Massachusetts gives $155 million bond to private college, as campus president slams Trump for 'attacks' on DEI

Rick Sobey, Boston Herald on Oct 20, 2025

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The Bay State is giving a $155 million bond to a private college, as the campus leader rips President Trump for his “attacks” on DEI.

MassDevelopment issued a $154.7 million tax-exempt bond to Mount Holyoke College for a campus renewal project on Monday — the same day that Mount Holyoke College President Danielle Holley slammed Trump in an op-ed.

The leader of the Western Mass. women’s college in her San Francisco Chronicle op-ed noted the legacy of Frances Perkins, class of 1902 — the first woman to serve in a U.S. presidential cabinet.

“The issues that preoccupied Perkins remain urgent today as attacks on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility are escalating under President Donald Trump,” Holley wrote.

She cited recent federal actions to remove references to race and gender in government materials, investigate universities for alleged “race-based preferences,” and cut funding for research focused on gender and inclusion.

“At Mount Holyoke, we recently received notice that one of our grants had been cut; the letter from the federal government asserted, in plain terms, that research related to gender is neither beneficial nor scientific,” Holley wrote.

“These are direct attempts to reverse decades of progress for women, people of color, disabled people, LGBTQ+ communities, immigrants and others long denied full access to public and academic life,” Holley added. “DEI isn’t a buzzword. It is the mechanism by which we identify and remove systemic barriers, just as Perkins did from within the highest levels of government… Frances Perkins didn’t back down. Neither will we.”

Meanwhile on Monday, the state’s development finance agency and land bank announced the $155 million bond for the upgrade project at Mount Holyoke College.

The work includes the campus’ transition to geothermal energy and its residence hall renovations.

“This is an investment in the future of Mount Holyoke College as a leading academic institution and contributor to the Western Massachusetts economy,” Economic Development Secretary Eric Paley, who serves as chair of MassDevelopment’s board, said in a statement.

“Schools like Mount Holyoke play a critical role advancing our state’s workforce, and we look forward to seeing how this campus renewal project creates a more modernized, sustainable place for students to live, learn, and discover,” Paley added.

The geothermal exchange project includes the drilling of geothermal exchange wells and the purchase of heat pumps and related energy equipment.

The institution will also use bond proceeds to fund other strategic improvement projects on its campus — such as renovations to its residence halls and key academic buildings, as well as refinance previously issued debt.

The tax-exempt bond was purchased by TD Bank.

“The new bond will help fund MHC’s bold, multi-year comprehensive campus plan,” said Carl Ries, VP of Finance and Administration at Mount Holyoke College. “We are consistently ranked as one of the most beautiful college campuses in America.

“The College is building upon that legacy by elevating our instructional and academic halls and classrooms, renovating our residence halls and replacing our 100-year-old fossil fuel heating system with an efficient, scalable and modern infrastructure,” Ries added. “This is an investment in our campus, our students and the western Massachusetts community.”

In the campus president’s op-ed, she contends that dismantling DEI efforts would reverse decades of progress for marginalized groups and undermine the purpose of higher education.

“DEI is not separate from excellence. It is the engine of it,” Holley wrote. “Dismantling it would be to deny not only the needs of today’s students, but the hard-won legacy of those like Perkins who demanded a more just America… We will not retreat. We will teach. We will build. And like Frances Perkins, we will lead.”

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