Steven Tepper Inaugurated as Hamilton’s 21st President
On a sunny and warm fall day, nearly 1,000 attendees gathered for the celebration at the Margaret Bundy Scott Field House. Among them were more than 40 delegates representing American colleges and universities, Tepper’s family and friends, Hamilton faculty and staff, students, alumni, and trustees.
Tepper called “being a college president among the greatest honors ever, [and] to be Hamilton’s president is unmatched.” In his address, he offered a powerful, hopeful vision, saying, “Today is a beginning of our next phase as a college, but it is also an opportunity for all of us to think about beginnings — to embrace that spirit of possibility, to honor the power of higher education, and to reflect on what formal education has meant for us in our own lives... the idea that there’s a focused time to undergo maximum social and intellectual development and growth — to bombard our brains and our senses with diverse ideas, and diverse places and diverse people — accelerating all those connections, the 86 billion neurons that exist between our ears.”
Tepper acknowledged Hamilton’s world-class faculty and thanked them “for creating such an unbelievable, dynamic environment that inspires our students every day.” He called Hamilton students incredibly curious, open, and generous. “They are high achievers and motivated academically, but more importantly, they are explorers, more than consumers of knowledge. They’re interested in questions more than answers,” he said. “And the open curriculum feels like a big open invitation to follow those questions.”
“A Creative Campus”
He then spoke about his passion for creativity. “I think all of us have a central puzzle of some kind in our lives ... we’re not always aware of it, but it kind of animates our lives. It’s a question that occupies us. We return to it and it grows larger, grows more complicated. We want to solve something, we come back to it. For me, that central puzzle has been creativity.”
The pursuit of creativity started early for him. Tepper recalled going to the hardware store with his dad and being asked to identify an object such as a wrench or hose. His father would ask him, “What else could it be used for?” Tepper said. “That question activated something in my brain — to see things not as they are, but what else they could be.”
“And, to be clear, creativity has nothing to do with the new — it is not about the next shiny thing. It is about the better, the revised, the evolved. It is about momentum. It is about the ‘what if’ questions.”
Tepper said he has long been fascinated by where creative ideas come from and later questioned why some places in time and across history are more creative than others. … “I wondered why we hadn’t turned that lens on colleges and universities, places that should be designed for creativity with their combination of disciplines; their constant circulation of new students and new ideas; freedom to ask any question; tools for creative discovery and expression — stages, labs, technologies.”
“I think Hamilton College is a model creative campus for the world,” Tepper continued. “Creativity is in our DNA.” He cited the College’s namesake Alexander Hamilton as a creative founding father who was the architect and designer of the new nation. He also noted the integration of Kirkland College into Hamilton, the decision to make Hamilton need-blind, the establishment of the open curriculum, and the new Innovation Center as examples of creativity at Hamilton.
In 2014, he wrote an article for the Chronicle of Higher Education that outlined what a creative campus might look like and suggested that colleges be ranked by how creative they are. “Since then, I have come to the conclusion that there are pockets of creativity throughout our sector. There are lots of creative people. But our institutions are not creative. We haven’t maximized the conditions for creative exchange, for risk, for asking big ‘what if’ questions, for failure, for experimentation,” he said.
“And, to be clear, creativity has nothing to do with the new — it is not about the next shiny thing,” he said. “It is about the better, the revised, the evolved. It is about momentum. It is about the ‘what if’ questions.”
What If?
During Tepper’s initial visit to Hamilton after he was announced as the next president, he posed several “what if” questions during his first campus address. He asked several more during Saturday’s ceremony.
“What if we became the national lab for creativity and democracy … can we audition, test, critique, and examine the most innovative ideas around the future of democracy?” Tepper asked. “Our democracy needs new ideas. We can and should lead with our history and our distinctive liberal arts approach. We must ask ourselves what practicing the liberal arts will look like moving forward, and can we build the most robust set of curricular and co-curricular opportunities, with partners across all sectors, so that Hamilton students have even more impact and can continue to fully engage the world beyond.”
“We have been a creative campus for more than two centuries,” Tepper said. “We can design a future for the campus that allows us to leverage this history, to expand opportunities, to create national differentiation, and to lead.”
Tepper took a moment during his remarks to announce his “What If” Initiative, which encourages campus community members to explore and collaborate on ideas and projects that will shape the future of Hamilton and higher education. “Let’s try things. Let’s experiment. Let’s prototype. We don’t need to wait. Our future begins now, and it begins with what if…,” Tepper said.
Tepper concluded on a note of optimism. “So, perhaps the biggest ‘what if’ here on this Hill, with this distinctive history and extraordinary commitment to liberal arts … what if Hamilton College liberates and harnesses our collective energy and ideas to become … a model for the type of creativity and exchange that we so desperately need in the world. What if…,” he concluded.
Remarks in Honor of President Tepper
David Solomon ’84, P’16
Opening the ceremony, David Solomon ’84, P’16, chairman of the Board of Trustees, said in searching for a new president, the committee was seeking, among other things, “an accomplished scholar and broadly engaged intellectual with a deep understanding of and commitment to the undergraduate liberal arts college; a gifted communicator; and a demonstrated respect for academic freedom and diverse opinions on key social and political questions of the day.
Steven Tepper
21st President, Hamilton College
Education
Ph.D., Princeton University
M.P.P., Harvard University
B.A., The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
“We also wanted someone who was enthusiastic about Hamilton and wanted not just a college presidency, but this college presidency,” Solomon said. “In Steven Tepper, we have found the perfect person to serve as Hamilton’s 21st president. Steven brings abundant enthusiasm and seemingly boundless energy to his position. He asks different questions … and he welcomes different perspectives. He listens well … and he genuinely cares what you have to say. And he thinks big thoughts and encourages new ideas,” Solomon said. “In his first meeting with faculty earlier this month, he asked, ‘How can Hamilton be the most important liberal arts college of this century?’ How indeed.”
During the ceremony, Solomon presented Tepper with the symbols of the president’s office — the original College charter issued on May 26, 1812, and the presidential medallion.
Daniel Bernard Roumain
A Haitian-American composer, performer, violinist, and professor, Roumain focused on connections among the arts, creativity, leadership, and community.
Roumain noted that he has known Tepper for over 20 years and was pleased to introduce him “from an artist’s perspective, on a creative campus, and in a space where the arts hold place and purpose for us all.”
In his remarks, he said Tepper “is not only an educator, a leader, an administrator. He is, at his core, a believer. He has faith in the people, places, and spaces where he is charged with leading, and his leadership model often involves leading by following, teaching by learning, success in response to loss.
“He believes in the power of creativity to shape lives and build communities. He believes in the transformative potential of a liberal arts education to equip students not only with new perspectives and information, but with the critical thinking skills, empathy, and the resilience required to navigate a complex campus history colliding with debate, division, politics, and a commitment to an equal exchange of ideas, knowledge, and generosity of spirit,” he added.
Quoting poet James Baldwin, Roumain concluded, “There is never a time in the future in which we will work out our salvation. The challenge is in the moment; the time is always now. I am elated that in this moment, Hamilton College has decided that the time is now for President Steven Tepper.”
The ceremony was followed by an all-campus picnic and performances by student groups.
Greetings from the Community
Student Government Alliance Vice President Quentin Messer ’26 spoke on behalf of students:
“You will be tasked with many things, find yourself negotiating between competing priorities, and missing the Arizona sunshine, but above all, remember that 2,000 young adults on the Hill rely on your responsible stewardship as we immerse ourselves in a four-year journey of self-discovery, academically, socially, and civically … President Tepper, we the students of Hamilton, look forward to the good ahead and your infusion of creativity and curiosity into our undergraduate learning experience.”
Karen Brewer, the Silas D. Childs Professor in Agricultural Chemistry, spoke on behalf of the faculty:
“President Tepper, you join this Hamilton community at a time in which curiosity and joy in academic pursuits will amplify opportunities for an increasingly diverse and creative Hamilton. I expect the voices of the Hamilton faculty will continue to express quite different and passionate opinions on issues of governance and decision-making. And those voices, I have found, are focused on student success and a commitment to this place and this work. We are eager to work with you to foster students’ creativity in seeking solutions and hope through challenges, in recognizing failures as opportunities to strive beyond limitations, and in understanding the need for kindness and generosity to all the world’s peoples. Congratulations and welcome to Hamilton, President Tepper.”
Kevin Alexander ’13 and Katrina Schell ’03, co-chairs of Staff Assembly, represented Hamilton staff:
“As both proud and humble alumni and employees, we’re grateful for the chance to join our colleagues in giving back to an ecosystem of engagement, knowledge creation, and personal growth. As we embark on a new chapter under your leadership, President Tepper, we are eager to support you. The staff are here to assist as you chart a course for Hamilton’s future. Together, we will ensure that Hamilton College continues to thrive and excel for years to come.”
Elizabeth Tantillo, mayor of Clinton, N.Y., read a proclamation:
“Whereas, Hamilton College has persevered and thrived all these 212 years under the leadership of great college presidents, President Tepper, you have big shoes and heels to fill. Fear not — you have the support and encouragement of students, faculty, alumni, and the Clinton community to stand with you in the years ahead. Whereas, it is fitting and proper to accord official recognition to this historic and enduring relationship between college and village. There is no Clinton without Hamilton College and no Hamilton College without Clinton. Happy inauguration! Welcome Steven, Dana, and family to your new hometown.”
John Christopher ’83, P’14, immediate past president of Hamilton’s Alumni Association, spoke on behalf of alumni:
“Perhaps the highest measure of Hamilton’s distinction is that many of us have since entrusted the education — the future — of our children, and they, theirs. And so, on behalf of the 24,409 alums of Hamilton College, including approximately 1,200 alums of Kirkland College, welcome to the Hill, Steven. We wish you many years of success.”
Linda Johnson ’80, co-vice chair of the Board of Trustees, and a member of the Presidential Search Committee that selected Tepper, offered a message from the board:
“Last year, the Presidential Search Committee spent months interviewing a deep and extraordinarily well-qualified pool of candidates. But Steven stood out. His enthusiasm, intellect, scholarship, and sincerity exemplify the best of Hamilton. It became clear very quickly that not only was he ready to assume a college presidency, but that he was the perfect candidate to lead this college, at this point in its more than 200-year history. Having watched Steven settle in these past three months has only made that clearer.
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