Dear classmates,

Autumn. Of all the seasons at Kenyon, autumn is my absolute favorite. Kenyon’s beauty increases exponentially as the leaves change to gold and crimson, only to fall and crunch under our feet on Middle Path. When autumn is in the air, my heart remembers, “the love of Kenyon, our mother.”

Autumn is also a very busy time, with classes, athletics, and activities in full swing, and this year is no different. This semester, 12 members of the Class of 2026 were able to enroll as the direct result of donor support for the Kenyon Access Initiative (KAI), a vital scholarship effort to increase access for low-income students. We’re only just getting started and aim to enroll 50 students each year through KAI, in addition to other robust financial aid. This additional diversity in backgrounds and lived experiences will further enrich daily life on campus.

Chalmers Library in the West Quad has quickly become a hub for such connections day and night. Its neighbor Lowell House, home to admissions and financial aid and named for Pulitzer Prize winning poet Robert T.S. Lowell IV ’40, is also now open. Oden Hall, future home to social sciences and named for former president Robert Oden, will open for instruction next year. The 261-space underground parking garage for visitors and employees — with EV charging, naturally — is already helping to ease congestion in the Village without disrupting the beauty of Gambier we all remember so fondly.

This year students will also soon have access to a dining option in “downtown” Gambier, when Peirce Express opens in a space under the Gambier Deli. (Shout out to all who remember eating in Gund Dining Hall!) This space will also be home some evenings to a student-run bar known as Flats, helping to provide a non-residences nightlife option. Look for more about both of these in an upcoming issue of Kenyon News Digest.

To further support all students, the College increased the budget for the Student Success Fund — emergency grants for which any student can apply. They also welcomed Dr. Lynn Hampton to serve in the newly created Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion position, providing additional leadership to the daily efforts of ODEI and partnering with Dean Chris Kennerly so he can extend his reach across campus with DEI efforts.

In other news, the Music Department is celebrating its 75th year. Alumni Council is developing an updated version of the Kenyon songbook (Kenyon has a songbook!) which will be viewable online soon and distributed at Reunion Weekend during the all-class sing. If you haven’t saved the date yet for Reunion Weekend, remember that all alumni are welcome to attend May 26-28.

If you are like me (perish the thought), you’re now feeling wistful about our time at Kenyon.  So, I invite you to respond with a generous gift to Kenyon.  Our gifts are what make all of the above, and so much more, possible.  Gifts to the Kenyon Fund can be directed toward enrolling the next high-achieving group of students through the Kenyon Access Initiative, broader scholarships and financial aid efforts, athletics, one of the College’s many green centers, and more. You may give online at gift.kenyon.edu. Thank you.

I hope you celebrate the latest news from the College. I have certainly enjoyed hearing from folks who submitted class notes this season, and I hope folks who haven’t shared an update recently will do so soon – we hope you are well and want to know what you have been up to.

All the best,
Ben Robertson