Hampshire “Seeking Partner”

Colleges and Universities A-Z Hampshire College
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As I read Ken Rosenthal’s letter above, it seems to confirm that the outgoing President was acting responsibly.

For those still interested in alternatives, the University of California at Santa Barbara College for Creative Studies (UCSB-CCS) might be of interest.

P.S. Maybe Hampshire College could consider offering in demand language study (such as Mandarin) along with cultural immersion studies. The US federal government may offer substantial funding if the appropriate guidelines are followed.

P.S. Coincidentally, UCSB-CCS is also about 50 years old. It is a successful endeavor which offers very small classes & intensive advising which results in creative accomplishments in writing, the arts & in science.

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2019/05/03/ken-burns-is-pushing-save-hampshire-college/?utm_term=.d016232e4349#click=https://t.co/FIVOML5sht

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Rosenthal’s letter is hopeful but abstract. Reading about Ken Burns’s commitment makes this hope much more concrete. Grateful to @intparent for posting the article.

204

Heck, Ken Burns made me want to donate, and I have no specific tie to Hampshire other than having driven through the campus once with one of my kids. Although I do feel strongly that for certain kids with some self motivation and a dose of creativity, Hampshire would provide a really unique and invaluable experience. I very much hope they can pull this off.

205

Interesting development.

As an aside: I wonder where Ken Burn’s daughter went to college. I believe that she attended St. Paul’s School in New Hampshire for prep school.

206

I’m not sure that matters. I didn’t encourage my kids to apply to my alma mater, although I think for certain students it is an excellent choice. I would donate if it were in financial trouble (but it isn’t), too. That doesn’t make it a good fit for everyone. And that is surely true of Hampshire.

207

I too thought Ken Burns’ letter was inspirational. Until today, I was feeling rather pessimistic about Hampshire’s ability to recover from this crisis, but now I am feeling much more hopeful. I am going to make a donation, but not as much as Ken Burns suggested ("Think of a number that really ‘hurts,’ then multiply it by four)!

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A letter of support from 4 of Hampshire’s past Presidents:

Wednesday, May 15, 2019

Dear Hampshire College Community,

As past presidents of Hampshire, we appreciate fully the challenges Hampshire College faces today, and we have watched with concern its struggles these past few months. We fully support the Board’s decision to affirm that its highest priority will be to maintain Hampshire’s independence and distinctive approach to education – and we have each pledged to support the fundraising effort needed to secure that future.

With the challenges facing this country and the global community, Hampshire is more important now than ever. The College was founded to nurture and tap into the creative and entrepreneurial potential of young people. We cannot allow an institution to fail that has committed itself to the premise that students will be most transformed if they are treated as partners in the educational process, rather than as objects.

The record that Hampshire’s graduates across all fields have established within just one generation, and the testimonials published this spring by other educators, professionals, and organizations, testify to the extraordinary power of Hampshire’s education. More countries need institutions that provide students this transformational opportunity. If it were easy to do, more such institutions would exist, but they do not, because it is not easy.

The conviction of the four colleges 50 years ago, upon founding Hampshire, was that all students can and should be partners in defining the essential questions they wish to explore, and students should negotiate the contracts that will guide their own course of study. This remains the approach most likely to create transformational outcomes. Today, almost every university offers this kind of opportunity to its very best students, because they know it will provide them the greatest challenge. On the other hand, Hampshire is predicated on the idea that all students would benefit from such an opportunity rather than remaining passive recipients of what others think they should know.

Hampshire’s broader message to the world is that every local, national, or global problem would benefit from pursuing the model Hampshire offers, for tapping into the creative potential of its youngest generation. The country and the world need this model of inter-generational education.

We believe that the ideas and support for Hampshire that have emerged this spring point to a tremendous potential for creating a sustainable and independent future for the College. We will do all in our power to support the Board, administration, and the entire community in their efforts to sustain and defend Hampshire’s independence and its essential vision of education, while at the same time achieving the structural reforms required to make it economically viable.

Charles R. Longsworth
President (1971-1977)

Adele S. Simmons
President (1977-1989)

Penina Migdal Glazer
Acting President (1984-1985)

Gregory S. Prince, Jr.
President (1989-2005)

209

What will happen to Hampshire Math? Its one of the best summer high school math programs for gifted math students, that sometimes leads to a spot at RSI at MIT the following summer for some students. Is there talk of moving HCSSIM or is it gone already? Wow, how sad. I often recommend that high school summer program to students interested in math or CS research careers.
Its a 47 year program, one of the best math programs.
https://www.hampshire.edu/summer-programs/hampshire-college-summer-studies-in-mathematics-hcssim

210

Article about former President’s interactions with Hampshire students.
https://www.gazettenet.com/Tensions-on-campus-as-Hampshire-College-students-refuse-to-leave-president-s-office-24305797

211

The fourth paragraph of the letter is concerning. It is a bit ridiculous to allow 18 year olds to decide the content of their studies. This is a time to build a solid foundation in a discipline, and not a time to define the discipline as an 18 year old sees fit. But, that is why Hampshire is different.

Of course, there are a few exceptions such as Bill Gates & Ken Burns. But these are rare talents who can be accommodated elsewhere. “Today, almost every university offers this kind of opportunity to its very best students, because they know it will provide them with the greatest challenge.” If so, then why is Hampshire College needed ?

212

It’s been a good run, but I feel it’s time to go out while on top. Enough already, Hampshire.

213

@Publisher You’ve been ripping on Hampshire since this thread started. Your glee at their troubles is quite rude. I think plenty of students are just followers and ticket punchers (and honestly, so are their parents). They do what other people tell them to, follow the track set down by someone else, and never put more than a few minutes thought into even what major or career they want, let alone into what set of studies they’d follow if it was truly their choice. That is a rare thing in the world today to be willing to step off the path to forge your own direction.

I think some of the very top schools are trying these days to find and admit the student who is really more intellectually independent. But they have more and more trouble discerning the grinder from the truly different student because the grinder have figured out that they want to LOOK like they aren’t like the rest, and have set their noses to THAT grindstone. Hence many threads out here about how to make ECs stand out to top schools.

Hampshire strikes me as a place for the kid who wants their studies to mean something to them. They aren’t the students who either were truly brilliant enough to get very high grades without a lot of effort, nor are they grinders who got great grades through mostly elbow grease. But there is a place in the world for a good but not great student who wants to figure out the path for themselves. I suspect a lot of frosh stumble at it, but I also suspect the growth between frosh & senior is really something special for the right student at Hampshire, and probably gives them qualities as an adult that are unique and positive.

I think parents and students are afraid, though. They are afraid to take a path that doesn’t have defined career objectives at the end. There is a risk in a school that doesn’t lay out the specific path for you to follow like in a a well manicured garden. It seems like in the thousands of colleges in the US, there ought to be a few like this.

214

Not glee, just reality.

P.S. I also think that Hampshire’s approach to education is very inefficient.

With respect to your last sentence, according to the letter posted above “almost every university” offers this.(Paragraph 4).

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Well, we probably shouldn’t turn this thread into a debate about Hampshire’s qualities. But I’d hold that the qualities grown at Hampshire aren’t the same as most other schools, and a kid learns more about themselves by truly making and living with their own education choices than they do at a school that tells you what you have to do for your major. And while many schools allow designing their own major, very few students do it - this is a whole community of students doing it.

Whether it is inefficient probably depends on what you think a college education is for. I have an undergrad and a grad degree in a field considered “practical”. I’d guess I use less than 5% of what I studied in the classroom. And I don’t hire for what classes someone took or even what degree they have. I hire for whether they are smart, flexible, and have some kind of background in what we are doing. I think a college education is as much about helping a kid develop skills to see what is important, what is unusual, what is interesting as it is about learning in specific classes.

216

I agree.

And I especially agree that among thousands of four year US colleges & universities, that there should be a “Hampshire College” type option. But, it didn’t succeed in the long term. So something needs to be changed other than throwing more money at the same less than successful model.

217

If Hampshire were the sole SLAC experiencing financial hardships, then one might conclude that their education model is ‘inefficient’ or unsuccessful. However that is by no means the case. A number of SLACs, mostly in the Northeast, have closed, restructured, or are struggling. This is no secret; small colleges that are not well-endowed must meet their expenses through tuition, which has now risen to the point that many families can no longer justify the cost.

Also, anyone who thinks that Hampshire’s education model involves letting 18-year-olds select their own degree is woefully ignorant of how this college works. In fact, a committee of professors work with each student to craft a coherent and cogent degree plan. If the student’s plan is not sufficiently rigorous or coherent, the committee will not sign off on the plan. This is how graduate schools work, and it works well at Hampshire. It is admittedly ‘inefficient’ in terms of the time it takes, but I don’t think that this is the reason that Hampshire is encountering financial problems.

218

I have two friends who have graduated from Hampshire in the past dozen years. They both were highly motivated, self-starters…and bright. They each received a great education and valued the freedom that Hampshire offered. They are now happy and accomplished in their careers (one small business owner, one doctor) and they wouldn’t have traded their educational experience for any other. For the right students, Hampshire has been a very successful model.

219

Hopefully good news, Hampshire will enroll.a full freshman class 2020. https://www.wwlp.com/news/hampshire-college-announces-plans-to-enroll-full-class-in-fall-of-2020/

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^^Will be interesting to see the quality of the applicants they attract as well as how many.