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The Nation’s Oldest Continuously Published College Weekly Friday, October 18, 2019 Volume 149, Number 6 bowdoinorient.com

Border patrol halts first year student in Brunswick

by Eliana Miller
Orient Staff
In mid-September, as Es-
ther Fernandez Rosario ’23
waited for her train in the
Brunswick transportation cen-
ter, she double checked that
she hadn’t forgotten anything
in her dorm room. She had her
toothbrush, her school work, a
birthday card for her mom—
she was prepared for a week-
end back home in Boston.
But she wasn’t prepared to be
stopped by a U.S. Customs and
Border Patrol (CBP) officer.
“It caught me off guard. It
was just a very random and
awkward experience,” Rosario
said. “This officer came up to
me out of nowhere and asked
me, ‘are you a U.S. citizen?’ I
looked at him with a face that
said ‘um, yes.’ And then he
backed off and said, ‘have a
safe trip.’”
Rosario, who is a U.S. cit-
izen, did not see the officer
question anyone else at the
station. She had been at Bow-
doin for less than a month
when the incident occurred.
“I am an immigrant. I came
to the United States from the
Dominican Republic when I
was seven. And even when I
was seven, just watching the
news, I could tell that some
people didn’t want people like
me here,” said Rosario. “There
are people now that don’t want
me here.”
Rosario is one of several
Brunswick community mem-
bers who have been stopped by
CBP this past month. That same
weekend, Dalton Dear ’22 saw
CBP agents questioning travel-
ers boarding a bus at the Bruns-
wick transportation station. He
said that while saying goodbye
Please see CBP, page 3

Nor’easter leads to power outages

and fallen trees Thursday morning

customers of the Emera Maine throughout the morning.

by Maia Coleman
Orient Staff
Yesterday morning a nor’eas-
ter wiped out power on campus
and across midcoast Maine.
Heavy rain and strong winds
began late Wednesday and
ramped up over the course of
the night, culminating in pow-
er outages, downed power lines
and street flooding in Bruns-
wick and several surrounding
towns. According to the weekly
security report issued by the
Office of Safety and Security,
no injuries were reported.
Roughly 175,000 custom-
ers of Central Maine Power
(CMP) reported power out-
ages by Thursday morning
with an additional 38,000
electricity company reporting
outages in northern Maine,
according to The Times Re-
cord. CMP’s website was also
down for much of Thursday,
posing problems for custom-
ers checking on the status of
outages and creating uncer-
tainty about the exact number
of outages in the state.
Power at the College went
out at around 4:15 a.m.
Thursday morning, affecting
multiple areas on campus,
particularly buildings on its
southern half. The College
delayed opening until 10 a.m.,
though classes were held at
the discretion of individu-
al professors. Both dining
halls remained in full service
The Office of Safety and
Security reported downed
trees near Pine Street Apart-
ments and Watson Drive,
causing road blockages on
Watson Drive for much of
the morning. Beyond these
obstructions, Security con-
firmed severe damages to a
student vehicle parked in front
of Brunswick Apartments af-
ter a large tree branch fell on
the car. The Bowdoin College
Museum of Art also reported
water damage but confirmed
that no artwork was affected.
Power was restored to cam-
pus at around 11:45 a.m. with
the exception of a few build- ANN BASU, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT
ings, all of which regained UPROOTED: At about 4 a.m. on Thursday morning, a nor’easter caused multiple power outages in the southern half
power later in the afternoon. of campus. Fallen trees blocked Watson Drive and a large branch caused severe damage to a student vehicle.

Faculty approves DCS major BSG delays vote on statement of

and urban studies minor support for housekeepers
by Kate Lusignan
Orient Staff
Reid Brawer ’21 took his
first Digital and Computational
Studies (DCS) Course—Intro to
DCS—on a whim.
“I was looking for classes
[my first year] and I needed one
more. And I was like, hey, DCS,”
he said.
Two years since taking his
first DCS course, Brawer will
be one of the first DCS coordi-
nate majors after proposals for
the DCS coordinate major and
minor, an Urban Studies minor
and a new Biology concentra-
tion were approved at the Octo-
ber faculty meeting.
Clara Booker ’20, a poten-
tial urban studies minor, noted
these curricular additions em-
phasize Bowdoin’s commitment
proposal and labor issues at the a challenge [to] the administration
to interdisciplinary studies. by Seamus Frey College that lasted the duration of and an invitation to the adminis-
“It’s an affirmation of a lot of Staff Writer
the meeting. trators to confirm that employees
the other kinds of commitments Following a contentious de- Caroline Poole ’22, the Faculty will not face intimidation,” Poole
that we’ve made on campus in- bate, the Bowdoin Student Gov- Development Committee repre- explained in a phone interview
ernment (BSG) decided to delay
terdisciplinary [studies],” Book- sentative to BSG, introduced the with the Orient.
er said. “The coordinate majorsa vote to ratify a statement sup- proposal at last week’s meeting, Senior Vice President for Fi-
of DCS, education and environ- porting housekeepers until the following the publication of an op- nance and Administration and
mental studies are one example upcoming Wednesday meeting ed in the Orient by a dozen house- Treasurer Matt Orlando respond-
that Bowdoin has made this on October 23. keepers describing difficult and at ed to the op-ed, calling the claims
commitment to interdisciplinary The meeting began with pub- times unsafe working conditions. misleading or false. Orlando and
lic comment time, which led to “In sum, [the statement is in-
Please see NEW MAJOR, page 3 a wide-ranging discussion of the tended to be] an act of solidarity, Please see BSG, page 5

N OUTTOBER REVAMP F IS BOWDOIN HAUNTED? A DANCING WITH THE STARS S STAYING AFLOAT O TRUSTEES MEETING
New BQSA leadership rethinks club’s Sela Kay ’22 shares ghost stories and eerie Emma Dewey ’22 challenges conventions in Water polo prepares for its conference Editorial Board asks: Does Jes Staley
mission and OUTtober. Page 3. remnants of Bowdoin past. Page 8. her modern dance compositions. Page 6. tournament this weekend. Page 10. represent Bowdoin? Page 13.
2 Friday, October 18, 2019
2 PAGE TWO
SECURITY REPORT
10/4 to 10/17
Friday, October 4
• An officer provided first-aid for a student who
tripped over a stump at Boody-Johnson House.
• An officer assisted an intoxicated alumnus and
drove him to an off-campus residence where he was
staying.
Saturday, October 5
• An officer conducted a wellness check for an
intoxicated student at Hyde Hall.
• An intoxicated student became ill in the men’s
room at Thorne Hall. An officer escorted the
student to his residence hall.
• A student at an off-campus residence reported
that a group of four intoxicated alumni (visiting
campus for Homecoming) came pounding on
windows at 2 a.m. yelling, “Hey, we used to live
here!”
• A visiting team bus for the Homecoming football
game ran into a student’s parked car in the Polar
Loop parking lot.
• A fan at the Bowdoin-Wesleyan football game
bit his tongue, resulting in excessive bleeding. An
officer escorted the fan to the Mid Coast Walk-In
Clinic.
• A minor student was cited for an alcohol violation
in Moore Hall.
• A student attending an event in the basement of
Park Row Apartments 2 slipped on a wet floor and
rolled an ankle.
• Officers escorted a student to the hospital after
he flipped over his bicycle handlebars and landed
face-first on the pavement at the corner of College
and Coffin streets. The student was treated for
facial and knee injuries.
Sunday, October 6
• Brunswick police cited a minor student for pos-
session of alcohol (by consumption) on McLellan
Street near the Lighthouse Deli.
• A student complained of loud noise coming from
a room at Ladd House.
• Security located a student and checked on his
well-being at the request of a concerned room-
mate.
• Two students reported the theft of two longboards
from the area of Smith Union and Sargent Gym-
nasium. Investigation determined that the boards
were stolen by a local juvenile. The stolen boards
were recovered, returned to the owners, and the
juvenile was charged with theft and served with a
criminal trespass warning.
• A student’s gray Murray Ultra Terrain bicycle was
stolen from the covered bike racks at the Edwards
Center for Art and Dance.
Monday, October 7
• A fire alarm at the Whittier athletic building
was set off by the use of a disinfectant/sporicidal
fogger.
• A student who reported feeling dizzy during class
College installs squeaking beds in ongoing effort to slut shame students
by Ian Ward, Andrew Bastone and Lily Randall
Orient Staff
After the College conceded to student demands for larger
beds in new housing to accommodate booty calls and bang
buddies, the administration had to develop a new way to
enforce its puritanical sexual mores on the student body.
The solution, according to Director of Residential Life for the
Massachusetts Bay Colony Louisa Randolph: squeaky beds.
“The twin XLs were really working well to ensure that basically
no one had sex, and if they did, they at least didn’t spend the
night stewing in their sin,” said Randolph. “But sometimes
you have to abide by the popular will, so we came up with the
squeaky beds. We were going to go with a ‘Scarlet A’ for those
having sex outside of Ivies, but the plan fell through.”
Student reaction has been vehement.
“It’s like my mattress is stuffed with dying cats,” said Park
STUDENT SPEAK:
EMMA
SORKIN
What did you do in the dark?
Jay Sayler ’23
"I sang with my friends,
pants-less."
at the Searles Science Building was given an escort
to the health center.
• Administrative building fire drills were conducted
• A staff member reported the theft of a College
laptop from a vehicle that was parked in South
Portland. The crime was reported to local police. Peter Jacobson ’20
Tuesday, October 8
• Administrative building fire drills were conducted "Echolocation."
• There was a complaint of loud music on the fifth
floor of Coles Tower.
Wednesday, October 9
• A student with a severe migraine was taken to Mid
Coast Hospital.
Thursday, October 10
• A student reported a possible gas leak at 52 Lauren Caffe ’22
Harpswell. The fire department investigated and
determined there was no leak.
• A contractor working at the Schiller Coastal "You know what I did in the
Studies Center construction site was transported by
ambulance to the hospital for a medical issue. dark."
Monday, October 14
• A housekeeper reported vandalism involving femi-
nine hygiene products in the Sargent Gym hallway
rest room. The incident is under investigation.
Tuesday, October 15 Shani Agarwal ’20
• A student driving a College van backed into a
parked truck in the Bangor area. "I studied by candlelight. I
Wednesday, October 16
• An officer escorted a student to the Mid Coast
Walk-In Clinic for treatment of a rugby related
mean ... flashlight."
ankle injury.
• A student reported the theft of a skateboard from
the main entrance of Farley Field House.
Thursday, October 17
• A storm with heavy wind and rain caused a cam- Jiadi Chang ’20
pus power outage from 4:15 a.m. until 11:45 a.m.
Several campus buildings were affected, mostly
on the southern half of campus. Large trees
"It is only in the darkness
were downed near Pine Street Apartments and
on Watson Drive. A branch fell onto a student’s
parked car on Park Row in front of Brunswick
that we see the stars. "
Apartments, causing extensive damage. The
Museum of Art reported some water damage;
no artwork was affected. There were no injuries
reported on campus as a result of this storm.
COMPILED BY HAVANA CASO-DOSEMBET
Row resident Samantha Screecher. “I’ve actually lost drives my dogs crazy at night, too. They spend the whole night howling—
hearing in my left ear, and my roommates haven’t unlike Bowdoin students, from what I understand.”
slept in a week.”
The Brunswick walk-in clinic has reported an increase in cases of both
“What?” added Ben Dover, Samantha’s partner. tinnitus and blue balls.
Randolph said the plan has worked perfectly, and Randolph anticipates the program will only expand from here.
the College is considering installing the beds in all
dorms. “It’s really cutting down on the number of condoms we have to buy for
dorms,” said Randolph. “It’s actually the reason we’re limiting the number
“We wanted to ensure that if students were, in fact, of students who can live off campus. God knows what our students would
doing the dirty deed, every single person in their do in real beds.”
building would know about it,” said Randolph.
“Shame is a real sociological force. John Winthrop
taught me that.”
Ramifications of the beds are being felt in the wider
community as well.
“It’s pretty annoying,” said Brunswick resident Frank
Gripper, who lives three blocks from campus. “It KYRA TAN
Friday, October 18, 2019
New BQSA leadership revamps mission and OUTtober
by Aadhya Ramineni
Staff Writer
Following changes in student
leadership and a consequent
redesign of the club, Bowdo-
in Queer-Straight Alliance
(BQSA) is transforming this
year’s OUTtober celebration
to include more small social
gatherings that bring together a
range of queer experiences rath-
er than large scale events.
First created by BQSA three
years ago, OUTtober is a month
for the LGBTQIA+ community
and allies to share their experi-
ences and celebrate all genders
and sexual orientations.
Yesterday, a group of
LGBTQIA+ faculty and staff
met to share cupcakes and com-
ing out stories. Tonight, Boody
Johnson House will host a dia-
logue between diverse students
CBP
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
to a friend from home who had
come to visit, he saw around six
CBP officers.
Since Brunswick is less than
100 miles from a U.S. border,
in this case the coastline, CBP
officers are legally allowed to
stop and question people in
town. Travelers have the right
to remain silent if stopped on
the street, regardless of citi-
zenship or immigration status.
The American Civil Liberties
Union (ACLU) website clari-
fies that there is only one ex-
ception: “for people who do
have permission to be in the
U.S. for a specific reason and
for, usually, a limited amount
of time (a ‘nonimmigrant’ on
a visa, for example), the law
does require you to provide
information about your immi-
gration status if asked.”
Michael Niezgoda, a public
affairs officer for CBP, told
The Times Record that agents
lingering at a bus stop, also
known as a “hub check,” is
“nothing out of the ordinary.”
The Brunswick Downtown
Association (BDA) manages
the transportation center, but
the BDA executive director,
Debora King, said she has
never heard of CBP agents
questioning passengers before.
Marcos López, an assistant
professor of sociology who
teaches courses about immi-
gration in the United States,
believes that the increase in
CBP activity in Brunswick is
reactionary.
“I speculate it’s because
of the political showdown
around immigration [in
Maine] that kind of came to a
climax over the summer when
[Governor Janet Mills] basi-
cally let it be known that she
welcomed immigrants into
Maine,” López said.
He added that the incidents
“create a climate of fear” in the
Brunswick community.
“I feel scared. I’m scared for
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from the LGBTQIA+ commu-
nity who are not in the BQSA.
The organization’s new lead-
er, Rahul Prabhu ’22, is one of
the architects behind the club’s
redesign. He even had a conver-
sation with other club members
regarding whether or not BQSA
should host OUTtober at all,
given the past focus on large
events.
“On the one hand, we [are]
this new BQSA: [we are]
changing everything [and are
implementing a] new mission
statement,” said Prabhu. “On
the other hand, we wanted to
be respectful to the history of
queer activism [at Bowdoin]
and the queers who were on this
campus [before]. OUTtober can
still be these small events where
allies and queer kids can find
community.”
The new tentative mission
those that are directly affected
by this,” Arein Nguyen ’21 said.
“[All students] should be able to
move wherever they want to.”
Nguyen is Vice President of
Bowdoin Student Government
(BSG) and co-president of De-
fine American, a group that
promotes discussion about
immigration policy.
He added that BSG wants
to support all students who
are concerned about CBP and
other “fear mongering federal
agencies.”
Professors are also sur-
prised and worried. Some
have begun to inform students
in their classes about these in-
cidents and ways they can stay
informed.
“I think it’s really important
to say that this is happening
and to take a stand about it, in
order to let students, faculty
and staff of color know that
they have support,” said Doris
Santoro, chair of the education
department. “We want them
here as part of this community
and we aren’t happy if they end
up feeling targeted.”
Santoro posted information
on her classes’ Blackboard
pages about Fourth Amend-
ment rights and what to do
if you are questioned about
your immigration status. She
has also requested “know
your rights” information cards
from the ACLU and plans
to put them in public spaces
across campus, such as David
Saul Smith Union.
Emma Bond, a staff attor-
ney for the ACLU of Maine,
said that CBP agents rely
heavily on people consenting
to questioning that they don’t
have to answer.
“[CBP] is the largest law
enforcement agency in the
country. And we are all less
safe when the patrol agents
racially profile and target peo-
ple based on the color of their
skin or the language that they
speak,” Bond said. “That’s not
the kind of society that we
want to live in.”
NEWS
statement emphasizes that the
club should be an outlet to pro-
mote activism for students with
a diverse experience of being
queer or allied and to celebrate
intersectional identities of the
LGBTQIA+ community.
Prabhu explained that there’s
a small number of people in
the LGBTQIA+ community on
campus and an even smaller
number of people who feel the
need to be activists. However,
for Prabhu and others involved
in the BQSA, being activists
about their sexuality is a very
important and liberating aspect
of their college experience.
“Throughout high school,
[when] I was a semi-closet-
ed gay teenager in India, I
[couldn’t] wait to go to the
U.S. and be in college and get
involved with queer life, but I
didn’t feel like I had any thing
There are various resources
on campus for students con-
cerned about CBP activity.
Eduardo Pazos Palma, direc-
tor of the Rachel Lord Center
for Religious and Spiritual
Life, is the College’s point
person on immigration issues.
As a confidential resource,
he can help students who are
undocumented or beneficia-
ries of the Deferred Action for
Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
program. He works to connect
students with Brunswick com-
munity members and organi-
zations, such as the Immigrant
Legal Advocacy Project and
the Maine Immigrant Rights
Coalition.
“If anybody at any point
feels like they just want to
get more information, I am
available for students, staff or
faculty to come talk to me with
any questions. This is some-
thing that we think about and
this is something that we take
seriously,” Pazos Palma said.
“It’s a good thing to be able to
find these little coves where
you’re able to find some ref-
uge. And hopefully this office,
among many others on cam-
pus, can be that kind of refuge
for students.”
Next week, Pazos Palma is
leading a workshop for mem-
bers of Student Affairs on ways
that they can best support stu-
dents who are undocumented
or DACA recipients.
The workshop aims to give
administrators the tools to
help students like Rosario
navigate potential future run-
ins with CBP.
“One of the things that drew
me to Bowdoin, at least when
I came to visit, was how wel-
coming the Brunswick com-
munity was to Bowdoin stu-
dents,” she said. “I knew I was
going to a very white space,
but I didn’t expect something
like that would happen to me.
You have to stay informed,
know what resources are avail-
able and know your rights.”
in common with the queer kids
who were leading queer life [at
Bowdoin],” said Prabhu. “I want
to really appreciate and cele-
“I want to really appreciate and
celebrate the diversity of queer life,
so a big goal for the BQSA is to
create a platform where we’re not
just talking about what it is to be
queer but talking about how our
other identities play into how we
experience our queerness.”
–Rahul Prabhu ’22, BQSA Leader
brate the diversity of queer life, This is not the first time
so a big goal for the BQSA is to OUTtober has undergone
create a platform where we’re changes. Kate Stern, director of
not just talking about what it the Center for Sexuality, Wom-
NEW MAJOR
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
work. At the heart of a liberal
arts education is interdisciplin-
ary education.”
The new major and minors
are composed of courses al-
ready offered.
“We think there’s real value in
providing an intentional frame-
work, both in terms of the kind
of core course that [we] will
provide and in terms of hav-
ing students more consciously
think about the connections
among the specific classes that
they’re taking,” said Rachel
Sturman, associate professor of
history and Asian studies and
one of the professors involved
in the creation of the urban
studies minor.
The new additions to the
curriculum align with a work-
ing group’s September 2018
report that answered President
Clayton Rose’s question: “What
Knowledge, Skills and Creative
Dispositions (KSCD) should
every student who graduates
from Bowdoin ten years from
now possess?”
Crystal Hall, director of DCS
and associate professor of dig-
ital humanities, said the DCS
major and minor were being de-
veloped before the KSCD report
was released last fall.
Dean for Academic Affairs
Elizabeth McCormack said
talks of expanding the DCS
initiative to a major and minor
“dovetailed” with the KCSD re-
port.
The major, minors and con-
centrations will be available
for students in the fall of 2020;
students who plan to pursue
the new major, minors and
concentrations can receive ad-
visory assistance beginning this
semester.
When Hall arrived at Bow-
doin during the summer of
2013, faculty were having
conversations—instigated by
then-President Barry Mills
’72—about how technology is
shaping society and academia.
is to be queer but talking about
how our other identities play
into how we experience our
queerness.”
“[Mills] asked a group of fac-
ulty to discuss his idea that com-
puters were changing the world
and that was going to seep into
academia and Bowdoin could
either be a leader in thinking
about how that will change ac-
ademia or it could wait and be
a follower, and his feeling was
we had an opportunity to lead,”
Eric Chown, professor of digital
and computational studies, said.
Since the first class in 2013,
DCS has expanded to an in-
terdisciplinary initiative that
includes courses taught by over
40 professors.
“If you look around the
country, really nobody does
what we’re doing,” Chown said.
“There are lots of schools that
have digital humanities pro-
grams. There’s lots of schools
that have computational social
sciences, but nobody is doing a
program that really is integrated
across the curriculum.”
Bates is the only other
NESCAC school that offers a
DCS program. However, Hall
explained that Bates does not
have a Computer Science (CS)
department so their program
incorporates more coding.
As for the transition from
an idea into actuality, Hall be-
lieves the shift will be seamless
because the College already has
the requisite resources, classes
and faculty.
The department is comprised
of two full-time, tenured DCS
professors, one professor who
will be a part of DCS and CS
and two visiting assistant pro-
fessors.
Students interested in the
major must fulfill five depart-
ment requirements totaling sev-
en DCS courses. The minor in-
cludes one introductory course
and four elective courses.
The urban studies minor was
proposed in 2018 by a group of
professors who taught courses
relating to urban studies after
noticing an increase in student
interest.
In the last decade, there have
been more than a dozen self-de-
3
en and Gender, noted that stu-
dents used to celebrate ‘Gaypril’
when she first started work-
ing at Bowdoin, which soon
evolved into ‘Februqueery’ to be
more inclusive of the trans and
non-binary community. It be-
came OUTtober three years ago
in order to welcome and inform
new students about the queer
community on campus at the
beginning of the school year.
Beyond OUTtober, BQSA
has plans to team up with affin-
ity groups throughout the year
to organize the “InterseQtion-
ality” film series, with the “Q”
indicating the series’ relation to
queer identities.
According to Prabhu, the
film series will show two films
a semester that explore intersec-
tionality between different sex-
ual identities, races, disabilities
and classes.
signed majors involving urban
studies.
Jill Pearlman, senior lecturer
in Environmental Studies, and
one of the faculty members
involved in the proposal, said
there is general interest in urban
planning and studies. She esti-
mates that at least one student
a year pursues an urban studies
graduate programs.
There are currently 17 faculty
members from 10 departments
and programs including envi-
ronmental studies, history, gov-
ernment and legal studies and
digital computational studies
teaching courses relating to the
field.
“Urban studies by its very
nature is interdisciplinary. It
has emerged as a field through
the intersection of history and
architecture, literature and ar-
chaeology,” Sturman said.
Previously, students interest-
ed in urban studies took courses
in different departments that of-
ten taught similar concepts.
“There’s been an overlap in
what we teach that we can now
address,” Pearlman said.
Emilia Majersik ’22 knew she
was interested in urban studies
before she came to Bowdoin
and reached out to Pearlman.
Although there was not a pro-
gram established, Majersik has
taken three courses that will
contribute towards the minor;
she said she has been choosing
classes based on her interests,
not based on the potential for
the minor.
“I’ve been pleasantly sur-
prised with how many classes
there’s been about cities, consid-
ering Brunswick is not [one],”
she said.
Trinity is the only other
NESCAC college to offer urban
studies courses.
The minor includes five
courses. There are four major
requirements including one of
the four introductory survey
courses, one humanities course
and social science course, one
non-U.S. based course and two
elective courses.
4 NEWS Friday, October 18, 2019

Report of academic, social code violations

revised to preserve student anonymity
Reported cases of sexual misconduct increase, number of academic and social code violations unclear
by Emily Cohen
Orient Staff
Last week, the Office of the
Dean of Students released its
annual conduct report in a
campus-wide email and pub-
lished it online.
The annual report of aca-
demic and social code viola-
tions was formatted different-
ly this year, in order to protect
the identity of students in-
volved in cases heard by the
Judicial Board (J-Board) and
adjudicated by the Office of
the Dean of Students, while
simultaneously improving
readability and accessibility,
said Dean of Students Kristina
Bethea Odejimi and Associate
Dean of Student Affairs and
Community Standards Kate
O’Grady.
Previously, the annual re-
port presented only the cases
for the previous academic
year. The new report includes
the finding of the J-Board and
the Office of the Dean of Stu-
dents and the resulting sanc-
tion in each case heard in the
past 10 years. It is comprised
of eight documents, one for
each category of violation
within the Academic Honor
Code and Social Code.
Case information that may
potentially identify involved
students, including when a
case was heard and adjudicat-
ed, is omitted, and the cases
are not arranged in chrono-
logical order. The goal of such
omissions, said Odejimi and
O’Grady, is to create a “truly
informational” report that
maintains the anonymity of
the students involved in each
case.
“It’s really difficult for stu-
dents who have to go through
[the process], and we don’t
want to exacerbate that by
then splashing out there—
for everybody to see—what
happened,” said O’Grady,
who serves as advisor to the
J-Board.
The change also means that
it is unclear exactly how many
cases of alleged academic and
social code violations were
heard last year. Odejimi and
O’Grady declined to disclose
those numbers.
In the 2017-2018 academic
year, there were six alleged
cases of academic code viola-
tions and three alleged social
code violations. Last year, said
O’Grady, “there were neither
an unusually high number
nor an unusually low number
of cases.”
Moreover, Odejimi and
O’Grady wanted to simplify
the report’s format to create
an accessible, understandable
reference document, updated
annually, that can be viewed
by students, faculty and oth-
er members of the Bowdoin
community who are curious
about what has happened in
past cases, which may be used
as a precedent for future cases.
“Our goal is to provide
greater clarity to the Bowdo-
in community on academic
and social violations so that
everyone has an idea of how
the College operates when
dealing with matters that are
important to the College or
are violations of the College
policy,” said Odejimi, “so they
can be better informed about
our process in general and
also about what to expect if
they happen to be in an unfor-
tunate situation where they’re
going through the process.”
The Sexual Misconduct
and Gender-Based Violence
Annual Report from 2018-
2019 was also released last
week, though the format of
this report was unchanged
from past years. It reported
five violations of the Student
Sexual Misconduct and Gen-
der Based Violence Policy, up
from three in the 2017-2018
academic year. This number
includes neither all allega-
tions of sexual misconduct
or cases in which the com-
plainant chose not to pursue
an investigation or alternative
resolution.
Odejimi and O’Grady opt-
ed not to revise the format of
the sexual misconduct report,
created in conjunction with
the Title IX office, because it
is not intended to represent a
precedent of decisions made
in sexual misconduct cases.
“We wanted to just simply
report out on the number
of cases as we always have,
whereas the other informa-
tion [conveyed in the annual
report of academic and social
code violations] is intended
for the community’s educa-
tion,” O’Grady said.

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Friday, October 18, 2019
Empowerment self defense workshops to begin this Tuesday
by Horace Wang
Orient Staff
This semester, the Office of
Gender Violence Prevention
and Education and the Sexual-
ity, Women and Gender Cen-
ter (SWAG) are partnering to
provide a series of empower-
ment self defense workshops.
All four workshops will focus
on assertive communication,
boundary setting, bystand-
er intervention and physical
self-defense.
“We ask that people commit
to going to all four sessions
so that they’re really building
community within the group
YOUR AD
HERE
and building trust in each oth-
er,” said Lisa Peterson, associ-
ate director of gender violence
prevention and education.
“The material kind of builds
on itself.”
The four workshops will be
led by a pair of facilitators from
‘Prevention. Action. Change.’
(PAC), a Portland-based
group that focuses on counter-
ing abuse, assault and harass-
ment. Peterson complimented
this organization, noting the
language it uses to achieve its
goals.
“‘Prevention. Action.
Change.’ focuses on exploring
and sharing the ways that we
NEWS
can all take up more space in
the world by expressing what
we want, need and feel and then
intervening early to prevent and
respond to harassment abuse
and assault,” Peterson said.
The program’s organizers
hope to draw around 20 par-
ticipants, a group size which
will allow them to work with as
many people as possible while
still ensuring that all partici-
pants can practice the skills they
learn and create a sense of com-
munity. The program is open
to all self-identifying woman,
gender non-conforming and
non-binary individuals.
“It’s really taking the lens
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The Bowdoin Orient wants to help you out.
Visit bowdoinorient.com/advertise or email
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of thinking about the ways in
which we construct gender
as a society and how folks of
those genders have been so-
cialized to exist in the world
and empowering folks to ar-
ticulate what their [needs and
desires are], and to feel con-
fident and feel valid in doing
that,” Peterson said.
Rachel Reinke, associate
director of SWAG, echoed this
sentiment, adding that the
program emphasizes personal
power and agency.
“It provides more options
for what that power can look
like,” she said. “I think that
was something really appealing
ANDREW BASTONE, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT
about this particular program
because there are so many ap-
proaches that are being taken
throughout all the sessions.”
Both Peterson and Reinke
emphasized that the work-
shops provide a comprehen-
sive approach to dealing with
gender violence on campus.
While similar workshops
have been offered twice in the
past, the length of this year’s
workshop makes the program
different from that of previous
years. Following feedback that
previous workshops were too
short in their first year and
too long in their second year,
the Office of Gender Violence
BSG
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
Mary McAteer Kennedy, associate
vice president and executive direc-
tor of campus services, both attend-
ed the meeting and took questions
from assembly members regarding
both the statement and the treat-
ment of housekeepers.
The meeting was uncharacter-
istically boisterous for the BSG,
as a throng of students crowded
into the back of Daggett Lounge to
watch the debate and speak during
public comment time.
“This is the most people that
have come to a BSG meeting ever
in my time here,” noted BSG Pres-
ident Ural Mishra ’20.
“We are here because we firm-
ly believe that students have the
power and responsibility to expose
areas where the College should do
better,” Song Eraou ’23 said during
public comment time. “As rep-
DEBATE TIME: (Clockwise from
top) Senior Housekeeper Sherry
Cousins, Matthew Orlando and
Caroline Poole ’22 speak at the BSG
meeting about voting on a statement
supporting Bowdoin’s housekeepers.
DIEGO LASARTE, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT
5
Prevention and Education
have decided to try four two-
hour long sessions over the
course of the semester.
“We hope that [the new for-
mat] will be the right balance
of ensuring that folks have
enough time together to really
delve into the material, but that
it’s also manageable with class
schedules,” said Peterson.
With participants filling out
anonymous surveys each year,
Reinke reiterated that student
feedback is essential to the
program’s success.
The four workshops will be-
gin next Tuesday night.
resentatives of the student body,
BSG members should echo and
support student efforts to support
on-campus staff. Not doing so is as
much a statement as doing so.”
Three housekeepers also at-
tended the meeting and made
remarks.
“It used to be a common phrase
for workers to hear, ‘if you don’t
like it you can leave,’” Housekeeper
Beth Icangelo stated. “Workers at
the College should have no reason
to fear vocalizing concerns and
calling for changes that are need-
ed. Everyone here at Bowdoin is
here to make the world a better
place. Why not start at home?”
Orlando delivered a statement
regarding comments made in the
previous week’s BSG meeting,
where the proposal was originally
introduced.
“The College would never
retaliate, would never intimidate
[employees and] would never tol-
erate [intimidation] on this cam-
pus,” Orlando explained. “This
goes against our ethos, what we
are all about, and I have zero tol-
erance for it.”
Kennedy also defended herself
against accusations raised in the
previous week’s meeting that she
requested photos of housekeepers
not doing their jobs.
Although questions focused
on the working conditions of
housekeepers, BSG members also
inquired about wages.
“We set our wages based on a
competitive market and not on a
living wage,” Orlando said.
The assembly voted 13-11 in fa-
vor of delaying the vote on Poole’s
proposal until next Wednesday.
BSG Vice President Arein Nguy-
en ’21 introduced the motion to
delay the vote after members of
the audience and representatives
voiced frustration at the lack of
housekeeper involvement in the
meeting.
Despite the delay, there was
significant support from repre-
sentatives to invite housekeepers
to meet with assembly members
at some point next week during
the day in order to accommodate
their early shifts.
6 Friday, October 18, 2019

AF ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Portrait of an Artist: Dewey ’22 defies boundaries of dance
by Kate Lusignan
and Eliana Miller
Orient Staff
Sophomore Emma Dewey
used to think dancing was about
perfect posture and technique. For
her, improvisation used to take
place in her bedroom only. Now,
in her fourth dance class in three
semesters and as a leader of the
Bowdoin Modern Dance Collec-
tive, she’s begun exploring dance
that makes her feel good—and lots
of other feelings, too.
The following interview has
been edited for length and clarity.
The Bowdoin Orient: When
did you start dancing?
Emma Dewey ’22: I started
dancing when I was 12. I started
with competitive ballroom and I
was trained in international ball-
room and Latin. I really enjoyed
performing and I really enjoyed
partner dancing. I was a very shy
child, so ballroom felt a lot more
comfortable to me because I was
performing, but with someone
right there next to me so I wasn’t
alone under the spotlight.
Q: What is your relationship
with dance at Bowdoin?
A: Now I take classes in the
dance department and I’m also
involved with the Modern Dance
Collective, which is basically just
a weekly drop-in class. The first
dance class that I took at Bowdoin
was Advanced Modern with [As-
sistant Professor of Dance] Aretha
Aoki. That class blew my mind be-
cause it was very liberatory for me.
Ballroom was so limiting. There
were so many rules about the
character you had to perform and
the technique you had to execute.
And then in Advanced Modern
very strong divide between mind
and body, and that is a fallacy. The
way you experience the world is
absolutely always through your
body. And being connected to
my physical being is really, really
important for my mental health.
So dance for me is always very
cathartic and grounding. There’s
not one feeling that I get when I
dance—it’s every feeling.
Q: How does your identity as a
queer woman play into your life as
a dancer?
A: When I danced growing
up, [there] were very strict gen-
der roles that, as a queer woman,
felt very dissonant to my identity.
Ballroom is a very cis-heteronor-
mative dance system. In order to
compete it’s always a male-female
couple, and a very hyperbolic ver-
sion of masculinity and feminin-
ity. So for competitions I had to
wear very dramatic makeup and it
took almost two hours to get ready
and just do hair and makeup. And
Latin is very sexualized. I had to
wear two to three-inch heels.
Q: Do you plan to continue
dancing after college?
AADHYA RAMINENI, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT A: I come from a family of “not
ONE WITH NATURE: Dewey has excelled in dance during her time at the College, having already taken four classes in the subject and leading the Bowdoin creatives.” And I think there is a
Modern Dance Collective as a sophomore. She aims to break conventional gender stereotypes and use dance as a means of confidence-building.
bit of apprehension on their part
there are no rules and it’s about into the studio and realizing that stage than speaking on stage. Be- So I think getting into the dance of, “where will this lead me?” And
what feels good for your body. there was just so much space and ing trained in ballroom for so long world itself, made me a more con- I don’t really have a paradigm for
it was incredible that I had access has increased my confidence in fident person in all areas of my life. where investing myself in dance
Q: What classes are you taking to it whenever I wanted. So I think myself and how I move through can take me. I know that I am a
this semester? in a lot of ways, improv has been the world and how I carry myself Q: How do you feel when you dancer and I know that it’s a huge
A: Currently I’m taking Af- very important to my growth as a because so much of ballroom is dance? part of my life now. Coming to
ro-Modern II: Technique and dancer because it allows me to just about presentation. The first thing A: It really depends. I, in a lot college is about finding yourself
Intermediate Improvisation and really explore how I want to move you learn is how to have good of ways, think of dance as thera- and all that, and I think dance and
Partnering. I was really excited and to play. posture, and that is what they py for myself. There were a lot of Bowdoin has been a really huge
to try improv because that was groom you on constantly. One of times last year when I was feeling part of creating my own identity.
something that I always secretly Q: How has dance affected my first teachers said, ‘to practice stressed or anxious, and I would But I don’t know for sure where it
did by myself like in my bedroom your life? your posture, you just have to sit just come to the studio and dance will take me. Hopefully I’ll always
or in my bathroom, but that’s such A: I definitely still feel a lot up straight all the time—walking for an hour. I think in our Amer- be dancing in some capacity in my
a small space. I remember walking more comfortable dancing on through school, sitting in class.’ ican, Western culture, there is a life.

Speakers highlight the historical

significance of modernism exhibit
by Halina Bennet
Orient Staff
Over a century after its emer-
gence, modern art is more relevant
than ever. The movement often
thought of in a strictly historical
context is apparently less removed
from our contemporary world
than it appears.
In a presentation entitled “The
Transnational Framework of Mod-
ernism’s Many Emergences, 1900-
1950,” author and collector Laurette
McCarthy and former Executive
Editor of MIT Press Roger Con-
over ’72 discussed the history and
impact of the exhibition, which was
curated by the museum’s co-direc-
tor, Anne Goodyear. The Bowdoin
College Museum of Art (BCMA)
hosted the event in conjunc-
tion with its ongoing exhibition,
“Emerging Modernisms, Ameri-
can and European Art, 1900-1950.”
“My goal was to look carefully
at Bowdoin’s own holdings. We
are fortunate to have a number
of really strong early 20th century
artists represented in our collec-
tion—artists such as Alfred Stieg-
litz, Pablo Picasso [and] Marcel
Duchamp,” Goodyear said before
the presentation.
During their talk, the speakers
presented on the history of mod-
ern art as it grew in the first half of
the 20th century in tandem with
the economic, social and political
situation of the period. The ex-
hibition and the talk explore the
important shift that the world of
I would say that today, we are
still in many ways sorting out
many of the questions that these
modern artists posed to us.
–Anne Goodyear, co-director of BCMA
art underwent at the turn of the
century.
“That type of radical rethink-
ing of what art is very much a key
legacy of early 20th century mod-
ernism. I think that’s actually what
I find most interesting,” Good-
year said. “There are a number of
pressures coming together in the
world, on intellectual, social and
political [levels], that led to revo-
lutions in how art is understood.”
“I would say that today, we
are still in many ways sorting out
many of the questions that these
modern artists posed to us. And
that’s why I organized this exhibi-
tion,” she continued.
According to Conover, modern
art still has pertinence today.
“These modernisms deserve
the epithet ‘avant garde,’ for these
are more anxious, more precari-
ous modernisms … so much in
front of their time that they are
only now just beginning to be
noticed in our time. They fit more
comfortably with this century’s
postmodern tendencies than they
did in their own century,” Conover
said.
The talk focused on one of the
modern art movement’s key ac-
tors, 20th century artist and critic
Walter Pach. McCarthy shed light
on his contributions to the world
of modern art, and Conover laid
the historical framework for the
discussion of the art developing
under Pach’s influence.
A little over a year ago, Bow-
doin received an archive of Pach’s
work, which Goodyear plans to
make available to the public.
“We also have his library of
his own publications, which
have been annotated by him, in
storage,” Goodyear said. “We’re
really excited to make that ar-
chive available to the world.
Pach’s paintings, his drawings,
sketchbooks, prints and then
also this amazing library of his
publications.”
Goodyear emphasizes the
exhibition’s importance for the
College—particularly as it high-
lights the connection between the
College and major figures in the
art world.
“I think it’s really interesting
that Walter Pach, as well as Roger
Conover, both have really import-
ant ties back to Bowdoin, which in
my view reflects on the power of
the aesthetic and intellectual ex- DIEGO VELASQUEZ, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT
perimentation that this school can RETHINKING ART: Laurette McCarthy challenged the audience to consider
foster,” Goodyear said. the social and historical factors that shaped the growth of modernism.
Friday, October 18, 2019
Prof. Kolster redefines the L.A. River in new book
by Cole van Miltenburg
Orient Staff
A living testament to the
rise of a city and its natural
remnants, the Los Angeles Riv-
er was a one-of-a-kind subject
for professor of art Michael
Kolster. In his new book “L.A.
River,” Kolster captures the
river through a 19th century
lens, questioning conventional
notions of time and technical
progress.
Last Thursday in Haw-
thorne-Longfellow Library’s Nix-
on Lounge, Kolster presented his
work to the college community at
a book launch moderated by As-
sociate Professor of History and
Environmental Studies Matthew
Klingle. Associate Professor of
Romance Languages and Litera-
tures Margaret Boyle and Alyce
McFadden ’20, also spoke at the
launch about their interactions
with the river as residents of Los
Angeles.
This book comes as a com-
panion volume to Kolster’s
2016 book “Take Me to the
River,” which explored the ef-
fects of 20th century industri-
alization on the Androscoggin
and three other East Coast riv-
ers. Kolster similarly highlights
human impact on the environ-
ment in “L.A. River,” but this
time shifts his focus towards
the distinct urban setting of
Los Angeles and its adjacent
San Fernando Valley.
The unique origins of the
L.A. River cannot go unno-
ticed when discussing it in
a modern-day context. At a
time when the city was rapidly
expanding, a flood ravaged the
land, buildings and communi-
ties along its banks. The Army
Painter’s lecture emphasizes a need for collaboration
by Jane Godiner
Staff Writer
Artist and educator Bruce
Herman has made a great in-
dividual mark on the art world
with striking paintings and im-
mersive multimedia projects,
but at his talk at Bowdoin last
LEARNING BY EXAMPLE: Painter, professor and curator Bruce Herman cited collaboration with peers and mentors
as crucial to his own success when he spoke on his career accomplishments at the BCMA last Monday.
Corps of Engineers channel-
ized the river in response,
giving it a slanted concrete bed
of 50 miles to hold a greater ca-
pacity of floodwater.
“Los Angeles is like a base,
surrounded by these tall moun-
tains whenever it rains, and
people don’t realize it, but there
are moments of severe rain
storms in the area,” Kolster said.
“And when that happens … a
lot of water flows through these
things.”
In this effort to protect its
urban frontier, the natural envi-
ronment was irreparably dam-
aged and altered, which Kolster
noted closely throughout his
artistic process.
“[I was] thinking about the
relationship that we have to
trying to engineer these huge
solutions that have natural re-
percussions,” Kolster said.
Though limited, nature’s
presence—alongside the con-
crete structures and telephone
wires which make up an urban
landscape—is captured in Kol-
ster’s work.
However, what stands out
most about the book is its
long-exposure, black-and-
white photographs marked with
blemishes around the edges.
Kolster’s choice to portray mod-
ern-day settings through an
aged lens was not only an aes-
thetic one, but also points to the
ever-changing state of the envi-
ronment and historical context
of its surroundings.
“All of the images are made
on site and they’re handmade,”
Kolster said. “That’s kind of a
strange thing to think about
these days because right now we
have digital cameras or phones.”
The process used by Kolster
Monday his focus was the col-
laboration that has shaped his
career.
Herman, the current Loth-
lórien Distinguished Chair in
Fine Arts at Gordon College as
well as an artist, professor, and
curator there since 1984, has
given lectures and exhibited his
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
CONCRETE JUNGLE: Kolster traveled to different locations along the L.A. River, setting up his 19th-century camera equipment at each site and often
staying at each location for the entire day. Last Thusday, he presented his book “L.A. River” to the college commmunity in Hawthore-Longfellow Library.
is coined the “colloidal meth- Kolster sees the images’ imper-
od” and dates back to 1850, fections as symbols of the nat-
when photographs were pro- ural environment’s dynamism.
duced on glass plates rather “All these things start to
than rolls of film. Creating and reference the dynamic and un-
developing these films involves predictable nature of the river
mixing chemicals to produce itself. Every time you go to a
a wet plate which is inserted river, it looks different, right?
into a camera and eventually Moving water changes what
produces a negative imprint on you see, on a moment to mo-
the plate. In order to emulate ment basis,” he said.
this method, Kolster created a In addition, the colloidal
makeshift, portable dark room method speaks to the history
shrouded from light that he of the river. California was de-
could transport from site to site clared a state in 1850, around
around Los Angeles. the same time when this process
What is inconvenient to of photo-taking became widely
some made all the difference embraced. Moreover, Kolster
to Kolster in his final product. emphasized, this was when the
work at colleges and universities pulling out his annotated and
across the world. weathered copy of T.S. Eliot’s
Rather than focusing on “Four Quartets,” and reading
the beauty and complexity of aloud from the book.
his work, Herman embedded “Look in my direction,” said
his lecture with anecdotes and Herman, making eye contact
presentations of the people and with his audience. “I need to
media that have shaped his ca- know that I’m connecting.”
reer over the years. He began by Connection and universality
were constantly at the forefront
of the lecture. Even as Herman
displayed his own paintings, he
continued to reiterate what he
believes to be his purpose as an
artist, and his journey to reach
this conclusion.
He spoke fondly of his in-
teractions with painter Phillip
Guston, an important mentor
and critic of his own earlier work
in graduate school. Herman
recalled one incident in which
Guston urged Herman to “kill”
one of Herman’s especially large
and laborious paintings.
“‘Make it more personal,’”
Herman said, recalling Guston’s
advice. “Then, it’ll be universal.’”
“He wasn’t condemning what
I’d done,” elaborated Herman.
“He was just saying, ‘You’re try-
ing to solve all the problems in
one day—you can’t do it.’”
Herman looks to his idols,
collaborators and critics as the
shapers of his work. When he
projected his work, he presented
DEVAKI RAJIV, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT them not as independent cre-
ations, but as heavily influenced
by prose such as Eliot’s and ad-
COLE VAN MILTENBURG, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT
Los Angeles area experienced
an influx of settlers and began
to surge in population.
“The coincidence of photog-
raphy and the technology that
allowed for us to make pictures
of places was basically hap-
pening at the same time as we
started changing those places
so irrevocably,” Kolster said.
Kolster’s decision to em-
brace this portrayal of the
river required an unusually
large amount of time and ded-
ication. First, he embarked on a
cross-country road trip to bring
the necessary equipment for the
project to L.A.. He then staked
out different locations along
vice such as Guston’s. Herman
made it indisputably clear that
he attributed much of his success
as an artist to his external influ-
ences and collaborations.
“My sort of passion as a paint-
er is to connect with people out-
side of my silo, with composers
and poets, novelists, literary peo-
ple, performers,” said Herman. “I
love to collaborate.”
Indeed, Herman devoted a
significant portion of his lecture
to exhibiting his multimedia
collaborative works, such as his
2013 project “Q U 4 R T E T S.”
Inspired by Eliot’s writing, Her-
man worked on this project with
visual artist Makoto Fujimura,
Yale School of Music composer
Christopher Theofanidis and
Thomas A. Langford Distin-
guished Professor of Theology at
Duke University Jeremy Begbie.
When asked if he believed
that collaboration fortifies an in-
dividual’s artistic voice, Herman
responded with a resounding
“yes.”
“[Collaboration] is like any
really, really good conversation.
When someone [tries] to dom-
inate a conversation, it dies,”
said Herman. “There’s great
freedom there, when you don’t
try to dominate—when you ac-
tually listen to the other person,
and you actually submit to their
voice.”
Herman does not simply rely
7
the river, often spending all day
at the same spot, setting up his
equipment and shooting.
Co-Director of the Bowdoin
College Museum of Art Frank
Goodyear applauds these efforts
as key to the end result of the
book.
“I think part of [Kolster’s]
project in this is to make visible
something that is largely invis-
ible in this huge urban center,”
he said. “I think this project is
sort of a reminder that urban
space is built atop a natural
world. We sometimes lose sight
of the fact that in the midst of
a city … there is a natural en-
vironment.”
on himself and his colleagues to
carry the significance of his art;
he also pays attention to how his
audience, from Maine to Hong
Kong, interprets his work. Often,
those interpretations reveal what
we have in common—basic
wants, whether it be for intimacy
or peace.
“It’s amazing,” he gushed. “I
mean, it’s like discovering over
and over again, that people ev-
erywhere, in all times, and all
cultures, and all languages, and
all levels of society, have the same
hope that their lives will mean
something and that they will con-
nect with others … to find that
connection and to celebrate it,
and to welcome other people into
it, is what I was made for.”
Though Herman is an accom-
plished artist with the right to
devote the majority of his lecture
to a discussion of his own work;
his lecture focused instead on
how and why he makes art. By
bringing influential figures and
forces into the conversation,
Herman provided insight into
his own artistic style and vision.
“My art isn’t about me … it’s
about valuing and caring about
the other,” said Herman with
conviction. “[It’s about] knowing
that whoever the other is, wher-
ever they come from, whatever
their language or their customs,
they’re valuable. They’re infinite-
ly valuable.”
8 Friday, October 18, 2019
F FEATURES
Turning the page: Twice-Told Tales travels to Maine Street
A NEW TALE: Volunteer-run used book shop Twice-Told Tales makes a move to Maine Street. Volunteers hope the new location willl foster a stronger connection with both the Brunswick and Bowdoin communites.
by Danielle Quezada
Orient Staff
After roughly four years on
Pleasant Street, Twice-Told
Tales is turning the corner.
The used book store is making
its highly anticipated move
from the current location
on Pleasant Street to Maine
Street.
Twice-Told Tales is a volun-
teer-run used book store that
serves as a part of the Friends
of the Curtis Memorial Li-
brary Program, a due-based
The haunting of Bowdoin: ghosts and beyond
Poke the Bear
by Sela Kay
When I was younger, I would
go to my friend Clara’s house
around Halloween to bake
pumpkin pie, watch TV and tell
scary stories with our friends. I
remember huddling in a circle
under a tent we’d made from
sheets, taking turns narrating
the eeriest, most haunting tales
we could imagine. Some were
family tales passed down by our
parents and siblings and some
we created in that very house.
We imagined creaky floorboards
to be ancient ghosts, shadows
on the wall to be dormant kill-
ers and empty rooms to be full
of monsters. Clara’s dad would
sometimes join, using his scar-
iest voice to recount decades of
killings and residents gone rogue
in the neighborhood. The allure
of such stories, however, was
never the exact plot or even the
storytelling itself—it was always
the anticipation, the tiny bit of
fear that crept into our minds,
not knowing for sure if these sto-
ries were real or made-up.
As I grew older, I told my-
self these ghost stories probably
weren’t true. I decided not to be-
organization that raises funds
for the local library by sell-
ing donated books that are in
good condition.
Following the success
of their annual book sales,
Twice-Told Tales took the
mission a step forward and be-
came a permanent bookshop
in the summer of 2015. The
Pleasant Street location, how-
ever, presented various issues
including a lack of pedestrian
traffic, windows and handicap
accessibility.
“There was a restaurant oc-
lieve in ghosts because it seemed
impractical, and I rationalized
that their existence went against
scientific thought and reason.
But the more I thought about
it, the more ambiguous it has
become. Why is it so difficult to
imagine the spirit of a loved one
living on or the soul of a strug-
gling mind staying near its place
of death?
All these thoughts accom-
panied me to Bowdoin. See,
Bowdoin has a rich history not
only in ghost sightings but also
eerie and unexplainable occur-
rences. In 1862, Adams Hall
became home to the Maine
Medical School. This building,
although recently renovated, still
bears traces of its inhabitants
from over a century ago. David
Francis, resident Bowdoin ghost
expert and academic technology
consultant, showed me around
Adams Hall and pointed out sig-
nificant indications of the build-
ing’s past.
A black iron hook hangs
down from the top floor’s ceil-
ing, reminding students of the
cadavers hoisted via a pulley
system to the fourth floor during
the medical school. Alcoves and
recessed walls in the basement
are lingering reminders of stor-
cupying the front of the build-
ing so you had to go down the
hallway [and] down the stairs
to get to us. [If] you knew
we were there it was fine, but
if you didn’t know we were
there, you’d never know,” said
Barbara Burr, the current vol-
unteer coordinator of Twice-
Told Tales.
Although obtaining this
new space on Maine Street
was relatively expensive, vol-
unteers hope that the location
will pay for itself through its
connection to the Brunswick
age locations for the bodies,
while the gaps between flights of
stairs measure the perfect width
to fit gurneys loaded with med-
ical subjects. When Adams Hall
was renovated in 2007, workers
found that the floorboards on
the top floor were reused coffin
lids from penitentiaries. These
coffins were presumably the least
expensive wood Bowdoin could
buy when building the hall, and
they too came with their own
share of history.
Not only does Adams itself
bear signs of Bowdoin’s ghosts,
but generations of students have
passed down their fair share of
eerie stories. Take, for example,
a female student a few decades
ago who claimed to see a shad-
owy figure while studying in
Adams basement. She stood up
to approach the figure and just
when it turned to look at her, the
figure vanished. Many years later
she came back to campus and
partook in the Haunted Bowdo-
in tour, confirming this sighting
and that she still carries the ter-
ror from this incident.
Rumor has it that some years
ago, a group of students were
studying in Adams for a math
exam when they saw a wispy
blue-green light. They got up
community, visibility from
the sidewalk and accessibility
for visitors—especially from
Bowdoin.
“We think there’s a lot of
kinds of books that we get
that will be of interest both to
faculty and students who will
find this [location] much more
easily [accessible],” said Katy
Kline, public relations and
storefront arrangement volun-
teer for Twice-Told Tales.
The shop is run by about
40 volunteers, allowing all
profits from book sales to feed
to inspect the eerie light more
closely, but it vanished to the
other side of the room before
they could get a glimpse. These
types of stories are not uncom-
mon at Bowdoin, and Francis
explains that housekeepers and
security officers have scores of
ghost stories as well, as these staff
members often roam campus at
night and in the dark.
So, whether it’s Adams’ ghosts
or other resident phantoms,
Bowdoin is anything but lacking
in the supernatural. Hubbard
Hall has been host to three
seemingly coincidental deaths,
including one student who
slipped and fell on the way to
class and an IT consultant who
slumped dead over his comput-
er in the basement; one student
fell off the roof of Searles during
a lunar eclipse. The number of
unfortunate deadly incidents at
Bowdoin is too high to comfort-
ably ignore, and my mind goes
once again to the question of
whether ghosts exist.
So, as October progresses and
campus fills with pumpkin lattes
and talk of Halloween costumes,
don’t forget to keep an eye out
for anything out of the ordinary.
Who knows? Maybe you’ll expe-
rience a ghost story of your own.
ANGEL RAMIREZ, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT
directly into donations for the
Curtis Memorial Library. The
volunteer staff is composed
entirely of retirees, most of
whom are former educators,
librarians and book connois-
seurs.
“They all love books,” Burr
said. “People will come in the
store, and [the volunteers] are
looking for something they
love to be able to try to recom-
mend [other books].”
The community also played
a large role in the success of
the move. Though the Pleasant
Street shop officially closed
for business on September 28,
the physical moving of items
to Maine Street was done with
the help of Bowdoin students
dur-ing Common Good Day.
Additional help from the local
community consisted of a 600-
box donation from the Home
Depot and flooring materials
and installation from Lowe’s
Home Improvement store.
Lowe’s also supplied two teams
of workers as part of their
community service program,
Burr said.
“We reached out and told
them who we were and what
we do, and they just said, ‘you
know you’re a nonprofit, and
we have a grant program for
nonprofits, and you [fit] the
bill,’ and we won the grant,”
Burr said.
The volunteers at Twice-
Told Tales hoped to open last
Saturday, October 12, but
were unable to do so because
of a struc-tural complication.
Heavy equipment and other
materials housed on the sec-
ond floor of the shop’s new
building created a potential
safety hazard for customers.
“[The upper area] is the
oldest part of the building,
and [the] structural engineer
said the weight of all the
books upstairs could come
crashing down,” said Burr.
The goal is to resolve the
problem within the next few
weeks so the store can finally
open for business, although
the amount of time needed to
fix the problem is unknown.
The volunteers have em-
braced the humor of the sit-
uation through posted paper
signs on the windows: “Com-
ing soon in 11 days! Or so…”
KODIE GARZA
Friday, October 18, 2019
‘A political existence’: Native culture on campus
by Penelope Mack
Orient Staff
Maine celebrated its first Indig-
enous Peoples Day on Monday.
For many Bowdoin students, their
awareness of Native Americans
comes only from history books
or environmental justice readings.
Native students are very much
present on campus, and Indige-
nous people have been present in
the Brunswick area since well be-
fore Bowdoin’s founding.
NATIVE AMERICANS IN
MAINE
Native Americans referred to
the Brunswick area as Pejepscot,
which means “long, rocky rapids
part.” The people living in the area
were also known as the Pejepscot.
They were a subtribe of the Aro-
sagunticooks, who were part of
the Abanaki tribe. “Abanaki,” or
“people of the dawnland,” are part
of the Wabanaki confederacy, a
coalition of Maine Indians formed
in 1776 that is still active today.
Information about the Pejep-
scot at the time of Brunswick’s ear-
ly settlement by Europeans comes
from secondary accounts—the
Indigenous people of the region
did not keep written records of
their history or boundaries. Col-
onists began documenting Native
land divisions and culture once
they arrived in the 17th century.
However, these reports may be
inaccurate, as language barriers
and cultural differences caused
misunderstandings.
Nicholas Smith, a local histori-
an, says that Native Americans in
the area travelled all year long, fol-
lowing seasonal game and crops.
Brunswick was a key fishing spot
in the spring. Though there are
primary sources that record small
numbers of Indians living in the
area, Smith says there are no indi-
cations of a permanent settlement
in Brunswick.
In 1628, Thomas Purchase be-
came the first European to settle
in Brunswick. He was granted the
Arosagunticook land by Massa-
chusetts governor John Winthrop
in 1639. According to the colo-
nists’ reports, Purchase carried on
tr
trad
ade pe
ad
trade eaaccef
cef
eful
ully
ul
peacefullyly w itth th
with thee N
Na attiive
ati
Natives vess
ffor
foorr th
thee be
bett
tter
er p
better artt of
ar
part of 50
50 years.
y ars
ye arrs.
Though the exact boundaries
of Purchase’s land are unclear,
historian Emerson Baker be-
lieves that most of the lands on
the lower Androscoggin, includ-
ing Brunswick, were sold to the
British between 1639 and 1660.
However, most of these deeds in-
cluded a stipulation that Natives
could still hunt on the land, so
long as they did not disturb En-
glish fisheries.
In the late 17th century, most
Wabanaki tribes aligned them-
selves with the Wampanoag chief
Metacom in King Philip’s War.
The conflict became particularly
violent in southern Maine, where
most of the European settlements
were burned. Around 400 colo-
nists and between 100 and 300
Indians died in Maine during the
battles and raids, and almost all
the colonists evacuated to Mas-
sachusetts by 1678. Thirty years
later, once the colonists deemed
Maine safe again, they returned,
slowly pushing Native Americans
out and forever changing the nat-
ural environment that the tribes
depended on.
Since then, limited attempts
at reparations have been made.
Currently, there are three Indian
reservations in Maine, though
most Wabanaki people do not
live on them. In 2012, the Maine
Wabanaki-State Truth and Recon-
ciliation Commission was created
to investigate potentially discrimi-
natory child welfare practices. The
Commission found that Native
children in Maine were five times
more likely to be placed in the fos-
ter care system than non-Native
children and that the removal of
Native children was evidence of
racism against the Wabanaki. The
Commission labeled the actions of
the state “cultural genocide.”
NATIVE CULTURE
ON CAMPUS
Despite the area’s history, Bow-
doin cannot boast a large Native
student population. According
to the Integrated Postsecondary
Education Data System demo-
graphic data from colleges, Amer-
FEATURES
ican
ican Indians
Inddiiaans
ns (not
(not
not in
no iincluding
ncl
clud
lud
ding
inng N
Naati
t vee
Native
H
Ha waii
wa iian
iian
ns)) made
Hawaiians) mad
de u up
p 00.3
.33 perce
ercent
ce
percentnt
nt
of Bowdoin’s student body during
the 2017-2018 school year.
The Office of Admissions does
sponsor some outreach projects
aimed at introducing Bowdoin to
Native students. Whitney Soule,
dean of admissions, said that the
office collaborates with College
Horizons, a national nonprofit
that hosts workshops for Native
high schoolers seeking to attend
college. Bowdoin hosted students
during the summer of 2015, and
admissions staff work with the
program every summer to provide
college counseling to participants.
Efforts to incorporate more
Native students into the cam-
pus culture began in earnest in
2007, when the Maine NESCAC
schools formed the Wabana-
ki-Bates-Bowdoin-Colby Collab-
orative (WBBC). Leslie Shaw, a
former visiting assistant professor
of anthropology, ran the program
on the Bowdoin side from 2007 to
2012, and she served as a liaison
for Native American affairs in the
president’s office—the only one
the College ever had—and the
advisor for the Native American
Students Association (NASA)
which was founded in 2009.
Her biggest projects included
organizing an annual Wabanaki
Arts Festival in Smith Union and
planning faculty trips to Indian
reservation schools in Maine.
“Leslie’s plan was also to get
various Wabanaki groups in
Maine feeling as though they
could walk on to campus and they
were not strangers, [that] they
were welcomed,” said John Cross,
Shaw’s husband and secretary of
Development and College Rela-
tions who serves as the unofficial
College historian.
After Shaw’s death in 2012,
WBBC fell by the wayside and the
once annual programs ended.
NASA’S REVIVAL
Amanda Cassano ’22, one of
NASA’s current leaders, helped
recharter the group last year.
“The leaders of the club were
continuously burned out from
trying to educate the campus
coomm mun
community nitty while
whilili e supporting
wh s ppor
supp
por
ortiingg
orti
N
Na ati
tiive
Nativesvess on
on campus,
cam
ampu
p s,” Cassano
pu Cass
Cassan
ano
o sa
ssaid.
aid
id.
d rese
“As a small organization with few
stalwart advocates on campus, it
became really difficult to lead the
club.”
This year, around nine mem-
bers consistently attend meetings
to plan events and share their
experiences. November is Na-
tive American Heritage Month
(NAHM), and the group has orga-
nized various lectures and events.
Additionally, NASA called
upon the College to incorporate
land acknowledgments as a rou-
tine procedure. Land acknowl-
edgments recognize Native ties to
the land, generally stating, “before
we begin this meeting, we would
like to acknowledge that we are on
the traditional land of the [name]
people.” The acknowledgements
are often made at large events—
concerts, governmental meetings
Native Americans made up
0.3%
or conferences—and have been
commonplace at other U.S. col-
leges, including Northwestern
University and Colorado College.
“We just want to make sure
that we’re aware of the history, of
the land, of the people who came
before us, the people who still live
here,” Cassano said. “People forget
about that.”
NATIVE EXPERIENCES
ON CAMPUS
Students in NASA have differ-
ing opinions about how faculty
engage with Native perspectives
and sources.
Emma Simpson ’22, a NASA
member, said that one of her pro-
fessors once had students incor-
rectly reenact an important Native
tradition with which she was per-
sonally familiar. She said the pro-
fessor’s response to her complaints
was unclear and dismissive, which
discouraged her from approach-
ing issues of misrepresentation at
the academic level.
YOU ARE ON INDIGENOUS LAND: Amanda
Cassano ’22 holds a poster that is part of the Native
American Students Association campaign to standardize
land acknowledgments at Bowdoin.
“II ttried
ried
ried to
ed to tackle
tack
ta le [Native
ckle [Na
Nati ve rep-
tive rep
ep-
re
resentation]
sent
ntat
tatiion]
ion] ffrom
rom
rom th thee an
angl
angle
g e of,
gl
‘we need to change the way we
talk about this in class,’ and that
didn’t go over very well … [for
now] I want to approach it from
the conversations amongst peers,
bringing in people to talk,” said
Simpson.
In Cassano’s experience, some
professors are inclusive of Native
voices and sources in their curric-
ula, regularly assigning readings
about and by Native Americans.
But she admits that other profes-
sors are hesitant to bring Native
issues into the classroom.
“There are instances where
professors just aren’t as well versed
with [Native culture and history].
They’re not comfortable engaging
in those conversations about In-
digeneity,” Cassano said. “There’s
a lot of sensitivity, a lot of guilt
surrounding these ideas about
of Bowdoin’s student
body during the
2018-19 school year
colonialism.”
Cassano worries that Native
students’ lack of representation
allows racism and microaggres-
sions to go unchecked. For exam-
ple, at the “Cracksgiving” party
in 2014, several students dressed
up as stereotypical Native Ameri-
cans, donning feather headdress-
es and “war paint.” The students
were disciplined, but the incident
remains an infamous example of
cultural appropriation in Bowdo-
in’s recent history.
“If people don’t know that
we exist, then it allows people to
mock us, to make fun of Native
American culture, to appropri-
ate it,” Cassano said. “And those
smaller issues, those little micro-
aggressions, they can build up into
larger issues. If people don’t know
that we’re still here, they can take
away our rights.”
NASA hopes to heighten the
visibility of Native culture through
its programming, but some mem-
bers worry the student body is not
ready to confront Native issues
9
COURTESY OF SHANDIIN LARGO
p- and
annd the
th
he history
hist
histor
tor
o y behi
b
be
behind
ehi
h nd
d tthem.
hem.
he
off C
Ca arl
rlos
Carlosos C ampo
am p s ’2
po
Campos 22, N
’22, ASA’
ASAs
A’
NASA’
treasurer, said that Bowdoin stu-
dents do not engage with Native
issues, specifically those of South
American Indigenous people,
with whom he identifies.
“As much as we hate to say it,
the student body itself does not
react well to [Native issues]. We
have posters that say ‘You are on
indigenous land.’ Does anyone
ever talk about them? Does any-
one ever talk about them as much
as they talk about the other posters
on campus? No,” he said. “If there’s
one association [on campus] that I
feel like has been thrown out of the
way, it has been NASA.”
Other students believe the
community is more receptive.
Shandiin Largo ’23 said that she
has encountered genuine curiosity
about her Native culture from fel-
low students.
“I’m just keeping in mind
that I shouldn’t be offended that
people don’t know [about Native
cultures],” she said. “That’s part of
[being a Native person], teaching
others, but also being mindful of
other people’s perspectives on it,
or the lack of knowledge. And
then making that clear that I’m
not speaking for all Native Amer-
icans, just for myself and my ex-
periences.”
As NAHM nears, NASA
members hope that students will
participate in their events and are
receptive to their messages. The
group is open to all students, even
those who do not identify as Na-
tive American, and it welcomes
new members.
“I want to shine light onto
Native history as a remembrance
and as a tribute to those that still
live today as Indigenous people,”
said Campos.
Cassano, a Native student, also
wants her voice to be heard, espe-
cially at Bowdoin.
“Existing as a Native person
is often, whether we want it to
or not, a political existence,” she
said. “We’ve endured. It makes
me very proud to be here today
as a Native person to know that I
survived. I’m constantly fighting
against that colonial legacy by still
being here today.”
10
S SPORTS
HIGHLIGHT
REEL
BECAUSE OF WIND-
DIXIE:
The women’s sailing
team competed in two
separate regattas last
weekend, posting strong
performances in both
and qualifying for Match
Race Nationals in the
process. At the Women’s
Showcase B Finals hosted
by St. Mary’s College of
Maryland, the six Polar
Bear sailors jumped to
an early lead and cruised
to an easy victory. At the
Match Race New England
Championship in Newport,
Bowdoin held on after a
tough first day to qualify
for the finals, earning them
a berth to Match Race
Nationals during the first
weekend of November.
PERSONAL BEST &
JELLY:
At the Open New
England Championship
last weekend, the
Bowdoin cross-country
team emerged from a
stacked field as one of the
highest-placing Division III
programs in New England.
Boosted by a personal-best
18:21 5K from Caroline
Shipley ’20, the women’s
team finished ninth overall
and second of the DIII
schools at the meet. The
men’s team finished first
of all DIII schools. Notably,
all top-five men’s runners
finished with personal best
times in the 8K race. Both
teams will have a week
to rest before returning
to competition next
weekend, when they will
host the second Bowdoin
Invitational.
TOO LITTLE, TOO
LATE:
The football team’s record
fell to 0-5 after a 36-14
loss to Amherst (4-1) last
Saturday. A slow start cost
the Polar Bears, who were
unable to claw their way
back from an early deficit.
The Mammoths put 14
points on the board in
the first quarter and held
Bowdoin scoreless until the
final quarter of the game.
Individually, Nate Richam-
Odoi ’20 recorded his third
straight game with more
than 100 rushing yards, the
first Bowdoin player to do
so this century. Bowdoin
returns to action at Tufts on
Saturday.
THURSDAY NIGHT
LIGHTS:
The field hockey team
cruised to a 4-0 victory
over visiting Husson
University (5-5) under the
lights at Howard F. Ryan
Field last night. The Polar
Bears jumped out to a
quick lead, scoring all four
goals in the first half, and all
three Bowdoin goalkeepers
made an appearance in net
to maintain the shutout.
This victory keeps the
Polar Bears’ eight-game
win streak alive as they
head into their final three
conference games.
COMPILED BY DYLAN SLOAN
Legislation targeting NCAA looms
over Division III, Bowdoin Athletics
by Dylan Sloan
Orient Staff
On Monday, September 30,
California governor Gavin New-
som signed the Fair Pay to Play
Act, or Senate Bill 206 (SB 206),
which allows college athletes in
the state, beginning January 1,
2023, to profit off of their names,
images and likenesses (NIL)
through sponsorships and en-
dorsement deals. This law directly
conflicts with existing NCAA
policy which forbids athletes from
profiting off NIL, sparking con-
cerns over a legal showdown be-
tween the NCAA and California.
While the bulk of the national
dialogue surrounding SB 206 has
thus far revolved around the fate
of million-dollar sponsorship
deals and cash-cow Division I
programs, the effects of the law
and potential subsequent leg-
islation across the nation could
have significant consequences for
Division III sports—including for
NESCAC and Bowdoin athletics.
Although the national im-
age of the NCAA is dominated
by high-publicity Division I
programs and nationally-visi-
ble events like March Madness,
Division III sports comprise a
significant portion of the NCAA’s
internal operations—nearly 40
percent of all collegiate varsity
athletes competing in Division III
programs.
Water polo eyes DIII club championship bid
by Itza Bonilla-Hernandez
Orient Staff
Bowdoin water polo is lac-
ing up its caps in preparation
for the North Atlantic Division
championship tournament,
which will take place this week-
end at Bowdoin’s Greason Pool.
Bowdoin will compete against
teams from Bates, Colby and
the University of Vermont in a
round-robin style tournament
for a berth in the Division III
Collegiate Club Championship,
slated for October 26-27 at Car-
negie Mellon University in Pitts-
burgh, Pennsylvania.
The team has competed
in one tournament so far this
season, on October 5-6 at Col-
by. Bowdoin lost all four of its
matches to finish last out of the
four teams.
In the fall season, the team
competes as a co-ed club pro-
gram against all-male teams. In
the spring, only all-female club
teams are eligible to compete.
The team, which has been
active since the 1970s, currently
has 20 players on its roster, with
a consistent 10 making up the
core of the team. Captain Ted-
dy Wecker ’22, who joined the
team as a first-year after playing
water polo in high school, be-
lieves that the size of the team
matters less than the sense of
camaraderie between its mem-
bers.
Despite this fact, Division III
athletics receive an annual bud-
get allocation from the NCAA of
$32.4 million, or only 3.18 percent
of its total operating budget, ac-
cording to the Division III 2019-
20 Facts and Figures infographic
published on the NCAA website.
Because Division III schools re-
ceive such a slim portion of NCAA
funds, even a marginal cut to the
NCAA’s total revenue due to the
loss of revenue from players’ NIL
could have significant implications
when multiplied across the hun-
dreds of schools and thousands
of student-athletes that comprise
Division III athletics.
“Each one of those dollars is re-
ally important for supporting the
experience of students on the field
and then also the other program-
ming that the NCAA supports
like the Careers in Sports Forum
or internship opportunities for
students,” said Tim Ryan, Ash-
mead White Director of Athletics.
Although many Division III
athletic programs, including
Bowdoin’s, do not profit from
their athletic programs and there-
fore would not lose any revenue
if athletes were allowed to profit
from NIL, the cuts would be par-
ticularly felt in the NCAA fund-
ing for Division III championship
tournaments. The funds that the
NCAA uses to reimburse Divi-
sion III schools for the costs they
incur when hosting and advertis-
“The thing I’m most proud of
[is] just what a kind and accepting
group of people it is, especially in a
sport that people think is difficult
[and] violent,” said Wecker. “[It’s
about] having a kind, caring, [and]
accepting group of people … you
can just come to [a meeting] and
[realize] that anyone that wants to
play can do it.”
“The nature of the sport ... is
strenuous and hard to work. It
takes a certain level of guts to get
in the pool and try to learn it,
which builds camaraderie almost
instantly,” said co-captain Holly
Harris ’22.
Since the team is a club sport,
it receives most of its funding for
tournament entry fees from the
Student Activities Funding Com-
mittee (SAFC). Last year, the team
received roughly $3,500, accord-
ing to the SAFC Digest from the
fall of 2018.
The captains admit that it’s
hard to keep track of club funding
deadlines while also being club
leaders and students.
“I know we’re not Student
Activities’ favorite team be-
cause we have a bit of a history
of being not great about meet-
ing deadlines and that kind
of thing,” said Wecker. “We’re
working on it. It’s definitely
challenging to be running
practice and wanting to get to
know everyone and wanting to
teach and play [but] also hav-
ing to focus on having to re-
ing these championships events
currently comprise three-quarters
of the Division III operating bud-
get.
“If we host an NCAA champi-
onship event on campus, we’re re-
imbursed for the expenses that we
incur,” said Ryan. “There could be
a scenario down the road where,
if difficult decisions need to be
made about budgets and things
along those lines, the NCAA may
pull back some of those resources,
and that would therefore end up
having an impact on the individ-
ual institutions.”
Ryan said that these budget
cuts would likely not dissuade
Bowdoin from hosting champi-
onship events, but he noted that
schools with fewer financial re-
sources devoted to athletics might
be less inclined to host champion-
ship events if the NCAA lowers its
reimbursement rate.
Beyond championship events,
a significant portion of the Di-
vision III budget is allotted to
programs and events designed
for student athletes. A few of the
largest non-championship ex-
penditures, for example, include
the Woman and Minority Intern
Program (allotted $1.3 million)
and Division III Diversity Initia-
tives (allotted $250,000 annually.)
These auxiliary projects could be
some of the first to be hit with
budget cuts should the NCAA be
forced to restructure its funding
HOT POTATO: A Bowdoin player rises up out of the water to make a pass during a game earlier this season.
quest funding for [the club].”
Ahead of the champion-
ship tournament, the captains
see this season as a period of
growth, since their roster is
made up of players from vary-
ing skill levels—from high
school state champions to peo-
ple who have never touched a
water polo ball before.
“We have a majority of peo-
ple [who have] played before,
but we have a crazy range of
skill levels [and] comfort in the
water, which we’re working on,”
said Harris. “There are people
who don’t even really know how
to tread right, and then they’re
playing in an actual game of wa-
ter polo a month later.”
guidelines.
Lisa Champagne, NESCAC
Assistant Director for Media Re-
lations, declined to comment at
this time on how the passage of SB
206 could have implications for
small athletic conferences such
as the NESCAC and the individ-
ual student athletes within them.
She suggested that with so many
variables still at play, including
other states potentially proposing
similar legislation and the NCAA’s
potential response to the bill, it
would be premature to comment
on the matter before the NCAA
convention in January, where
representatives from all three di-
visions will gather and SB 206 will
likely be a major talking point.
Similarly, Adam Skaggs, the
NCAA Assistant Director of
Division III Governance Com-
munications, indicated that his
department was prohibited from
commenting on the situation un-
til further notice.
The extent of the NCAA’s com-
mentary on the matter has been
limited to a series of press releas-
es on the topic. The NCAA has
formed a working group that will
release a series of “overarching
principles” to guide each division
as it reacts to this legislation.
“As part of its efforts, the
working group will study modi-
fications of current rules, policies
and practices. In particular, it will
focus on solutions that tie any
GRAHAM BENDICKSON , THE BOWDOIN ORIENT
For Harris, the varying skill
level is part of what makes the
club experience special.
“[The beginners are] kind of
just thrown into it and treated
like every other member on the
team,” said Harris. “Whether or
not you can score from one side
of the pool to the other, or you
have a hard time treading, we are
all in the same scrimmage. We
look out for each other.”
Varying levels of partici-
pation among area teams also
keep things interesting for team
members. Last year, when Bow-
doin scrimmaged a team from
St. Michael’s College in Colches-
ter, Vermont, their opponent
did not have enough people to
Friday, October 18, 2019
changes to education; maintain
the clear demarcation between
professional and college sports;
and further align student-athletes
with the general student body,”
reads a release on the NCAA
website entitled “NCAA working
group to examine name, image
and likeness.”
If the NCAA were to pro-
pose any amendments to its
existing regulations regarding
student-athlete compensation,
Bowdoin would be able to vote
on the new legislation both as an
individual member institution of
the NCAA and as a member of
the NESCAC, said Ryan.
“The college is able to advo-
cate for our position through our
conference and then individually
as an institution as well, with the
network that we have within the
leadership of Division III and the
NCAA overall,” said Ryan.
Neither the NESCAC nor the
College has come to a firm posi-
tion on a potential rule change,
said Ryan.
Although it could still be years
before similar laws are adopted
in Maine or at a federal level, the
effects that SB 206 has had on
Division III athletics in California
serves as an instructive compari-
son for the NESCAC.
“The SCIAC and our members
have been closely monitoring SB
Please see NCAA, page 12
field a complete lineup, so the
two teams combined their num-
bers to flesh out two full teams.
“At that point you’re not re-
ally there to win because you are
playing people you know,” said
Ryan Durkin ’22, a member of
the team.
Wecker agreed that while
the team hopes for victory,
they’re mostly satisfied with
having a good time.
“Having an environment
that can be competitive … in
the fun way and not [always] in
the way where people are getting
upset when you lose is what we
strive for,” said Wecker.
Holly Harris is a member of
the Orient Staff.
Friday, October 18, 2019
Crew team gears up for Head of the Charles Regatta
by Ella Chaffin
Orient Staff
With packed trailers and full
hearts, the Bowdoin crew team
departed Friday morning for
the Head of the Charles Regatta
(HOCR) in Boston. The regat-
ta, one of the largest and most
prestigious in the world, marks
the climax of the team’s fall rac-
ing season, which has thus far
been defined by early-season
success at both the novice and
varsity levels.
Eight varsity crews—four
men’s and four women’s—will
compete alongside 2,254 oth-
er crews in the regatta, which
spans Saturday to Sunday. A
boat composed of recent Bow-
doin alumni will also race on
Saturday.
The eight crews competing
Something’s got to give: the story of Matthew Branche
The Sideline
Story
by Julius Long
Between 1946 and 1949, it
was hard to find an edition of
the Orient in which the name
Matthew D. Branche ’49 did not
appear. His athletic dominance
earned him a great deal of no-
toriety throughout the state of
Maine. He captained the tennis
and track teams, dominating
the podium at Maine’s state
track meet in 1948. And, as if
being a dominant two-sport
captain wasn’t enough, he was
an invaluable member of the
football team and was named
to the All-Maine team in bas-
ketball. But his presence was
felt far beyond the four sports
teams that he played on while
at Bowdoin.
Branche, a native of Tus-
kegee, Alabama and a WWII
veteran, came to Bowdoin as
one of the College’s first Af-
rican-American students. In
his first year, he became the
first African-American to be
elected president of his class.
The next year, he became the
first African-American to join
a national fraternity at Bowdo-
in—a critical juncture in the
racial integration of Bowdoin’s
social life. Bowdoin’s Delta Up-
in this weekend’s regatta repre-
sent a two-fold increase from
last year in the number of Bow-
doin boats entered in the event,
said head coach Doug Welling.
Teams earn entries based on
their performance in the previ-
ous year’s regatta and through
a lottery system. In 2018, the
women’s first varsity boat fin-
ished 19th out of 40 boats in the
Women’s Collegiate 4+ event,
and men’s first varsity boat fin-
ished 14th out of 40 boats in the
Men’s Collegiate 4+.
“We are very excited to have
a higher percentage of the team
racing and gaining world-class
race experience,” said Welling.
Bowdoin crews have been
competitive at HOCR in years
past. In 2012, the first women’s
varsity boat won the Collegiate
Women’s 4+ category, beating
silon chapter received backlash
from the national organization
for accepting a black man,
prompting them to withdraw
affiliation with Delta Upsilon
and convert to Delta Sigma.
Even prior to his graduation,
a certain aura of mysticism sur-
rounded Branche’s name, al-
most in recognition of the fact
that there might never again be
a Bowdoin student-athlete that
could repeat his accomplish-
ments. An Orient column from
1948 titled McClelland’s Polar
Bearings etched his legend in
ink.
“Few athletes have done as
much and probably none have
done more in Bowdoin athlet-
ics than the husky track captain
who will hang up his spikes
for the last time this Saturday
… Soon he will be gone from
Bowdoin. Those who have run
with him or against him will
never forget him, and neither
will the Bowdoin he never let
down.”
The column includes a
whole laundry list of his ath-
letic accomplishments over
the course of his three years at
Bowdoin. But it also mentions
the fact that, in his senior year,
Branche was forced to quit the
football and basketball teams
and dial back his hours in track
SPORTS
38 college programs down the
three-mile course. The same
year, the Bowdoin men came in
fifth out of 46 crews.
The team has raced in two
regattas this fall to prepare for
the HOCR: the Cow Island
Classic on the Androscoggin
River in Brunswick on Septem-
ber 21 and the Textile River Re-
gatta in Lowell, Massachusetts
on October 6.
The men’s first varsity boat
claimed gold at the Textile Re-
gatta, while the women’s first
varsity boat came in second.
The learn-to-row program,
which prepares rowers with no
formal experience to compete
in novice events during the
team’s spring season, had a re-
cord-high 30 participants this
fall. Despite having only a few
weeks experience on the water,
and tennis in order to complete
pre-med labs.
Reading editions of the
Orient that predate color tele-
vision, you wouldn’t expect
to find a lot of similarities
between student life then and
now. But this same issue came
up in last week’s Bowdoin Stu-
dent-Athlete Advisory Com-
mittee (BSAAC) meeting, the
first for Associate Professor of
Classics and Chair of the Clas-
sics Department Robert Sobak.
Sobak will serve as Bowdo-
in’s faculty representative to
the NCAA, a fitting role for a
former three-sport athlete at
Franklin & Marshall. In that
meeting, Sobak fielded the
same question that popped
into my head when reading
that column about Branche.
“How [do you] manage being
a multi-sport student-athlete?”
Sobak’s response left the
room silent. For Sobak, it was
never a question of manage-
ment. He couldn’t have done as
well as he did in the classroom
without the focus and the out-
let that playing soccer, squash
and tennis gave him. He recog-
nized that the “student” in stu-
dent-athlete comes first for a
reason, but—even more so now
as a professor—realizes that the
learning done on the field and
ROW, ROW, ROW YOUR BOAT: the crew team locks in its form ahead of this weekend’s season-ending race.
the novice crews have shown
early promise, with the top
men’s and women’s novice crews
placing first in their events at the
Textile Regatta.
“The team has been incred-
ibly supportive of one another,
and each practice has been an
opportunity to work against and
with one another to help each
boat race their fastest,” said Julie
Scholes ’20, the women’s team
captain.
All crews have been training
since the first week of the se-
mester, with boats getting out
on the water five times a week
for early morning practices.
Crews competing in the HOCR
stayed on campus over fall break
for two practices each day. Al-
though they faced dicey weather
conditions on the water over fall
break, it will only prepare them
with his team was equally as
important in shaping him into
the professor and person that
he is today.
The question he now asks
himself is how would he have
managed without it. Professor
Sobak recognized the merits of
the original question, though,
particularly in the context of
Bowdoin and the growing cul-
ture of hyper-specialization in
youth sports. Sobak addressed
an element of the Bowdoin
student-athlete experience
that is often taken for granted
by his colleagues and athletes
themselves: the number of
in-class and out-of-class
academic hours have
increased across the
board, along with the
amount of time that
athletes
SHONA ORTIZ
for the obstacles the HOCR—
known for its winding and
crowded course—might throw
at them, said Welling.
“The Head of the Charles is
impossible to predict due to the
extreme number of variables
that are beyond a crew’s con-
trol,” said Welling. “We will have
to navigate the course better
than other crews. We will have
to row faster, and because it’s the
Charles, you have to have a bit
of luck.”
As they head to Boston, the
crews have two goals for this
weekend, said Scholes: to finish
strong among the incredibly
challenging competition, and
to learn about the sport from
watching some of the best crews
in the world compete.
“One of the highlights [of
the HOCR] is getting to see the
are expected to put in. How-
ever, the number of hours in a
week has not.
Something’s got to give. And
too often, that “something”
manifests itself during course
registration. Both Sobak and
the student-athletes in the
room recognized that, despite
the fact that our coaches en-
courage us to take full advan-
tage of everything the college
has to offer without consider-
ation for our athletic schedules,
there is a
11
COURTESY OF DOUGLAS WELLING
‘great eight’ row on the Charles,
which is a composite boat of
many countries’ best rowers.
While we will only compete in
races against other colleges, it is
truly breathtaking to see rowing
at such a high level,” said Scholes.
Because the rowing team
also competes in the spring,
crews will not be finished when
they return to Bowdoin after the
HOCR. The team has one final
regatta during the fall season—a
friendly scrimmage between
Bowdoin, Bates and Colby on
October 26—before they enter
winter training in preparation
for the spring season. As tem-
peratures drop, the experiences
that crews will gain at the HOCR
will buoy the team through the
long winter as it looks towards
getting on the water once again
in the spring.
tendency, if possible, to avoid
courses that end at 4:15 PM,
that begin at night or that have
lengthy labs.
But for Dr. Matthew D.
Branche, those pre-med labs
were inescapable. The choice to
sacrifice his athletic enrichment
was, and still is, the obvious
choice. But, to my surprise, So-
bak doesn’t believe it should be
that way. The virtues of a liberal
arts education include the ability
to experiment and learn through
unconventional mediums, par-
ticularly those situated outside
of the classroom. Whether that
medium is sport, theater, vol-
unteering or anything else, all
of us— including student-ath-
letes— should be able to take
advantage of it all.
12
WAITING TO POUNCE: Charlie Ward ’22 waits for the moment to strike when sizing up a tackle against a Hamilton opponent. The men’s soccer team has been using a new suite of data and film analysis tools to target key areas of improvement.
Statistical analysis tools make impact for men’s soccer
by Sebastian de Lasa
Orient Staff
The technological era of
sports is fully upon us. For
years, pro sports teams have
had access to tools providing
them with advanced metrics
and film breakdowns. How-
ever, these computational and
quantitative tools are no longer
exclusively used by professional
teams. Right here at Bowdoin,
the men’s soccer team (6-2-4,
NESCAC 1-2-4) has been ap-
plying these analytical tools to
its own game footage to find a
Men’s tennis serves up promising start
by Thomas McEvoy
Staff Writer
After an impressive 2018-
2019 campaign, the men’s
varsity tennis team entered
its fall season facing serious
personnel question marks
after graduating key seniors.
Even so, the team has record-
ed promising results in each
of its first two fall tourna-
ments. As the team travels to
the Wesleyan Invitational this
weekend, the final contest
this fall, it will be looking to
replicate that early success.
Last year’s captains Grant
Urken ’19 and Jerry Jiang ’19
finished the season by defeat-
ing the University of Chicago
and NESCAC rival Wesleyan
University in order to win the
NCAA doubles champion-
ship, offering invaluable con-
tributions both on the court
and off. Urken and Jiang leave
behind a legacy of leadership
and success.
In addition to last year’s
captains, the team also saw
Luke Carstens ’19 and Aidan
McGrory ’19 graduate, leav-
ing it with only seven return-
competitive edge.
For the first time in program
history, footage from men’s soc-
cer games has been uploaded
to the service InStat. Shortly
thereafter, Head Coach Scott
Wiercinski receives a statistical
breakdown of the entire game,
from heat maps tracking play-
ers’ locations across the field
to data showing how long any
given player had the ball at their
feet and a plethora of other sta-
tistics.
When asked whether statis-
tical analysis could change the
way soccer is played, Wiercinski
ing players this fall.
“It’s always really hard to
come back from that when we
lose four vital … people on
the team,” said captain Oscar
Yang ’22.
Despite the loss of last
year’s core players, the 2019-
2020 squad has wasted no
time in getting back on track.
In its fall season opener—the
Intercollegiate Tennis Associ-
ation New England Regional
hosted by Colby—the team
quickly turned heads.
Yang mustered an espe-
cially impressive day, posting
a 6-7, 6-1, 6-1 victory over
Wesleyan’s Princeton Carter
before defeating Williams’
Calvin Chung to earn a quar-
terfinal bid.
Fellow captain Justin Patel
’20 was especially struck by
the team’s performance in the
singles bracket. All five Polar
Bears won their first singles
match, which Patel referred to
as “huge” and something that
“we don’t really get … in my
four years here.”
The team carried similar
energy into the following
weekend’s Wallach Invita-
SPORTS
responded, “it already has.”
InStat has also been helpful
for individual players, allowing
them to learn more about their
habits and skills. Nate Kelsey
’22, a fullback on the team,
learned through InStat that his
percentage of completed passes
was 80 percent with his right
foot but 55 percent with his left,
leading him to make left-footed
passing accuracy a focus during
practice.
Although the team actively
uses InStat, Wiercinski admit-
ted that the mechanics of the
program were a mystery to him.
tional, held at Bates. Yang and
Tristan Bradley ’23 teamed up
to win the A doubles bracket
and Justin Wang ’22 took the
B bracket singles title.
“It’s really exciting to see
us doing well in the fall,” said
Yang. “We have one more
tournament, so I’m going to
make these two weeks count.”
“It’s always really hard to come
back from that when we lose
four vital ... people on the team.”
–Oscar Yang ’22, men’s tennis captain
“The goal for that is really
just like work extremely hard
[these] next two weeks and
try to have as many people in
on the final day as possible,”
Patel added.
Looking ahead to what
promises to be a pivotal sea-
son for men’s tennis, the de-
velopment of first year con-
tributors will be particularly
crucial in determining team
success. Michael Vergara ’23,
Jack Carroll ’23 and Bradley
will all fill specialized roles on
“I don’t actually know exactly
how they do it,” said Wiercinski.
“I don’t know if it’s guys that
watch the game and break it
down from a visual standpoint,
or whether there’s some sort of
algorithm that converts all of
the action into simple actions,
but it’s just a mountain of data
that allows us to look at the
game in a different way.”
Although he praised how the
data brought light to little issues
and highlighted the team’s in-
game trends, Wiercinski doesn’t
feel that InStat made him realize
any vital changes that needed to
the team, according to Patel.
“From a result standpoint,
[Bradley] has done well. But
the other two freshmen have
also won big matches … We’re
expecting a lot out of them,”
said Patel.
The expectations for this
year’s crop of first years stem
from the team’s emphasis
on improvement that comes
from every level of the team.
“Something we pride our-
selves on is we get bottom-up
and top-down pressure,” said
Patel. “You have the start-
ing guys always pushing the
guys who aren’t starting to
get better, but then the guys
who may not be starting [are]
always pushing … the starters
to improve and get better.”
The team will finish out
its fall season at the Wesleyan
Invitational this weekend.
be made.
“As a coach, you sort of rely
on your eyes and your gut, and
you say ‘this is what I think,’” he
said. “Having the specific statis-
tics to back up your gut feelings
of trends that continue to hap-
pen helps confirm a lot of my
own analysis of the game.”
Kelsey agreed with his coach,
in the sense that, although
InStat is a reliable resource, it
doesn’t immediately affect his
in-game mentality.
“I’m never in a game and
think, ‘oh, my InStat says I make
this pass too much, so I’m going
NCAA
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10
206 throughout the process,” said
Jennifer Dubow, the Executive
Director of the Southern Califor-
nia Intercollegiate Athletic Con-
ference (SCIAC), in an email to
the Orient. The SCIAC is a small
Division III athletic conference
in Southern California that re-
sembles the NESCAC in terms of
its organizational structure and
member composition.
Dubow expressed concern
with the NCAA’s suggestion
that it would exclude Califor-
nia schools that allow athletes
to profit from NIL from NCAA
championship competitions.
“We are concerned the bill
would allow California stu-
dent-athletes unrestricted name,
image and likeness (NIL) oppor-
tunities which could render teams
ineligible for NCAA competi-
tions,” wrote Dubow.
Like the NESCAC, the SCI-
AC is holding off on adopting
a formal position, according to
Dubow.
“SB 206 has an effective date
of January 1, 2023 and we are also
waiting for recommendations
from a working group the NCAA
formed this summer to examine
possible modifications to current
NCAA NIL rules,” wrote Dubow.
Friday, October 18, 2019
ANN BASU, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT
to look for this one instead,’”
Kelsey said. “In the moment
I just play, but it does help me
identify aspects of my game that
I want to improve upon.”
Going forward, programs
like InStat will become more
and more common within the
soccer community. Wiercinski
knows that Bates and Colby also
now use InStat, and he believes
it will only spread to more pro-
grams throughout the country.
However, whether the program
can translate individual im-
provements into wins is still to
be seen.
“That Working Group should
have a final report to the NCAA
Board of Governors at the end of
October. Each Division will then
make decisions if there are any
legislative changes that might
make sense in the area of name,
image and likeness.”
Bowdoin could be more di-
rectly affected by the controversy
if additional states or the federal
government adopt legislation
allowing college athletes to profit
from NIL. As of mid-October,
10 states including New York
and Pennsylvania have proposed
similar legislation, and federal
lawmakers have suggested that
Congress could consider the is-
sue.
As this law takes effect and
the NCAA is forced to recon-
sider its role in college sports,
Division III athletics—including
those at Bowdoin and the rest of
the NESCAC—could be faced
with significant budget cuts
to both championship events
and auxiliary development and
student-athlete experience pro-
grams. It will most likely take
years for these possible changes
to take effect, but we may be ap-
proaching a new age for college
athletics, and Bowdoin will cer-
tainly be a part of it.
Ian Ward contributed to this
report.
Friday, October 18, 2019 13

O OPINION
‘All that is great about Bowdoin’
Yesterday, the College’s Board of Trustees commenced the first of its
Letter to the Editor: Bowdoin’s
treasurer, Matt Orlando,
three meetings that will take place this year. Among the Board’s 40 mem-
bers is James “Jes” Staley ’79 P ’11 whose ties to disgraced financier Jeffrey
Epstein have landed him in the pages of newspapers nationwide.
Staley has a visible and influential position at Bowdoin. He headed the
search committee in 2015 that ultimately appointed Clayton Rose to be the
College’s 15th president. Staley served in the upper echelons of J.P. Morgan
for over 30 years and is currently the Chief Executive of Barclays.
While at J.P. Morgan, Staley worked closely with Epstein, the Wall Street
tycoon who was convicted of soliciting a minor in 2008 and charged in
responds to housekeepers
2019 with sex trafficking. Though Epstein committed suicide before the To the editor: entation for new housekeepers, which have dedicated staff—all of
case could proceed, allegations that he raped underage girls have continued all housekeeping employees are our facilities are on or close to cam-
to surface. An opinion piece by 12 of Bow- trained annually—both online and pus. Some housekeepers choose to
The New York Times reported that Staley visited Epstein not only during doin’s 54 housekeepers and the lead in a classroom setting—to deal with drive rather than to walk to Stowe
his prison sentence after the 2008 conviction but also on the private island editorial in the October 4 edition blood-borne pathogens, and they Inn and to Mayflower and Pine
where Epstein is believed to have committed some of the disturbing acts of of The Bowdoin Orient remind us receive periodic training from ex- Street apartments, but everything
which he was accused. When an internal review concluded that Epstein was that housekeepers do critical and perts in workplace safety (one such needed for their jobs is stored at
a liability to J.P. Morgan, the Times report found that it was Staley’s succes- challenging work at the College. session took place on Wednesday, those sites. When heavy equipment
sor, Mary Callahan Erdoes, who pushed to retain him as a client, and that But much of what is asserted in the October 16). is required, it is transported using
executives were under the impression that she was acting in Staley’s inter- paper is inaccurate or drawn from We know that housekeeping a College van. During a ten-day
ests. The bank dropped Epstein as a client shortly after Staley left in 2013. experiences that occurred years ago. jobs are physically demanding and mandatory overtime period in late
In short, Staley profited off of Epstein and pushed J.P. Morgan to retain Additionally, both pieces ignore the that repetitive motion injuries are May when Commencement and
Epstein as a client so that he could continue to reap the financial benefits substantial work that has been done common in the industry. At Bow- other campus events require addi-
of their relationship. or that is currently underway to en- doin, our safety scores significantly tional staffing, supplies and minor
During Staley’s visit to campus this past summer, President Rose, who sure that Bowdoin housekeepers are outperform industry averages each equipment are often moved between
worked alongside Staley at J.P. Morgan, introduced him prior to a panel appreciated, properly compensated, year because of the attention paid to buildings as necessary to complete
titled “Banking, Business, and Brexit.” and provided with a work environ- proper cleaning techniques. Light- the work in a compressed time-
“There are none that are better at their job and none that are better as ment that is open, fair and safe. weight microfiber mops, electric frame. Each housekeeper has access
human beings and role models than Jes is,” said Rose. “He represents all It is important to acknowledge at shower scrubbers and other ergo- to a pull cart purchased over the last
that is great about Bowdoin and the culture and the values here.” the outset that cleaning our facil- nomic equipment were added to couple of years to transport the sup-
We disagree. ities, restoring spaces after events housekeeper toolkits, and we know plies, but some still choose to drive.
We’re concerned about the character of those chosen to lead the College. and picking up after other people is from many housekeepers the dif-
When the college president cites an individual—who indisputably profited often tough and unpleasant work— ference these changes have made in ENGAGEMENT WITH
off of a sex offender—as a prime example of virtue, this community must here or anywhere. Our colleagues their work. SUPERVISORS AND WITH THE
question those who represent it and have control over its governance. who do this work day in and day out If there is ever an issue with air COLLEGE
At last Monday’s faculty meeting, Rose staunchly defended the trustees, deserve our respect, and we all need quality, the College immediately
Staley included, against the editorial comments made by Visiting Assistant to do what we can to reduce their hires consultants to conduct tests There has been a great deal done
Professor of German Andrew Hamilton, reprimanding Hamilton for his burden and to demonstrate our ap- and to mitigate any problem. When in recent months to improve the
questioning of a donor who had done so much in service of the College. preciation for their amazing work. occasional reports of lice surface in lines of communication between
Staley’s position as a trustee is an unmistakable statement of the confi- Saying thank you is important, the Children’s Center (a common housekeepers, their supervisors
dence that the College places in him—a trust that was reinforced when he but we also encourage employees problem brought into schools and and others at the College. This past
was selected to head the presidential search committee. to come forward when there are daycare facilities), housekeepers summer, I asked Mary Lou Kenne-
Staley’s professional choices indicate that his personal moral compass problems on the job, and we provide are notified of the nature of the dy—who has led Bowdoin’s highly
is no longer aligned with that of the Bowdoin community. We feel that he a variety of mechanisms for doing work-order before entering the regarded dining service for over 30
should no longer represent the College publicly or make internal decisions so. We want to know when working facility and basic protocols are fol- years—to spend the next year as an
in accordance with the College’s mission. conditions need to be addressed, lowed to perform the cleanup. internal management consultant
As it stands, we feel ashamed to have him on our Board. and absolutely no one is disciplined for the housekeeping department,
for speaking up. During the past two WORKLOAD AND WORK reporting directly to me. Mary Lou
This editorial represents the majority view of the Bowdoin Orient’s editorial board, which years, we have been listening care- SCHEDULES just completed individual meet-
is composed of Emily Cohen, Brianna Cunliffe, Alyce McFadden, Nina McKay, Danielle fully to the concerns and sugges- ings with each of our housekeepers
Quezada and Reuben Schafir. tions of our housekeeping staff and No employee at the College is ex- to hear directly from them about
we continue to take concrete steps in pected or required to complete more work assignments and conditions,
response. work assignments than can typically their work relationships with other
We have replied previously to be conducted in a regular work day, housekeepers, and their successes
inaccurate, misleading and exagger- and overtime is infrequently request- and challenges. Mary Lou will use
ated information published in the ed and rarely mandatory. Protocols the information she has gathered
ESTABLISHED 1871 Orient and elsewhere about Bow- are in place to reduce building clean- to recommend additional improve-
bowdoinorient.com orient@bowdoin.edu 6200 College Station Brunswick, ME 04011 doin’s housekeepers. The facts are ing services when staffing levels ments.
The Bowdoin Orient is a student-run weekly publication dedicated to providing news and information posted on the Bowdoin website. But are low. There were no vacancies in
relevant to the Bowdoin community. Editorially independent of the College and its administrators, some of the new claims published on housekeeping from November 2018 •
the Orient pursues such content freely and thoroughly, following professional journalistic standards in October 4—and the editorial by the to May 2019. Since May, there have
writing and reporting. The Orient is committed to serving as an open forum for thoughtful and diverse Orient staff—require an addition- been a total of three vacancies on the These are just some examples of
discussion and debate on issues of interest to the College community. al response. These new claims deal housekeeping staff: one retirement, what we are doing at the College to
specifically with issues of safety, one promotion to another depart- continually improve the workplace.
Editor in Chief Editor in Chief
training, workload and work sched- ment in August and one resignation We’ve made a lot of progress, and we
Emily Cohen Alyce McFadden ules, distance to work sites and en- in May. In what is a very tight labor will continue to listen and move for-
Digital Director Managing Editor News Editor gagement with supervisors and with market in Maine, two of these va- ward with the best interests of our
Steven Xu Maia Coleman the College. cancies have since been filled. With housekeepers and all employees in
Andrew Bastone
Anna Fauver Aura Carlson regard to the work schedule, many mind. It is also incumbent on each
Photo Editor Roither Gonzales SAFETY housekeepers have told us that they of us to pay attention to our own
Rohini Kurup Features Editor prefer an early morning start, and habits that add to the burdens of our
Ann Basu Emma Sorkin
Mindy Leder Nina McKay There is nothing more import- that changing to a later schedule housekeepers.
Ian Ward Sports Editor ant at Bowdoin than safety. The would not be welcome. We will continue to encourage
Layout Editor Dylan Sloan process for new housekeepers has Two years ago, the College’s all employees to speak up when
Executive Editor been restructured and requires ex- events and set-ups crew was re- there are problems, when they have
Emma Bezilla A&E Editor
Jaret Skonieczny Kate Lusignan tensive orientation within their first structured and supplemented with concerns, and when they have sug-
Eliana Miller Cole van Miltenburg two days of employment. Required additional staff. This crew—like our gestions for improving workplace
Ian Stewart
Opinion Editor training includes more than three housekeepers—does amazing work. conditions at the College.
Associate Editor Diego Lasarte
Data Desk Editor hours on dealing with blood-borne The result has been a dramatic re- Housekeeping can be challenging
Kathryn McGinnis pathogens and other hazardous ma- duction in requests for lightweight and unpleasant work and our col-
Gwen Davidson Lucie Nolden Page 2 Editor
Drew Macdonald Lily Randall terials and chemical safety, as well setup assistance from housekeepers leagues who do this work, like every
Lucy Ryan
George Grimbilas (asst.) Reuben Schafir as a full overview with a member of over the last two years. And house- employee at Bowdoin, deserve lead-
Nimra Siddiqui (asst.) Calendar Editor the Environmental Health and Safe- keepers are no longer called upon to ing wages and benefits, a safe and
Head Copy Editor Jane Godiner ty staff. The training also instructs move heavy furniture like they had respectful working environment
Head Illustrator Devin McKinney Senior News Reporter housekeepers on the protocol for been in the past. and our appreciation. Our commit-
Sara Caplan Nate DeMoranville reporting accidents and injuries. ment is to work every day to provide
Copy Editor Horace Wang Immediately following the two-day DISTANCE TO WORK SITES these things.
Social Media Manager Sebastian de Lasa orientation, new housekeepers per-
Ayub Tahlil Danielle Quezada Senior Sports Reporter form two weeks of job shadowing Those familiar with the Bowdoin Sincerely,
Sophie Friedman Emily Staten Ella Chaffin and receive on-the-job training in campus know that, with the excep-
The material contained herein is the property of The Bowdoin Orient and appears at the sole discretion of the the buildings where they are as- tion of the Schiller Coastal Studies Matt Orlando
editors. The editors reserve the right to edit all material. Other than in regard to the above editorial, the opinions signed. Center and the Bowdoin Scientific Senior Vice President for Finance
expressed in the Orient do not necessarily reflect the views of the editors. In addition to training and ori- Station on Kent Island—both of and Administration & Treasurer
14
Fighting for their right to clean up after you
by Nicole Feleo
Op-Ed Contributor
The people who work for Bow-
doin housekeeping deserve more
from Bowdoin, full stop. This is
not, and frankly has never been, a
controversial statement. It is not a
premise around which the terms
of discussion should be centered.
They deserve the right training,
equipment and certifications to
handle human blood and other
waste and infestations. They de-
serve to be compensated for using
personal vehicles to bring their
equipment around campus. They
deserve better wage increases if
they take on more responsibilities
and work for Bowdoin for a long
period of time.
But they also deserve more
from us, the students. Housekeep-
ers deserve better than to have
to clean up after students who
vomit in elevators, hallways and
public showers, leave mugs from
the dining hall in random corners
of buildings, pee where they are
not supposed to or move out of
dorm rooms buried in trash and
food waste. Whether we believe
such responsibilities are a part of
their written or implied duties, we
should nevertheless agree they are
an affront to human dignity. Such
behaviors are glaringly contrary to
how we think of ourselves in the
daytime, in our classrooms and on
our resumes.
I will, of course, admit to leav-
ing rooms imperfect and that I
didn’t exactly spend my time at
Bowdoin policing the campus on
Taking classes Credit/D/Fail is not academic cowardice
by Benjamin Bousquet
Op-Ed Contributor
Reading the October 4 opin-
ion article “Pass/failing is an act
of academic cowardice” brought
me back to what was defini-
tively my hardest semester here
at Bowdoin, sophomore fall. I
was balancing a ton of different
things that semester, just like so
many other Bowdoin students.
I was working three jobs on
campus, acting as programming
chair in my college house, per-
forming in a musical ensemble,
trying to enjoy my sophomore
year and figuring out what ex-
actly I wanted to do with the rest
of my life. I also decided to take
Multivariate Calculus. While I
was pretty sure I didn’t want to
major or minor in math, I was
still interested in it. The class
proved to be really challenging
for me, so after I was unsure how
the first quiz went, I told myself
that if I got an 80 or higher, I
understood the material well
enough and would be fine.
I got a 52.
From this, it was clear to me
that no matter how much work
I put into this class—and as my
friends, my peers in the class and
my professor can all attest I was
putting in a ton of work—there
was a chance that I would totally
bomb out. For me, this was the
first class I had encountered like
this. It was a great experience
in life, but did not solve my re-
al-world problem: that I wanted
to take the class, but knew at
behalf of cleanliness. I didn’t nag
my roommates to clear out their
trash at the end of the year when
moving out. Like many of us, I’ve
often wished to do more for our
housekeepers and other support
staff but failed to do so. But this
isn’t a question of moral purity,
and we shouldn’t judge the value
of a message based on the behav-
ior of the messenger. Still, I have
never defecated in a hallway nor
broken glass and dangerously left
it for someone else to step on. This
that point that if I didn’t change
something, my semester would
be miserable. I don’t just mean in
terms of my grade in that class—
while it would have sucked to
do badly it wouldn’t have been
the end of the world—but in
regards to everything else I was
doing. So many people I know
emphasize how Bowdoin can
be a juggling act. Sports, class,
music, clubs, social life, sleep—
there’s a give and take that
everyone has to learn to
deal with. For me,
I might have been
able to do alright
in the class if I
dropped every-
thing else I was
doing that se-
mester, but the
liberal arts ex-
perience is about
so much more
than Multivari-
ate Calculus.
So in the end,
I took the class
Credit/D/Fail.
The Op-Ed’s
author, Ella
Crabtree ’22,
seems to assert
that this is an
act of “academic
cowardice,” that in
doing this I would be
slacking off and not putting
in the work I need to get an A.
I agree with her that academic
engagement is vital, but I have
a drastically different opinion
on how Credit/D/Fail affects
OPINION
happens far too often to be ex-
cused on campus. Once is too of-
ten to be excused on our campus.
Some of the behaviors we can
change are basic: think about how
you affect spaces on campus be-
fore you leave. Students create the
majority of work for housekeep-
ers, sometimes out of necessity,
but often through negligence and
laziness. Take a few minutes to
clean up before leaving a room.
Properly dispose of trash, food
waste or bodily fluids. It can make
engagement. I didn’t see any data
supporting her points, and while
I also don’t personally know the
statistics, I have gone through
the Credit/D/Fail process and
know it was not an easy decision.
She argues that “rather than put-
ting in the serious work required
to get A’s in demanding courses,
students evade much of the re-
vising, rewriting, quizzing
a substantial difference in our
housekeepers’ long days or nights.
What we can convince the College
they ought to do remains to be
seen, but each of us today can do
little things to reduce the extent
of their work, especially the most
unpleasant tasks. Greeting Connie
in Thorne or chatting with Bow-
doin Security while drunk isn’t the
same thing as treating Bowdoin
staff well. Taking care of the spaces
on campus that the housekeepers
are in charge of cleaning is within
and serious studying they would
otherwise engage with.” From
my personal experience I can tell
you that sometimes, no matter
how much work you put into
a class, it doesn’t always equal
an A. I was meeting with my
peers multiple times every week,
working with
my profes-
sor in
office
LILY FULLAM
our control, and keeping it clean is
something everyone can do.
I respect the work current
Bowdoin students have done to
bring the issues of wages and Bow-
doin human resources to light, but
I do not believe this should be left
out of the conversation. Nor do
I think that questioning our be-
havior and norms is incompatible
with or detrimental to the cause of
justice for housekeepers. Indeed, if
we demand that Bowdoin College
treat its workers with the digni-
hours, making separate appoint-
ments after class and going to the
class’s drop-in hours even after I
chose to take the class Credit/D/
Fail. Even if more work would
have gifted me an A what was I
supposed to do to find the time?
Quit one of the jobs I needed
to make sure I could support
myself and buy books and oth-
er essentials in college? Drop
concert band, which has always
been such an important
break for me? Shirk the
responsibilities of be-
ing a programming
chair? On top of
this, her comments
about taking “easy
A” classes Cred-
it/D/Fail makes no
sense. People take
these classes be-
cause, as Crab-
tree asserts,
they are an
“easy A.”
People tak-
ing classes
they view
as easy A’s, as
right or wrong
as they might be
about the class in
the first place, take
it for the GPA boost.
This seems to be
much more in line with
the problem of “academic
cowardice” that she talks about,
even though she does not men-
tion having any problems with
this (and even then, I wouldn’t
ever want to call any of my peers
Friday, October 18, 2019
ty they deserve, it only follows
that we should concurrently call
upon each other to do the same.
Students must be accountable for
the damage they inflict and the
work they create, not just during
Ivies or on weekends, but any day
throughout the year. And we do
that by policing ourselves.
Otherwise, we’re merely fight-
ing for the right of housekeeping
to clean up after us.
Nicole Feleo is a member of the
Class of 2018.
SARA CAPLAN
academic cowards).
And let me be clear, this isn’t
just my problem. Just the oth-
er day, I was talking to a friend
who was thinking of taking a
class Credit/D/Fail for the same
reasons I did. She was interested
in the subject but found some of
the units difficult, no matter the
work she put into the class.
To challenge herself to learn
new things but to do it without
the stress of a grade, I recom-
mended that she take the class
Credit/D/Fail. Ella, before you
try and tell me that this is a cop
-out and a way to preserve my
ego, please walk a mile in my
shoes. Please understand your
privilege and know that taking
a class Credit/D/Fail out of la-
ziness is the exception, not the
rule, and that it is necessary for
those who can’t afford—in some
cases literally—to devote their
lives to a class that they’re sim-
ply curious about. Know that
your peers are as academically
engaged as I’m sure you are, and
as a rule, they do not try and take
the “easy” way out.
All I ask in the end is that
you show a little bit of respect
to the academic community,
and before you decide to de-
mean the entire student body
and demand that “out of respect
for themselves” they don’t take
classes Credit/D/Fail, I hope that
you can come to understand the
complex reasons people choose
this option.
Benjamin Bosquet is a mem-
ber of the Class of 2020.
Friday, October 18, 2019 OPINION 15

The hard truth behind equal pay and women’s soccer

by Jared Cole
Op-Ed Contributor
This past summer, the
U.S. women’s national soccer
team (USWNT) won the 2019
Women’s World Cup, its sec-
ond consecutive World Cup ti-
tle. After shredding Japan 5-2
in the 2015 Women’s World
Cup final, USWNT comfort-
ably defeated the Netherlands
2-0 in 2019. In comparison,
the U.S. men’s national team
has had nowhere near as much
success. In recent years, its
greatest achievements were a
Gold Cup victory back in 2017
and a fourth-place finish in
Copa America the previous
year. And in regards to the
2018 Men’s World Cup, the
men’s team didn’t even quali-
fy. The glaring success of the
women’s team over the men’s
has had many progressives, in-
cluding USWNT stars Megan
Rapinoe and Alex Morgan, de-
manding that the United States
Soccer Federation (USSF) and
the Fédération Internatio-
nale de Football Association
(FIFA) pay them as much, if
not more than, the players on
the men’s team.
I can definitely understand
the argument of the women’s
team in regards to equal pay
from USSF. In terms of U.S.
viewership for the 2018 Men’s
World Cup final and the 2019
Women’s World Cup final, the
former drew in 11.4 million
viewers compared to the lat-
ter’s 14.3 million. However,
these numbers are a bit de-
ceptive. As I stated before, the
men’s team did not qualify for
the tournament, nevermind
reach the final. While soccer is
certainly not unpopular in the
U.S., it still falls behind foot-
ball, baseball, basketball and
hockey. Considering the men’s
team did not even participate
in the 2018 World Cup, it is
tough to imagine that many
U.S. viewers would have tuned
in to watch unless they were
true fans of the sport. Con-
versely, U.S. viewers who were
hardly soccer fans likely still
watched the 2019 Women’s
World Cup final just to be “pa-
triotic.” To push a little further,
what if the women’s team did
not advance to the final? How
many U.S. viewers still would
have tuned into the Women’s
World Cup final?
Granted, the women’s team
still did demonstrate just how
significant they are to Ameri-
can culture commercially by
pulling in 14.3 million views,
so for that reason alone, they
should be earning just as
much—if not more—than the
men’s team from USSF. Yet
when it comes to pay from
FIFA, that is a much murki-
er argument that ultimately
reveals the underlying truths
behind the pay gap between
men’s and women’s soccer.
In regards to the 2019
Women’s World Cup, the prize
money the women’s team
pocketed for winning the final
was $4 million, which is quite
meager compared to the $38
million awarded to the French
men’s team for winning the
2018 Men’s World Cup final.
Yet, this disparity in prize
money is hardly surprising
KYRA TAN
when you think about the
global viewership of each as
well as the level of play.
Looking back at the 2015
Women’s World Cup, the tour-
nament brought in a total of
764 million viewers, whereas
the 2018 Men’s World Cup
garnered 3.6 billion viewers.
Again, this is hardly surpris-
ing given that men’s soccer is
the most popular sport in the
world and women’s soccer is
still growing and developing
globally. Nevertheless, viewer-
ship for the 2018 Men’s World
Cup netted FIFA over $6 bil-
lion in profit, so for that rea-
son alone, I think the disparity
in prize money is understand-
able.
In terms of the level of play
itself, as someone who grew up
watching and playing soccer,
the differences between men’s
and women’s soccer are quite
glaring. And if you watched
both the 2018 World Cup and
the 2019 Women’s World Cup,
then it is likely that you also
saw those differences. From a
skills standpoint, I would ar-
gue that the women’s team is
just as skilled as a top Major
League Soccer MLS team. Yet
from a physicality standpoint,
a top MLS team is bigger,
faster and stronger, because
that’s simply the way humans
were built. And in regards to
the World Cup itself, there are
really only a few teams that
match the skill and physical
prowess of the women’s team,
whereas the men’s World
Cup has eight or nine teams
that are equal in skill, all of
which are European or South
American. This is a big part
of why the men’s World Cup
is much more popular. It is
simply much more competi-
tive. There were a handful of
women’s World Cup games
that I watched that did not
include the U.S., and most of
them were tough to watch for
someone who is accustomed
to watching European soc-
cer. Not only were the games
less entertaining because the
play was much slower, but
the players themselves simply
lacked the skill and flair that
make the sport so exciting to
watch. The harsh reality is that
until women’s soccer is more
developed across the world,
male players are going to be
paid much more. Viewership
is everything, and until the
women’s World Cup is as pop-
ular as the men’s, the pay will
reflect that.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR QUESTION OF THE WEEK

Defenders of Wildlife DO YOU ENDORSE THE BSG MOTION IN

speak out on HR1146
To the Editor,
I’m a Bowdoin junior and member of the
new campus chapter of Defenders of Wildlife.
Our current focus is on preventing the exploita-
tion of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge from
drilling by oil and gas companies. Not only is
the Refuge home to incredible biodiversity—
scientists call it the “Serengeti of the Arctic”—
it’s the homeland of Indigenous peoples, such
as the Gwich’in Nation, who have spoken out
in clear opposition of drilling initiatives. I’ve
been extremely disappointed by the extensive
rollbacks of environmental protection policies
SUPPORT OF HOUSEKEEPERS?
Answer at bowdoinorient.com/poll.
under our current administration and there are
serious biological, cultural and climate-related
consequences to proceeding with drilling in
the Refuge. I’m encouraged by the leadership of
Maine representatives Jared Golden and Chellie
Last issue’s response:
ARE YOU PROUD TO BE A BOWDOIN
Pingree in voting to pass HR1146 in the House
of Representatives. I hope you will join us in pri-
oritizing the interests of people and ecosystems
over those of corporations by joining Defenders
and putting pressure on companies like Exxon,
STUDENT?
Chevron, ConocoPhillips and Hilcorps not to
bid on oil and gas leases in the Refuge. 81% YES
Audrey Reuman ’21 19% NO Based on answers from 304 responses.

HAVE AN OPINION?
Submit an Op-Ed or a Letter to the Editor to
orientopinion@bowdoin.edu by 7 p.m. on the Tuesday
of the week of publication. Include your full name and
phone number.
16
FRIDAY 18
EVENT
An Evening of Comedy with Patti Vasquez
Comedian Patti Vasquez, who has collaborated with
personalities such as Sarah Silverman, John Mulaney and
Kevin Hart, will put on an evening standup show.
Kresge Auditorium. 7 p.m.
LECTURE
“The Problem of Desire: Self-
Consciousness and Self-Narration in
Late Tolstoy”
Victoria Juharyan, assistant professor of Russian at
Middlebury, will give a lecture on Tolstoy’s portrayal of love,
sex and desire in a cognitive and philosophical context.
Beam Classroom, Visual Arts Center. 1:30 p.m.
PERFORMANCE
Ear Bus with Tracy McMullen
Tracy McMullen, chair of the music department, along with
fellow ensemble members Tony Gaboury, Mike Effenberger,
Tyler Heydolph and Andrew Roseman will play improvised
and composed music spanning a large variety of genres,
including jazz, funk and experimental.
Kanbar Auditorium, Studzinski Recital Hall. 7:30 p.m.
SATURDAY 19
EVENT
“Come Inside” Sukkot Celebration
Hillel will hold a Jewish harvest festival open to all
members of the Bowdoin community. There will be food
and music, as well as the opportunity to learn about
housing and homelessness in Brunswick from Tedford
Housing, The Gathering Place and Homeless Resources
for Youth.
Dudley Coe Quad. 4 p.m.
SUNDAY 20
EVENT
Betsy Sweet Town Hall
Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate Betsy Sweet will hold a
question and answer session for Bowdoin students.
Main Lounge, Moulton Union. 1 p.m.
EVENT
Vinyasa Yoga
Marie Caspard ’20 will lead a Vinyasa yoga session.
Room 301, Peter Buck Fitness Center. 3 p.m.
25 EVENT 26 EVENT
Family Weekend Family Weekend
Friday, October 18, 2019
OCTOBER
ANN BASU, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT
UNDER CONSTRUCTION: Bowdoin Hillel builds a sukkah to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. The final structure will be topped with
branches and decorated for the Jewish autumnal festival.
MONDAY 21 WEDNESDAY 23
LECTURE EVENT
“Disability Everywhere: Writing the 2019 Summer Art Grant Exhibition and
Body Different at Home and Abroad” Pecha Kucha
Writer Kenny Fries will discuss how he integrates his Student recipients of the 2019 McKee Photography Grant
personal experiences into larger historical, social and cultural
narratives of disability. His forthcoming book, “Stumbling
Over History: Disability and the Holocaust,” is the first
and Kaempfer Summer Art Grant will display their work.
Each artist will give a Pecha Kucha-style presentation—20
slides, displayed for 20 seconds each. Refreshments will be
full-length book in English about Aktion T4, the Nazi regime served after the presentations.
that killed disabled people, and its significance today. Peter and Rosanne Aresty Digital Media Lab, Edwards
Kresge Auditorium. 7 p.m. Center for Art and Dance. 7 p.m.
LECTURE
Bowdoin Book Lecture: “A Mercy”
Morten Hansen, assistant professor of English, will examine the
Toni Morrison novel “A Mercy,” which tells the story of formerly
enslaved Florens and her experience in the 17th century
colonies that would become the United States.
Nixon Lounge, Hawthorne-Longfellow Library. 4 p.m.
THURSDAY 24
EVENT
Biology Seminar: Thomas Wessels
Thomas Wessels, terrestrial ecologist, author and professor
emeritus at Antioch University New England, will discuss
how self-organization, co-evolution and the specialization
TUESDAY 22 of species over time has contributed to the biodiversity in
today’s ecosystems. There will be a short reception before
the seminar.
GALLERY TALK Lantern, Roux Center for the Environment. 4 p.m.
Contemporary Art and the Reframing
of History EVENT
Museum Co-Director Anne Goodyear will discuss the Pub Trivia
complex and painful history of enslavement, migration and Student Activities will hold a trivia night and award prizes to
political revolution through the lens of art. the top three teams.
Museum of Art. 12 p.m. Jack Magee’s Pub and Grill. 8:30 p.m.
27 EVENT 28 29 LECTURE 30 31
Family Weekend The Woman’s
Hour