By Guy Page

Just two minutes in to her 2026 State of the University address Tuesday, August 25, UVM President Dr. Marlene Tromp cited the challenges Vermont’s major university faces with its host city, Burlington.

In her annual address at the UVM Davis Center, Tromp also highlighted UVM’s growing national research profile, strong student outcomes and ties to Vermont, while warning that declining enrollment, financial strains and challenges in Burlington will test the university in the years ahead.

Tromp said the looming “demographic cliff” — a sharp decline in the number of traditional college-age students — will increase competition among colleges for fewer students. Universities in neighboring New York have been hit hard with declining enrollment, she said, adding that the problem is especially acute in New England and in Vermont, which has one of the oldest populations in the country and relatively few young people available to attend the state’s land-grant university.

She also pointed to UVM’s relationship with Burlington, describing it as the university’s “home city, the city we’ve called home since our birth.”

“We’ve seen challenges in our home city, the city we’ve called home since our birth,” Tromp said. “And we are partnering to help work on those changes.”

Tromp did not spell out specific Burlington problems or the nature of UVM’s partnering. The problems are wellknown: the growing rate of homelessness, substance abuse and property crime are all fairly new ‘negatives’ in a city long considered an almost ideal ‘college town,’ with its lively nightlife and arts scene and accessible civic and political participation. Until recently, UVM’s main problem with Burlington, and vice-versa, was the shortage of rental housing caused in part by an influx of thousands of students and staff in search of off-campus housing.

Tromp also stressed the advantages of UVM’s location and its connection to Vermont. She cited rankings that placed UVM No. 1 nationally for making a social impact and Burlington among the nation’s top small college towns and towns to visit.

Tromp placed Burlington’s challenges alongside broader pressures facing UVM, including changes in federal research support, increased competition for students and the financial challenges affecting higher education nationwide.

UVM expects a 15% decline in the size of its current freshmen class, Tromp said earlier this year. 

Vermont’s small population also limits the state’s ability to support its public university, Tromp said, affecting UVM’s tuition compared with other public land-grant institutions. She said UVM is moving toward a three-year planning process intended to help the university anticipate rather than merely react to financial challenges.

“We know we have challenges,” she said. “We are working on them together.”

Much of the address focused on UVM’s “Green, Gold and Bold” strategic plan and the university’s role beyond Burlington. Tromp said UVM must serve the entire state, particularly as Vermont struggles with an aging population and workforce needs.

She said that for every Vermonter who graduates from UVM, two out-of-state UVM students remain in Vermont to build careers and lives. About 36,500 UVM alumni currently live and work in the state.

Tromp also announced a new Division of Statewide Economic Development, which she said will seek partnerships throughout Vermont to strengthen the state’s economy.

Among the accomplishments and announcements highlighted by Tromp:

• UVM earned Carnegie R1 status for “very high research activity,” a designation held by about 3% of U.S. colleges and universities.
• The university reported $222.6 million in outside research support despite uncertainty and reductions in federal research funding.
• First-year student retention stands at 89%. UVM’s four-year graduation rate is 76%, compared with a national rate of 45%, while its six-year graduation rate is 81%, compared with 64% nationally.
• Ninety-four percent of graduates are employed within six months, and 95% report being satisfied with their positions, according to figures presented by Tromp.
• More than half of incoming students come from outside New England; 13% are first-generation college students, and the incoming class is UVM’s second-most diverse ever. More than two-thirds performed community service before arriving at UVM.
• The Vermont UVM Promise Scholarship income threshold is being raised from $100,000 to $125,000, expanding eligibility for Vermont families.
• UVM received a $16.5 million gift to expand nursing scholarships and is increasing use of its simulation lab to train more nurses. Tromp said half of medical residents and fellows trained at UVM remain in Vermont, while about one-third of Vermont physicians have trained there.
• UVM researchers identified a new form of transmissible cancer affecting brown bullhead catfish, while other university cancer research has produced positive early clinical-trial results.
• UVM’s new “IceCore” computing system ranks among the 50 fastest computers in the country and the top five in New England, according to Tromp.
• Seven UVM teams competed in America East championships, seven athletes were named All-Americans, and UVM became the first America East school to win both the Academic Cup and Commissioner’s Cup in the same year.
• UVM ranks third in the nation in producing Peace Corps volunteers.
• UVM recorded its second-highest fundraising year in university history and plans to launch a comprehensive fundraising campaign.
• The university is moving ahead with a multipurpose student wellness facility. Vermont has committed $12 million toward the project, which Tromp said would become the state’s largest indoor venue.
• UVM is creating “Vermont Listens,” an initiative intended to bring Vermonters with differing views together around shared values. Its first event is planned for Bennington.

Tromp said UVM also faces an aging campus infrastructure that will require a 10-year plan for improvements.

She closed by arguing that UVM’s answer to enrollment, financial and community pressures will be innovation and adherence to the university’s stated values.

“The answer to our challenges is our bold thinking,” Tromp said. “It’s our creativity and our innovation, our commitment to our values.”