A Strategic Direction for Bryn Mawr College
Connecting our storied history of academic rigor with a bold vision for the future.
A Bold Vision for the Future
Bryn Mawr College was established in 1885 to offer a more rigorous education than any available to women at that time, through a model characterized by historian Helen Lefkowitz Horowitz as “a unique blend of university and women’s college” in Alma Mater: Design and Experience in the Women’s Colleges from Their Nineteenth-Century Beginnings to the 1930s. Generations of students, faculty, staff, and alumnae/i advanced this commitment, which is rooted in academic rigor, pioneering student self-governance, and communities that span generations.
As the College looks to—and beyond—its 2035 sesquicentennial, we have the opportunity to build forward with boldness and distinction. The Next Chapter, a ten-year framework of strategic focus and direction, charts a path by which Bryn Mawr will connect the best of its history with the needs and aspirations of students of the future, preparing the next generation of Mawrters who will change the world.
Redoubling Our Commitment to Academic Excellence & Distinction
We are investing in the intellectual heart of the College. By moving to a reduced two-class teaching load each semester, we empower our faculty to lead in research and mentorship. We will also reimagine the "Library of the Future" as a beacon of digital and physical inquiry.
Providing Holistic Support for Students & Alumnae/i
From matriculation to commencement, we are streamlining the student journey. We are aligning our curriculum with the aspirations of the future, ensuring every student has the tools to thrive in a complex world.
Advancing a Community Approach to Access & Inclusion
We are dismantling barriers. Our move toward need-blind admissions and the creation of truly equitable institutional structures ensure that potential and talent, not circumstance, dictate each student’s path.
Enhancing Visibility, Reputation, & Impact
Bryn Mawr will amplify our voice on local, national and global stages and better celebrate the scholarship and leadership of our community.
Modernizing Infrastructure, Facilities, & Operating Systems
We have set a goal of carbon neutrality by 2035. Every brick laid and every system modernized will reflect our commitment to environmental justice and a world-class residential experience.
Strategic Initiatives in Progress
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A Collaborative Process
President Cadge has led a collective effort to develop innovative approaches to the College’s next chapter through a strategic direction, a comprehensive physical plan for the campus, and pilot grants open to all members of the on-campus community. The process has been guided by four questions centered on what will best support students and faculty today and into the future.
1. How do we prepare Bryn Mawr College to lead the liberal arts of the future as a research college with graduate programs?
2. What will the liberal arts need to consist of for undergraduates entering their lives, the workforce, etc., in the 2030s and 2040s? Students who will enter the College in 2035 are in fourth grade today.
3. How will undergraduate and graduate students live, learn, and how will we teach and engage with them inside and outside of the classroom?
4. What infrastructure – living and learning spaces, places to eat, academic and other buildings, operational systems, IT systems, people systems, etc. – will best support Bryn Mawr's operationalization of its mission in 2035?
Below, see details of the collaborative process in action that led to the final strategic vision.
Announcing our Five Pillars
January 28, 2026 - Bryn Mawr's Next Chapter: President Cadge hosted a Current Topics in Higher Education luncheon in partnership with DLR Group. During the event, she shared an overview of the five strategic pillars guiding the College’s next chapter, which emerged from extensive community feedback gathered during the fall semester. Read about it here.
Collaborative Community Engagement
November 14, 2025 - January 28, 2026
- Jan. 27-28, 2025 - DLR Group on Campus: Concept Synthesis
- Jan. 20, 2025 - Presidential Update
- Jan. 1-31, 2025 - Online Alumnae/i Survey
- Dec. 1, 2025 - Presidential Student Advisory Council Meeting
- Dec. 1-present - Strategic Grants Advance Bryn Mawr's Next Chapter
- Nov. 18, 2025 - Presidential Student Advisory Council Meeting
- Nov. 17, 2025 - Presidential Update
Brainstorming the Comprehensive Campus Plan
November 13, 2025 - The Liberal Arts of the Future: President Cadge and DLR Group, the integrated design firm the College selected to partner with on developing its Comprehensive Campus Plan, hosted a workshop, during which groups of community members gathered around tables with maps of the campus, pieces of various colored string, custom stickers representing every type of building and service imaginable on a college campus, and Post-it notes, and went to work on creating their ultimate Bryn Mawr campus. Read about it here.
Collaborative Community Engagement
April 22 - November 13, 2025
- Nov. 11-13, 2025 - DLR Group on Campus: Big Ideas
- Oct. 21-22, 2025 - DLR Group on Campus: Values and Sustainability Goals
- Oct. 21, 2025 - Current Topics in Higher Education: "The Liberal Arts of the Future: Centering the Library"
- Oct. 20, 2025 - Presidential Update
- Oct. 10, 2025 - Presidential Student Advisory Council Meeting
- Oct. 4, 2025 - Alumnae/i engagement at Owls Fest
- Sept. 30, 2025 - Current Topics in Higher Education: "The Liberal Arts of the Future: Centering Students"
- Sept. 16-18, 2025 - Tabling and Faculty Listening Sessions with the DLR Group
- Sept. 11, 2025 - Community Town Hall
- Aug. 12, 2025 - Presidential Update
- May 5, 2025 - Presidential Update
- May 5, 2025 - Presidential Update
- Apr. 22, 2025 - DLR Group Selected as Comprehensive Campus Plan Partner
Sharing the Start, Stop, Continue Survey Results
April 21, 2025 - Designing the Next Chapter: Bryn Mawr College undergraduate and graduate students as well as other community members attended this event where Wendy Cadge shared results from a "Start, Stop, Continue" survey of students. Read about it here.
Collaborative Community Engagement
January 28 - April 4, 2025
- Apr. 4, 2025 - Faculty-led Discussion: "A Workshop on Permutations in a Bryn Mawr Education"
- Mar. 3, 2025 - Presidential Update
- Mar. 3, 2025 - Presidential Update
- Feb. 19, 2025 - Faculty-led Discussion: "BMC Public Scholarship and Teaching"
- Feb. 10, 2025 - Start, Stop, Continue Survey for Students
- Feb. 5, 2025 - Campus Tabling with MBB Architects - Comprehensive Campus Plan
- Feb. 1-28, 2025 - Campus Spaces Survey for Students
- Jan. 28, 2025 - Faculty-led Discussion: "Bryn Mawr and the Future of Liberal Arts"
Reflecting on our Progress
January 27, 2025 - Reflections at Six Months: Faculty, staff, and other members of the Bryn Mawr community attended this event where Wendy Cadge shared observations from her first semester at Bryn Mawr College and some of her thoughts about our next steps together as a community. Read about it here.
Designing the Next Chapter
December 10, 2024 - First Steps Toward a Strategic Plan: A group of about 100 staff and faculty gathered for a Town Hall to hear Bryn Mawr President Wendy Cadge discuss the findings from a “Start, Stop, Continue” survey of faculty and staff. Read about it here.
Collaborative Community Engagement
June 1 - December 9, 2024
- Dec. 2, 2024 - Presidential Update
- Nov. 21, 2024 - Sustainability Listening Session
- Nov. 19, 2024 - Current Topics in Higher Education: "Shared Governance"
- Nov. 5, 2024 - Presidential Update
- Oct. 24, 2024 - A Conversation on Campus Finance
- Oct. 8, 2024 - Current Topics in Higher Education: "Who Pays the Bills? Financial Frameworks of Colleges and Universities"
- Oct. 2, 2024 - Presidential Update
- Sept. 19, 2025 - Stop, Start, Continue Survey for Faculty and Staff
- Sept. 16, 2024 - Current Topics in Higher Education: "What is the Purpose of Higher Education?"
- Sept. 1, 2024 - present - Weekly Coffee Hour
- Jun. 1-Dec. 31, 2024 - Presidential Review of Previous Strategic Plans
Incorporating Past Work
Building on President Cassidy's Foundational Work
From 2022-2024, former President Kim Cassidy led the College in a strategic planning project to help our community envision our goals and aspirations for the future. The process centered around four areas of inquiry designed to include community engagement and to create bold ideas that will move our campus forward. You can read more about that work here:
"2022-2024 Strategic Planning" (Cassidy, 2024)
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In addition, President Cadge has undergone an in-depth review of the College's prior strategic planning work:
“Excellence in Action: the Vision for Bryn Mawr’s Undergraduate College” (Cassidy, 2019)
"Four Priorities for 2013-15" (Cassidy, 2013)
"Plan for Bryn Mawr" (McAuliffe, 2012)
“Plan for a New Century” (Vickers, 2000)
“Agenda for the Future" (McPherson, 1995)
“Plan for Achieving Financial Equilibrium” (McPherson, 1993)
The Next Chapter: A Strategic Direction for Bryn Mawr College
The Next Chapter Homepage | Pillar 1: Redoubling our Commitment to Academic Excellence & Distinction | Pillar 2: Providing Holistic Support for Students & Alumnae/i | Pillar 3: Advancing a Community Approach to Access & Inclusion | Pillar 4: Enhancing Visibility, Reputation, & Impact | Pillar 5: Modernizing Infrastructure, Facilities, & Operating Systems | Strategic Initiatives in Progress | The Full Text | A Printable PDF Version