"The full development vision, on 271 acres at the gateway to the Berkshires."
Du Bois Boutique Hotel; Nommo Residences; Trotter Institute; Great Barrington, MAGreat Barrington, Massachusetts · Birthplace of W.E.B. Du Bois
A 271-acre campus. A permanent institution. A generational opportunity to own the infrastructure of Black intellectual life.
The Moment
DEI programs eliminated. Federal grants canceled. Corporate commitments reversed. Voting rights eroded. Everything built over generations is under simultaneous, coordinated attack.
What the moment demands is not a better grant application. It is an institution that does not depend on grants to survive. It is ownership.
"In 1905, they gathered near Niagara Falls with no institution and no campus. They built the NAACP. We have the campus. The question is whether we build the institution."
— The Founding ThesisThe Campus
Bard College at Simon's Rock operated on this campus for sixty years. Bard announced closure in November 2024 and is actively seeking a buyer. The campus is assessed at $44 million and is available now with no serious institutional buyer in the market.
W.E.B. Du Bois was born in Great Barrington in 1868. Placing the Trotter Institute — named for Du Bois's Harvard classmate and NAACP co-founder William Monroe Trotter — on this land is not symbolism. It is a homecoming.
"The full development vision, on 271 acres at the gateway to the Berkshires."
Du Bois Boutique Hotel; Nommo Residences; Trotter Institute; Great Barrington, MAWhat We're Building
From the Du Bois Boutique Hotel to the Trotter Performing Arts Center, every component is designed to generate revenue, serve the community, and sustain the institution in perpetuity.
The Full Vision; 271 Acres
A mixed-use destination unlike anything in the Berkshires — or anywhere in the country.
Phase 2; Hotel
60 to 90 rooms; year-round destination for the Berkshires cultural market
Phase 1; Immediate Activation
Operational from Day 1; retreat accommodations for organizations, high-net-worth individuals, and mission-aligned groups
Phase 1; Immediate Activation
Corporate, academic, and nonprofit events; year-round programming from existing academic facilities
Phase 3; Luxury Senior Living
25 to 40 units targeted at affluent buyers from Massachusetts, New York, and Connecticut; zero direct competitors in this market
Phase 3; Arts
200 to 600 seats; programming peer to Jacob's Pillow and Shakespeare & Company
Programming; Arts
Anchor cultural event in a region that draws 1.7 million arts visitors and $212 million in annual direct economic contribution
Phase 2; Workforce Housing
Up to 100 units of market-rate and workforce housing; directly addressing Berkshire County's documented 1,910-unit deficit
Phase 1; Institution
New England's first fully independent Black policy research institution; headquartered on campus from Day 1
Phase 1; Research
Five research centers; fellowship program; policy outputs published from Day 1
Phase 2; Education
Summer camps; workforce training; and the Center for AI Equity and Governance
The Investment
Phase 1 is pure philanthropy: acquire the campus, activate it, build the institution. Phases 2 and 3 are real estate development. Every Phase 1 donor receives preferred access to both.
Years 1 to 2; Philanthropy Only
Years 3 to 5; Development
Years 6 to 10; Completion
The Market
2.6M visitors annually. Peak hotel occupancy exceeds 90%. The most established cultural tourism destination in the Northeast.
County vacancy at 0.7% — half a healthy market. Rents up 35% since 2021. Zero luxury senior product above $5,295/month.
Tanglewood, MASS MoCA, Jacob's Pillow, and the Clark draw 1.7M visitors and $212M in direct economic contribution annually.
The Founders Circle
Every member of the Founders Circle is permanently recognized in the institution's physical spaces and publications — and receives preferred access to Phase 2 and 3 development opportunities before any market-rate offering.
Guardian Founder
Minimum gift
Legacy Founder
Minimum gift
Founding Patron
Minimum gift
Founding Member
Minimum gift
All tiers receive founding wall recognition and preferred investor access to Phase 2 and 3 development opportunities at preferred equity terms, before any market-rate offering. Founding commitments accepted on a rolling basis. Legacy Founder slots are limited.
A Rigorous Timeline — The seller is motivated. Two other prospective buyers are known. Neither has raised the capital.
MAY 2026
JUN 2026
AUG 2026
NOV 2026
DEC 2026
MAY 2027
JUN 2027
The institutions that sustain Black life in America for the next one hundred years will be built in the next five years. This is one of them.