Marlboro College offers a student-centered approach to education that is structurally and culturally different from other colleges. Unfettered by generic course requirements, each student works with their faculty advisor to choose an individualized study course. For graduation, seniors complete a self-designed Plan of Concentration reviewed by an outside evaluator who is an expert in the student's field. All this occurs within a campus community governed by students, faculty, and staff in monthly Town Meetings. The philosophy of students taking responsibility for their education is rooted in the college's beginnings in the 1940s when G.I.s returning from World War II insisted on playing a dynamic role in their academic community. Marlboro's mission "to teach students to think clearly and learn independently" is best served when students experience a wide variety of ideas, opinions, and cultural backgrounds. Such students are better prepared to acquire the skills and understanding they may need to succeed as citizens in the wider world. Marlboro seeks to sustain a community diverse in backgrounds, interests, ideas, and cultural practices where members engage one another constructively toward that end. Marlboro was included in Loren Pope's book, Colleges That Change Lives, for its unique role in higher education.
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