"In America, there seems to be a pervasive skepticism, a waning of idealism among young people. But if they encounter faculty who truly value their possibilities, and they have the chance to turn those possibilities into action, to see what they can do, they'll not fall into the trap of thinking everything has been done, that all they can do in life is fill a niche. That's the chance Bennington students have."

—Jane Alexander, actress and former chair of the National Endowment for the Arts