Writings & Remarks

Welcome back to the spring 2026 semester

January 21, 2026

Tags Public Statements

Dear Hamilton Community,

Welcome back to the spring semester, though it does not seem much like spring with “feel-like” temperatures of -6 degrees and lots of snow in the forecast!

I hope the break brought you needed rest and renewal. We’re returning to a campus that welcomes back students who were studying abroad in the fall, as well as those studying in New York City and Washington, D.C. Fifty-two Jan students joined Hamilton on Saturday after spending the fall semester in places like London and Turks and Caicos, and doing research in labs, and more. We will soon welcome a new director of athletics who will be announced today. Spring brings new and renewed voices and ideas to our campus on the Hill. 

This weekend, while watching one of our teams compete, I spoke to a mom who was in town to cheer on her first-year student. The mom could not believe how eager her daughter was for break to be over and for spring classes to begin. I am not surprised given what I experienced at the end of last semester where I had the privilege to attend several classes and final presentations: Kate Brown’s class on physics, Nazis, and the American space program; Gordon Jones’s introductory physics class where he demonstrated the principle of distributed force by having a cinderblock smashed on my chest while I was lying on a bed of nails; Sanjay’s Moorjani’s econometric class where student teams presented complex models for estimating financial risk, oil prices, markets, and public health outcomes; and Briana Burke’s class on climate change and fiction, where we talked about Octavia Butler’s seminal book, Parable of the Sower. These faculty and students are engaging ideas at the highest level. The quality and creativity of teaching were matched in equal measure by the questions, observations, and insights of the students.

This ceaseless creative exchange was present throughout last semester’s Aspirational Design process, which engaged hundreds of campus community members and produced thousands of ideas that will drive Hamilton’s success into the future. Senior staff met on Tuesday to review the results of this work and will share an update with the campus for further input later this month. These same ideas will be presented to the Board of Trustees for their feedback in March. At my inauguration in September 2024, my good friend and artist Daniel Bernard Roumain painted a picture of what we might hope for as we work together on bold ideas for our future. He said, “Imagine all of us in a boat rowing together in the same direction, cutting through the water, the momentum, the teamwork and the thrill of the horizon racing toward us. Who would not want to be on that boat?” Aspirational Design has brought that horizon closer and I am excited to continue rowing with all of you.

And as we think about our future, Hamilton also continues to support and engage the urgent needs of our local community. Through the Hamilton Town-Gown Fund, the College awarded $120K in grants to support local public safety, arts, education, and social service organizations. Professor of Art Robert Knight and Michael Shapiro ’71, director emeritus of Atlanta’s High Museum of Art, led students in curating an exhibition at the Munson Museum of Art in Utica. Constellations: Works on Paper from Three Collections opens February 20. And our women's hockey team recently volunteered at the Country Pantry, helping to sort food and pack bags for neighbors in need. These are just a few of the many ways in which our College community continues to contribute to those around us as we learn from them as well.

As we return to work and classes, we continue to have opportunities to engage with each other to build and strengthen our campus community. I hope that you will join me and members of senior staff at this year’s Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dinner on Thursday, Feb. 5, at 5 p.m. in Tolles Pavilion.

Wishing everyone a terrific spring semester.

Onward!

Steven