A Report from Williams 2004

When we are through, Williams will at

last have a “living room” where our

extraordinary students can pursue that

essential second half of their education—

the one they give each other.

A REPORT FROM WILLIAMS 2004

It’s all about the students. Liberal arts colleges serve society by broadeningand deepening the knowledge of their undergraduates who, especially inthe case of Williams, go on disproportionately to fill positions of leadershipin their professions and communities. Those of us entrusted with the stewardship of this great college judge every decision by how much it will improve the education of our students.

As we do, it’s an enormous help to know that you share our long-standingcommitment. We know because so many of you have contributed time,

wisdom, and resources in support of our strategic initiatives to enhance our students’ education. All of your efforts are brought together in The Williams Campaign. One yearafter launching the campaign with nearly $160 million in advance commitments, we have received another $76 million, which puts us at $236 million toward our five-year, $400-million goal.

This is a strong start, indeed, but there are four more years and a very long way to gobefore The Williams Campaign can claim genuine success. We also look beyond this essen-tial dollar progress to the main point — how each of you is helping us advance Williams as a learning community.

That said, your initial campaign support has done a great deal of good. Williams has, forinstance, hired 30 additional professors. A larger faculty means that more than 70 percentof Williams classes now have fewer than 20 students, up from less than 60 percent just afew years ago. It has also allowed us to increase from 21 to 46 the number of tutorials, inwhich a professor works with five teams of two students for a semester.

A M E S S AG E F R O M M O R T Y S C H A P I R O

1–8Message from President Morty Schapiro

9Message from Trustee Bob Lipp ’60

10Campaign Progress

11–14Financial Information

C O N T E N T S

Dear alumni, parents, and friends,

2

Ground for a Williams College Student

Union was broken by President James

Phinney Baxter 3d ’14 in a ceremony on

September 13. Construction was begun

immediately, and the building was fin-

ished the following year.

T H E C O N S T R U C T I O N , 1 9 5 2 B A X T E R H A L L , 1 9 5 4

On Sunday, February 21, nearly

300 friends of the College were

present in the freshman lounge

of the Student Union and Freshman

Center to witness the structure’s

dedication as Baxter Hall.

Sabrina Wirth ’05

Sabrina Wirth has a vivid record of her growthas a cartoonist: “My people freshman yearlooked a lot more like illustrations. They hadactual noses, for instance. Now my Williamspeople look more like the characters in TheBoondocks or Calvin and Hobbes.”

More impressionistic but just as strong isSabrina’s sense of her growth as a person, onewho, in addition to drawing a weekly strip forThe Record, also belongs to the Alpine Ski Team,served on College Council, tutored local elemen-tary school kids and sometimes holds down two campus jobs at once. “I’m not the mostorganized person in the world,” says Sabrina,

“but doing all this made me more organized. Ican actually focus more on my work when I fillup all my time with other things!”

At Williams, Sabrina has also tasted the satisfac-tions and perils of trying to create change. OnCollege Council, she put her graphic skills towork by developing a new “CC” logo, an inter-esting exercise in making an aesthetic decision bycommittee. Far more challenging was her effortto amend the Honor Code by adding a sectionon the ethics of how students treat each other (a move inspired when her stolen backpack neverreappeared). No one could fault her desire toinspire better behavior, and several reps offered

to help refine her amendment. But others feltpassionately that imposing new social guidelineswas not the way to go. Debate that began inCollege Council jumped to the op-ed page ofThe Record, and it isn’t over yet.

Whether or not her amendment succeeds,Sabrina may ultimately be developing an evenmore powerful tool for shaping student attitudes.Quoting her Boondocks-drawing role modelAaron McGruder (who visited the Williams cam-pus last year), Christina observes, “A cartoonistalways has the last word.”

Additional professors have also helped us launch ambitious curricular initiatives: newrequirements in writing and quantitative reasoning, interdisciplinary programs in areasfrom cognitive science to international studies, and experiential opportunities such as“Williams in New York,” which we will pilot next year.

Complementing these academic initiatives, early campaign support is allowing us to takeactive steps to enrich the Williams experience outside the classroom. Though this work(the subject of this entire report) is still in its early stages, we’ve made great improvementsto dormitories like Prospect and Mission Park. And through programmatic initiatives,some new staffing, and — most important — continual dialogue with students, we are beginning to address the wonderful challenge of increasing the ways in which studentsserve each other as “professors” in this “second half” of a Williams education. >>

Even without our help, student life at Williams would be very different today from before.The essential qualities that define Williams students transcend the generations — but whereour students originate and what experiences they bring with them have, in a few decades,entirely changed. These extraordinary young men and women come from every corner of ourcountry and from all over the world.

In effect, every student at Williams today is enrolled in a provocative, if unofficial, coursein interpersonal relations and global understanding — taught by their classmates everyminute of the day. As a Williams professor, I hesitate to say so, but if our students didnothing more than learn from each other for four years, they would still leave with a veryimpressive education (if not a diploma).

These changes in the student experience are magnificent — but their benefits are not auto-matic. It takes extra effort and real creativity to find ways to enable such a wonderfullyvaried group of human beings to learn the most from each other. One important way we’redoing that is through the creation of a new Student Center on the site of Baxter Hall.

Christina Villegas ’05

One day Christina Villegas drove upstate fromQueens with her parents to shop the outletstores — and came home with a fabulous purplecollege that fit her perfectly. Since it was college-hunting season, the family had taken an unscheduled detour to Williams. Despite“horrible rain,” Christina fell in love: Somethingjust felt comfortable.”

As a freshman, she quickly found her home hereas a leader in the student movement to create aLatino studies program, first as a member andchair of VISTA, the Latino student group, andtoday as co-president of MinCo, an umbrella forall campus minority organizations.

Interdisciplinary programs like Latino studiestypically offer courses from professors in manydifferent departments, from history and politicalscience to literature and art history. But toensure enough courses each year to make a majorpossible, most programs seek to hire a core oftenure-track faculty they can call their own.Along with several other students, Christinajoined the College’s official search for the firstdedicated Latino studies professor. In historianCarmen Whalen, they found their inspiration:“Her interest and vibrancy pulled me into beinga history major,” Christina says.

Though surely much work remains before theprogram is “real,” each year since has brought

new gains in courses offered and talent hired. Christina feels encouraged: “President Schapiroreally wants to make this a model program forthe College.”

Why do she and President Schapiro both feel the program is so important? Because Williamshas a responsibility to prepare its students to be effective leaders in an increasingly multicul-tural society. What’s more, as Christina explains, “As an institution, if you make a commitment to having a diverse student body, it can’t be half-hearted. These are real people. In the longterm, a Latino studies program helps improve us as a college, as students, and as citizens of this country.”

Baxter’s Snack Bar brought together

generations of Ephs (and faculty,

staff, and neighbors) over great fast

food in a ski-lodge setting. All will

be sustained (along with better

window views) going forward.

T H E S N AC K B A R , 1 9 5 4

From intercollegiate “mixers” to

a capella, from WCFM radio to

College Council, from the Astronomy

Club to the Sushi Club, Williams

students have always learned from

each other beyond the classroom.

S T U D E N T O R G A N I Z AT I O N S , 1 9 5 4

>>

4

Adam Grogg ’04

If the book Bowling Alone perfectly captures theragged state of American civil society, AdamGrogg could probably show us how to knit ittogether again. At a minimum, we may requirehim to share the secret of how he manages sucha jaw-dropping range of activities; one suspectshe has devised a 34-hour day.

To start with, he helped launch a new Williamstradition: First Fridays, a wildly popular once-a-month all-campus party that opens with a band,closes with a DJ and features “an atmospherethat’s comfortable even for people who don’tdrink at all.” (That same concept helped inspireprogramming for the new Student Center;Adam also served on the committee that shaped

its vision.) Attracting long lines of students,First Fridays are now a real institution, paid for by the College and managed by All CampusEntertainment.

Adam also managed Goodrich and The Log, co-wrote a satirical biweekly beer-and-wine columnfor The Record — and made Phi Beta Kappa afterjunior year. In his spare time, he picked up aproject launched by a graduating friend: attract-ing potential volunteer donors for a nationalbone marrow registry. As Adam explains, “About30,000 leukemia patients a year require a bonemarrow transplant. Thirty percent find a matchin their family. For the rest, the national registryis their only option.” The first challenge: raising

the money to cover the $78 fee for each new registration. The second: inspiring people to vol-unteer. Seventeen-thousand dollars and hundredsof new registrants later, Adam had createdanother Williams tradition; seeing his success,the College now funds the program itself.

After graduation, Adam took his passion forcommunity-building to the national level, working with the Commission on PresidentialDebates, a group led by another civic-mindedEph, Janet H. Brown ’73. He’s now a MarshallScholar at Oxford, studying comparative socialpolicy: “In terms of government intervention,what works and what doesn’t?” Knowing Adam,when he finds out, he’ll drop by the localBowladrome and let us know.

Since its dedication in 1954, Baxter served as a campus crossroads — a place to bump into people and ideas you might not otherwise encounter. For example, thanks to its all-campus TV, Baxter became inextricably tied in the minds of many Ephs with definingevents of their respective eras: The McCarthy hearings. The Cuban missile crisis. Watergate.The Gulf War. September 11th. It was home to many wonderful meals, passionate debates,hilarious skits, and imaginative parties. For our student organizations, it contained andfostered vital community work. And, as every Eph knows, it was home to two dear friends:the snack bar and your mail box (maybe even with a letter from home). >>

Desperately needed socks. A birth-

day card from your grandmother.

The new Sports Illustrated. Even in

an age of electronic communica-

tion, mailboxes exert a powerful

magnetic force, drawing students

together in a spontaneous meeting

spot around them. The Baxter

originals have all been preserved

for reinstallation in 2006.

The challenge is to match in the

21st century the level of service

Baxter provided a student body of

only 1,000 when it was built in

1954. Today, Baxter’s central mail

facility alone takes up much of

what used to be functional space,

even as student organizations have

grown to a level never imagined.

S T U D E N T C E N T E R , 1 9 6 0T H E M A I L R O O M , 1 9 5 4

After graduation, Adam took his passion for

community-building to the national level,

working with the Commission on Presidential

Debates, a group led by another civic-minded

Eph, Janet H. Brown ’73. He’s now at Oxford,

studying comparative social policy.

5

Ilunga Kalala ’05

What’s that tragic sound? The terrible cry of yet another student organization succumbing tothe fatal quicksand of Refining Its Own Bylaws.Fortunately, last year Ilunga Kalala and his co-president, “Vero” Mendiola ’05, helpedWilliams’ College Council clamber to safety —just in time. As Ilunga explains, “Williams is allabout student initiative. That’s part of why Icame here. So I really wanted College Councilto be proactive, to seek out important problemsand focus on tangible results.” With Ilunga’sleadership and encouragement, College Councilreps this year have worked to stop the state from

mistakenly taxing students for cafeteria meals,lobbied for the creation of a Latino studies program and launched an effort to increase thevalue of book vouchers for students receivingfinancial aid. Ilunga admits that leading CollegeCouncil can “take a toll on your GPA,” but ithas taught him skills he’ll use forever — like thefine art of how to delegate.

And while College Council is what he lives andbreathes, he has also worked as a JA, run the 400in track, play JV basketball and serve as a leaddancer in the African dance and drummingtroupe, Kusika. Since freshman year, he has also

Despite all this, we’ve taken it down — because Baxter just doesn’t work anymore. Over the years, half of the dining center has been closed because not enough students were eating there. At the same time, too much of this building intended for students was givenover to catering functions that will now be housed elsewhere. And then there’s the rabbitwarren in the basement, a first-class bomb shelter but a lousy place to jam the offices ofour dynamic student clubs and publications.

been a passionate member of Sankofa, theCollege’s student-run Step Dance team. “Step,”says Ilunga, “is really rooted in the AfricanDiaspora”— a subject close to his heart andexperience, since his parents emigrated from the Congo in 1980. His work with Sankofa —as a dancer, choreographer, squad leader andteacher — is a powerful, practical way to keepthat tradition alive.

When accused of trying to do too much, Ilungademurs: “The older I get, the more I realize therewards of sleep.”

The lower level will feature a

pub, a social lounge, and a large,

multipurpose space for student

entertainment and performance.

A. Pub

B. Social Lounge

C. Multipurpose

LOW E R L E V E L , 2 0 0 6

A

BC

Though fitting roughly within the

original Baxter “footprint,” the new

Student Center will provide 12,000

more square feet of functional

space. Prominent east and west

entrances will draw students from

all campus corners. Large windows

and a second-floor terrace and

balcony will offer great views, and

a soaring central atrium will carry

Phinney Baxter’s name.

T H E N E W ST U D E N T C E N T E R , 2 0 0 6

>>

As Ilunga explains, “Williams is all about student initia-

tive. That’s part of why I came here. So I really wanted

College Council to be proactive, to seek out important

problems and focus on tangible results.”

The second level will be the

programmatic hub of the

entire College campus, housing

all major student activities and

organizations as well as an

academic resource center.

A. CC/MinCo/ACE

B. Reading Room

C. Residential Life

D. Williams Record

Having tried every way we could think of to remedy these shortcomings within the originalstructure, we finally determined that the most productive and cost-effective approach wasto start anew.

As I write, construction is proceeding apace, and we expect to open the doors of our newStudent Center in the fall of 2006. In recognition of a Williams graduate’s extraordinary$15.75 million gift to The Williams Campaign, the Board of Trustees has voted to name thenew Student Center in the donor’s honor. Attached to this generous graduate’s gift was onerequest: that we celebrate Baxter’s past by preserving the name. When the new StudentCenter opens in 2006, its soaring central atrium will be called Baxter Hall, carrying on thename of Williams’ 10th president, James Phinney Baxter 3rd, Class of 1914.

Of course, we’re going to preserve other valuable memories, too: the snack bar will be morethan reminiscent of its charming predecessor and will feature all those wonderfully wornoriginal tables and benches. We’ve also salvaged many mail boxes. (So you can still comeback and say hello.) >>

Besides a snack bar in keeping with

the Baxter original, the main floor

will house the mailroom, a new

marketplace-style food servery, and

the Baxter Hall atrium.

A. Snack Bar

B. Baxter Hall

C. Servery

M A I N F LO O R , 2 0 0 6 S E C O N D L E V E L , 2 0 0 6

A

B

C

B

C

A

D

Kim Fassler ’06

In choosing a college, Kim Fassler traded onetranquil, majestic island paradise for another,um, slightly colder one — her native Hawaii forthe remote Berkshire isle known as Williamstown.Except for the waning novelty of snow, Kimremains very enthusiastic about Williams. But, as it turns out, her true home may be somewhereless obviously idyllic: “I spent Winter Studyworking for ABC News in New York. It was dur-ing the presidential primaries, so people wererunning around, getting numbers, yelling at eachother. It was totally hectic, totally chaotic — andI loved it.”

On a smaller scale, she savors some of the sameintensity and excitement in the offices of TheRecord every week — especially around 3 a.m.every Tuesday morning, when she and her fellowexecutive editors have spent 20 hours together in a small, hot office, debating everything fromthe angle of this week’s editorial to the layout ofthe front page to the wording of a controversialheadline. “You really learn to listen to other peo-ple and to stand up for you own point of view,”says Kim, and inevitably, “You get really close.”

Having earned the job of news editor as a fresh-man, Kim went from knowing nothing about

Williams to knowing everything that really mat-ters — like the richest sources of campus gossip(she will certainly never tell) and the best way tocontact President Schapiro (“by e-mail. Anddon’t use ‘U’ for you, because it really sets himoff.”) She has also developed a special affectionfor Tuesday mornings, when people all overcampus are reading and talking about the latestedition: “I really like the idea that our editorialboard is setting the agenda.” Don’t be surprisedif one day Kim’s agenda appears on a newsstandnear you.

When you do, you’ll find a new Student Center that not only houses our vibrant studentorganizations, but also helps them do better work — a place whose open design and welcoming atmosphere encourages student leaders from different organizations to share ideas and expertise (as well as late-night pizzas and the copy machine). In its warm, inviting design, the new Student Center will be as irresistibly attractive as a warm hearthon a cold day — a place where remarkable students, in all their variety, can get to knoweach other as friends, colleagues, citizens of the same world, and fellow members of theinfinitely interesting family of Williams College.

This extraordinary new building, together with the ’62 Center for Theatre and Dance and our emerging effort to transform Stetson Hall and Sawyer Library into an integratedcenter for the humanities and social sciences, will profoundly change the campus — and

B A X T E R H A L L , 2 0 0 6

The principal feature of the new

Student Center will be the soaring

central atrium called Baxter Hall.

All interior spaces and functions of

the new center will emanate from

this stunning central space. With a

massive fireplace and comfortable

seating, Baxter Hall will serve as a

“living room” for the entire Williams

campus.

The new student center, together

with the ’62 Center for Theatre

and Dance and the new effort to

transform Stetson Hall and Sawyer

Library into an integrated hall for

the humanities and social sciences,

are part of a comprehensive plan

to realize the full potential of our

beautiful campus.

’62 CENTER FOR THEATRE & DANCE , 2005

>>

Mike Crotty ’04

A warning to anyone running for All-Time MostDevoted Parents of a Williams College Athlete:Mike Crotty’s parents have a big head start. As a varsity basketball point guard, Mike played120 games in arenas from Florida to Nevada toSouth Carolina to the wilds of upstate NewYork. Both his mother and his father made it toevery game. Such unswerving devotion and sheerlove for the sport shines through in Mike him-self. “At your best as a point guard, you’re anextension of the coach,” says Mike. “You run theoffense and you have the ball in your hands themost.” What did Mike’s best earn for Williams?A tidy 1,400 points, a Division Three national

championship the first year he was captain and a very, very near miss the second year. Mike alsoset a new standard for what it means to be ateam player, racking up a record-scorching 891assists (the previous College record: 495). Hisafter-Williams, before-graduate-school adventure:a year or two playing professional basketball in Europe. (Ephs with any spare phrase booksmay wish to forward them to Mr. and Mrs.Crotty now.)

In contrast to his basketball immersion, as a junior Mike won an open seat on the HonorCommittee, which reviews the cases of students

charged with honor code violations like plagiarismor cheating. Not surprisingly, the committee’satmosphere is serious and rather tense, its repu-tation daunting. As Mike saw it, the challengefor him was to “be polite but assertive, to godown another layer and draw out both sides ofthe story — to make totally sure that the prob-lem wasn’t just a miscommunication between the student and the professor.” Which may beanother way of saying that Mike was born tolead a team.

8

they’re supposed to. All these projects are part of a comprehensive rethinking of thestrengths and possibilities of our eternally beautiful campus.

All this progress costs money, of course. The final price tag for dismantling Baxter andbuilding the new Student Center as well as moving and housing Baxter’s former functionsin the meantime will be $36 million. But I know the investment will be well worth it.

When we are through, some 20 months from now, Williams will at last have a “livingroom” where our extraordinary students can pursue that essential second half of their education — the one they give each other.

I hope you’ll come see for yourselves.

Sincerely,

“Never has a partnership among the College’s alumni, parents, and friends been more primed for success than here at Williams at the beginning of the 21st century.”

M O R T Y S C H A P I R O, 1 6 T H P R E S I D E N T

Even with a Williams education, it may beimpossible to calculate the precise value of thescent of warm chocolate chip cookies. But fromrunning the Goodrich coffee bar, EstelitaNimoh-Boateng offers this empirical reckoning:When she started baking the cookies on the spot, their roaming aroma boosted sales 60 per-cent. Estelita made other strategic changes, too:she began selling those classic vanilla ice creamsandwiches (a delicacy unobtainable on SpringStreet). Noting the perennial popularity ofbagels, she started charging five cents moreapiece. And she launched an employee-of-the-month program — in a student-run operation,

an unexpected and highly effective reward.Though she had no experience in retail, her masterful management eliminated the coffeebar’s $21,000 debt and actually made enoughextra to invest in new equipment.

The financial results made Estelita “really, reallyhappy.” Even more important: what she learnedabout managing, inspiring and appreciatingother people. “I really learned what it was like to work: to be a busser, a waitress, a manager, tostruggle to maintain inventory, to give directionsand have them not be followed. When I go intoa store now, I have so much sympathy, because Iknow how hard it is!”

That same thoughtful intensity infuses every-thing she does, from tutoring at the BerkshireFarm for Boys to teaching in the Urban Scholarsprogram, which gives students from greater NewYork a two-week summer plunge into Shakespeareat Williams. At the Berkshire Farm, Estelitareports, “I worked with these wonderful youngmen, but some of them were struggling witheven third-grade arithmetic. You just realize thecritical importance of fundamental education —and how cumulative life is.” Sometimes, ofcourse, it’s cumulative in a good way: One ofEstelita’s Urban Scholars mentees started atWilliams this year.

Estelita Nimoh-Boateng ’05

“I really learned what it was like to work: to be

a busser, a waitress, a manager, to struggle to

maintain inventory, to give directions and have

them not be followed.”

C H A I R M A N , S T. PA U L T R AV E L E R S C O M PA N I E S ; C H A I R , E X E C U T I V E C O M M I T T E E

O F T H E B OA R D O F T R U S T E E S ; C O - C H A I R , T H E W I L L I A M S C A M PA I G N

We don’t call it “Climb Far” for nothing. Welaunched The Williams Campaign last fall withnearly $160 million in advance commitments.Since then, alumni, parents, foundations, and corporations have committed an additional$76 to strengthen everything we value most in a Williams education.

As described elsewhere by President Morty Schapiro and

my fellow trustee Jack Wadsworth — and enlivened by the

vignettes of the exceptional students that encompass this

report — all these gifts are already hard at work, making an

essential difference inside and outside the Williams class-

room. Though the campaign’s ultimate success will depend

on truly extraordinary gifts such as those we’ve received

in support of the ’62 Center for Theatre and Dance, new

scholarships, new professorships, and strengthening Williams’ endowment, nine

of every ten Williams alumni are making their campaign gifts exclusively through

the Alumni Fund, and these unrestricted gifts have helped set the fast pace of

implementation for our strategic plan.

We have every reason to be pleased, proud, and above all grateful to so many

people who have joined The Williams Campaign in its critical early stages.

Nevertheless, we still have $164 million to go. Now begins the harder work of

reaching out to those who care deeply about Williams but may be less engaged

or simply at a greater distance from the College.

In the meantime, as one who gets to help decide how Williams will allocate this

immense generosity, I’m most grateful. On behalf of every Williams professor

and student who will benefit in countless ways from your efforts, I thank you for

what you’ve done, are doing, and will do for this great college.

Sincerely,

Bob Lipp

Chairman, St. Paul Travelers

Chair, Executive Committee of

the Board of Trustees

Co-Chair, The Williams Campaign

9

B O B L I P P ’ 6 0 T H E W I L L I A M S C A M PA I G N

FINANCIAL H IGHLIGHTS

C A M PA I G N P R O G R E S S

2004 was one for Williams Alumni Fund record books:

63 percent of all Williams alumni (the highest percent-

age in a decade) gave $8.1 million in Fiscal Year

2004 — by far the largest Alumni Fund gift ever and

$1.1 million, nearly 17 percent, more than last year.

That so many have given so much to the Alumni

Fund, which lies at the heart of The Williams

Campaign, has enabled the College to move quickly

and decisively to implement an ambitious strategic

plan and realize a bold vision for the College’s future.

We now have reason to hope that the Alumni Fund’s

five-year Williams Campaign goal of $56 million can

be achieved by 2008. With that milestone, thousands

of Williams Alumni together will have contributed

what may well be The Williams Campaign’s largest gift.

To the more than 1,500 Alumni Fund volunteers who

worked so hard to make this a banner year — and to the

14,000 alumni who answered their call — we thank you.

Tom Balderston ’78

Williams Alumni Fund Chair

Mr. Michael E. Reed ’75

Silver Spring, MD

Mr. Steven S. Rogers ’79

Evanston, IL

Dr. Lucienne S. Sanchez ’79

Weston, MA

Mr. Robert G. Scott ’68

New York, NY

Mr. Brent E. Shay ’78

Boston, MA

Mr. William E. Simon, Jr. ’73

Los Angeles, CA

Ms. A. Clayton Spencer ’77

Cambridge, MA

Ms. Cecily E. Stone ’73

Armonk, NY

Ms. Laurie J. Thomsen ’79

Concord, MA

The Hon. Carl W. Vogt ’58

San Francisco, CA

Mr. John S. Wadsworth, Jr. ’61

San Francisco, CA

Mr. Peter M. Wege, II ’71

Sedona, AZ

Ms. JoAnn Muir

Secretary

Williamstown, MA

Mr. Morton Owen Schapiro

President of the College

Williamstown, MA

Mr. Robert I. Lipp ’60

Chair of the Executive

Committee, Hartford, CT

Ms. Barbara A. Austell ’75

Villanova, PA

Mr. Gregory M. Avis ’80

Palo Alto, CA

Ms. Janet H. Brown ’73

Washington, DC

Mr. E. David Coolidge, III ’65

Chicago, IL

Dr. Delos M. Cosgrove, III ’62

Cleveland, OH

Mr. Paul S. Grogan ’72

Boston, MA

Mr. Stephen Harty ’73

Irvington, NY

Mr. Michael B. Keating ’62

Boston, MA

Mr. Jonathan A. Kraft ’86

Foxboro, MA

Ms. Mary T. McTernan ’76

Swarthmore, PA

Mr. Paul Neely ’68

Chattanooga, TN

Williams College Board of Trustees 2004–2005

ALUMNI FUND

$56 MILLION

Unrestricted annual gifts

from alumni, parents, and

friends support all of the

campaign objectives below.

CURRICULAR INNOVATION

$201.5 MILLION

Curricular Development

$24,000,000

An Expanded Faculty

$62,500,000

The Stetson/Sawyer Project

$75,000,000

’62 Center for Theatre

and Dance

$40,000,000

STUDENT LIFE

$142.5 MILLION

Need-based Scholarships

$90,000,000

Residential Life Initiatives

$16,500,000

A New Student Center

$36,000,000

TOTAL

$400,000,000

Williams CampaignStrategic Initiatives and Goals

10

A Message from Tom Balderston

GIFTS AND PLEDGES AS OF DECEMBER 1 , 2004

MULTI -YEAR CUMULATIVE TOTALS

Class Year Alumni Fund Total Capital Deferred Gifts Grand Total

1900 $ - $ - $ 16,008,737 $ 16,008,737

1906 - 3,700 - 3,700

1907 - 142,773 - 142,773

1910 - 5,000 - 5,000

1913 200 21,743 - 21,943

1914 - 255,000 - 255,000

1917 - 1,727 - 1,727

1918 - 10,205 - 10,205

1920 100 - - 100

1924 190 497,000 274,573 771,763

1925 150 195,000 - 195,150

1926 550 163,564 3,051 167,166

1927 525 60,060 - 60,585

1928 3,525 25,000 - 28,525

1929 3,420 61,520 - 64,940

1930 7,641 898,775 20,102 926,518

1931 16,641 2,866,629 - 2,883,270

1932 27,085 10,464 9 37,558

1933 33,451 5,003 - 38,454

1934 26,447 4,150 - 30,597

1935 54,137 136,643 - 190,780

1936 39,920 39,895 - 79,815

1937 31,228 15,042 220,000 266,2670

1938 71,629 368,413 201,039 641,081

1939 31,514 56,593 44,648 132,754

1940 36,738 1,080,728 49,020 1,166,486

1941 135,763 987,446 127,433 1,250,642

1942 175,4789 62,375 25,000 262,854

1943 107,249 103,989 1,676,136 1,887,374

1944 121,066 194,929 128,935 444,929

1945 90,890 20,929 2,059 113,878

1946 67,480 35,736 - 103,217

1947 43,825 1,469,731 - 1,513,556

1948 128,203 492,332 668,388 1,288,923

1949 109,592 439,580 52,660 601,833

1950 259,416 5,448,647 508,133 6,216,196

1951 236,006 919,495 193,265 1,348,766

1952 198,598 2,356,303 1,022,372 3,577,272

1953 531,582 3,625,249 1,782,228 5,939,059

1954 794,871 6,499,512 7,781,418 15,075,802

1955 321,449 426,988 2,627,602 3,376,039

1956 211,564 538,450 123,865 873,879

1957 183,341 45,63 217,693 446,665

1958 266,944 206,779 833,782 1,307,505

1959 262,086 725,980 - 988,067

1960 1,260,664 17,530,391 12,500,000 31,291,055

1961 317,540 1,629,658 5,269,555 7,216,753

1962 296,117 21,843,935 1,209,175 23,349,227

1963 254,984 1,511,880 15,000 1,781,864

1964 768,264 1,115,628 509,684 2,393,576

1965 583,971 3,971,872 - 4,555,843

1966 217,223 523,161 - 740,383

1967 180,823 613,321 - 794,143

1968 719,074 4,496,789 - 5,215,862

1969 221,005 766,336 - 987,341

1970 551,401 1,097,409 - 1,648,810

1971 348,928 559,919 - 908,846

1972 292,429 828,010 - 1,120,439

1973 480,217 713,732 - 1,193,949

1974 482,085 1,721,234 50,042 2,253,361

1975 787,352 7,234,755 4,000 8,026,107

1976 307,282 2,198,982 - 2,506,264

1977 1,023,561 2,250,348 635,000 3,908,910

1978 1,092,927 2,100,437 176,146 3,369,510

1979 1,485,342 3,049,281 52,654 4,587,277

1980 763,708 3,950,013 - 4,713,721

1981 441,351 2,898,765 - 3,340,116

1982 325,247 720,332 - 1,045,579

1983 417,799 543,162 - 960,961

1984 434,417 362,929 - 797,346

1985 495,752 48,231 - 543,983

1986 362,670 289,697 - 652,366

1987 197,224 206,563 - 403,788

1988 288,679 3,940 - 292,619

1989 281,779 60,948 - 342,726

1990 183,158 61,710 - 244,868

1991 119,113 19,263 - 138,376

1992 156,591 79,765 - 236,356

1993 183,978 12,485 - 196,463

1994 154,720 205,185 - 359,905

1995 39,482 1,580 - 41,062

1996 43,131 7,985 - 51,116

1997 47,001 5,645 - 52,646

1998 27,218 4,535 - 31,753

1999 28,786 2,708 - 31,494

2000 26,461 5,555 - 32,016

2001 41,638 2,843 - 44,481

2002 14,276 1,565 - 15,841

2003 7,027 8,016 - 15,043

2004 4,049 823 - 4,872

Alumni Total** $21,386,938 $116,786,029 $55,013,404 $ 193,186,371

Parents $ 2,141,426 $ 9,244,325 $ 104,720 $ 11,490,471

Friends $ 67,710 $ 21,096,652 $ 2,128,726 $ 23,293,088

Corp/Foundations $ 1,254,046 $ 6,327,115 $ - $ 7,581,16

Grand Total $24,850,120 $ 153,454,121 $57,246,849 $235,551,091

*Includes realized bequests

**Includes Honorary Alumni

*

HOW ARE WE DOING FINANCIALLY?

Williams enjoys one of the strongest financialpositions of any institution of higher education.The accompanying table (Figure 1) shows ourendowment per student and how it compareswith our select group of peer institutions. Alarge endowment per student means we can ded-icate to each student the necessary resources toprovide the best liberal arts education possible.Our current spending rate from the endowmentgenerates approximately $25,000 per year perstudent — this plus additional funding throughprograms like the Alumni Fund and ParentsFund equal the “financial aid” that every studentat Williams College receives, even those who payfull tuition.

The Williams College endowment had a positive return of 17.8 per-

cent for the 12 months ended June 30, 2004, and a cumulative

182.3 percent over the past 10 years (or an average annual com-

pound return of 12.2 percent.) The endowment benefited from

two things: improved financial markets (a welcome change) and

strong performances from its money managers (something we

have almost started to take for granted!).

Our 2004 return compares favorably to the return of our custom index, which

includes returns of all relevant asset classes, of 13.9 percent, and to the S&P 500

Index. The endowment is invested across a spectrum of asset classes to achieve

good returns while diversifying our risks. Our largest commitments are, in order,

investments in stocks, bonds, hedge funds, private equity partnerships that

invest in venture capital or buyouts, and real estate partnerships. While we are

pleased with our return for fiscal year 2004, we don’t rely on these years of

outsize returns, and we continue to manage all resources and our spending in

a conservative manner.

Our financial strength derives from three sources: the financial support of alumni, parents,and friends; careful financial stewardship; and successful investing strategies. I’ll address ourinvesting approach and record. Figure 2 showsthe investment return of the endowment over the past ten years vs. the performance of the S&P 500 Index and NASDAQ CompositeIndex. As you can see, the Williams Collegeendowment has outperformed both indices andwith less volatility. This lower volatility is prima-rily due to careful diversification across assetclasses and among managers within asset classes.Our money managers have been so successfulover the past few years that many of them arenot currently accepting new clients. The successof our program is therefore hard, if not impossi-ble, for other schools to match.

11

VICE CHAIRMAN, WILL IAM BLAIR AND COMPANY; TRUSTEE OF THE COLLEGE

AND CHAIRMAN OF THE TRUSTEE F INANCE COMMITTEE

FIGURE 1 : ENDOWMENT PER STUDENT (JUNE 2003)

DAV E C O O L I D G E ’ 6 5 T H E W I L L I A M S C O L L E G E E N D OW M E N T

That said, we are not resting on our laurels — theFinance Committee continues to spend most ofits time seeking out outstanding investment man-agers in asset classes that we believe will enhanceour risk-adjusted returns. We have organized subcommittees of dedicated and knowledgeablealumni who assist the Finance Committee inthese efforts, and we are grateful for their efforts. I would like to thank Jim Moltz ’54, chair of the Committee for Publicly Traded Securities;Bill Simon ’73, who chairs the Real EstateCommittee and with Pete Kiernan ’75 co-chairsthe Special Strategies Committee (Hedge Funds);and Mike Eisenson ’77, chair of the Committeefor Private Equity Investments. Each of thesealumni, and their volunteer committees, contin-ues to serve Williams College with distinction,and each has helped shape the investment

FINANCIAL H IGHLIGHTS

$/S

TU

DE

NT

Williams Endowment Returns

S&P 500 Index

NASDAQ Composite Index

FIGURE 1 : ENDOWMENT PER STUDENT, JUNE 30, 2002

Williams’ fiscal year runs from July 1–June 30.

strategies that have produced strong returns andthe financial base for the College as it implementsits strategic plan.

HOW DID WE GET HERE?

Strong investment performance and disciplinedspending are important parts of the equation.Williams employs a “total return” strategy,expecting to earn, on average, 8 percent andtaking around 5 percent from the endowmenteach year to pay operating costs of the College.In years like the past one, when our perform-ance is particularly good, we “save” for thefuture, and in low-return or down years we dipinto our “savings” (as we did in fiscal years 2001and 2002).

The third and most essential part of the equa-tion is philanthropy. Our most important“assets” are alumni, parents, and friends ofWilliams at all levels of support who continue togenerously give their time and their money tothe College. Williams College simply would notbe what it is today without the gifts of alumni,parents, and friends who have always wantedWilliams to be even better today and tomorrow.

Figure 3 shows how much smaller our endow-ment would be today if we had stopped receivingnew gifts in 1954. Our high annual participationin the Alumni Fund and Parents Fund relievespressure on the endowment by providing a steadystream of money that the College can spendimmediately in ways that best suit the needs ofour students.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR STUDENTS?

Every gift, large or small, is important to The Williams Campaign. Campaign supportfrom alumni, parents, and friends, coupled withfinancial discipline and investing success, willmake our strategic plan a reality. The success of the strategic plan means each student todayand tomorrow, as with the students who pre-ceded them, can make the most of one of thebest liberal arts educations in the world.

Sincerely,

With New Gifts Included

Without Gifts

395

306292

12

FIGURE 2 : GROWTH OF ENDOWMENT VS . MARKET INDICES ( 1994 START FOR ALL 3 PORTFOLIOS IS SET TO 100)

Williams’ fiscal year runs from July 1–June 30.

($/

1,0

00

)

$1,056

$249

F IGURE 3 : ACTUAL ENDOWMENT VS . ENDOWMENT VALUE WITHOUT NEW GIFTS

HOW IS WILLIAMS SPENDING ITS MONEY?

At once aggressively and conservatively. (SeeFigure 1.) As in past years, Williams spent most of its operating resources directly on stu-dents, professors, and educational facilities. In2003–2004, a full 41 percent of the operatingbudget went exclusively to instruction, room andboard, and student services. Another 15 percentunderwrote Williams’ financial aid program, and 9 percent paid for our library, technology,and museum costs.

These core expenditures have risen over the pastfew years to fuel our strategic plan to renewMark Hopkins’ educational vision — a Williamseducation that equips our students to lead effec-tively in an increasingly complex and challengingworld. To realize the plan in its entirety — and to sustain these new commitments over the longterm — is the goal of The Williams Campaign.In the meantime, we’re paying keen attention to day-to-day expenditures to make sure theseimprovements are responsibly implemented andcan be sustained. Now that our investment in 30 new faculty positions is nearly complete, theCollege has committed to holding non-facultystaffing levels constant and holding growth innon-personnel expenses to a minimum.

THE ALUMNI FUND AND THE PARENTS FUND:

DRIVING THE STRATEGIC PLAN

GOAL $56 MILLION

The Williams Campaign’s cornerstone isincreased support for the Williams Alumni Fundand Parents Fund. Nine of every ten Williamsalumni are making their campaign gifts exclu-sively through the Alumni Fund. And allWilliams alumni and parents — including thosewho make major commitments for specific initiatives — are asked to support the campaignthrough more generous and consistent gifts tothe funds.

Why? For several excellent reasons. Underwritingroughly 6 percent of our annual operating budget,the Alumni Fund supports all of The WilliamsCampaign’s major objectives. We’ve been able tojump-start critical campaign initiatives — fromincreasing the number of professors to makingsubstantial student housing improvements —all because Alumni Fund and Parents Fund giftshave given us the financial flexibility to do so.Together these annual giving efforts have nowcontributed $24 million of The WilliamsCampaign’s current total. The sum of all AlumniFund and Parents Fund gifts now represent thelargest campaign gift to date.

I begin, as in previous years, with three cheers for Dave Coolidge ’65,

Chairman of the Trustee Finance Committee, whose leadership and

steady hand sustained Williams’ endowment through a tough stretch

in the market to end the past year with a remarkable 17.8 percent

return. I also thank the thousands of Williams alumni, parents, and

friends whose gifts made The Williams Campaign’s first year a strik-

ingly successful one. Unprecedented philanthropy — and Williams’

careful stewardship of that philanthropy— have enabled us to report early progress

in every major campaign objective presented below.

CURRICULAR INITIATIVES

& FACULTY SUPPORT

GOAL $86.5 MILLION

The initial surge of campaign support has alreadyenabled us to expand our faculty by 15 percent,resulting in many more classes with fewer than20 students. We’ve also increased the number of Oxford-inspired tutorials, with much of thatincrease aimed at students in their critical sophomore year. Additional curricular initiativesincluded new interdisciplinary programs andexperiential opportunities as well as new require-ments in writing and quantitative reasoning.

STUDENT LIFE INITIATIVES

GOAL $106.5 MILLION

Complementing these academic initiatives areefforts to enrich the Williams experience beyondthe classroom. Williams has embarked on a setof important student life initiatives that will provide students new opportunities for growth,encouraging them to challenge themselves — andone another — outside the classroom.

Extending Our Commitment

to Need-based Financial Aid

$90 Million

Excellent students from the broadest range ofbackgrounds are as important in educating eachother as are their great professors. Williamsselects these students from the largest possiblepool, which includes many who can’t afford topay full tuition. Williams is one of just a hand-ful of American colleges and universities thatadmits students strictly on a need-blind basisand meets 100 percent of demonstrated finan-cial need. In 2003 and 2004, 42 percent of ourstudents received financial aid, and we expectthat number to rise to 45 percent by the end ofthe campaign in 2008. At the same time, we’veincreased scholarship grants and minimized debt burdens for all students, particularly ourmost needy students.

Williams also has chosen to extend need-blindadmission to all qualifying international matricu-lants. While the proportion of international students remains steady at 6 percent of the totalstudent population, their academic credentialsare absolutely outstanding, and they come frommany more countries and cultures, enriching the Williams experience for all students.

Residential Life Initiatives

$16.5 Million

Thanks to early campaign support, the Collegenow has a director of campus life and four cam-pus life coordinators who provide professionalresources and training for all students who serveas upperclass residential staff, encouraging and

promoting additional learning opportunities forstudents outside the classroom. The CLCs, who are young staff members, are already mak-ing a difference in the quality of residential community life at Williams. Targeted improve-ments to specific student residences, includingMission Park and Prospect, will support thesenew programs.

NEW CAPITAL PROJECTS

GOAL $151 MILLION

Three major building projects will create environments where students and faculty can do their best work to realize the curricular and extracurricular goals outlined above.

’62 Center for Theatre and Dance

$40 Million

In April 2003, Williams broke ground for the’62 Center for Theatre and Dance. Designed by William Rawn, architect of Seiji Ozawa Hall at Tanglewood, this state-of-the-art facility will challenge Williams students and faculty in theatre and dance to create, experi-ment, and collaborate. The ’62 Center forTheatre and Dance is currently scheduled toopen for inaugural student performances this coming spring. For more information visitwww.williams.edu/home/construction/theatre/.

A New Student Center

$36 Million

President Schapiro describes this essential project,and the reasons why it’s a top Williams priority,in his essay beginning on page 1. For more infor-mation visit www.williams.edu/go/studentcenter/.

The Stetson-Sawyer Project

$75 Million

Stetson Hall and Sawyer Library share support of the humanities and social sciences. We plan to renew both in an efficient, inviting, integratedcomplex that will promote opportunities for collaborative study, provide space for libraryacquisitions, and encourage interaction amongstudents and professors across academic disci-plines. With campus-wide input — and inspiredsolutions from our architects, Bohlin CywinskiJackson — Stetson–Sawyer will become a thriving center for the humanities and social sciences at Williams. For more information visit www.williams.edu/go/stetsonsawyer/.

REVENUES TO SUPPORT THE OPERATING

BUDGET: FY 2003–2004

Strategic plan expenditures challenge us to main-tain prudent financial management. At the sametime, we are determined to increase strategicspending in key areas without burdening familieswith steep tuition hikes. Indeed, although we’re

13

J AC K WA D S WO R T H ’ 6 1 T H E W I L L I A M S C A M PA I G N

FINANCIAL H IGHLIGHTS

ADVISORY D IRECTOR, MORGAN STANLEY, AND PARTNER, MANITOU VENTURES ; TRUSTEE OF THE COLLEGE

AND CHAIRMAN OF THE TRUSTEE BUDGET AND F INANCIAL PLANNING COMMITTEE

Operating Expenditures ($1000s) Growth Rates

FY2001 FY2002 FY2003 FY2004 % of Total 1-year 3-year

Undergraduate Instruction/Research $ 33,963 $ 36,900 $ 39,677 $ 41,469 31.3% 4.5% 6.9%

Scholarships & Fellowships $ 14,637 $ 16,119 $ 17,933 $ 19,401 14.7% 8.2% 9.8%

Student Room & Board $ 11,725 $ 11,781 $ 12,632 $ 13,099 9.9% 3.7% 3.8%

CORE ACTIVITIES $ 60,325 $64,800 $ 70,242 $ 73,969 55.9% 5.3% 7.0%

Buildings & Grounds $ 7,589 $ 7,944 $ 8,430 $ 8,522 6.4% 1.1% 3.9%

Administration $ 7,672 $ 7,951 $ 8,122 $ 8,709 6.6% 7.2% 4.3%

Technology $ 5,259 $ 5,879 $ 6,888 $ 6,685 5.1% -2.9% 8.3%

Alumni Relations & Development $ 4,871 $ 5,850 $ 6,260 $ 6,882 5.2% 9.9% 12.2%

Student Services $ 4,728 $ 5,284 $ 6,162 $ 6,623 5.0% 7.5% 11.9%

Athletics $ 4,449 $ 4,771 $ 5,056 $ 5,441 4.1% 7.6% 6.9%

Libraries $ 4,429 $ 4,660 $ 5,065 $ 5,241 4.0% 3.5% 5.8%

Auxiliaries $ 3,647 $ 4,020 $ 4,046 $ 3,430 2.6% -15.2% -2.0%

Graduate Programs $ 1,574 $ 1,898 $ 2,076 $ 2,232 1.7% 7.5% 12.3%

Museum $ 1,463 $ 1,585 $ 1,720 $ 1,900 1.4% 10.5% 9.1%

Security $ 1,196 $ 1,283 $ 1,360 $ 1,366 1.0% .4% 4.5%

Health Services $ 1,107 $ 1,214 $ 1,283 $ 1,295 1.0% .9% 5.4%

OTHER ACTIVITIES $ 47,984 $ 52,339 $ 56,468 $ 58,326 44.1% 3.3% 6.7%

TOTAL $108,309 $ 117,139 $126,710 $132,295 100.0% 4.4% 6.9%

*compounded annually

Note: Effective 2002–03; $1.8 million of B&G expenses reported outside of operating budget as capital renewal;

$1.8 million has been removed from B&G expenses in 1999–00, 2000–01, and 2001–02 to facilitate comparison

*

Capital Budget Expenditures ($1000s)

FY2000 FY2001 FY2002 FY2003 FY2004 5-yr Avg

Renovation, Repair and Adaptation $ 7,783 $ 8,315 $ 12,529 $ 13,450 $ 8,675 $ 10,150

New Construction $ 9,262 $ 7,810 $ 9,572 $ 21,645 $ 32,438 $ 16,152

TOTAL Spending $17,045 $ 16,125 $22,101 $35,095 $ 41,113 $ 26,303

on Capital Projects

FIGURE 2 : CAPITAL BUDGET EXPENDITURES FY 2000–2004

FY2002 FY2003 FY2004

Revenue % of Revenue % of Revenue % of

($1000s) Total ($1000s) Total ($1000s) Total

Student Charges $ 62,358 52% $ 64,895 51% $ 69,720 53%

Endowment Funds Made

Available to Operating Budget $ 31,711 27% $ 42,190 33% $ 40,622 31%

Alumni & Parents Funds $ 7,538 6% $ 8,179 6% $ 8,804 7%

Other Gifts & Grants $ 9,293 8% $ 7,413 6% $ 7,517 6%

Miscellaneous $ 7,107 6% $ 4,896 4% $ 5,931 4%

TOTAL $118,938 $126,835 $132,594

NOTE: Total gifts from all private sources equalled $40,108,496 in FY2002, $41,563,280 in FY2003 and $46,518,742 in FY2004.

FIGURE 3 : REVENUES TO SUPPORT THE OPERATING BUDGET FY 2002–2004

14

FIGURE 1 : OPERATING EXPENDITURES FY 2001–2004

holding steady now, over the past five years theCollege has reduced the share of student chargesin operating income from 62 percent to about53 percent.

We look to The Williams Campaign to secure the strategic plan’s success, and here we have goodreasons for optimism. Launched last Septemberwith $160 million in advance commitments, thecampaign has received an additional $76 millionin gifts, pledges, and grants from alumni, parents,friends, foundations, and corporations and now stands at $236 million toward its five-year,$400 million goal.

Alumni Fund and Parents Fund

The 2004 Alumni Fund’s total of $8.1 millionrepresented a 17 percent increase over the 2003Fund. Participation was 63.01 percent, the highest since 1989! The Parents Fund put in astrong 2004 showing with $700,300 in giftsfrom 34 percent of parents of undergraduatesand an impressive 583 parents of alumni.

50th and 25th Reunion Funds

With a total 50th Reunion Fund gift of $17.4 million, the Class of 1954 bested the previous record of $16.59 million set by theClass of 1950. And with a total 25th ReunionFund of $4.6 million, the Class of 1979 ranks#4 among 25th Reunion efforts (’75 holds therecord at $10.5 million.) The Class of ’79 setthe all-time record for any class with an AlumniFund total of $515,000.

Planned Giving

Life income gifts and realized bequests continueto be an important source of support for Williams.In FY 04 the College was the beneficiary of $5.7 million in bequests. Williams led our peersin new life income gifts, with $12 milliondonated through gift annuities, pooled incomefunds, and charitable trusts.

On June 11 the College inaugurated theEphraim Williams Society — a new bequest andplanned giving recognition group. The societywas launched with more than 1,300 chartermembers who have life income gift arrangementswith Williams or have notified the College thatthey plan to include it as a beneficiary of theirestates. Membership, which is open to everyone,includes alumni and honorary alumni from theclasses of 1917 through 2002 as well as faculty,staff, and Williamstown residents.

I close by thanking you for your unstinting support. The initiatives outlined here — and thevision to carry them through for present andfuture Williams students — wouldn’t be possiblewithout your assistance and your confidence inour stewardship of the College’s resources.

Sincerely,

PRESORTED

FIRST-CLASS MAIL

U.S. POSTAGE

PAID

N. READING, MA

PERMIT NO. 140

Williams College

Alumni Relations and Development

75 Park Street

Williamstown, MA 01267

Design: Plainspoke/Portsmouth, NH Photography: Kevin Kennefick Illustrations: Kevin Sprouls and Polshek Partnership Architects (renderings and floor plans)

“The Williams Campaign is allowing us to takeactive steps to enrich the Williams experienceoutside the classroom. Though this work is stillin its early stages, we are beginning to addressthe wonderful challenge of increasing the waysin which students serve each other as ‘professors’in this ‘second half’ of a Williams education.”

PRESIDENT MORTY SCHAPIRO