Fred Clark on Access, Affordability, and Protecting the Four-Year Degree

At Bridgewater State University in Southeastern Massachusetts, founder Horace Mann and supporters Daniel Webster and John Quincy Adams still loom large 185 years later. Originally founded as a teacher preparation college, the institution still operates in the same location and strives to fulfill its founding principles. President Frederick Clark Jr. explains that the founding logic was simple and still rings true today: “if everyone has an education it’s good for the economy, it’s good for society, and it’s good for citizenship.”

The same principle still shapes how Clark runs a university of 10,350 students, nearly half of them first-generation. Clark recently shared what it takes to support those students, why he opposes shortening the bachelor's degree, and what it means to truly see students for who they are.

10% of the Budget: Bridgewater State’s Bet on Financial Aid

While many institutions highlight accessibility as foundational to their mission, Clark sees it as an obligation that requires real infrastructure. “When we admit a student here, we owe that student a responsibility to provide the supports that they need to succeed. It doesn’t guarantee success. What it does is it gives them a fair opportunity to succeed. And that's what we do at scale. We say student success for every student, one student at a time without exception.”

For many students, finances are the biggest barrier to accessing higher ed. To directly address this issue, The Bridgewater Commitment covers tuition and mandatory fees for students and families earning less than $125,000 a year. To fund this commitment, the university made an unusual allocation: “we've dedicated 10% of our entire operating budget to student financial aid. No one does that. Nobody does that in Massachusetts, at least not in the public sphere. So, for us, that’s about $24 million per year. We give it all back to our students.” Clark pairs this bold commitment with an awareness that even the smallest price increase could suddenly make the cost of attending out of reach. “We realize that if we go up $100 on tuition and fees that we leave students behind. They’re that price sensitive,” Clark explains.  

Beyond aid dollars, on-campus employment is another critical pillar of accessibility at Bridgewater State. Clark breaks down why this isn’t just important from a financial standpoint: “We have a thousand jobs on campus that our students can take and that provides not just financial aid, but career readiness. We have almost a thousand paid internships for our students. We see all of those as building blocks of affordability, but also building blocks for pathways to employment, and that’s why they’re here.”

Seeing Students for Who They Are

At Bridgewater State, no class exceeds 40 students, and the average runs at just 21. “We want to get to know the names of our students. That's a low bar. But how about their hopes and their dreams? And then lean in to help them to fulfill those hopes and dreams. That’s what we do at scale for our 10,350 students.” He credits faculty presence as much as class size for keeping students connected. “We have only 15% of our day faculty who are part-time. Our faculty are here. They get to know our students. I think that’s hugely important.”

Small class sizes are just one part of helping students form real relationships and feel supported. Clark draws a further distinction between being present and being known. “Inclusion means you’re at the table, but equity means that you’re paying attention to where your students come from. You know, what their experiences are. Not all education backgrounds are the same. You’re seeing students for who they are and you’re providing whatever support you can to give them a fair chance to compete and to succeed.”

Clark ties understanding students’ backgrounds and providing tailored support directly to the university's mission. “We refuse to leave any student behind but the only way not to leave them behind is to understand who they are, what their identities are and what interventions can make them competitive. By the way, that to me is the definition of America. That’s what America is all about. Giving you a fair chance to compete. It doesn't guarantee an outcome for anybody, but it gives you a level playing field to compete and to win.”

Clark also frames equity and inclusion as a matter of institutional survival. “Our state is going to be a minority majority state. Bridgewater State is on its way to be a minority majority state. You know, if you leave people behind, guess what? You’re going to go out of business. You’re going to close your doors. You’re going to hurt your economy and your society and citizenship.”

A Case Against the 90-Credit Degree

While Clark is a big believer in creating infrastructure tailored to student needs, there’s one area he believes shouldn’t be compromised: the length of the bachelor’s degree. As some states weigh cutting bachelor's degrees to 90 credits, Clark's position is steadfast. “I am not a fan. I think it robs students of a really valuable fourth year.”

At Bridgewater State, Clark explains that the final year carries real weight: “Our students, 1,800 of them, do undergraduate research in their fourth year. That’s incredibly valuable. Many of our students, hundreds of them, study abroad in their fourth year.” He also points to a host of other losses: the critical thinking skills general education builds (often the first thing cut in these programs); internships and apprenticeships in the fourth year; eligibility for graduate programs.

Many of the arguments made in favor of the three-year degree don’t ring true for Clark. On the employer front, he isn’t hearing employers push for these changes. “I talk to employers all the time. Not one has ever said to me, ‘I want a 90 credit degree. Get your students across faster.’ They're not saying that.” Financially, Clark points to institutions such as Bridgewater that do make the cost of higher education affordable and achievable.

Aside from the arguments for the three-year degree, Clark is also concerned about who bears the cost of a faster track. “All you're really doing is pushing students through and you're probably attracting students that are more marginalized, that can least afford to have less skills than the more privileged students.” He puts it bluntly: “I do think it’s inequitable. I don’t think Harvard is going to launch a 90 credit program.”

With three-year degree programs gaining traction, Clark believes now is the time to make the case for the four-year degree. He points to the creativity and multi-disciplinary perspectives today’s world needs and that students can’t develop overnight. Still, the debate over time to degree isn’t likely to go away anytime soon. As more states test faster paths through college, Clark is betting that Bridgewater’s answer, more support rather than less time, will come out on top.