One day after the 225th anniversary of the college’s founding, Ian Baucom was formally inaugurated as the 18th president of Middlebury College. The ceremony was held on Sunday, Nov. 2 in Virtue Field House, marking the culmination of a three-day celebration highlighting the arts, academics and the greater Middlebury community.
Baucom was joined by faculty, staff, students, alumni and delegates representing more than 35 colleges and universities. The ceremony ran for approximately three hours and featured remarks from students, faculty, community partners and former colleagues, blending prayer, poetry, personal reflection and calls to action.
Special guest speakers included Julia Alvarez ’71, writer in residence emerita; Bettina Matthias, professor of language and linguistics and the chair of the German department; Dima Ayoub, associate professor of Arabic and department chair; and Timothy Parsons, Facilities Services Horticulturist. Representatives from the Middlebury Alumni Association, the Student Government Association (SGA) and the Town of Middlebury Selectboard also shared remarks.
Alvarez reflected on what it means to lead during turbulent times amidst disconcerting events during her time as a student.
“I want to express gratitude to the warm hands tendering this institution over to your care,” Alvarez said, addressing Baucom. “Being a bridge over troubled waters is no easy feat, and your thoughtfulness and care provide a model for how to serve with a listening ear and a kind heart. Gracias.”
James E. Ryan, former president and current professor of law and education at the University of Virginia, where Baucom served as provost, described him as a morally upright leader with the necessary skills to serve as president.
“Being a real person who is also a college president matters because most people trust real people, not just somebody playing the role, and they can usually tell the difference,” Ryan said in his address. “With the trust of a community, there is no obstacle too difficult to overcome and no goal too ambitious to achieve. Without the community’s trust, you cannot lead.”
Ryan stepped down from his role as president this past June following pressures from the Trump administration amid the ongoing battle of diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in higher education. He addressed the events leading to his departure from UVA, speaking to Baucom’s values amidst the decision.
“I would consult with Ian about whether I ought to give in or stand firm,” Ryan said. “Ian’s advice was to look for compromise when you can, but hold fast when principles are involved.”
Events outside of the ceremony on Sunday included several meet and greets with Baucom, three academic roundtables run by professors, a poster fair to showcase student work and community organizations, a special four-course Dolci dinner and a celebration of the night of the arts in the Mahaney Arts Center.
Damascus Kafumbe, professor of international studies and music and Amy Carlin, special assistant to the president, associate director of community relations and presidential events specialist oversaw the schedule of events that comprised the inauguration. As co-chairs of the Inauguration Committee, they spent roughly ten months planning all the events.
Kafumbe, who was on academic leave when the president’s office requested that he co-chair the committee with Carlin, was thrilled to welcome Baucom and his family to the community.
“I had been reading about his potential contributions to the institution, so I saw work on the committee as a way to support his mission and vision,” Kafumbe wrote in an email to The Campus. “As co-chairs, our responsibilities included managing administrative tasks; attending regular meetings with committee members and external stakeholders; co-developing and framing the theme for the inauguration; assisting with event planning and execution; facilitating faculty, staff, and student involvement; and overseeing the activities of various subcommittees.”
Carlin has served as a liaison between the college and town while coordinating presidential events in the past.
“I was truly excited to be part of this historic Middlebury event, and it was a pleasure collaborating with Damascus and the rest of the committee to bring President Baucom’s inauguration to life,” Carlin wrote in an email to The Campus. “Throughout the process, I had the privilege of working closely with President Ian Baucom and his wife Wendy, to help bring their vision for the inauguration to life.”
Baucom opened his address by acknowledging the loss of Lia Smith ’26, who passed away on Oct. 18, and the community response that followed.
“Thank you for having taught me so swiftly that at Middlebury, family is not a metaphor,” Baucom said. “It is a lived reality.”
After sitting with the loss, Baucom addressed the history of the college, given the anniversary of Middlebury’s founding in 1800. He painted a picture of a continually evolving community, with new and diverse names added to the list of founders. These names, Baucom said, are “the names of who we are, who we can become and who we are for.”
That question — what is Middlebury for? — guided the inaugural weekend. One answer Baucom gave is that Middlebury is for democracy.
Baucom, who was born in South Africa to missionaries, grew up surrounded by the stark reality of apartheid. Alongside raising him and his siblings, his parents ran adult literacy programs for Black mine workers and were involved with community outreach.
“I got my belief and my call to education from [my parents],” Baucom said. “They gave their lives to what they believed in. How I arrived in Middlebury from a town of a couple hundred people in deeply rural, 1970s apartheid South Africa is one of those American stories that just doesn’t happen without colleges and universities opening their doors to students everywhere…I am profoundly a beneficiary of the American project of democratic education. It changed my parents’ lives, it changed my life, I believe in it and as president I will fight for it and for every student whose lives we can help open.”
He went on to illustrate the changes in students across Middlebury’s history, highlighting the stories of Alexander Twilight, the first student of African descent to graduate from Middlebury in 1823, as well as Maybelle Chellis, the first woman to graduate in 1886.
According to Baucom, we are entering a moment in which we must make a case for the liberal arts college as being a center of democracy, pointing to convocation and commencement as microcosms of pluralism in action.
Baucom continued, describing what Middlebury is for: climate responsibility; connection across political divides; the arts, writing and scientific innovation.
“We are for the conviction that in a time in which too much of our culture and too much of our public discourse defines itself by what it is against, that we will define ourselves by what we are for,” Baucom said.
“I am for the commitment that I have come to Middlebury, not to be the president, but to be your president.” Baucom said. “I am here to be your president on sweet days and hard days, days of snow and days of spring.”
Rachelle Talbert '28 (she/her) is a News Editor.
Rachelle previously served as a Copy Editor. She intends to major in English with minors in Art History and Linguistics.
Norah Khan '27 (she/her) is an News Editor.
Norah has previously served as a Arts & Culture Editor. She is majoring in Political Science and English, with minor in Spanish. Outside of The Campus, she is involved with Matriculate as an Advising Fellow and the Conflict Transformation Collaborative as a Conflict Coaching Peer Facilitator.
