Orientation and Arrival Dates
2021 Required Summer Reading
First-year students taking L&T (includes BHSEC students and transfers with fewer than 28 transferable credits):
An Odyssey: A Father, a Son, and an Epic, by Daniel Mendelsohn
Transfer/RCP students completing the orientation and two-week workshop (does not include Bard Baccalaureate students):
What the Eyes Don't See, by Mona Hanna-Attisha. Students should read chapters 1–8, 17–26, and the Epilogue.
Bard Baccalaureate Students
For information about the required summer readings, please contact: Kwame Holmes, Cohort Advisor, BardBac, at kholmes@bard.edu.
Welcome, Transfer Students
The contents of these webpages are intended to help you familiarize yourself with Bard prior to your arrival on campus. If you have any remaining questions, don’t hesitate to call Timand Bates at 845-758-7454, or email tbates@bard.edu.
Transfer students have ample time to complete their Moderation. (Watch this video for more on the Moderation process.) You will work closely with your faculty adviser to create a program of study that makes sense for you.
Meet the Dean of Transfer Students
Timand, an alumnus of 2002, works with sophomores, juniors, and seniors (last names Q–Z), offering social and academic support for students who may be struggling, are unsure about their program of study, want help with course selection, or have questions about how to improve their academic skills and time-management strategies. He coordinates programming and support for incoming transfer students and students who live off campus. Timand is also a field supervisor for the Bard MAT program, where he works with graduate students who are in pre–service training to become public school English teachers. When Timand is not supporting Bardians, his preferred use of time is exploring deep in the Catskills with his two fierce daughters, Alice and Hazel, and wife, Monica, who is also an educator. Despite Timand’s lifelong commitment to literature and literacy, he is quite proud that his family’s first initials spell MATH—an homage to the logic of love!
Questions? Contact Timand by email at tbates@bard.edu or by phone at 845-758-7454. Or come by Sottery Hall and visit the Center for Student Life and Advising.
Your House Librarian
Stevenson Library has partnered with the Bard Houses Faculty in Residence Program to provide a liaison librarian for each of the four houses. House librarians will be available to first-year and transfer students who have questions about research, citing sources, and using library resources and services. They will hold office hours for drop-in questions—often with cookies—and partner with House faculty on other programs throughout the year.
Bard's COVID-19 Response
Visit the COVID-19 Response website for comprehensive information about arrival on campus and the fall semester.