Feb. 12, 2026: Winter 2026 Board of Trustees Meeting Summary

Dear Colleagues,

I am writing to share reflections and outcomes from last week’s meeting of the Bucknell University Board of Trustees. This was one of the most pivotal Board meetings in my 16 years as your president, not because of a single decision, but because it marked a collective step forward in shaping Bucknell’s future at a time of profound change for higher education.

In my University Address last November, I spoke about the inflection point facing both our institution and higher education as a whole, including demographic pressures, financial realities and cultural shifts, to name a few factors. I emphasized then, and reiterate now, that our goal is not merely to endure and survive these forces facing our sector, but to thrive and define what a modern residential liberal arts university can be despite them. I believe that last week’s Board meeting was a significant step forward in advancing that objective.

Leading up to the full Board meeting, and throughout the two-day gathering, trustees spent significant time deeply engaging with the realities facing Bucknell and our peers of which I have frequently spoken to you: a shrinking population of college-age students, rising expectations around affordability and financial aid, escalating operational costs, increasing skepticism about the value of higher education and intensifying competition for students in high-demand academic fields. What distinguished this Board meeting was not simply a further recognition of these realities, but unanimous endorsement of a plan for how Bucknell will now respond to them.

There was palpable consensus among trustees around a central idea: Bucknell’s strength depends on intentionally aligning academic demand, financial sustainability and our mission. This is not about abandoning who we are. It is about building from our strengths, including our three-college model, our residential experience, our participation in Division I athletics, our close faculty-student engagement and our reputation for interdisciplinary excellence, and purposefully positioning those strengths to transform our students for the world they will enter upon graduation from Bucknell.

At the core of the trustees’ discussion was the Strategic Enrollment Growth Plan (login required), a five-year framework designed to support our mission while strengthening our financial foundation. The plan expands enrollment in areas of sustained student demand by lifting caps in select high-demand majors in all three of our academic colleges. Over five years, the plan projects growth in our entering class to approximately 1,120 students, supported by:

  • targeted investments in faculty and instructional capacity
  • modest increases in Admissions, Financial Aid and Student Affairs staffing, and
  • major investments in academic and residential infrastructure.

The trustees reviewed extensive data and financial modeling and unanimously endorsed this direction as a responsible and mission-aligned path forward.

However, enrollment growth is not an end in itself. It allows Bucknell to serve more highly qualified students, generate sustainable resources for strategic priorities and expand academic opportunity, but it is only one of many means to strengthen our long-term position.To that end, the Board also endorsed significant investments in the student experience, recognizing that Bucknell’s residential model is central to our mission. These include:

  • expansion of Holmes Hall to support academic growth and flexibility
  • construction of two new residence halls in South Campus
  • continued renovation of biology and chemistry labs in Rooke Science Center
  • improvements to the Elaine Langone Center and dining spaces to create more student-centered environments
  • renovation of Freas Hall to create a one-stop approach for Admissions, the Bursar, Financial Aid and the Registrar, and
  • renovation of the historic 7th Street House.

Together, these projects strengthen our ability to provide a vibrant, modern residential environment that fosters belonging, community and co-curricular engagement. We know that where and how students live shape how they learn and grow. With the Board’s approval of these construction and renovation plans, we will now move into final design, establish timelines and create detailed project plans.

During the meeting, trustees also viewed a presentation on the meaningful role athletics and recreation play in advancing Bucknell’s mission. The data and discussion affirmed for trustees that athletics and recreation are not only integral to student development, community life and institutional pride, but that sports at Bucknell contribute to an overall sense of belonging, leadership development and academic success while intersecting with strategies related to enrollment, retention and institutional visibility.

The Board emphasized the importance of managing our 27 Division I programs with the same discipline as that applied across the University, aligning resources with strategic priorities, relying on data-informed decision-making, and pursuing sustainable approaches to revenue and donor engagement in a rapidly evolving collegiate athletics landscape. The discussion underscored that athletics and recreation are not peripheral to the Bucknell experience, but are viewed as important contributors to how we develop students, strengthen community and foster lifelong connection to the University.

And in a bit of extra good news, the Patriot League just announced that 1,346 student-athletes across seven fall sports earned recognition on the 2025-26 Fall Academic Honor Roll, earning a minimum 3.20 GPA during the fall semester while competing in one of the League’s championship sports. Among all institutions, Bucknell University led the league with 193 student-athletes named to the Honor Roll, reflecting the University’s continued strength in combining Division I athletics with academic excellence.

The Board also received a fundraising update that brought much of this forward momentum together. We are well into the silent phase of the campaign, and our progress is encouraging. The campaign is grounded in a simple idea: Our graduates are living proof that a Bucknell education matters, and therefore, the world needs more Bucknellians.

The campaign is not separate from our overall institutional strategy; rather, it is the engine that will help make these priorities real for current students and for generations to come. We are looking forward with profound excitement to the public launch of the campaign in November.

Finally, one of the most enjoyable highlights of the Board meeting was the opportunity for trustees to engage directly with staff. Members of Staff Council provided a formal presentation on their work and the staff’s role in shared governance, which concluded with a thoughtful exchange of questions and answers. A networking reception for all staff and trustees followed, creating opportunities for informal conversation and connection. Trustees expressed deep appreciation for these interactions, and we look forward to creating more opportunities for engagement with the Board across our community.

Reflecting on the significance of the most recent Board meeting, I am proud to say that the trustees, senior leadership and I are aligned around a central premise: Bucknell’s next chapter must be shaped deliberately and strategically with a long view in mind. This is about preparing Bucknell not just for the next five years, but for the next generation. It is about ensuring that we remain academically distinctive, financially resilient, and responsible stewards of the history and legacy entrusted to our care. In many ways, this meeting marked the transition from analyzing the future to actively shaping it. Now, we get to bring that future to life.

We should all be proud and excited to embrace the fact that Bucknell is facing the future with purpose. We are choosing to meet it thoughtfully and strategically together, charting a course full of promise, built on the strengths that have defined our institution for 180 years. None of this will succeed without the continued engagement and commitment of the entire Bucknell community. The future we are shaping will be built, as it always has been, by faculty, staff and students working together.

I look forward to sharing continued progress updates with you, and commit to sharing more detailed information on all of these plans as they are solidified. Until then, on behalf of the trustees and the leadership team, thank you for all you do on behalf of this remarkable institution.

Sincerely,

John C. Bravman
President