William Finn ’74, a Tony-winning writer for musical theater, died on April 7 at 73. His works, which include the popular musicals Falsettos, A New Brain, and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee are renowned for their quirky, frenetic lyricism; warmth; and distinct earnestness.
The College’s comprehensive fee — which encompasses tuition, room and board, and other required charges — will increase 5.7 percent to $90,750 for the 2025-2026 academic year.
Williamstown began reconstructing South Street between the Field Park traffic circle and the Clark Institute of Art on Monday, April 16. The project is expected to conclude in summer 2026.
The College offered admission to 1,038 applicants on March 21 through the regular decision process. The total acceptance rate for the 2024-2025 admission cycle, including both early and regular decision, was 8.5 percent — a slight increase from last year’s record-low 7.5 percent acceptance rate.
Valerie Jarrett, a former senior advisor to President Barack Obama, will deliver the 2025 commencement address on June 8. The day before, Esther Duflo, a Nobel laureate and MIT professor of economics will deliver the College’s baccalaureate address.
The College launched the CARE Team, a committee that directs students identified through referrals as needing additional support to available campus resources, this academic year.
The College’s EphVentures programs have seen a decrease in applications for orientation leader positions, according to their student directors. The programs faced a 15 percent budget cut and were shortened by a day in 2023, which leaders said diminished their ability to run the programs effectively.
In recent weeks, the federal government has canceled $400 million in federal funding to Columbia University because of what it describes as the school’s failure to limit antisemitic harassment. The government recently broadened its investigation into cases of antisemitism to 60 colleges and universities. Separate to the ongoing investigations, federal agents detained a recent graduate student at Columbia who had been a vocal participant in recent campus protests against Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.
Willy2Go, a new student-run food delivery service, launched last Saturday night. For its debut, six student drivers brought 30 deliveries from the McDonald’s in North Adams to dorms from 8 p.m. until 2:30 a.m. on Sunday.
A page on the College’s website that outlined the Theme/Affinity/Program/Special Interest (TAPSI) housing program was taken down during the week of Feb. 14. Dean of the College Gretchen Long said that the College is not planning any changes to the program, but that senior staff decided to take down the page following the Department of Education’s Feb. 14 Dear Colleague letter.
Professor and Chair of Chemistry Thomas Smith ’88 will serve as the next director of the Williams-Exeter Programme at Oxford (WEPO), President Maud S. Mandel announced in an all-campus email last Friday. He will succeed Professor of Political Science Sam Crane, who has held the position since July 2024.
