Dear Families,

It is wonderful to have all our students back on campus after winter break. The days are getting longer and spring is on its way to the Hudson Valley. 

I am thrilled to announce that a Bard student, Aleks Vitanov '25, has been chosen as a Schwarzman Scholar! Aleks joins Edris Tajik '23 and Michael Nyakundi '23 (Bard Berlin) as Bard students chosen for this prestigious scholarship. Schwarzman Scholars is a one year fully-funded Master’s program in Global Affairs at Tsinghua University in Beijing, China. As the first scholarship of its kind created to respond to the geopolitical landscape of the 21st century, Schwarzman Scholars aspires to build a global network of young leaders that are prepared to confront the pressing challenges facing the world.

BardWorks wrapped up its three day series of workshops and receptions on Friday, January 24 in NYC. This year’s program was a huge success with almost 70 students and over 80 parents and alumni/ae participating! Special thanks to Bard parents Hilary and Kevin Greene and Jane and Richard Leider for sponsoring the BardWorks reception and to all the parents who offered their valuable time during select BardWorks sessions and networking events. Below is a wonderful testimonial from a participating Bard student:

"I wanted to take a moment to thank you for all the effort and care you put into creating such a truly life-changing experience with BardWorks. Meeting a variety of successful Bard alumni and parents from so many different fields was incredibly inspiring. It was also a wonderful and reassuring opportunity to reflect on how fortunate I am to be part of this amazing community." - Scarlet Orner ’25

At the Grammy Awards earlier this week Bard was well represented. Two Fisher Center artists and Bard Conservatory faculty received big accolades! Caroline Shaw, the collaborator of Pam Tanowitz, Fisher Center Artist in Residence, won Best Chamber Music / Small Ensemble Performance for her album with Bard Conservatory faculty Sō Percussion. Meshell Ndegeocello won Best Alternative Jazz Album for "No More Water: The Gospel of James Baldwin." Fisher LAB commissioned an early iteration of this work in 2020 called Chapter & Verse. Meshell is a long time performer on the Fisher Center stages.

Of note, the following Bard graduate programs are accepting applications for Fall 2025 through April 15th. If your student has interest in any of these programs, I invite you to use the links below to review each one. The MS and MEd programs have a 4+1 BA/Master's option for undergraduate Bard students. If you have questions, please reach out to Katie Boyle at kboyle@bard.edu. 

#1 Ranked MBA in Sustainability (Hybrid)
MS in Environmental Policy (MS EP)
MS in Climate Science and Policy (MS CSP)
MEd in Environmental Education

Bard Wellness programs are ready to support students in 2025! The Wellness Team is providing individualized self-care coaching sessions, monthly Peer Health programming, wellness counseling sessions, daily food pantry access at the Sawkill Coffee House, dog therapy, massage therapy, acupuncture, and more! Follow Bard’s Wellness programming at @wellnessatbard for regular updates. 

Commencement 2025 plans are already underway! If you have a student graduating from Bard in May (congratulations!), please be aware that more information about student registration as well as parent and family ticketing information will be circulated in the coming weeks to both students and families. The March Annandale Insider issue will be full of important details for families looking ahead to graduation. 

Best wishes,

Mackie Siebens ‘12

Assistant Director of Development for Family Programs
families@bard.edu | 845-758-7316

P.S. Room selection will take place during the week of February 10 for Fall 2025. Your student will receive clear details about the room draw process.

Bard College Student Aleksandar Vitanov ’25 Named a Schwarzman Scholar

Bard College senior Aleksandar Vitanov ’25 has been announced as a recipient of a prestigious Schwarzman Scholarship for 2025–26. Vitanov, who is pursuing a double degree in Politics and Music Performance at Bard and the Bard Conservatory, is one of 150 scholars—representing 38 countries and 105 universities from around the world—who will receive the opportunity to attend a one-year, fully-funded master’s degree program in global affairs at Schwarzman College, Tsinghua University in Beijing, China.

Celeste Connell ’26 Wins 2024 Dante Prize

Bard student Celeste Connell ’26 has won the 2024 Dante Prize, a longstanding award bestowed by the Dante Society of America for the best essay on the Italian poet Dante Alighieri by an undergraduate in the US or Canada. Connell, a junior in classical studies and literature at Bard, was awarded the prize for her essay “Lucan’s Exiles: Solitude and Moral Vision in the Commedia.”

Jacquelyn Stucker VAP ’13 Interviewed in Opera Wire

Bard alumna Jacquelyn Stucker VAP ’13 was interviewed by Opera Wire in advance of her performance in We Are the Lucky Ones at Amsterdam’s Opera Forward Festival, a showcase of new performances and student production labs that is in its ninth year. Stucker spoke about her career in performance, her newest role, and how she became enamored with opera.

Nikkya Hargrove ’05 Interviewed in Bomb Magazine

Nikkya Hargrove ’05, a member of the Bard College Alumni/ae Association Board of Governors and Lambda Literary Nonfiction Fellow, was interviewed by Bomb magazine about her memoir, Mama. In the book, Hargrove tells the story of her decision to adopt her newborn baby brother Jonathan after their incarcerated mother died, and how she set out, with her wife Dinushka, to create the kind of family she never had. “I think the calling to be Jonathan’s mother was nothing short of spiritual,” Hargrove said.

Book by Franz Nicolay One of the “Best Music Books of 2024” by Rolling Stone

A book by Franz Nicolay, visiting instructor of music at Bard College, has been included in Rolling Stone’s list of “Best Music and Books of 2024.” Nicolay’s Band People: Life and Work In Popular Music offers a close look at the lives of working musicians, like backup singers and support musicians, whose creative collaboration plays an irreplaceable role in popular music. “From cult heroes like guitarist Nels Cline and bassist Mike Watt to band stalwarts like Fugazi bassist Joe Lally and Babes in Toyland drummer Lori Barbero to studio first-calls like drummer Josh Freese and bassist Melissa Auf Der Mar, Band People shows the nuts and bolts of what they do and how they do it,” Rolling Stone writes.