Dear Friends,

The choice of our campaign name – Without Exception: The Bridgewater Campaign for Success through Innovation – was very deliberate. And bold.

It signals our unwavering commitment to be the best, to be the leader, in everything we do. We don’t aspire to be good; we strive to be great. We’re not satisfied with helping some students secure the life-changing benefits of a college education; we won’t rest until all students can succeed and reach their highest potential. We don’t sit back; we identify needs in our communities, roll up our sleeves, and offer solutions. That’s what it means to lead.

BSU is on the rise. The Without Exception campaign is about making the investments that will bolster our upward trajectory, break new ground, and sustain the innovative programs, initiatives, and strategies that will elevate BSU, advance our students and serve our communities, our commonwealth and our country. The Wall Street Journal ranks BSU as one of the Best Colleges in America for advancing the social mobility of students from a wide range of socioeconomic backgrounds and providing an extraordinary return on investment.

Leadership is in our blood. We were founded in 1840 as a radical experiment in “normalizing” the training of teachers – an invention that transformed the world.

We have been leading for the past 184 years. That restless drive to better the lives of our students and the world is core to our mission. It links our past to our present. That throughline can be seen in many areas:

• BSU has been the leading producer of teachers for decades; today, with the $51 million renovation of Burnell Hall, we are building a sophisticated new home for the College of Education and Health Sciences mirroring the movement toward collaborative learning.
• Drawing on our history as the center of STEM education, BSU’s cybersecurity program is the most advanced in New England, combining outstanding teaching with unparalleled real-world learning opportunities in our cyber range and Security Operations Center.
• BSU has always strived to meet the economic and workforce needs of our day. Through our BSU Works initiative, we are committed to ensuring all students receive career counseling and planning and to building stronger pathways to employment through deeper employer partnerships and expanded professional experiences for students.
• For 50 years, the Children’s Physical Developmental Clinic, with the support of thousands of student volunteers, has been helping children with disabilities, ages 18 months to 18 years, develop their confidence and motor skills. Today, BSU’s groundbreaking EXCEL program is the leading educational program in the state for adults with learning and developmental disabilities and is developing new pathways for more students to have career opportunities and become independent adults.
• We are building on our nationally recognized undergraduate research program and the success of our students in competing for the highest academic recognitions, including Fulbright Fellowships, to develop the first Honors College in the state university system.
• The success of our students has always been the heart of what BSU is about. Today, we are leading the state and the nation in developing innovative, data-driven strategies that make sure all students, regardless of background or identity, can thrive.

Whatever we dare to imagine, we can achieve – together. Through your commitment and support, Without Exception: The Bridgewater Campaign for Success through Innovation will propel BSU and the students and communities we serve to an even brighter tomorrow. That’s our promise. Without exception.

Warm Regards,

Frederick W. Clark Jr., Esq., ’83
President
Bridgewater State University