Mission and Vision

Mission

The mission of Hampshire College is to foster a lifelong passion for learning, inquiry, and ethical citizenship that inspires students to contribute to knowledge, justice, and positive change in the world and, by doing so, to transform higher education.

Vision

We believe that graduating learners with the ingenuity, purpose, capacity, and grit to mobilize collaborative innovation and cooperative action is the most valuable contribution a college can make to society. We envision Hampshire alumni continuing to change lives, communities, and the world for the better.

Hampshire students take charge of their own intellectual and artistic development and integrate an active, independent, critical, and reflective perspective into their lives as a whole. Hampshire aims to graduate lifelong learners with the courage to challenge boundaries, ask questions, and ignite knowledge with creativity.

We envision Hampshire thriving as an innovator, providing inquiry-based, learner-centered education, and empowering students to think, discover, innovate, and advocate. We aspire to respond to the challenges of the twenty-first century by graduating adaptive entrepreneurs of change equipped to be creators of the ideas, art, and means of progress.

We envision a community that draws resilience, strength, and meaning from every kind of diversity. Hampshire aspires to foster a welcoming community inclusive of individuals from an array of backgrounds and perspectives. We believe that diversity is central to the academic experience, campus culture, and transformative learning.

We envision a community known for practicing:

• Active Inquiry posed rigorously by independent thinkers, creators, and doers.

• Creativity as invention that spans and links arts, humanities, and sciences.

• Social Justice as a goal of discourse, a responsibility of citizenship, and an accountable way to bring our ideals to life in the world.

• Entrepreneurship as the skill and determination to turn ideas into action.

• Sustainability as an approach to living that honors our obligation to the future.