Reed College Centennial Campaign

Dear Friend,

W

hen I first stepped onto the Reed campus at eighteen, the college seemed to be fully formed by forces and people beyond me. At that time, the honor principle seemed immutable, the canyon mysterious, Eliot Hall architecture grand, the faculty intimidating, the president remote.

Over several decades I’ve assumed many roles at Reed, and currently serve as chair of the Centennial Campaign Steering Committee. This close involvement has helped shape my present view of the college: a view in which Reed stands on the verge of maturation, still growing into its own definition of greatness.

As we enter the college’s second century, I hope more alumni, parents, and friends come to understand that the college isn’t immutable, mysterious, grand, intimidating, or remote. It is both more vital and more vulnerable than I realized as a freshman. While Reed’s mission and principles remain remarkably unchanged, the expression of its mission and principles is always being shaped by its community.

You and I are part of that community, what President Colin Diver calls the “centennial generation.” We are among those who will guide the college in its passage from its first century to its second. We will define Reed’s future. We must care enough to make Reed a perpetual institution, one that is never fully formed but always on a quest, guided by the ideals of inquiry, community, and integrity.

Please join us on that quest. You can help the college first through studying this document and letting us know whether you share our vision of Reed’s Centennial Campaign goals. Return to campus as a reunion attendee, volunteer, or expert. Respond with your heart and intellect when you are asked to support the Centennial Campaign. Be a leader of Reed’s centennial generation.

Sincerely,

Peter Norton ’65
Reed College Trustee and Campaign Chair