Ahart sees the following as “the most significant challenges facing the College over the next few years”:
“ I agree with those who believe that the recent economic downturn marked a sea change in the ability of colleges and universities to increase revenues annually through higher tuition and related charges that exceed the rate of inflation and through consistently growing endowments. The net result is that the board’s financial-stewardship role will be critically important and more challenging than in recent decades. We will not be able to provide all things to everyone but will need to be more selective in the programs and initiatives that we support.”
“ Access to higher education also is directly related to costs. With middle-income families still having great difficulty, the College will need to work harder to enroll the very best students while providing financial aid within our means. The board will need to work on enhancing the endowment to support both financial aid and new strategic programs.”
“ With the changing demographics, working to achieve greater pluralism and diversity in the campus community is very important. The board and the administration will need to continue focusing on this.”