Welcome to the Spring 2025 Semester

Dear Berklee faculty and staff,

Happy new year and welcome to the spring 2025 semester. I hope the break offered some much-needed downtime and relaxation after a busy fall. It’s truly an honor to join this extraordinary creative community as Berklee’s fifth president. 

As campus reopens, I want to acknowledge the challenges faced by members of our community impacted by the devastating California wildfires. Student Enrollment and Engagement, Human Resources, and Alumni Affairs are in direct contact with affected students, faculty, staff, and alumni to offer assistance and personalized support.

This week, I attended my first Berklee Teachers On Teaching (BTOT) conference, and I was struck by the uniqueness of this event in providing a forum for the exchange of new ideas, allowing faculty to both teach and learn from one another. The sessions really drove home the depth and diversity of creative excellence here at Berklee.  

We are also in the midst of welcoming more than 200 new students and their families to campus this week. As students get oriented, our programs are helping them build community with peers, faculty, and staff, while also connecting them to support and resources through the Berklee Bridge. I look forward to seeing everyone when classes start next week after observance of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.

As I begin to settle into this role, my top priority is listening to, and learning from, members across our community. I’m eager to hear your thoughts, ideas, and experiences during my upcoming listening tour, and I encourage all to attend a session or share input through this form. I look forward to gaining a deeper understanding of this exceptional community through your insights and perspectives; I will be relying on your input as I work with all of you to refine our strategic plan. 

With gratitude to the entire community for being so welcoming and supportive as we begin this journey of shaping Berklee’s future together, I’m looking forward to an amazing semester.

Yours, 

Jim Lucchese
President