Presidential tour hits the road Liebowitz visits eight U.S. cities

Author: Andrea M. LaRocca

In the next few weeks, President Ronald D. Liebowitz will visit four more sites to conclude his eight-city presidential tour. Liebowitz has already visited Denver, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles, and plans to visit Westchester County, Boston, Washington D.C. and New York City by early April.

According to Liebowitz, the tour is "designed to allow the new President to meet our alumni chapters around the country. Parents and alumni are invited to the gatherings, along with additional friends of the College, to a 45-minute presentation by me, followed by a question and answer session and a nice reception."

The primary goal of the events has been to discuss with the greater Middlebury community the strategic planning process that is commencing on campus. "My presentation has been the same in all four cities so far and will be the same for the remaining four: it is a retrospective of where the last strategic plan (of 1992) brought us, where we are today in terms of our academic program, infrastructure, admissions profile, etc., where we do well against our peer institutions and where we lag behind," said Liebowitz. "I also invited parents and alumni to participate in the planning process by completing a survey they will receive in the mail next month, and to send me any questions, ideas, etc. they may have."

Thus far, all of the events have been overwhelming successful. According to Senior Development Officer in College Advancement Meghan Foley '77, about 180 guests, ranging from alumni to parents to a student who was accepted early decision for the Class of 2009, attended the Denver event and approximately 160 guests of similar backgrounds attended the San Francisco event. Similar numbers attended the Chicago and Los Angeles events. Foley said that regions were picked based on alumni chapter presence and that printed invitations were sent to all Middlebury alumni and parents in each event's region.

"The San Francisco event was a terrific success," said Alumni Trustee Jed Smith '88. "We had a record turn out. San Francisco is clearly becoming a hub of Middlebury alumni activity. I was impressed that the general response to [President Liebowitz] was overwhelmingly positive. People appreciated his keen focus on details while maintaining a strategic perspective."

Jeanne Lee '99, President of the Rocky Mountain Alumni Chapter and organizer of the Liebowitz's Denver visit, agreed that the Denver event was equally successful. "People were thrilled to have the opportunity to hear from the new president and there were some good questions about changes that have been made and future plans," she said.

Smith pointed out that the presidential tour is especially important because it allows people who are connected to Middlebury but may not be on campus to contribute to the planning process. "Middlebury has many constituents and stakeholders," Smith said. "The parent and alumni base are critical to our understanding of the outside world's perception of the school and their involvement is essential for our future."

As a recent graduate of Middlebury, Lee said that knowing the College is continuing to better itself is welcome news. "I think it's fantastic to see that even after the successful Bicentennial Campaign, the College is not resting on its laurels. As an alum it's easy to get sentimental about the way things were, but the better the school is in the future, the better it is for all of us," she said.

At the four events to come in Westchester County, Boston, Washington D.C. and New York City, Liebowitz said he hopes "to convey a sense of what is happening on campus, what the College's wonderful accomplishments have been over the past two decades, and what I, as President, see as our challenges and in need of our attention and focus in the coming years."