President-elect Tepper: “I’m Ready to Learn, and I’m Open to Your Ideas”
Many of the students, faculty, and staff who filled the Chapel on February 29 for Tepper’s first in-person remarks to the community were sporting colorful cardstock bow ties — an homage to the incoming leader’s favorite accessory, which he mentioned in a video announcing his appointment. It was an idea that Professor of History and College Marshal Lisa Trivedi had to “mark the occasion in a welcoming and warm-hearted way” and to ensure he felt at home in his new community.
“To look out and see all of these bow ties, I’m really speechless, which is not a good thing to be before you’re supposed to give a speech,” he said. “I have felt the warm reception, so thank you for making today an incredible day.”
The 35-minute event in the Chapel followed a busy day for Tepper and his wife, Dana, that included tours of academic facilities and spaces, conversations with faculty and staff, and a reception with student leaders. President David Wippman began the program with brief reflections on his eight years at the helm and his endorsement of the College’s next leader.
“When I leave Hamilton at the end of June, I know I will miss it greatly. I will miss the beauty of the campus, the rhythm of academic life, and, most especially, the people,” he said. “But I take great comfort in knowing that Hamilton has found the perfect leader to take it into the years ahead.”
After commending the search committee on doing a “fantastic job,” Wippman invited the two student members of the committee, Sophie Thompson ’24 and Quentin Messer ’26, to speak about what excites them about Hamilton’s 21st president.
“Dean Tepper has a vibrant and joyful spirit that is contagious when he walks into the room,” Thompson said. Messer added, “[Steven] is a creative, observant, and enthusiastic administrator who acts in the best interest of the students and the College.”
The duo then introduced the search committee co-chairs, trustees Linda Johnson ’80 and Bob Delaney ’79. Johnson offered her sincere thanks to the search committee, shared her deep admiration of Wippman, who will step down on June 30, 2024, and her enthusiasm for Tepper. “Fortunately, we have found a new president who exemplifies the values of the College; he is smart, creative, and believes deeply in the liberal arts.”
Steven Tepper
President-elect, Hamilton College
Current Dean, the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts, Arizona State University
Education
Ph.D., Princeton University
M.P.P., Harvard University
B.A., The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Delaney acknowledged Tepper’s “impressive resume [and] scholarly accolades” before sharing insights from the committee’s unanimous decision to choose Tepper, noting that members found him to be “a tested and experienced leader” with an “inspired communication style,” who listens “with care and attention” and “makes [people] feel as if [they] are only one in the room.”
“In Steven, we have found someone whose belief in the liberal arts matches Hamilton’s commitment to this extraordinary form of education,” Delaney said.
He then turned the microphone over to Tepper, who brought humility, humor, and energy with him to center stage. Hamilton’s future president spoke for nearly 20 minutes on topics spanning his entire life to date, including his upbringing just outside of Washington, D.C., and being what he described as “Smithsonian baby,” to the moment he realized, at age 17, that he “wasn’t creative,” which served as the seed for what became his life’s work.
“I’ve spent the rest of my life as a sociologist and a scholar trying to understand creativity in a context where forces are trying to restrict and contain it; asking how we place it at the center of education, of community building, of democracy, of work,” he said. “I want to make sure that our social institutions, which include our colleges and our universities, and all of our collective stories of ourselves and of our potential as a species, are not unduly restricted by this narrow view of creativity.”
Campus Introductions
Tepper took every opportunity throughout his visit to introduce himself to people. During his remarks, he said that when his son Sam was three years old, he would run up to every child on the playground and introduce himself and shake their hand before playing. “I think that’s a nice lesson to learn from [him] about what it takes to join a community: you have to know everybody. And [Hamilton] is a community where you can know everybody and you can learn from everybody.”
“Dean Tepper has a vibrant and joyful spirit that is contagious when he walks into the room,” Sophie Thompson ’24 said. Quentin Messer ’26 added, “[Steven] is a creative, observant, and enthusiastic administrator who acts in the best interest of the students and the College.”
Snippets from Tepper’s Remarks
