MHC Forward executive summary
At Mount Holyoke, we’ve inherited a remarkable legacy. From our founding charter to our most recent campus initiatives, we’ve been a model for how higher education can prepare bold leaders and boundless learners to make a better world. We opened our doors in 1837 so women could access an education as rigorous as any in the world, and our continued commitment to inclusion, academic excellence and social responsibility have prepared generations of students and alums for lives of purposeful leadership.
Now is the time to imagine what remarkable accomplishments could be on our horizon — so we can chart a path to reach them. Student needs and societal challenges have evolved, and MHC is evolving with them by adapting and innovating the ways we teach, learn and communicate; use technology; launch careers; address inequality; and champion change.
The MHC Forward strategic plan offers a blueprint for amplifying Mount Holyoke’s role as a leader in inclusive liberal arts education, innovative research and community commitment. It positions the College to meet the demands of our changing world by supporting curricular and pedagogical innovation; enhancing student life, wellness and career preparation; investing in campus infrastructure; identifying new revenue streams; and stewarding resources wisely for a bright future.
The MHC Forward plan builds on recent successes from The Plan for Mount Holyoke 2023. Through that plan, we completed more than 100 initiatives that together developed excellent and distinctive academic programs; embraced new opportunities and directions in teaching, research and scholarship; established supports for a diverse, global and inclusive community; and built foundations for long-term sustainability. Completed initiatives include establishing Mount Holyoke as a visible contributor to the world’s environmental conversations; enriching curricular and co-curricular education through new resources, such as the Fimbel Maker & Innovation Lab; and building community through major investments, such as the renovation of the Community Center. The MHC Forward plan will strengthen these commitments and elevate them to new heights.
The plan for 2023 established the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and MHC Forward amplifies that accomplishment by threading a focus on diversity, equity and inclusion through every priority and initiative.
Hundreds of students, faculty, staff, alums and friends of the College took part in the discussions that shaped the strategic plan, from the first conversations in fall 2021 until now. Their creativity, insights, expertise and dreams for MHC have been crystallized into refreshed mission, vision and value statements for the College, as well as a set of strategic priorities and pathways that together will move our mission forward. The plan is ambitious, yet achievable: operational plans and success metrics for each initiative in the plan are forthcoming.
The plan’s components, when fully realized, will build on our history and momentum to:
- Attract and retain exceptional students, staff and faculty
- Build on Mount Holyoke’s strong reputation and enhance visibility
- Sustain and accelerate research and innovation
- Prepare students for successful careers and lives of purposeful leadership in a global community
- Create a more sustainable and accessible campus and vibrant community
- Heighten alum and strategic partner engagement
- Contribute to the world in many more ways
From our founding to our future, we dare to be out front, working in community to forge new possibilities today and for generations to follow. Join us in charting our next chapter so that, together, we can fulfill our promise to cultivate tomorrow’s bold leaders and changemakers.
We are so grateful to the students, staff, faculty, alums, trustees and friends who have shaped the strategic plan and to all who will put the plan into action. Together, we’re moving Mount Holyoke forward into its next trailblazing chapter.
Danielle R. Holley
President