Vassar Quarterly - Fall 2017 - 20

I N AUG U R AT I O N S PE C I A L

VASSAR WELCOMES
A NEW LEADER



Elizabeth H. Bradley
Inaugurated as 11th President of the College
BY ELIZ ABETH R ANDOLPH
Photography by John Abbott

O

n the weekend of September 24,
alumnae/i, as well as family,
friends, and former colleagues
of Elizabeth Bradley flocked to
campus for a once-in-a-lifetime experience:
the opportunity to see history in the making
as William Plapinger '74 P'10, Chair of
Vassar's Board of Trustees, officially installed
Bradley as the 11th President of Vassar College.
Bradley had made a point to meet with
several Vassar clubs and affinity groups even
before her tenure began, but others who had
been reading about her in the pages of VQ
or online were keen to meet the woman who
would steer the institution on to the next leg
of its journey.
That Sunday afternoon, more than 1,000
people filed into the Chapel. Bagpipers
announced the arrival of Bradley, invited
dignitaries, and the senior class, dressed
in caps and gowns. Thousands more from
around the globe tuned in online for a live
webcast of the ceremony.
Early in the broadcast, student emcees
-perched on chairs outside the Chapel-
introduced student-moderated videos about
Vassar's science programs, prized artwork at
the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center, Vassar
athletics, and the newly refurbished ACDC
dining facilities.
20

FA l l 2 0 1 7

Before officially installing Bradley as
Vassar's 11th President, Plapinger, gave
opening remarks and invited representatives
from the Alumnae and Alumni of Vassar
College (AAVC), the student body, the faculty,
the Seven Colleges, and the Ivy League to
bring greetings to the new president.
President Bradley delivered her address
after receiving her presidential medallion.
"Today, we have a dual task before us,"
she said. "We remember the institution's
history, and we chart a path into the future.
The president has the challenge to set
forth an institutional vision and a set of
priorities in a way that weaves the past
and the future together to build a cohesive
path forward."
To that end, she recalled the founding
of the college and Matthew Vassar's "ambitious, progressive idea" of providing women
with high-quality education comparable
to that offered to men. She spoke about
the tradition of searching for the truth by
"going to the source," and the purposeful
creation and maintenance of a beautiful and
historic campus that encourages wandering
and reflection.
Her vision, going forward, she said,
"is that Vassar retains-and strengthens-
its position as a national model for liberal

arts education: a model that provides the
highest quality education, is accessible, and
empowers its students and faculty to tackle
the most pressing intellectual and social
problems of our time."
President Bradley also laid out key
priorities for her administration, including
maintaining a world-class faculty and
rigorous intellectual environment, creating
an inclusive campus culture in an increasingly divisive world, strengthening Vassar's
role in the surrounding community, and
revitalizing campus buildings and landscapes so they support Vassar's goals of
"accessibility, sustainability, and educational excellence."
In closing, she urged, "Let us draw
strength from each other and take on the
challenge of ensuring that Vassar remains
the unique higher education institution
that it has been for our nation, our world,
and the tens of thousands of students who
have walked on this campus. ... Let us
be free in our curiosity, responsible in
our community, and full of hope for our
collective future."

View photos and videos from Inauguration
Weekend at inauguration.vassar.edu.
http://inauguration.vassar.edu
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vassar Quarterly - Fall 2017
