Institutional News

David Buckwald Appointed as Bennington College’s Vice President for Enrollment Management and Marketing

David Buckwald has been named Vice President for Enrollment Management and Marketing at Bennington College. As part of the College’s leadership team, Buckwald will take responsibility for enrollment, financial aid, and marketing and communications. He will report to President Laura Walker.

David Buckwald

Buckwald has more than 20 years of experience as an enrollment leader at highly selective institutions, including Columbia University, Bates College, and Fordham University. Most recently he has served as the Vice President of Enrollment Management and College Counseling at Avenues: The World School, which has campuses in New York, São Paulo, Shenzhen, Silicon Valley, and online. In this role, he oversaw a team of more than forty global admissions and enrollment professionals and nearly twenty college counseling professionals on five campuses around the world.   

“Bennington has ambitious goals for the future, and the skills and experience David has exhibited throughout his career will help us reach them,” said Walker. “We are delighted to welcome David to Bennington at this really important and exciting time in our history and eager to see all we can accomplish.”

Buckwald has written articles, served as faculty, and contributed as a keynote speaker or panelist on such topics as college counseling, tour guides, yield, recruitment of special populations, and diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging for the National Association for College Admission Counseling, the College Board, the Enrollment Management Association, College Admissions Collaborative Highlighting Engineering and Technology, and many others. He received his bachelor’s degree in American Studies from Fordham University and his master’s degree in Higher and Postsecondary Education from Teachers College of Columbia University. 

“Like many higher education enthusiasts, I’ve long been captivated by Bennington College,” said Buckwald. “To me, no other institution so fully challenges and nourishes a talented student, providing a transformative launchpad for their respective journeys and contributions to society. Bennington’s distinctive milieu, remarkable dedication to learning and making, and its leading experiential learning program all combine to offer an unmatched liberal arts college community.”