men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 rowing, men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 squash, men鈥檚 swimming, women鈥檚 tennis, women鈥檚 cross country, and men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 lacrosse. In addition, a whopping 394 乐播传媒 student-athletes in their sophomore, junior, or senior years received NESCAC All-Academic honors.

乐播传媒 athletes were honored at the in early May. The men鈥檚 lacrosse team took home the President鈥檚 Cup, which recognizes excellence in 鈥渋n athletic competition, in the classroom, and in the community, while exemplifying leadership, dedication, values, and concern for their fellow Bobcats.鈥� 

Capital investments

We began the year welcoming the first group of students as residents of 96 Campus Avenue. The building, which was previously owned by Saint Mary鈥檚 Health System, had been used by the college as temporary office space during the 2022鈥�23 renovation of Chase Hall. Now it is a popular dormitory for up to 65 students.  

We also upgraded both the Russell Street Field and Leahey Field this year, adding artificial turf surfaces and making other improvements. These projects have already been absolutely transformative for our teams鈥攁nd, in the case of Russell Street, for the neighbors who make great use of both the track and the field. The number of home games our teams are able to play has increased, the enhanced field quality has made it safer for our student-athletes, the practice schedules have greatly improved with more lighted and turfed fields allowing students to better balance their academics with sport, and our club sports have more playing options. Part II of the Leahey Field renovation will take place this summer.

As we continue to move forward on enhancing our athletics platform and improving the student experience, we are now focused on developing a new fitness and well-being center for the college, which will be funded by a combination of philanthropy and internal college funds. If we reach our target fundraising goals, construction is slated to begin in May 2026. If you would like to learn more and help the college reach its necessary goals to bring this exciting project to fruition, please reach out to the Advancement Office. 

Sustainability

乐播传媒 continues to live up to its mission of 鈥渞esponsible stewardship of the wider world.鈥� Our new 5 MW solar array produced 8,300,000 kWh of electricity last year, equivalent to about two-thirds of the college鈥檚 total power use. In its first year of service, the array saved 乐播传媒 nearly $450,000. The college also upgraded our 12 existing electric vehicle charging stations this spring and added 4 new ones, thanks in large part to a winning grant proposal written by 乐播传媒 students. We now have about 80 electric vehicle (EV) drivers on campus, including a growing number of EVs in our own facilities and campus safety fleets. And 乐播传媒 students continue to manage a , which provides several hundred pounds of produce annually for use by both our own dining services and a local food bank.

Recognition for 乐播传媒 

Recognition for 乐播传媒 came in from all directions in 2024鈥�25. In the fall, our Bonney Science Center was recognized with an , which cited the building鈥檚 鈥渢houghtful integration with the historic campus and innovative layout.鈥� Also this fall, the 乐播传媒 Communications and Marketing team won recognition in three categories from the . And the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge recognized 乐播传媒 for its nonpartisan democratic engagement efforts in the 2022 midterm elections鈥攕pecifically, for being the top achiever in both Maine and the NESCAC in both voter registration and voter turnout.

Leadership and strategic planning

In addition to attracting extraordinary students and faculty, 乐播传媒 continues to recruit visionary and accomplished staff who come to us from a broad swath of impressive institutions. For example, in 2024鈥�25, we added Rosanna Ferro (vice president for student affairs) and Kristen Lainsbury (vice president for communications and marketing) to our senior leadership team. Earlier this month, we welcomed Joanne Roberts (vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty), (director of athletics) to the college; Carrie Cushman (director of the 乐播传媒 College Museum of Art) joins us in August. 

Many of these leaders are already deeply involved in our strategic planning effort, which launched with the development of a steering committee in early 2025. Strategic planning will continue throughout the 2025鈥�26 academic year, with working committees comprising faculty, staff, and students considering 乐播传媒鈥� priorities for the coming years. We will have more to share with you as their work progresses.

Support for 乐播传媒

Last month, a record of over 1,500 alumni, families, and friends returned to 乐播传媒 to celebrate Reunion Weekend. While the weather wasn鈥檛 quite what we ordered, the rain couldn鈥檛 dampen the spirits of our passionate, joyful 乐播传媒ies, who reconnected with lifelong friends and made new connections at gatherings all across our campus (and throughout Lewiston). 

This passion and joy were reflected in giving to the college in the fiscal year just concluded, by alumni in reunion classes and others. Some highlights:

• Overall giving in FY25 reached $36 million in outright gifts, commitments, and bequest intentions.
• The Class of 1975, celebrating its 50th reunion, broke records with a total giving of more than $4.3 million. 
• The 乐播传媒 Fund (annual giving) surpassed its goal by 9 percent, reaching a new record of nearly $8.5 million. 
• We saw a 12.5 percent increase in the number of Mount David Society (our leadership giving circle) donors this year.
• Friends of 乐播传媒 Athletics raised over $1.2 million as we continue to strengthen our support for athletic teams and facilities.

These numbers are outstanding鈥攁nd hugely gratifying. They signal that 乐播传媒 alumni, families, and friends feel ownership of, investment in, and pride for the college. We are doing better and better, in terms of both dollars raised and rate of participation, but we still need to do more. If you love the college鈥攊f you feel ownership of, investment in, or pride for it鈥擨 ask you to give back to it, strengthen it, and sustain it for the generations to come.

In closing

No single list can fully capture all that has been accomplished over the past year by our students, faculty, and staff. Each achievement, taken on its own, is notable; together, they reflect the very best of 乐播传媒鈥攆rom the extraordinary academic experiences shaped by our exceptional faculty to the enduring, generation-spanning relationships that form our community鈥檚 foundation. Here鈥檚 the bottom line: The world needs 乐播传媒 graduates. Always. But especially now.

Your support matters. You make everything we do at 乐播传媒鈥攅very last one of our successes鈥攑ossible. I鈥檓 confident in our future and deeply grateful to the students, faculty, staff, alumni, and friends whose partnership and support will be essential as we move forward鈥攂oldly and together.

With deep gratitude,

Garry W. Jenkins
President

I write to share the news of two changes to 乐播传媒鈥� senior leadership team.

First, after 13 years at the college, Mike Hussey, vice president for institutional affairs and secretary to the Board of Trustees, has decided to step down from his position. As of next month, he will become senior advisor to the president and will serve in a part-time capacity beginning in September. He will support the transition and the president鈥檚 office in this reduced role, which will also give him more time to spend with his family and consider his next professional steps.

Stepping into the role of vice president for institutional affairs and secretary to the Board of Trustees on July 1 will be Leigh Weisenburger, our current vice president for enrollment and dean of admission and financial aid. Leigh has worked in 乐播传媒鈥� admission office for 21 years, and has been a member of 乐播传媒鈥� senior leadership team and overseen admission and student financial services since 2012. She is looking forward to expanding her higher education experience beyond admission and financial aid, and I look forward to working with her in this new capacity. We will announce plans for interim leadership of admission and financial aid in the near future.

 And please join me in congratulating both Mike and Leigh on their exciting new chapters.

Warmly,

   Garry

President Garry W. Jenkins offered this welcome at Commencement on May 25, 2025.

Good morning, all. I鈥檓 Garry Jenkins, and I鈥檓 the ninth president of 乐播传媒 College. It is my honor to welcome you to the 159th Commencement of 乐播传媒 College.听

I want to welcome parents, families, and friends. I also want to welcome esteemed special guests: today鈥檚 recipients of 乐播传媒 honorary degrees, who are seated here on the platform.

I also want to welcome members of the 乐播传媒 Board of Trustees, including our board leaders, themselves all 乐播传媒 alumni and parents: chair Greg Ehret, Class of 鈥�91, vice chair Jean Wilson, Class of 鈥�81, and secretary Katie Frekko, Class of 鈥�95.

And welcome 乐播传媒 faculty and staff. And of course, welcome, our graduates of the 乐播传媒 Class of 2025!

Whether you are joining us in person on our Historic Quad or by livestream from across the country and around the world, we are delighted to have you with us on this joyous occasion. 

Before beginning our program, I鈥檇 like to invite you to join me in thanking the Events and the Facilities staff and everyone else who worked so hard to prepare this event so beautifully. Let鈥檚 thank them. 

While we have celebrating to do, and that we will do, we also mark the Memorial Day holiday. We remember what it means to believe in and fight for our country, our democracy, our Constitution, and the rule of law. 

Seniors, let us also take a moment to express the gratitude I know you feel for all the family, friends, and loved ones who are here or spread across the globe, and for the faculty and staff, who have been behind you, supporting you, and encouraging you, at every point along your path to this momentous milestone. I invite you all to stand and show them your thanks and appreciation. Thank you.

Members of the Class of 2025, you are a remarkably accomplished group. Five-hundred and four of you will march across this stage this morning, representing 38 states, the District of Columbia, and 31 countries. Sixty-four of you are the first in your family to graduate from college. 

You all have knit this campus and community together over the past four years through your engagement and leadership in residence life, as club presidents, as members of student government, as debaters, as team captains in athletics. You have inspired us with your gifts of music, performance, art making, research, thesis writing, and endless intellectual curiosity. You have served as Multifaith and Admission fellows, as Purposeful Work peer advisors, as EcoReps and Bonner Leaders, and so much more. 

A whopping 126 of you are double majors, and four are triple majors. Thirty-four of you received departmental honors for a year-long honors thesis. Sixty percent of you studied abroad. Forty-one percent of you have participated in a varsity sport while at 乐播传媒, many winning All-NESCAC honors and even some being named All-Americans.

Four of you were recently selected to perform at the internationally renowned Jacob鈥檚 Pillow Dance Festival this summer. Five of you have won highly prestigious Fulbright fellowships 鈥� and one of you won a Goldwater Scholarship.

All of this you have achieved while also giving back, especially here in Lewiston, supporting the work of over 100 off-campus schools and organizations through research, volunteering, community work-study, and course-based projects.

You are off to continue your education in fields like law, applied math and statistics, counseling, international relations, and nuclear engineering. You will study at Johns Hopkins, Columbia, the University of Chicago, the University of Michigan, and more. You are launching exciting careers: in banking and finance in New York; in medical research in Boston; in wilderness adventure leadership in Wyoming; in government in Washington, D.C.; and so on and so on.

And some of you are still deciding what鈥檚 next or taking more time to open up the doors you wish to walk through. We are excited for all of you. We know that your liberal arts education will leave you well-poised to flourish and make meaningful contributions in whatever you pursue. 

The world needs 乐播传媒 graduates 鈥� always. But perhaps especially now, more than ever.

You probably heard more than once that these are uncertain times. Perhaps so much so that you may be a bit tired of hearing it. And if you鈥檙e like I was, as a soon-to-be college graduate, you may feel like you鈥檝e got uncertainty enough about your own next steps, your own life journey, let alone with regard to national and world events and issues to pile on top of that. 

But friends, I鈥檝e got good news and bad news.

I鈥檒l give you the bad news first. There will always be uncertainty. Life is defined by change, by the unexpected, by the yet unknown and the always unknowable. The degree of uncertainty, and the effects it has on you personally, will fluctuate. But uncertainty is a fact of life.

Of course, you don鈥檛 need me to tell you this. You know it already. You all finished high school and started college in the midst of a global pandemic. You know about uncertainty. 

And that鈥檚 the good news. You鈥檝e already faced uncertainty. You understand it. And you have the tools you need to manage it for yourselves 鈥� and to confront and lessen it for others. 

The world needs 乐播传媒 graduates. The world needs you. We need you to bring the tools, the talents you have acquired during your time on this campus for lives of leadership and purpose, ameliorating uncertainty, fueling prosperity and innovation, standing up for what鈥檚, caring for those around you.

The world needs your power of deep critical thinking and sparkling creativity to find solutions to problems and better ways of operating. The world needs your sense of justice and ethics, your dedication to something beyond yourself, your willingness to ask difficult questions and assess the substance of the answers you are given.

The world also needs something else, and dare I say it in front of the world鈥檚 foremost expert on the topic, but we need your grit 鈥� your fortitude, your perseverance, your sustained commitment, even in the face of challenges, setbacks, plateaus, disappointment, or failure. The world needs your voice, your heart, your mind. 

Let me be perfectly clear, should there be any doubt. This is the promise, and the value, of a liberal arts education. It鈥檚 at places like 乐播传媒 that we prepare students to think critically, to problem solve, to engage across difference, to connect, both the dots and with each other. And then those students become graduates who contribute to their communities around the world in all their vibrancy, diversity, and complexity. We believe these are the elements of a meaningful life for our graduates. We believe they are also the elements that drive change 鈥� for the better, for the greater good.

This is why higher education is essential to a healthy democracy. This is why 乐播传媒 is essential. 

Higher education has long fueled American progress: driving innovation, preparing leadership, enhancing civic life. Of all this, I am certain.

And, all of you 鈥� our amazing graduates, as well as friends and visitors 鈥� I call on you all to be ambassadors for 乐播传媒 and for higher education. Tell the story of how and why 乐播传媒 matters.  Tell the stories of other colleges and universities that are important in your life. Talk about the doors that have been opened by this kind of higher education. Share with others the excellence that lives in these places. Stand up for the positive difference we 鈥� small liberal arts colleges and higher education more broadly 鈥� make in communities, in professions, in human advances through research and progress in a wide range of fields. And defend the distinctive mission of our colleges and universities and their unique and vital contributions to our nation and world.

Yet, even while I hold fast to the enduring power of education to shape lives and propel the world forward, I still feel plenty of uncertainty, too, born of this particular moment, this fraught and fragile time. I鈥檓 right there with you. But I am certain about you. I am certain about our 乐播传媒 Class of 2025. I am certain you are ready for the future. 

I have loved getting to know you. I take joy in seeing your close and warm relationships with one another. I have loved watching you grow and achieve, face setbacks and come back stronger. You have all you need to succeed in whatever you choose. And whatever you choose, wherever life takes you, your college community will be here, cheering you on. 

The world needs you. And I am so proud of all the ways I know you will meet those needs. All of us 鈥� your 乐播传媒 family 鈥� we are so very proud of you. Thank you!

I am happy to share the news with you that Joanne Roberts will join 乐播传媒 College as Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the Faculty, effective July 1, 2025.

Joanne is a noted public economist who has served most recently as president of Yale-NUS College in Singapore, a liberal arts college created in 2012 as a joint venture of Yale University and the National University of Singapore. She took on that role in 2022 after five years in multiple leadership roles at Yale-NUS, including executive vice president for academic affairs and dean of faculty, and before that as a member of the economics faculty. 

罢丑颈蝉听聽shares more details about Joanne鈥檚 appointment and background.听

As an experienced chief academic officer, Joanne has mentored, developed, and innovated on behalf of faculty and students. She has a clear capacity to navigate academic leadership with skill and compassion, and I am confident she will bring those same talents to her work at 乐播传媒 supporting our faculty, students, and academic staff. I look forward to working with her to advance the college鈥檚 academic aspirations.  

I am extraordinarily grateful to all who helped with this extensive search, including the dedicated search committee chaired by Francesco Duina, the Charles A. Dana Professor of Sociology. The committee was assisted by the search firm of Isaacson Miller, and supported by Renee Dana, executive assistant to the vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty, and Mike Hussey, vice president for institutional affairs and secretary to the Board of Trustees. I also wish to thank the many members of the 乐播传媒 community who took time to meet with finalists and provided important feedback.

Sincerely,

   Garry