As of March 1, James F. “Jaimie” Birge ’84 began his job as the 12th president of Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) in North Adams. The new position comes on the heels of his six-year tenure as president of Franklin Pierce University in Rindge, N.H. We recently caught up with Birge, who earned an elementary education degree at Westfield.
Q. Since you are new to the job, what are your initial goals as president of MCLA?
A. My main goal is to make sure we are providing an affordable and high-quality education for students. Academic administrators, faculty, and I need to make sure we are carrying that out.
We need to ensure we are being responsive to students’ needs. So far, I have spent most of my time in meetings on campus and with alumni, donors, local officials, and people of influence in the community to learn about the role MCLA plays not only in North Adams, but in Northern Berkshire County and the Commonwealth.
Q. What do you see as the importance of a liberal arts education today?
A. There is an emphasis on combining liberal arts learning with professional education. That is important because, on the one hand, parents and students are looking for institutions to enroll inthat will result in a college degree and be roughly assured they will find a job when they get out.
Many think professional programs are the way to go. The reality is, when I meet with employers, they are telling me the employees they need are ones educated in the liberal arts tradition. It is not the degree that gets the job offer, but the education that positions the student to be the most competitive in the labor market. A quick review of any job posting will reveal the requirement for a certain degree. But it is what the degree represents that is of greater interest to the prospective employer and often revealed in the qualifications for the job.
Q. What motivates and inspires your work in higher education?
A. One inspiration is the students. I had a very good experience at Westfield State, and to be frank, my first experience was at a private institution in the region that did not go very well. Westfield State was my second choice. It should have been my first. Today, more than ever, we have to ask ourselves, “What do colleges and universities do to respond to students who are looking for a high-quality, affordable education today?”
Q. You have a history in the Berkshires. What does working there mean to you?
A. Coming to MCLA has been a homecoming in two different ways. One is I am returning to a state university system in which I was a student. I was born in Holyoke but grew up in Lee, here in Berkshire County. I am coming home to the place where I grew up, but also to the place that gave me my academic start.
