November 14, 2007

Inferiority complex
Living in the shadows of Middlebury College

Mark Gould | managing editor

Back in January, the Echo was profiling the three candidates for the school’s presidency.  I was assigned to profile John Neuhauser, a Boston College professor who one week later would be selected as Marc vanderHeyden’s successor.

As he spoke to a half-filled McCarthy Arts Center audience, he mentioned that he wished our college didn’t feel “so inferior” to the college 40 miles south of here, referring to Middlebury College.

I quickly scribbled a paraphrase of what he said in my notes. Though the quote never made it into my story, Neuhauser has continued to allude to the inferiority complex during several of his public appearances.

I too agree that this is an honorable goal, though it is in no way realistic. No matter how many makeovers St. Michael’s College receives, we won’t be able to compete with Middlebury.

In every category, our southern neighbors (the term “rival” would be laughable) edge us out considerably, and they will continue to do so for quite some time. I say this as someone who has attended this college for three years, and had a sibling recently attend Middlebury.

At a quick glance, the two seem strikingly similar.  Both are small, private, liberal arts colleges with roughly 2,000 undergraduates.  But all similarities end there.

Since we welcomed the new millennium, Middlebury’s varsity teams have won 18 national championships.  In the same time, St. Michael’s teams haven’t won any, a flaw that shows no sign of righting itself.

While our trophy cases are lined with dated, dusty, black and white photos, the walls of Middlebury’s athletic facilities feature glossy color prints of recent All-Americans and national champion teams. 

Middlebury hockey games, played in an on-campus arena, frequently sell out.  Our Purple Knights couldn’t sell out a game if there was free pizza and booze at the door.

Academically, we are again dwarfed by our southern friends.  Entrance requirements at Middlebury have no doubt been a reason some students have opted to attend St. Michael’s College. The nonprofit association College Board, a resource for college hopefuls provides a telling comparison between our college and Middlebury. According to College Board, we admit 73 percent of applicants, while Middlebury admits just 22 percent.

The biggest reason for this difference is the financial disparity.  It’s not what you might at first think, that Middlebury’s tuition, ($46,910) is $9,000 more than ours, ($37,405).

What allows Middlebury to continually rise above our level is its endowment, which expands exponentially every few years, while ours crawls along at a snail's pace. According to an Oct. 10 story in the Middlebury Campus, Middlebury's endowment is $936 million. Meanwhile, manager of financial accounting Shirley Goodell-Lackey says the estimate for the Sept. 30 St. Michael's endowment is $73,350,318. Middlebury's endowment is 13 times that of our Colchester college. What we need is an economic Hail Mary.

Boosting this total at Middlebury are donations from wealthy alumni, like the anonymous benefactor who in 2004 made a $50 million donation.  By contrast, when St. Michael’s received a $1 million donation last month, it was headline news.

A Wikipedia search for Middlebury alumni reveals a list of names that further improve the college’s resume. Governors, senators, congressmen, and award-winning authors top the lengthy list.

By contrast, St. Michael’s has yielded just one senator, and a small group of notable business people.

The globally renowned band Dispatch started with Middlebury students. Bands from St. Michael’s College are at most campus celebrities whose reach fades quickly outside of Chittenden County.

While last year’s Middlebury graduates were addressed by former president Bill Clinton at commencement, our graduates listened to journalist Cokie Roberts.  The comparison is laughable.

The goal of erasing any thought of inferiority toward Middlebury will not happen through the changes made by just one president.  It will take years of changes, financial wisdom, and a motivated front office.  A multi-million dollar donation would be nice as well.

But what is troubling is the snail's pace this college has taken in the effort to assert itself nationally.  Our Web site boasts that Newsweek named the college a “Hidden Treasure,” one of 30 colleges recommended most frequently by guidance counselors for being “schools that deserve more national recognition.”

But this label was given to us in 2003.  Newsweek’s wording is a euphemism for the fact that our efforts to cultivate national attention have largely failed.  Now, nearly five years later, the president of our college has inherited a problem for which we have yet to find a solution.

I do hope that under the leadership of Neuhauser, the reputation of our college will continue to improve, and the St. Michael's name will spread west. Once we receive national attention, perhaps alumni will feel more compelled to make donations to their alma mater. From the conversations we have had and the times I have heard him speak, I believe he can improve our institution. But he should understand that attaining Middlebury status will never happen.

Indeed, it would be nice to be able to have the St. Michael’s brand name be strong enough so that it could stand alone on our bumper stickers and resumes, rather than having to attach the clarifier “Vermont” underneath it. Until then, I’ll keep the “Colchester, VT" in my resume.