January 17, 2025
Dear DePauw Community,
The new year has arrived, and like many of you, I rang in the new year by singing “Auld Lang Syne.” Traditionally sung as the clock strikes midnight on December 31, this song is a reflection on the previous year and its friendships, as well as an expression of hope for the year ahead. And yet there is a bit of melancholy in the tune, a sadness or nostalgia for things that once were and may not be the same again. The song captures that complicated feeling of both excitement and apprehension that each new year brings.
As we start the new year at DePauw, we do so in the midst of new initiatives on campus through the implementation of our new three-school model to expand academic offerings and increase interdisciplinary collaboration. We believe these changes will enhance our ability to attract talented students to DePauw, even as higher education experiences a shrinking population of college-aged students, families question its value, and the public calls for wholesale transformation of colleges and universities.
And yet, changes of this magnitude to DePauw’s academic programs remind me of the words and feelings of “Auld Lang Syne.” In order to take hold of new opportunities, we often face the difficult prospect of letting go. This can be – and has been – a bittersweet experience along our own journey of academic renewal. Recognizing that we must evolve certain aspects of the DePauw educational experience to better serve the next generation of students has meant leaving some of what many have treasured at DePauw behind, which inevitably brings a sense of grief and loss for what was.
What we have not left behind at DePauw are the ideals our community identified as the core values guiding us as an institution: student focus, collaboration, curiosity, diversity and inclusion. These values have been instrumental in shaping who we are, and as we forge ahead in our ongoing mission, one of our primary responsibilities is to remain committed to them. A flourishing future grows from these strong and resilient roots.
Among those roots is our founders’ vision of being a university established “on the most liberal principles, accessible to all religious denominations, and designed for the benefit of our citizens in general.” While our founders specifically advocated for accessibility to all religious denominations, I believe their larger focus was that Indiana Asbury College – now, of course, DePauw University – was to be a university accessible to all, whose doors are open to the most talented students from across our country and the world.
Indeed, DePauw has long been a leader in extending educational opportunities as widely as possible. We welcomed our first women students in 1869, our first international students in 1874, and graduated our first African American student in 1888. Regardless of any changes to our academic offerings as we evolve to meet the shifting needs and expectations of today’s students, DePauw will continue to be committed to our liberal arts tradition, and we will continue to welcome students with different backgrounds, experiences, identities, perspectives and ideologies to our campus. This is who we are, and this is who we will remain.
What we have also not left behind are the many firsts that form an important part of DePauw’s history. DePauw is home to Indiana’s first Phi Beta Kappa Chapter, the first sorority founded with Greek Letters in Kappa Alpha Theta and another alpha chapter in Alpha Chi Omega. The first collegiate FM radio station and the Society of Professional Journalists (formerly Sigma Delta Chi) were also founded at DePauw, just to name a few. These and so many other “firsts” are some of the core components of the DePauw experience that are revered by alumni, current students, faculty and staff members. They also set us apart from other colleges and universities and serve as an unchanging foundation upon which we will continue to build our institutional renewal for the 21st century.
I believe in the power of education to positively impact the future. At DePauw, we have the blessed opportunity to bring together great faculty minds who engage in scholarly work on important topics of today and, through their teaching and mentorship, help shape young people to be the leaders the world needs. So while I believe we will continue to face many challenges in higher education, in this new year I am hopeful that DePauw is moving forward in a positive way. I would love to hear what you are hopeful for DePauw and what you believe are the aspects of DePauw that set us apart from other colleges and universities. You can reach me at president@depauw.edu.
In the midst of it all, 2025 is going to be a great year at DePauw!
