March 24, 2019: Update on Board of Trustees Meeting Today

Dear Hampshire Community,

We’re writing with a brief update from our Board of Trustees meeting today, where we were joined by members of the Campus Options Committee comprising faculty, students, and staff, and the President’s Options Working Group comprising alums, parents, and former Trustees.

Our agenda today was to 1) affirm our principles and framework for assessing options, 2) review Hampshire’s finances and short- and long-term needs, 3) discuss the status and potential of fundraising efforts, and 4) ask critical questions about current options so the Board will have the benefit of various community perspectives. The two Options Committees were asked to participate to ensure they were equally and fully briefed at the same time. We consider these to be necessary steps to informing a decision.

The Board also invited faculty, staff, and student members of the Re-envisioning Hampshire Coalition to present the latest iteration of its proposal. As a next step, we will provide the Coalition with information to support their further development of their proposal for presenting to the Campus Options Committee and the new Working Group, who are charged with reviewing all options with us.

The meeting today provided focus and clarity regarding our steps moving forward. We recognize that our community wants clarity on our direction—and before that, we want to ensure that the Board has explored all options as thoroughly as possible. We’ll continue to update you on our progress.

Sincerely,

Gaye Hill, Chair

A. Kim Saal, Vice Chair

Luis Hernandez, Vice Chair