On Monday, DLR Group, the integrated design firm the College selected to partner with on developing its Comprehensive Campus Plan, returned to Bryn Mawr, this time to ask community members to think big.
At a workshop, 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.
Recommendations were modest at first –– a new path here, parking there –– but grew more ambitious as the exercise went on. By the end of the exercise, there were skywalks to the gym, new residence halls overlooking Lake Vickers, and a combination dining hall/library in the middle of campus.
As in previous exercises, the groups presented their ideas and then tried to reach consensus.
“What a super opportunity to be at tables with staff and faculty from all over campus,” said Diane Gentry, associate director of research in Alumnae/i Relations and Development. “On the way out, we each left a note about the takeaways or an idea that we heard and want to remember from another group, which is a great way to highlight what resonated for the next conversation.”
DLR hosted the Comprehensive Plan working groups for the same session later in the day on Monday. On Tuesday they ran their Big Ideas Workshop with Jeffrey Cohen’s Formative Landscapes Seminar and held a staff listening session.
In addition to the physical campus, the community was invited to think about the intellectual life of the campus at the final Current Topics in Higher Education event of the year, “The Liberal Arts of the Future: Centering the Curriculum.”
The lunchtime event featured Marjorie Hass, president of the Council of Independent Colleges and former president of Rhodes College and Austin College. She was joined in Great Hall by more than 50 members of the faculty and staff.
Hass spoke about the challenges curricula face today, from authoritarianism to AI, as well as the future of curricula, and how it can balance its traditional roots with modern demands.
Hass started by asking the attendees to describe the current curriculum at Bryn Mawr. People shouted out their responses: “Core.” “360.” “Traditional.” “Grounded in the disciplines.” “Independent.” “Community engaged.”
“So, what kinds of pressures are there going to be on a curriculum like this as we move towards the future?” she asked.
She let the question hang in the air for a moment before beginning to answer it herself. Internal pressures, she noted, might include preparing students more intentionally for careers or expanding interdisciplinary work. But the larger forces, she said, are coming from beyond campus. “We are in a period of radical change and disruption.”
After speaking for about 40 minutes, Hass had the groups at each table talk amongst themselves about what students must be free to learn and develop, and constraints they are facing. She closed by opening the floor to questions and comments.
“When we talk about curriculum, we focus a lot on the content, and we don't focus enough on the pedagogy and the relationship with students, and why not start thinking about how we can foreground that relationship?” asked Professor of Political Science Joel Schlosser.
“I think that’s a great question to end on,” said Hass. “What has to change to make that happen and what has to change to make it possible.”
The strategic plan and Comprehensive Campus Plan are both scheduled to unfold over the next year, with a final strategic plan and comprehensive plan expected in 2026. Together, they will provide a roadmap for Bryn Mawr to remain a place where students thrive, faculty innovate, and the community continues to grow in purpose and spirit.
