|
August 2026 News for Bard Families & Friends |
|
|
|
The final performance of Richard Strauss’s seldom heard, The Egyptian Helen, took place at Bard SummerScape on Sunday, August 2, 2026. Photo Credit: Maria Baranova. |
|
Dear Bard Families and Friends,
Our next class of Bardians arrives tomorrow, Friday, August 7, and a new cohort of transfer students will join the community on Friday, August 21. We can’t wait to welcome all new Bardians to campus and help them settle into their L&T programs! Be sure to follow @bardfamilynetwork and @bardcollege on Instagram to get a glimpse of the action.
If you have a first year student moving on to campus tomorrow but you are arriving in the Hudson Valley today, please join us for a pre-arrival day reception at Bard's Campus Center North from 4:00-5:30pm. We would love to see you there!
With new student arrival front of mind this month, the Center for Civic Engagement and Election@Bard are excited to welcome your Bard student voter to campus. Both will be tabling at check in on arrival day and will be available to walk new students through their voter registration options. Student voters should have the last four digits of their social security number and (if possible) their Bard PO Box number (it’s in the MyAnnandale portal) handy when visiting the voter registration table.
All returning students will arrive on campus on Saturday, August 29 and we’re looking forward to the heartwarming reunions of friends coming back together after summer adventures away. Fall classes begin on Monday, August 31.
Remember, you can always find important dates by visiting the academic calendar on Bard’s website. Please save the date for Family and Alumni/ae Weekend: October 23-25, 2026. Details about all of the events taking place that weekend will follow in the fall.
Also taking place during Family and Alumni/ae Weekend will be the official opening of Bard’s new Performing Arts Lab, designed by Maya Lin. We recommend booking accommodations now for this particular weekend and can direct you to the Destination Dutchess website for ideas on places to stay in Dutchess County.
Looking ahead to the fall, Bard Athletics and Recreation will be hosting its fourth annual golf tournament in support of Bard Athletics on Friday, October 9 at the Red Hook Golf Club. A registration link will be included in the September issue of the Annandale Insider.
Tomorrow, Friday, August 7, the Bard Music Festival returns for its 36th year with an exploration of Wolfgang Amadé Mozart, the most celebrated and recognized name in classical music. For more information and tickets, click here. Please also consider joining us for a performance or late night dancing at the Spiegeltent through August 15.
Also a summer highlight, over 60 students participated in the Bard Summer Research Institute (BSRI) working with 20 faculty for eight weeks in June and July. If you and your student are already thinking about plans for summer 2027, your student can visit the link above to learn more about this program.
August is National Make-A-Will Month, making it the perfect time to create or update your estate plan. No matter your age or stage of life, having a will is one of the most meaningful ways to protect the people you love and ensure your wishes are honored. Bard College has partnered with FreeWill to offer families a free, secure, and easy way to create a legally valid will online in about 20 minutes. Many members of the Bard community have already taken advantage of this valuable resource. If you're ready to plan for the future, create your free will today!
As always, if you have any questions or wish to set up a meeting with me, please do not hesitate to contact me at [email protected].
Looking forward to the upcoming academic year!
Best Wishes,
Mackie Siebens '12
Assistant Director of Development for Family Programs
[email protected]
845-758-7316
P.S. As a reminder, there are some wonderful exhibits to see at the Hessel Museum of Art on campus. If you find yourself in Annandale this month or into the fall, these exhibits are: Betty Parsons: An Expanded World; Replica of a Chip: The Weaving Technology of Marilou Schultz, and Uman: In Between.
|
|
Dates to Remember
To view the full 2026-2027 academic calendar, click here.
Friday, August 7, 2026 | Arrival Day, Check-in, and Financial Clearance for all other new First-Year Students Reem-Kayden Center, 9am-2pm
Monday, August 10, 2026 – Wednesday, August 26, 2026 | Language and Thinking Program
Friday, August 21, 2026 | Arrival Day, Check-in, and Financial Clearance for All New Transfer Students Reem-Kayden Center, 9am-12pm
Monday, August 24, 2026 – Wednesday, August 26, 2026 | Transfer Student Language and Thinking Program 9am-3:30pm
Thursday, August 27, 2026 – Friday, August 28, 2026 | Matriculation Days - Advising and Class Registration for New First-Year and Transfer Students
Saturday, August 29, 2026 | Arrival Day for All Returning Students, Check-in and Financial Clearance for All Returning Students
Monday, August 31, 2026 | First Day of Fall Classes
Wednesday, September 9, 2026 | Drop/Add Period Ends 5pm
Monday, October 12, 2026 – Tuesday, October 13, 2026 | Fall Break
Friday, October 23, 2026 | Midterm Grades and Criteria Sheets Due from faculty
Friday, October 23, 2026 – Sunday, October 25, 2026 | Family and Alumni/ae Weekend
Thursday, November 26, 2026 – Sunday, November 29, 2026 | Thanksgiving Recess |
|
|
|
Family Leadership Council
Members of the Family Leadership Council (FLC) play a leadership role in the Bard community through a range of activities. FLC members develop and participate in on-campus and regional recruiting and mentoring events, promote and provide career opportunities for students, and participate in peer-to-peer fundraising. Parents on the FLC play a role in the success of the Bard College Fund through annual gifts. The Family Leadership Council meets twice each year: once during Family Weekend in the fall and once in the spring. These meetings are open so all Bard families are welcome to attend.
Interested in joining or have questions? Contact Mackie Siebens '12, Assistant Director of Development for Family Programs, at [email protected] or 845-758-7316. |
|
|
|
|
|
Attendees looking at an exhibit at "Cagecircle." Photo by Wais Kakarr ’26
|
Will Heinrich MFA ’13 Writes About Bard Exhibits for the New York Times
For the New York Times, Bard alumnus Will Heinrich MFA ’13 wrote about Upstate Art Weekend, an arts festival held in June across five days and ten counties which included several Bard-affiliated art events. Heinrich describes the “unmissable shows” located on Bard’s campus, including “Cagecircle: Composition for an Exhibition” at Stevenson Library and the CCS Hessel Museum's opening weekend for its summer exhibitions.
|
|
|
Photo by Danny Santana
|
Bard Early High School Bronx Student Ariella Thompson Cowrites Op-Ed with NY State Senator Luis Sepulveda for NY Daily News
Ariella Thompson, a senior at Bard High School Early College Bronx, coauthored an opinion piece with Luis R. Sepulveda, the New York State Senator for the Bronx’s 32nd district, for the New York Daily News. “Most students hear that college is the place where they will finally learn to think independently, to express themselves with confidence, and to have control over what they want to learn,” the op-ed states. “But at early college programs such as Bard High School Early College Bronx, that process begins before many students are even old enough to drive.”
|
|
|
Photo by Rachel L. Crittenden
|
Bard College MBA in Sustainability Receives Top Rankings
Bard’s MBA in Sustainability has received recognition by several prominent ranking and ratings systems. The program has, for the sixth consecutive year, been named the #1 Green MBA by The Princeton Review in the publication’s 2027 business school rankings, and has also earned #1 MBA for Nonprofits ranking by the Review for the third consecutive year, placing Bard ahead of institutions including Yale, Harvard, Stanford, Cornell, Columbia, Berkeley, and Northwestern. Additionally, CEO awarded Bard an AAA rating in its Green MBA Index, which assesses how thoroughly sustainability is integrated into an MBA program’s curriculum, research, institutional strategy, and graduate outcomes.
|
|
|
Clockwise from top left: Catherine Chapel ’29, Faisal Jones ’26, Patricia Santos ’28, Jesse Radzik ’28, Blake Kendall ’29, Lola Greene ’29, Maria Castro ’29, Paige Houghton ’26, Peter Trimble ’29, Faisal Jones ’26, and Thanasis Kostikas ’26.
|
Bard Mens’ and Women’s Tennis Teams Recognized As ITA All-Academic Teams for 2025-26
The Bard women’s and men’s tennis teams were recognized as Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-Academic teams, recognizing their excellence in sports and academics. Players Catherine Chapel ’29, Faisal Jones ’26, Patricia Santos ’28, Jesse Radzik ’28, Blake Kendall ’29, Lola Greene ’29, Maria Castro ’29, Paige Houghton ’26, Peter Trimble ’29, Faisal Jones ’26, and Thanasis Kostikas ’26 received ITA Academic Awards for 2025-26.
|
|
|
Jonathan Becker, acting president of Bard College. Photo by Rachel L. Crittenden
|
Bard Acting President Jonathan Becker Publishes Opinion Article in Times Higher Education
Jonathan Becker, acting president of Bard College, published an opinion piece in Times Higher Education about how institutions of higher learning should remain focused on civic missions. As he assumes the position of acting president, Bard’s commitment to a civic mission of expanding access to liberal arts educational opportunities and community engagement remains paramount.
|
|
|
The Hessel Museum at Bard's Center for Curatorial Studies.
|
Three Exhibitions at CCS Hessel Museum Profiled in Forbes
The Hessel museum’s summer exhibitions by Betty Parsons, Marilou Schultz, and Uman opened last month and were profiled in Forbes. They showcase artists “pushing the possibilities of abstraction and color,” writes Chadd Scott.
|
|
|
Our July Supporters
Thank you to Bard families and friends who supported Bard in July. We are grateful for your generosity to the College!
#donorsmakedegreespossible.
Anonymous (4) • Kenneth S. Stern '75 and Marjorie Slome • Irina Lebedeva • Tomas Wise • Peter Nadin and Anne E. Kennedy • Kimberly L. Haas • Ilya Levinson and Martine Benmann • Geraldine Brodsky • Lucia Nicotra-Rizzo and Ava Rizzo • Robert W. Lourie • Richard Aldous and Kathryn Aldous • Frank J. Komola • James Reiss • Martin B. Mosbacher and Andrea Mosbacher • Stuart Breslow and Anne Miller • Dorothy Vinski • Stephanie E. Kufner and Gerald M. Kufner • Ann R. Miller • Ian A. McFarland and Ann E. Lillya • Max J. Kenner '01 and Sarah L. Botstein Kenner • Richard Dower and Laura E. Dower • Dan Junkins and Minette Junkins • Connie Laport • Peter W. Greenwald and Gail M. Newman • Andrew Thomas and Ashaty Thomas • William C. Toth and Barbara K. Leff • Kim Rosenfield • George F. Hamel and Pamela Hamel • and Natasha Dillahunt. and Natasha Dillahunt '98 • John R. Low-Beer • David W. Jacobowitz '65 and Linda Rodd • John Modders • Jason T. Robison and Anne S. Robison • Fei Liu • Kristi Wallace Knight • Barbara Gundlach • Jill & Frank Weber • Jane Kim • Debra R. Pemstein and Dean Vallas • Rosemary Du Mont • David Meikle
To give to Bard today, visit giving.bard.edu/bcf. |
|
|
|
|
