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BARD COLLEGE
ANNANDALEONHUDSON, NY · EIN 141713034 · Form 990 · FY2023 · NTEE B43Z · Education · Very Large (>$50M) · bard.edu
revenue
$331.9M
expenses
$392.7M
net assets
$509.6M
employees
5,129
volunteers
35
program ratio
90%
mission · from form 990

BARD COLLEGE SEEKS TO PROVIDE A CHALLENGING ACADEMIC PROGRAM AND A SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENT THAT FOSTERS A COLLABORATIVE INTERCHANGE OF IDEAS IN THE CLASSROOM AS WELL AS AMBITION TO ACHIEVE EXCELLENCE.

profile · synthesized from sources

Bard College is a private liberal arts institution dedicated to providing rigorous academic programs that emphasize critical thinking, civic engagement, and the arts. It serves a diverse population of over 6,500 students across its main campus in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, and a global network of partner institutions and early colleges. The college advances access to liberal education through initiatives serving underserved communities, including prison education, early college high schools, and programs for displaced and refugee students.

named programs · 8 · from sources

What they call their work

American University of Central Asia (AUCA) Partnership
Academic collaboration in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, including emergency evacuation and enrollment support for displaced students.
Bard College Berlin
Liberal arts college in Germany offering BA and MA programs, part of Bard’s global network.
Bard Early Colleges
Public high school programs that enable students to earn college credits and associate degrees tuition-free while completing high school.
Bard Prison Initiative (BPI)
Provides college education to incarcerated individuals through degree-granting programs in New York State prisons.
Center for Civic Engagement (CCE)
Supports community-based learning, student-led civic engagement, and advocacy for voting rights and democratic participation.
Global Higher Education Alliance for the 21st Century (GHEA21)
International network that supports liberal arts education in underserved regions and institutions in exile.
Language and Thinking Program (L&T) Kyiv
Tuition-free program in Kyiv, Ukraine, designed to expand access to rigorous liberal education and strengthen pathways into higher education.
Sanctuary Program
Hosts students displaced by conflict, crisis, or political repression, offering them full scholarships and academic integration.
activities · 10 groups

What they do

  • Human Rights & Peace Education Curriculum 1 activity
    • Deliver the Language and Thinking Program globally
      Offers a tuition-free Language and Thinking program in Kyiv, Ukraine, for high school students from conflict-affected regions, and delivers this program annually at over 20 sites worldwide as part of its educational outreach.
  • Higher Education Degree Programs 1 activity
    • Deliver undergraduate and graduate liberal arts education
      Provides a rigorous academic program for approximately 6,500 students across its network, including 1,900 undergraduates at the Annandale campus, 600 graduate students, and offerings at international centers. Offers 13 interdisciplinary graduate programs taught by core faculty and visiting scholars, artists, and specialists.
  • Professional Opera and Operetta Production 1 activity
    • Host SummerScape and Bard Music Festival
      Produces the annual SummerScape festival featuring dance, opera, and music performances, including the Bard Music Festival. Presented productions such as *Oklahoma!* (2015) and *The Egyptian Helen* (2026), with past works transferring to Broadway and winning Tony Awards.
  • High School Dual Enrollment Programs 1 activity
    • Operate early college and prison education programs
      Runs Bard Early Colleges embedded in public high schools and microcolleges, and provides college degree programs to incarcerated individuals at Eastern New York Correctional Facility through the Bard Prison Initiative, expanding access to underserved populations.
  • Classical and Chamber Music Performances 1 activity
    • Present performing arts and cultural programming
      Organizes and presents concerts by The Orchestra Now at venues including Carnegie Hall and the Fisher Center, and commissions original theatrical productions such as _Illinoise_, which transferred to Broadway and won a Tony Award.
  • Student-Led Civic Engagement Support 1 activity
    • Promote civic engagement and community-based learning
      Supports student-led civic engagement and advocacy through the Center for Civic Engagement, which organizes initiatives, community-based learning, and the annual Get Engaged Conference, connecting students and alumni from multiple campuses and refugee contexts.
  • Refugee and Immigrant Resettlement Services 1 activity
    • Provide educational sanctuary for displaced and threatened students
      Hosts a Sanctuary program that has supported over 180 displaced or threatened students from conflict-affected regions in the past five years, including nearly 200 evacuated from Afghanistan after 2021 and 29 Ukrainian students currently enrolled. Also supports displaced students from Russia and other crisis-affected areas through dedicated scholarships and enrollment pathways.
  • Student Support and Academic Services 1 activity
    • Provide student support and wellness services
      Offers comprehensive student support including academic tutoring in over 40 subjects, personal advising, mental health counseling, 24/7 crisis intervention via BRAVE, accommodations for students with disabilities, and career development resources through BardWorks.
  • Artist Residencies and Studio Programs 1 activity
    • Support artistic and scholarly residencies
      Hosts the Zora Neale Hurston Writing Fellowship summer residency program, supporting four writers annually, and supports a Native Artist Residency as part of its expanded Indigenous Studies programming.
  • Uncategorized 4 activities
    • Administer dual-degree and global affiliate programs
      Confers dual BA degrees with American University of Central Asia in Kyrgyzstan and Bard College Berlin, dual BA/MAT degrees with Al-Quds University in the West Bank, and confers degrees to students at Parami University in Thailand, part of its international network of global affiliates serving over 2,500 students.
    • Conduct research in humanities and Indigenous studies
      Hosts the Wihanble S’a Center for Indigenous AI to explore AI from Indigenous perspectives and conducts curricular innovation in the humanities supported by $1.35 million in grant funding. Implements Native American and Indigenous Studies approaches in the curriculum using a Mellon Foundation grant.
    • Develop specialized academic programs and centers
      Established Bard NYC for experiential study-away programs, launched the US-China Music Institute offering degrees in Chinese instruments, began developing a Korean Studies Program, and founded the Gagarin Center for the Study of Civil Society and Human Rights to support Russian scholars in exile.
    • Fund Native American and Indigenous Studies programming
      Funds new Native American and Indigenous Studies programming, faculty appointments, and scholarships through a landmark endowment from the Gochman Family Foundation and a $500 million endowment grant from George Soros and the Open Society Foundations, which catalyzed a $1 billion campaign completed in 2026.
financials · form 990 · fy2023
revenue
Total revenue$331.89M
Contributions & grants$121.42M37%
Program service revenue$193.34M58%
Investment income$8.26M2%
Other revenue$8.87M
expenses
Total expenses$392.68M
Program expenses90%
Admin / overhead8%
Fundraising1%
Salaries & benefits$158.77M
Grants paid out$115.84M
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$1.13B
Cash$19.24M
Investments$44.42M
Liabilities$619.89M
Net assets$509.59M
Liquid reserves1.9 mo
5 years on record · 2019–2023 · YoY revenue +9.2%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2023

Who runs it

paid leadership · 12
NameTitleHours/wkCompensation
LEON BOTSTEIN PRESIDENT/TRUSTEE 60 $693K
TOM ECCLES EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR CCS 40 $527K
JONATHAN BECKER EXECUTIVE VP 50 $455K
TAUN TOAY CFO/VP OF FINANCE 40 $450K
KAREN ZORN PRESIDENT, LONGY 40 $352K
DIMITRI PAPADIMITRIOU PRESIDENT OF LEVY INST 40 $312K
DEBRA PEMSTEIN VP DEVELOPMENT 40 $306K
GIDEON LESTER ARTISTIC DIRECTOR AND CEO FISHER CENTER AT BARD 40 $291K
DEIRDRE D'ALBERTIS DEAN 40 $275K
JAMES BAGWELL DIRECTOR OF MUSIC PROGRAMS 40 $259K
JOHN WEINSTEIN PROVOST, SIMON'S ROCK 40 $234K
JANET OZARCHUK COO, BGC 40 $214K
board members · 13
  • ALEX SOROS — TRUSTEE
  • ANDREW DIETSCHE — TRUSTEE
  • ANDREW S GUNDLACH — TRUSTEE
  • ANNABELLE SELLDORF — TRUSTEE
  • ASHER EDELMAN — TRUSTEE
  • BARBARA S GROSSMAN — TRUSTEE
  • BRANDON WEBER — VICE CHAIR
  • CHARLES S JOHNSON III — TRUSTEE
  • DAVID E SCHWAB II — TRUSTEE
  • ELIZABETH ELY — SECRETARY
  • EMILY H FISHER — VICE CHAIR
  • FIONA ANGELINI — TRUSTEE
  • FREDRIC S MAXIK — TRUSTEE
relationships · 35

Who they work with

  • Al-Quds College of Arts and Sciences Partner — Academic partnership in the West Bank as part of Bard’s global network.
  • Al-Quds University Partner — Confers dual BA and MAT degrees with Bard College in the West Bank.
  • American University of Afghanistan Partner — Program partnership with institution in exile.
  • American University of Central Asia Partner — Confers dual BA degrees with Bard College in Kyrgyzstan.
  • American University of Central Asia Partner — Joint academic partnership including evacuation of Afghan students and leadership by Jonathan Becker as interim president.
  • Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Funder — Funder of the Rethinking Place: Bard-on-Mahicantuck project with a $1.49 million grant.
  • Bard Career Development Office Partner — Collaborates with BardWorks to support student career development.
  • Bard College Berlin Network — International campus within Bard’s global network offering undergraduate education.
  • Bard College Berlin Partner — Confers dual BA degrees with Bard College in Germany.
  • Bard College Berlin Partner — Subsidiary campus and academic partner in Bard’s global network.
  • Bard High School Early Colleges Partner — Partner organization in the Center for Ethics and Writing initiative.
  • Bobby Anspach Foundation Funder — Provided a $50,000 grant to support an artistic project at Bard College.
  • Center for Civic Engagement Partner — Internal Bard program supporting student and alumni civic action and social justice initiatives.
  • Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing Partner — Partner in the US-China Music Institute, offering joint degree programs in Chinese instruments and music culture.
  • Future Universities Alliance Network — Bard College joins this alliance to collaborate on higher education innovation.
  • Global Higher Education Alliance for the 21st Century Network — Bard is a member of GHEA21, a network advancing access to liberal arts and sciences education globally.
  • Gochman Family Foundation Funder — Provider of a landmark endowment supporting Native American and Indigenous Studies programming, faculty, and scholarships.
  • Korea Foundation Funder — Grant funder supporting the development of Bard’s Korean Studies Program.
  • Kyiv School of Economics Partner — Hosting institution for the L&T Kyiv program.
  • Nova Ukraine Funder — Primary funder of the L&T Kyiv program.
  • Nova Ukraine Partner — Partner in supporting the tuition-free Language and Thinking Program in Kyiv.
  • Nova Ukraine Partner — Supports the implementation of Bard College's tuition-free Language and Thinking Program in Kyiv.
  • Open Society Foundations Funder — Primary funder of the Global Higher Education Alliance for the 21st Century and provider of a $500 million endowment grant to Bard College.
  • PEN America Partner — Collaborator with the Gagarin Center on the Russian Independent Media Archive (RIMA).
  • Parami University Partner — Institution in exile in Thailand, part of Bard's international network, where Bard confers degrees.
  • Parami University Partner — Partnership with Myanmar-based university in exile.
  • Smolny Beyond Borders Partner — Program partnership with Russian-based institution in exile.
  • Solon E. Summerfield Foundation Funder — Provides $218,750 grant to the Chang Chavkin Center at Bard College.
  • Ukraine Global Scholars Funder — Provides additional financial support and previously supported student organizer Yana Lahoda in attending high school in the US.
  • Ukraine Global Scholars Partner — Partner in supporting the tuition-free Language and Thinking Program in Kyiv.
+ 5 more
strategies · 4

How they approach the work

Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.

  • Civic Engagement as Educational Mission
    methodology: civic_engagement_as_core_mission
    By integrating community-based learning, public service, and democratic inquiry into its core curriculum and global outreach, the college advances liberal arts education as a tool for equity and democracy because civic participation strengthens both individual agency and societal resilience.
  • Expanding Access Through Equity-Focused Partnerships
    methodology: merit-based_access_expansion
    By delivering tuition-free, high-quality liberal arts programs to underserved, displaced, and conflict-affected populations globally, the college promotes educational equity and democratic development because access to rigorous inquiry transforms individual trajectories and strengthens fragile institutions.
  • Individualized, Mentor-Supported Education
    methodology: individualized_education
    By enabling students to design personalized academic paths in collaboration with faculty and external mentors, the college enhances educational relevance and workforce readiness because tailored guidance increases motivation, coherence, and real-world application.
  • Interdisciplinary, Student-Driven Learning
    methodology: inquiry-based_interdisciplinary_learning
    By organizing education around student-defined questions and interdisciplinary programs rather than fixed majors, the college fosters deeper engagement and intellectual independence because students take ownership of their learning and faculty collaborate across traditional boundaries.