News

Hamilton has reached its goal for the Because Hamilton campaign, the most ambitious fundraising initiative in the College’s history. Gifts and commitments have topped $400 million with several weeks remaining before the campaign concludes on June 30.

Hamilton is committed to helping students find their future. Meet James Argo ’22 who parlayed an internship at Goldman Sachs into his first job.

When Hamilton made significant investments in environmentally focused science offerings nearly two decades ago, Trustee Joel Johnson ’65, P’93 and his family wanted to ensure the brightest minds found among science faculty were at the forefront of environmental research. That’s when they established — what was at that time — the largest endowed professorship in the College’s history.

When Trustee Phyllis Breland ’80 was Hamilton’s Director of Opportunity Programs, one of her favorite meetings was for the Student Emergency Aid Society (SEAS), a campus committee that evaluates and supports emergency or exceptional one-time needs for students with extraordinary financial barriers.

Buoyed by the One Hill of a Party Reunion celebration and a trustee challenge, the 2021-22 Hamilton Fund closed at $7.81 million, the highest dollar total ever.

Aaron Simons ’22 shares what it was like to direct his mentor and former theatre professor Mark Cryer in a one-man play about Thurgood Marshall at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Scotland in early August.

“I spent a summer in the chemistry department,” recalled Tom Copeland ’70. “There were three of us, and that was the whole Hamilton summer research program.”

Copeland credits his summer research on the Hill, and the mentorship of Professor Donald Denney, with his acceptance into the Ph.D. program at Brown University. It was there, while completing his degree in physical chemistry, that he met his wife, Diane, who was doing graduate research in chemistry and biochemistry.

The AI-scripted and human-performed musical production Channelers, an interdisciplinary art project funded by the Dietrich Inchworm Grant and headed by Assistant Professor of Digital Arts Anna Huff.

From tracking shorebirds in Alaska to studying the syntax, semantics, and pragmatics of hate speech, students built on knowledge and skills learned in the classroom through summer research.

Other students explored career options while interning at places ranging from Goldman Sachs to a Los Angeles recording studio.

In 2019, a team of Hamilton staff and students traveled to the island of Nevis, birthplace of the College’s namesake Alexander Hamilton, to collaborate with the Nevis Historical and Conservation Society. A team returned in June to continue work on the project.

Joining Hamilton’s senior staff, Sean Bennett will lead College-wide efforts to make Hamilton a more welcoming and inclusive community.

The Hamilton College Town-Gown Fund recently distributed grants totaling $79,450 to seven non-profit and public safety organizations serving the Town of Kirkland and the Village of Clinton.

Hamilton’s nationally recognized rowing team now has an equally impressive home. The Jason P. Andris [’96] Boathouse, located on the Erie Canal in Rome, N.Y., was dedicated on May 14.

During his Hamilton years, Michael Lang ’67 was a habitue, maybe the only habitue, of the Rare Book Room (then known as the Treasure Room), which saw little use by students. That seemed a shame to Lang.

As the Arthur Levitt Public Affairs Center marks its 40th anniversary, it is simultaneously celebrating the continued generosity of the Levitt family in support of the center’s public service-focused endeavors.

Two icons in American civil rights history, Drew Days ’63 and Robert Moses ’56, – both Hamilton College graduates – are being remembered at the College with scholarships named in their honor.

When the books closed on June 30, 2021, $7.23 million had been raised for the 2020-21 Hamilton Fund, surpassing the $7.2 million goal. Nearly 39% of alumni contributed.

A $22 million estate gift from Keith Wellin ’50 is the single largest gift in Hamilton’s history. The bulk of the funds will support student scholarships.

Hamilton has received a $100,000 grant from the Fred L. Emerson Foundation of Auburn, N.Y., to use as seed funding for a new advising and learning program the College will launch in 2021-22.

Convinced of the importance of digital technologies to the future of Hamilton and its students, two alumni with careers in finance each have endowed a professorship in computer science, a major boost for a department with a growing enrollment.

Hamilton at Heart, a day of giving held on October 1, was a resounding success. The event reached its goal of inspiring 3,517 donors to show their support with gifts totaling $1,696,681.

Motivated by a desire to ensure the benefits of a Hamilton education to future generations, James MacLennan ’58 provided a gift in his estate plan that has prompted a $10 million challenge.

In a year defined by unexpected challenges, Hamiltonians made sure that their college had the resources to respond and overcome. Thanks to the generosity of alumni, parents, employees, students, and friends, more than $7.2 million was raised for the 2019-20 Hamilton Fund.

Redesigned introductory course gives students from across the disciplines a basic understanding of programming and how computers can be used in their fields.

“Engaged learning encourages students to take agency in seeking out learning experiences that are relevant to their interests and goals and to not only engage with content but to actively reflect on their own learning processes,” noted Kathy Wolfe, Hamilton’s first dean of engaged education, who joined the College on July 1.

Students created gadgets that, when attached to everything from hoodies to baseball gloves to plants, relay useful information.

When the theatre went dark on Hamilton’s spring mainstage production, students and faculty created The Seagull You Never Saw, a website that features pieces inspired by Chekhov’s and students’ personal experiences.

Hamilton marks a decade of need-blind admission — a bold commitment to access and opportunity.

The New World Nature Project, leaning heavily on digital humanities skills, has produced new online tools and databases that will be of potential value to scholars everywhere.

Hamilton is a member of the American Talent Initiative, a national alliance of leading colleges and universities that released a new report this week showing the organization is on track to enroll 50,000 more lower-income students by 2025.

Responding to what Professor of Mathematics Sally Cockburn describes as a “recent explosion of interest in data analysis," the faculty has approved a minor in statistics.

Experts on Affirmative Action, impeachment, and income inequality will share their perspectives this semester in discussions designed to promote respectful dialogue.

Hamilton marked a decade of need-blind admission by honoring presidential candidate and former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg for his work to make college affordable for moderate- and low-income students.

On Nov. 15 we exceeded our goals, and made Hamilton history. More than $1.5 million was raised for financial aid, earning $1.5 million in matching funds to establish two new financial aid endowments.

The Hamilton Annual Fund again exceeded its fiscal year-end goal, reaching a total of $7.156 million to support College priorities that included student financial aid, digital learning and the academic program, career exploration, athletics, and extracurricular activities. These contributions have an enormous impact on the student experience at Hamilton.

The $493,321, four-year project will bring to campus new equipment, technology, and additional professional development for curricular and co-curricular digital experiences in the arts, and a new technologist to support creative development and advisory support for faculty and students.

Hamilton’s need-blind promise is one of the many factors that encouraged me to attend the College. And, Hamilton invests in its students holistically. The financial aid team at Hamilton works hard to ensure that all students’ needs are covered. That is because our needs extend beyond tuition, room, and board.

A Chronicle of Higher Education article that provides a full spectrum of immersive reality applications in college classrooms, begins by highlighting Hamilton’s use of the digital technology.

CASE, the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education, announced today that “Because Hamilton,” the video produced to kick-off the College’s capital campaign, won this year’s Circle of Excellence Gold Award for the “video: fundraising – long videos” category.

Not an option says Rhudi Darko ’20, who came to the campus Print Shop’s rescue by fixing a broken press using digital modeling and 3D printing.

Sam Welch ’86, associate vice president for constituent engagement, says Hamilton’s alumni network stands out in helping graduates in the job market.

CEOs David Solomon ’84 (Goldman Sachs) and Thomas Tull ’92 (Tulco; Legendary Entertainment) discussed how new technologies are revolutionizing business and finance — and what's next.

The New Field House mimics outdoor game conditions — minus the snow, rain, and mud.

Hamilton and StoryCorps are partnering on One Small Step, an initiative that will bring together people with opposing views for recorded conversations.

Kyra Richardson ’21 tells how Hamilton’s financial aid has enabled her to not only attend Hamilton but take advantage of all the College has to offer.

Creative writing major Hannah McLean ’19 weaves a story of the post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans education system through a Virtual Reality experience.

Art history students meet with gallery owners, museum curators, and collectors during a weekend in New York City.

Grants support digital literacy achieved through critically focused, intellectually stimulating, and creative teaching approaches.

On the eve of the public launch of Because Hamilton, Hamilton trustees and friends surprised long-time volunteer Jeff Little by announcing they had committed $1.2 million to create an endowed scholarship in his name.

Hamilton College formally launched Because Hamilton, a campaign to raise $400 million for six institutional priorities, during the College’s 21st Annual 1812 Leadership Circle Weekend in New York City.