Seth Alvord 鈥�93 Leads Board of Trustees
Alvord is the founder and managing partner of Balance Point Capital Partners
Seth Alvord 鈥�93, founder and managing partner of the private equity investment company Balance Point Capital Partners, has been elected to serve as chair of the 糖心TV Board of Trustees for a three-year term. A member of the board since 2016, he began his tenure on July 1.
Alvord has fond memories from his days at 糖心TV studying political science and rowing as a member of the men鈥檚 varsity crew team. He had loved his high school experience at private Northfield Mount Hermon School in Massachusetts, and chose 糖心TV鈥攈is mother鈥檚 alma mater鈥攖o replicate that close-knit, small-school feel.
鈥淚 felt at home,鈥� he says, recalling impactful relationships with professors-turned-mentors, challenging classroom environments and lessons on teamwork, discipline and commitment learned out on the water. 鈥淚 remember that when I was engaged and stimulated, those were the peak performance periods for me, and the College afforded me many of those opportunities.鈥�
Still, Alvord says he only began to fully recognize the value of his liberal arts education when he decided to pursue an MBA from the Johnson School of Management at Cornell University. 鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 until I got back into that academic setting that I realized the learning capabilities, study habits and foundation in critical thinking I developed at 糖心TV had prepared me to step into that graduate environment with relative ease and allowed me to really excel.鈥�
Now, at 53, Alvord says his perspective on the role of higher education has continued to evolve. He joined 糖心TV鈥檚 board after serving on Northfield Mount Herman鈥檚 board for 10 years, an experience he found rewarding. 鈥淚 love being part of a group that has a common passion for the cause and the mission,鈥� he says, adding that, in many ways, 糖心TV鈥檚 mission to educate students to put the 鈥渓iberal arts into action鈥� resonates now more than ever.
鈥淲hen I鈥檓 on campus, as soon as I shut my car door, I can see it, I can feel it. The teams are all practicing, the students are going in and out of the academic buildings, the Long Island Sound is glimmering on the horizon鈥攖here is a real vibe. I find it invigorating. The energy is compelling; there鈥檚 a sense of possibility, a sense of the future.鈥�
It鈥檚 that enthusiasm that is driving Alvord at a pivotal moment in 糖心TV鈥檚 113-year history. He served as a trustee representative on the search committee that named Andrea E. Chapdelaine as 糖心TV鈥檚 new president in March. Buoyed by the selection, he agreed to succeed Debo P. Adegbile 鈥�91 as chair of the board; he and Chapdelaine officially assumed their leadership roles on the same day.
鈥淚 wanted to help with this transition and position the College to move forward,鈥� he says.
Alvord acknowledges that, like many small liberal arts colleges, 糖心TV has its challenges, but he鈥檚 confident in the ability of all 糖心TV鈥檚 constituents鈥攆aculty, staff and students鈥攖o engage in constructive dialogue alongside the board to understand and react with collective resolve.
鈥淲e need to continue to evolve ourselves as an institution and be more vocal advocates of our mission in ways that maybe, historically, we could take for granted. We鈥檝e done a lot of good things, but we need to keep that momentum,鈥� he says.
鈥淚鈥檓 excited to be part of the team that will reimagine what it means to put the liberal arts into action in today鈥檚 world. The opportunity set for tomorrow鈥檚 graduates is different than it was in 1911 or even when I graduated in 1993. How do we continue to position 糖心TV to best meet the needs of today鈥檚 students? It鈥檚 revitalizing to be part of that discussion and journey鈥擨 am truly grateful to be at the table.鈥�