Vassar Institute Announces 2026–27 Signature Programs Focused on AI, Climate Action, Creativity, and More
The Vassar Institute for the Liberal Arts has just unveiled an intriguing array of public symposiums designed to engage students, faculty, distinguished guests, and the public in thought-provoking dialogue about today’s most difficult questions.
“This year’s promising Signature Programs feature collaborations between the arts and science, the challenges and opportunities of AI, environmental concerns, and voices and sources,” noted Robert K. Brigham, Shirley Ecker Boskey Professor of History and International Relations and Faculty Director of the Institute. “We look forward to all that is discovered and shared.”
“I am excited about the 2026-2027 lineup of Signature Programs,” said Institute Program Director Wesley Dixon. “They represent the range and multidisciplinarity of thought that we hoped the Institute for the Liberal Arts would platform.”
Signature Programs for 2025–26
Going to the Source: Opportunities to Co-create Institutional and Individual Character
November 9–10, 2026
An ethos of Vassar almost from its beginning has been “go to the source”—an approach that resists transactional and extractive learning and yields, instead, to the primacy of the inventor, creator, discoverer, or witness. In this fractured time—when social media and AI-generated text and videos can encourage isolation, defy scrutiny, and sow disruption—could “going to the source” serve not only as a pedagogical tool, but also as a way to cultivate institutional and individual character? This signature program will explore the broad applications and opportunities offered by this approach, including deep investigation, generative participation, thoughtful interpretation, and respect for/engagement of wide-ranging voices and source materials.
Convened by: Wendy Maragh Taylor, Associate Dean of the College for Student Growth and Engagement; Chris Johnson, Assistant Dean for Grants Development and Administration; Leora Gansworth, Assistant Professor of American Studies; and Payton Small, Assistant Professor of Psychological Sciences.
Humans in the Loop: Artificial Intelligence, Society, and the Liberal Arts
February 19, 2027
Artificial intelligence promises new forms of efficiency and creativity while also raising urgent questions about authorship, labor, environmental sustainability, and even institutional integrity. This program acknowledges that Vassar, like all colleges, exists within a world increasingly shaped by machine learning and automation. But it also insists that the liberal arts have a vital role to play: to think critically, collectively, and ethically about what these technologies mean for human life, creativity, and justice. Through conversations that unite technical and humanistic inquiry, the program will empower students, faculty, and staff to engage critically with AI and demonstrate how a liberal arts college can lead national dialogue by daring to think deeply.
Convened by: The Science, Technology, and Society (STS) Program; Vassar Computing and Information Services (CIS); Data Science and Society (DSS); and the Vassar Libraries.
Nature-Based Climate Solutions in the Hudson Valley: From Theory to Action
April 8-10, 2027
Making a positive impact on the climate means something distinct for everyone, but the unifying factor is reducing the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. There are many methods for accomplishing this, including nature-based solutions that seek to enhance environmental processes that naturally remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. This program will catalyze interdisciplinary and intergenerational learning, knowledge sharing, and collaboration on new and existing nature-based climate solutions projects in the Hudson Valley and beyond by bringing together students, community members, and regional professional leaders to help build new coalitions that will advance natural climate solutions projects.
Convened by: Laura Haynes, Assistant Professor of Earth Science and Geography, and Jonathan Lambert, Visiting Assistant Professor of Interdisciplinary Climate Science at NYU Gallatin.
Creative Connections: Exploring Nature through Science and Art
April 22, 2027
This program will bring together artists, scientists, and students for a day of critical conversations and hands-on experiences that investigate the evolutionary and imaginary relationships between humans and nature. The event will feature a panel discussion on interdisciplinary methods for understanding the role of humans in our ecosystems, followed by artist-led workshops that use nature-based art practices to deepen participants’ connections to the discussion topics. The day will conclude with a showcase of student artwork from local schools that have worked with The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center to explore their own relationships with nature through art, inspired by the program’s featured artists and works from the Loeb’s collection.
Convened by: The Environmental Cooperative, The Preserve at Vassar, and The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center.