DEFEND MIDDLEBURY

WALK OUT TO DEFEND OUR MISSION

Join us on the lawn between Davis Library and Old Chapel

Thursday, May 8th at 10:30am

Middlebury once stood among the top liberal arts colleges in the nation. Now, after years of mismanagement, our endowment growth has failed to keep pace with our peers and our rankings have dropped sharply. Yet it is not the decision-makers who bear the cost, but the hardworking staff and faculty who go above and beyond their responsibilities to serve our students and uphold our mission. 

This April, Middlebury announced that it is raising enrollments and reducing faculty and staff benefits. In doing so, it risks eroding the student experience while also reneging on a long-standing promise that it had used to attract and retain employees. This decision imposes real, painful financial losses on 622 people, the majority of whom are non-faculty staff, and their families. By the most conservative estimates, these cuts would cost a 45-year-old over twice their salary by the time they retire, and likely several times more. Fundraisers would never dream of asking someone who makes $50k per year for a donation in the hundreds of thousands. Yet the college has just seized it – and promises that more benefits cuts are on the way as they attempt to correct their mistakes by extracting involuntary donations. 

These actions have severely undermined the morale and trust of the entire community of faculty and staff and threaten our educational mission. This disillusionment is echoed by staff and faculty from offices and departments in every corner of campus. An institution this demoralized cannot retain (or regain) its standing as one of the top liberal arts colleges in the world. 

We love this place. We have devoted our lives to this place. And we will no longer stand idly by and watch administrative malfeasance cut the very heart out of this place. 

Stop the cuts.

Stop the slide.

Honor our commitments.

Rebuild trust and loyalty.

Uphold our mission.

Defend Middlebury.

What can you do?

• Join us this Thursday, May 8th, on the lawn between Old Chapel and Davis Library. 

• Click here to sign the petition to restore faculty and staff benefits: https://forms.gle/FfjtChn7GGqf1ny38

• Stay tuned for future actions.