In the interest of preserving academic freedom and the fine reputation of Smith College as an institution of higher learning, we the undersigned ask that Dr. James Lindsay be hired as the next president of Smith College.

We recommend Dr. James Lindsay to the Smith College Board of Trustees for his distinguished work as a public intellectual, unafraid to defend the virtues of uncensored intellectual discourse and academic freedoms. Dr. James Lindsay is a steadfast advocate for the enduring humanist values of higher education.

Dr. James Lindsay supports the following humanist values:

Common good–
Compassion–
Creativity–
Empiricism–
Experience–
Experimentation–
Freethought–
Human dignity–
Humanitarianism–
Human rights–
Imagination–
Justice–
Knowledge–
Nature–
Observation–
Personal liberty–
Rationality–
Reason–
Scientific method–
Social responsibility

Dr. Lindsay has a long history of scholarly production in defense of academic freedom, freedom of speech and expression, and freedom of intellectual inquiry. His public work is known for fostering open dialogue against totalitarianism and supremacy of all kinds.

We believe Dr. James Lindsay would be a clear credit to Smith College. His influence and leadership would add prescient value to the future of Smith College and its continued institutional success.

https://www.smith.edu/about-smith/board-of-trustees

Please Contact:

Smith College Board of Trustees
College Hall 207
Smith College
Northampton, MA 01063
Phone: 413-585-2105
Fax: 413-585-2136
Alison Overseth ’80
Chair, Board of Trustees

Elena Palladino
Secretary of the Board of Trustees

Current Members
Kathleen McCartney
President
Smith College
Northampton, Mass.

Alison Overseth ’80
Chair of the Board 
2020–23
Executive Director
Partnership for After School Education
New York, N.Y.

Debbie DeCotis ’74
Vice Chair of the Board
2017–21
Former Managing Director
Morgan Stanley
New York, N.Y.

Susan May Molineaux ’75
Vice Chair of the Board
2017–21
President and Chief Executive Officer
Calithera Biosciences
San Francisco, Calif.

Anu Aiyengar ’91
2020–24
Global Co-Head of Mergers & Acquisitions
J.P. Morgan
New York, N.Y.

Andrea Auerbach ’91
2020–24
Partner and Head
Cambridge Associates, LLC
Boston, Mass.

Deborah Keiko Reeves Berger ’86
2014–22
Co-Founder
The Learning Coalition
Honolulu, Hawaii

Ryenne Carpenter ’19
2019–21
Hamden, Conn.

Farah Champsi ’81
2019–23
Former Managing Director
Alta Partners
Atherton, Calif.

Mattie Compton ’72
2017–21
Assistant United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, Fort Worth Division
Fort Worth, Texas

Pamela J. Craig ’79
2020–24
Former Chief Financial Officer
Accenture
New York, N.Y. 

Abigail Edwards ’20
2020–22
Postgraduate Intern
National Collegiate Athletic Association
Indianapolis, Ind.

Madeleine Morgan Fackler ’80
2014–22
Chief Information Officer
International Rescue Committee
Los Altos, Calif.

Deborah Farrington ’72
2013–21
Founder and General Partner
StarVest Partners, LP
New York, N.Y. 
Lile R. Gibbons ’64
2020–24
Former State Legislator
Old Greenwich, Conn.

Susan Greene ’68
2017–21
Former President
American Solar Energy Society
Englewood, Colo.

Terry W. Hartle
2020–24
Senior Vice President of Public Affairs
American Council on Education
Washington, D.C.

Marcia L. MacHarg ’70
2014–22
Retired Partner/Of Counsel
Debevoise & Plimpton LLP
Frankfurt, Germany

Cynthia Meyn '86
2019–23
Chief Operating Officer
Venerable Holdings, Inc.
New York, N.Y.

Ann Mitchell ’75
2017–21
Chief Executive Officer
Montgomery Hospice
Alexandria, Va.

Beverly A. Morgan-Welch ’74
2019–23
Washington, D.C.

Mohsen Mostafavi
2016–24
Alexander and Victoria Wiley Professor of Design
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Cambridge, Mass.

Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy ’02
2018–22
Chief Executive Officer
SOC Films
Karachi, Pakistan

Patricia Friedman Ribakoff ’80
2015–23
Founder and President
Friedman Ribakoff Group
Boston, Mass.

Dr. Kimberly A. Scott ’91
2020–24
Executive Director
The Center for Gender Equity in Science and Technology
Professor
Arizona State University
Tempe, Ariz.

Beverly Daniel Tatum
2015–2023
President Emerita
Spelman College
Atlanta, Ga.

Adrianne Todman ’91
2019–23
Chief Executive Officer
National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials
Washington, D.C.

Deborah Lindenauer Weinberg ’81
2015–23
Chair
Weinberg Family Cerebral Palsy Center
Columbia University Medical Center
Greenwich, Conn.

Margaret Wurtele ’67
2018–22
Community Volunteer
Minneapolis, Minn.