The Work Ahead: Designing a More Integrated, More Resilient New School
A Message from Joel Towers, President and University Professor
“The political and social problems forced upon the country by the economic development of the past twenty-five years call for a new type of leadership in every field of American life.”
The opening sentence of the 1918 mission statement by the “organization committee” that imagined The New School is as relevant as ever. And it is the spirit and charge of this mission that sets the stage for the work we now need to advance to shape The New School’s future. Innovation and progressive change at The New School have always been propelled by the fundamental question: how can we shape the university to address the issues of our time? Today, as we look back over the past 25 years, the key issues calling out for educational reform to inspire new leadership are climate change, threats to democracy, shaping cities and urban life for the future, and harnessing the power of technology for social good. Progressive education today must engage these challenges.
Grounded by our founding mission and guided by our commitment to our students, I am writing today to share the context and a plan for the work ahead to align structure and budget so that The New School can become more resilient for the long term.
Optimizing our Structure
Positioning The New School for the current times and the future has always challenged us to think differently about our organizational structure. We have continually made strides to open up pathways to cross-disciplinary collaboration and movement to empower innovation.
Over the past year, we have had ongoing conversations about the university’s structure in small group settings, among the academic leadership, and with faculty across the university, including, most recently, at the town hall hosted by the University Faculty Senate that specifically addressed structural changes for the Schools of Public Engagement. That effort – the “Academic Core” project – was a major focus this year. The work was challenging, and the outcomes may be imperfect, but they represent a significant effort to improve program alignment and create space for greater collaboration, equity, and flexibility. I am deeply appreciative of everyone who has been involved in this planning, implementation, and feedback. Now we need to use that momentum to look more comprehensively at the whole university with an eye toward potential structural shifts aligned with broader aspirations.
Addressing Financial Challenges
The university’s financial position provides important context and makes clear the need for change. The recent Community Budget Presentations provided straightforward information about the realities of The New School’s financial position. If you missed the presentations, I encourage you to watch the recorded session. The headline is that the university faces a $31.3 million deficit budget in fiscal year 2026, following two previous years of similar deficits. It is evident that this deficit is structural and must be addressed. This context informs the 2024 strategic plan presented to me at the beginning of my presidency as that work reflected, in part, the financial presentations of February 2024 and the prospect of a balanced budget. Nonetheless, the strategic plan offers critical insight and priorities for the future of The New School that will guide our work going forward.
The Board approved the deficit budget for FY 2026 with the mandate that we create a plan to reverse the deficit over the next several years. The expectation is that our budget outlook will improve by the end of FY 2026 and, in the following years, return to a balanced budget and, eventually, surpluses.
The multi-faceted efforts already underway include a holistic strategy for strengthening enrollment and retention and a comprehensive assessment of our real estate and space use, as you’ve heard in recent messages from Francisco Pineda. We will actively pursue new external funding sources, including philanthropy and grants. Drawing on the recommendations from the Strategic Planning Report, we will endeavor to both stabilize the university’s financial health and achieve equity by taking a progressive view toward employee compensation, while also being more disciplined in reviewing all vacant and proposed new positions and evaluating each against our strategic goals, operational needs, and financial realities.
The Work This Summer
To intentionally advance and integrate the work on structure and budget this summer, I will be establishing working groups focused on Academics, Finance, Space, Administrative structure, and Communications. These working groups will include faculty as well as academic, operational, and administrative leaders and will be charged with evaluating options and making recommendations. A follow-up communication will share more about the composition and charge for the working groups. What I want to stress at the outset are several guiding principles:
First, all this work will center our foundational commitments to our students and their education and to advancing research, scholarship, and creative practice. Second, this work will build upon existing planning efforts, including the Academic Core work and the Strategic Planning process, allowing for both continuity and reinvention. Third, the work will proceed with a commitment to open and regular communication.
The recommendations from the summer working groups will be shared with the university community and the Board of Trustees in the fall and will become an integrated plan that will lay out a structure and budget framework in service to our mission and vision. This plan will inform how we prioritize efforts and resource allocation in the years to come.
Thank you for your interest, engagement, and leadership in this work, in whatever form that might take, and for your faith in the purpose of higher education, the mission of The New School, and our distinctive approach to higher education that anticipates the future.