The Board of Trustees met in Hanover from Feb. 27 to March 1 with the future as its focus.
Anchored in presentations on key priorities and metrics for the next decade, the trustees engaged in wide-ranging conversations on how to continue attracting and retaining talent at all levels, the financial and philanthropic models of tomorrow, and the funding sources necessary to ensure continued excellence well into the 2030s.
“The greatest value of Dartmouth’s board is the strategic thinking they do when given the time and space to consider the most important issues we face as a university,” said President Sian Leah Beilock. “We benefit from the collective wisdom they have accumulated in a wide range of successful professional endeavors and rich personal life experiences.”
Chief Financial Officer Scott Frew framed the board’s discussion by describing Dartmouth’s current financial strength, and the challenges and opportunities it faces in the context of the long-range economic forecast, historic and projected endowment and philanthropic performance, peer benchmarking, and the changing environment for federal support.
“The board is laser focused on maintaining Dartmouth’s academic excellence, distinctive teaching and research mission, and special residential tradition,” said Elizabeth Cahill Lempres ’83, Thayer ’84. “This requires a rigorous study of the economic and competitive landscapes and complete understanding of the financial levers we have to fund continued success.”
Updates on Strategic Areas of Focus
Josh Keniston, senior vice president for operations, engaged trustees in a high-level conversation on housing for students, faculty, and staff and provided a report on current and future housing projects. Investments in new, more, and varied kinds of housing are an important factor in improving the health and well-being of our community.
The construction of Russo Hall and renovations at the Fayerweathers are proceeding on time and on budget, Keniston reported. Demolition on three Dartmouth-owned buildings in the West Wheelock corridor began in February to make way for more student housing. Dartmouth also finalized a deal last month to finance a $15.2 million, 21-unit development for faculty and staff south of campus in West Lebanon, N.H.
Keniston also joined Provost David Kotz ’86, Special Advisor to the Provost on Climate and Sustainability Laura Ogden, Sustainability Director Rosi Kerr ’97, Irving Institute Faculty Director Geoff Parker, and Vice President for Facilities and Energy Roger Wakeman in sharing updates and what’s next for the Dartmouth Climate Collaborative.
Since its launch last spring, the $500 million historic investment in the collaborative is helping to coordinate the campus energy transition and supporting the study of climate, sustainability, environmental science, and energy. Leaders discussed enhancing opportunities that highlight Dartmouth’s distinctive strengths for teaching and scholarship and the importance of coordinating efforts across the university.
Mike Harrity, the Haldeman Family Director of Athletics and Recreation, and Chief Health and Wellness Officer Estevan Garcia updated the board on their work, alongside faculty colleagues, to establish the Kirsten and Eugene F. “Buddy” Teevens ’79 Center for Peak Performance.
Dartmouth has launched a search for the center’s inaugural director, formed a working group focused on academic innovation, and is identifying opportunities for more undergraduates to access enhanced leadership development, mental performance training, and nutrition education currently available to student-athletes through Dartmouth Peak Performance.
Over the weekend, trustees had separate dinners with students and faculty. With students, they heard what drew them to Dartmouth, what’s working well on campus, and what they’d like to see improved. With faculty, they heard a panel discussion about global security with experts from economics, government, and the Tuck School of Business led by Victoria K. Holt, the Norman E. McCulloch Jr. Director of the John Sloan Dickey Center for International Understanding.
Trustees appreciated the interaction and candid conversations with students and the insight gleaned from the faculty members on a topic of urgent importance. The board offered its full support for ongoing advocacy by Dartmouth leadership aimed at sustaining federal funding and minimizing any negative impacts brought by executive orders or other government directives to the institution’s teaching and research missions.
Tuition increase approved for FY26
Tuition, fees, and room and board for undergraduate and graduate students will increase in the fall in response to inflation, increased services to students, new academic initiatives, compliance requirements, and other expenses.
Undergraduate tuition, fees, room and board will increase from the current rate of $87,768 to $91,935 per year, a 4.75% increase. President Beilock assured the board that she remains committed to making a Dartmouth education accessible to all, noting that the income threshold for Dartmouth’s zero parent contribution initiative nearly doubled in 2024.
“A Dartmouth education remains in reach due to our ongoing investments in and commitment to financial aid,” Beilock says. “Today, it costs no more than $5,000 per year for students from families with typical assets making $125,000 or less. We know of no other school anywhere that matches this level of support for middle-income families.”
Since 2015, Dartmouth has increased its financial aid budget by more than 70%. Thirty-three percent of the Class of 2028 qualified for free tuition, and a record 19.4%—nearly one in five—qualified for a Pell Grant, federal grants awarded to students from low-income backgrounds, up from 14% a year ago. Regardless of income level, there is no expectation that students will borrow a student loan. Demonstrated need is met instead with student employment and scholarship or grant funding. More than half of the ’28s received scholarship aid, which averages more than $71,000 in support per year.
Tuition at Thayer School of Engineering and Guarini School of Graduate and Advanced Studies will increase by 4.66%, in alignment with the undergraduate tuition increase. The Geisel School of Medicine will increase tuition and fees for its MD program by 3.5% following several years without increases. At the Tuck School of Business, where cost of attendance falls in the lower third among peer schools, tuition will increase by 4.5% to offset rising operational costs. Tuition for the Master’s in Health Administration program, a partnership between Geisel and Tuck, will increase by 1.5%.