President Rosenbury, Barnard administrators address College policies, affordability, and future in second student press roundtable
On Wednesday, September 16, administrators hosted the College’s second roundtable of 2026 to answer questions from Barnard and Columbia student publications.
Photo by Haley Scull/The Barnard Bulletin
September 18, 2026
President Laura Rosenbury and other College administrators hosted their second press roundtable of 2026 for student publications from Barnard and Columbia. Administrators discussed campus access, the updated Student Code of Conduct, Curricular Practical Training (CPT) courses for international students, and Barnard’s debt and goals for the upcoming years.
AI at Barnard and the new “PAUS” system
Administrators discussed Barnard’s new Pilot AI Usage Scale, or “PAUS” system, created through a working group of faculty and academic staff over the summer in order to develop a scale to reference artificial intelligence (AI) usage in classes.
“AI transforms higher education but also … reinforces the need for rigorous liberal arts education,” said Rosenbury in response to a question about Barnard’s view on AI and the “PAUS” system.
According to Provost and Dean of the Faculty Rebecca Walkowitz, PAUS was implemented to create a ”pause for students and faculty in the classroom together,” in light of the feedback received regarding the differing AI restrictions among classes. The common norms and shared vocabulary were intended to alleviate anxiety about AI use in classrooms.
In addition to creating a scale and shared terminology, Walkowitz highlighted that another goal for AI literacy at Barnard included holding discussions on what learning about AI should look like in the curriculum — specifically in terms of “environmental, technological, cultural, social, intellectual uses or risks” — so faculty and students can “have a kind of shared [AI] literacy together.”
New visitor experience and campus access
Addressing questions about campus access and neighbor relations, Rosenbury highlighted the launch of an updated guest access system that allows community members and alumni to access Barnard's campus without preregistering online. Rosenbury noted that guests without BC/CUID can visit campus “by going to our new visitor center right by the main gates.”
“[This pilot] has enabled us to have much more access to our campus, first over the summer and now this semester, and we’re so thrilled about that,” she said.
Executive Vice President for Strategy and Chief Administrative Officer Kelli A. Murray said that visitors can complete an “on-campus registration that takes seconds to do.” The system issues guests a mobile credential to gain access to buildings on campus for the day. Administrators are also working on a public forum, so guests can register before they arrive.
Regarding the Morningside Heights community, Rosenbury mentioned that the newly opened Roy and Diana Vagelos Science Center (RDSC) features a Community Science Center on the ground floor, serving as a space for science and math partnerships between K-12 students and the College. Visitors can use the Claremont entrance to the RDSC at 119th Street to enter the building and access the rest of campus.
Dean Akilah Rosado noted that the Community Safety Advisory Council (CSAS) is continuing to evaluate accessibility across campus. Rosado mentioned that the CSAS members tested areas around campus “to see what else we need to consider over the next semester” as well as “what access mean[s] across the board.”
International student support
On September 15, the Department of Homeland Security enforced regulatory changes for F-1 student visas, which will now “be admitted for a fixed period of up to the program length and not to exceed four years.”
In response to visa and work authorization policies, A-J Aronstein, Vice President of Community Engagement and Lifelong Success stated that Barnard students with F-1 visas are still “full members of the community.”
Administrators explained that on-campus employment remains available to students on F-1 visas, and Barnard plans to facilitate professional opportunities in various fields. The College also intends to strengthen connections between international students and alumni in the United States and abroad.
Vice President Aronstein stated that administrators are working closely with International Student Services (ISS) and faculty to ensure students remain in compliance with changing regulations.
Barnard is also honoring work authorizations issued before recent guideline changes and has expanded CPT courses this semester to better align with students’ majors.
Provost Walkowitz and Vice President Aronstein said that administrators are evaluating how Barnard’s curriculum can be structured to comply with future regulations and continuing to communicate directly with students about their questions and concerns.
Feedback on the updated Student Code of Conduct and freedom of expression
Last year, the College’s Board of Trustees delayed a vote on a document written by the faculty-led Freedom of Expression (FoE) committee. The document outlined academic freedom and freedom of expression at Barnard.
Rosenbury noted that faculty voted in January to form a new FoE committee, which worked closely with herself, the Provost, Barnard’s general counsel, students, and “a special committee of trustees" to develop a new version of the policies.
“The faculty will be voting on that current draft by October,” Rosenbury continued. “I’m really excited that the process might be coming to a close, and we might have a successful document that's accepted by the majority of the faculty.”
In response to a question about disciplinary action creating frustration among students and faculty about freedom of expression on campus, President Rosenbury and Dean Rosado described their goal of making the newly updated Student Code of Conduct more accessible.
Rosenbury also clarified, “The code is very clear… whether it’s in the halls or during protests and demonstrations.”
Tuition, affordability, and ongoing College debt
Rosenbury emphasized Barnard’s commitment to financial aid despite the College’s long-term debt, which rose to around $274 million, as tuition for the 2026-2027 academic year increased by 3.5 percent.
“We’re really proud to have need-blind admissions. We admit students without regard to their ability to pay. And then once they’re admitted, we meet their full level of need,” she stated.
Rosenbury further noted that Barnard provides “a total of just under $75 million a year in financial aid.” While federal grants provide about $5 million and the College endowment covers $20 million to $30 million, the remainder is funded directly by the College’s commitment to meeting full demonstrated need.
Rosenbury noted that “most colleges have long-term debt” used to fund new campus buildings and investments, along with a “proper balance” between long-term debt and “funding capital improvements” to ensure long-term sustainability. She stated that Barnard’s endowment had increased from $460 million in 2023 to its current $660 million and that her administration aims to reach $1 billion by 2030.
“Our endowment has been growing over time and growing much more rapidly than our debt levels,” Rosenbury stated.
Barnard’s future as an independent women’s college
The Bulletin asked administrators about their vision for Barnard’s future as an independent women’s college, as the College is one of the five Seven Sisters institutions that did not become coeducational. Rosenbury’s alma mater, Radcliffe College, closed and merged with Harvard University in 1999 due to “dire financial straits.”
Rosenbury noted that Barnard is currently in “a very different position” than Radcliffe was in. Harvard became coeducational in 1946 but considered its female students to be part of “Harvard-Radcliffe.” Although Radcliffe had its own campus, it shared admissions, faculty, and dormitories with male Harvard students. The merger had been in a “decades-long process” by the time Rosenbury enrolled in Radcliffe as a student.
“There wasn’t the tradition of independence between Harvard and Radcliffe the way that Barnard and Columbia had long had an independent relationship,” she explained. “It was really easy to subsume Radcliffe at that time.”
In the 1980s, Columbia College tried to merge its all-male undergraduate class with Barnard’s.
“Columbia thought they could … follow in the footsteps of Harvard-Radcliffe, by, instead of starting to admit women, just absorb Barnard,” Provost Walkowitz, who attended Harvard-Radcliffe with Rosenbury as members of the Class of 1992, added. “As you can imagine, the Barnard alumni would have none of that.”
Rather than a full merger, Ellen Futter (BC ’71, Law ’74), the fifth president of Barnard, implemented changes in the two schools’ intercorporate agreement, which — Rosenbury noted — included the Columbia-Barnard Athletic Consortium, making Barnard the only women’s college in the country to be part of Division I sports. Columbia began admitting women in 1983, making it the last Ivy League institution to become coeducational.
“I see all of our jobs as making sure Barnard thrives as an independent liberal arts college for women well into the future,” Rosenbury said. “Not just for today, but 10, 20, 100 years from now. Every decision we make is with that goal of ensuring we’re able to provide this amazing education to future generations of women.”
