http://www.thebatesstudent.com/

The Bates Student, Lewiston, ME (2024)

09/26/2024

What do you think of your dorm at Bates?

We asked that question of each other at last week’s meeting of The Bates Student. People had plenty to say about it—some people wished their dorms had air conditioning. Some wanted larger common areas or better-stocked kitchens. None of those complaints shocked me. I was, however, surprised and saddened to hear several negative comments on Bates’s all-gender restrooms.

I’ll be candid: I am not necessarily trying to change anybody’s opinion with this article. I simply want to encourage you to think critically about why all-gender restrooms exist. I believe that the majority of issues people have with them are rooted in ignorance rather than genuine concern. For example, the vocal complainers were students who lived on floors with all-gender restrooms. If they opted to use a single-gender restroom instead, they had to visit a different floor.

To continue reading, visit the link in our bio.

✏️ : Paul Schmitz ‘28
📸 : Hadley Blodgett ‘26

09/26/2024

Bates is our home away from home, and so, we delved into the culinary scene to find a comforting cup of joe. After hours of studying our respective psychology and English, we needed a break. Coming from Brookline, Mass. and Rochester, N.Y.; Lewiston was completely new to us. Coffee shops had always been a reliable study spot back home, so we decided to look for one around campus.

We forgot to check the hours for Bates’ beloved coffee shop, Le Ronj. In desperate need of a drink, we borrowed bikes from the library and pedaled into Lewiston. If you are interested in renting a bike, the Ladd Library offers the Green Bike Program, where you can check out a bike as easily as you would a book. It was 80 degrees out, a far cry from what we had expected when coming to Maine. In our hunt for coffee, we ended up with a mismatched lock and key for our bikes. Securing both with the one lock, we walked down the scorching sidewalk, looking for a place to sit. Forage and Blue Jay Coffee were closed, leading us to look elsewhere on Google Maps, where we discovered Obscura. While Le Ronj and Forage are well-known as Bates student hot spots, Obscura was a new name to us.

To continue reading, visit the link in our bio.

✏️ : Hazel Glazer ‘28
✏️ : Frances Hochleutner ‘28

09/26/2024

A couple of my friends have a hard time balancing their diets (getting pretty much anything green / vegetable on their plate). I’ve brought it up with them a lot, suggesting they come to the salad or vegan bar with me but they insist they’re fine. What can I do?

Dear Concerned Consumer,

While this is a question from late last year, I still find it to be an important one to address and discuss, because this is a sentiment I find is quite common. While I take your query to be in good conscience, I want to advise caution in this dilemma. I do want to give a more thoughtful response, as I said, I believe your concern is from a genuine place of compassion and care for your friend, and I want to honor that. So, I will give my thoughts, then a little bit of the reasoning behind it and hopefully it will give you a clearer direction about how to approach this.

When we go about commenting on someone’s life, food or otherwise, I think the best approach is always starting from the place of an observation, not a judgment. If you are going to broach this conversation at all, I’d recommend starting with something like “I noticed that…” or “Do you usually…”

To continue reading, visit the link in our bio.

✏️ : Anonymous

09/26/2024

Across campus, Bates students gathered for the Sept. 10 presidential debate. In one room, packed with over 100 students, the Politics Department hosted a lively watch party that showcased the wide range of reactions students had to the various verbal jabs thrown by each opponent.

The event started with comments from John Baughman, professor of politics, who suggested that this debate might bear more weight on voting than previous debates because it was further away from Election Day than usual. He noted that because this election is close, the influence could be higher. He finished by reminding students that debates are a show of strength and confidence for each party, referencing how, after mounting pressure, President Joe Biden dropped out of the race after his widely criticized debate performance in June.

To continue reading, visit the link in our bio.

✏️ : Ella Beiser ‘25
✏️ : Gabriela Ruberto

09/26/2024

Bates Women’s Volleyball won (3-0) against the Amherst Mammoths with a convincing NESCAC opener on Friday, Sept. 20. Amherst entered the evening with a so-far undefeated season. This historic win marked only the 4th victory in Bates’ recorded history against Amherst, the last win being in 2003.

All of the sets were brimmed with high spirits and loud cheers. The bleachers vibrated with resounding excitement from the crowd full of students, faculty and surrounding community members. Many times, the nervous silence was more deafening than their cheers, the audience held their breath with anticipation as the ball soared into the rafters, hitting the ceiling and ricocheting uncontrollably back down to the court.

To continue reading, visit the link in our bio.

✏️ : Hadley Blodgett ‘26
✏️ : Quinn Hughes ‘26
📸 : Erwin Kardatzke ‘28

05/26/2024

NEWS | Blind Tiger and similar anonymous social media apps have been blocked from Bates-provided Wi-Fi networks, according to a May 20 email from President Garry Jenkins to students, faculty and staff. They will still be accessible on other networks and cellular data.

The apps, which allow students from the same school to converse anonymously on localized message boards, are common but controversial at Bates. While some students praised the apps’ ability to create space for uncomfortable conversations and spread information, others thought the apps incentivized hateful and cruel behavior that damaged a sense of community.

In particular, Jenkins condemned “cowardly antisemitic, anti-Arab, misogynistic, and racist” posts on the app that he said “pollute” campus culture.

Read more about the block and community responses at the link in our bio.

✏️: Maple Buescher ‘25 & Hannah Kothari ‘26

05/16/2024

Calls like “Free, Free Palestine,” “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” and “End the killing, stop war crimes, get Israel out of Palestine” echoed from Hathorn Hall to Maine Representative Jared Golden’s residence as Bates students, faculty and community members protested in solidarity with Palestinians suffering in Rafah on May 12.

In Rafah, Gaza’s southernmost city, tens of thousands of Palestinians are seeking refuge after the Israeli military bombarded the city and seized a nearby border crossing into Egypt. This seizure has limited aid coming into Gaza, resulting in large-scale hunger, mass evacuations and health crises.

This Mother’s Day, the Bates chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) organized a “Rally for Rafah,” meant to bring awareness to the recent unrest in the Gazan city and to be in community and solidarity with Palestinians, according to SJP Secretary Poppy Marsh ‘26.

To continue reading, visit the link in our bio.

✏️: Trinity P**n ‘26
📸: Carly Philpott ‘27

05/14/2024

The much-anticipated SPUDENT is live! The 2024 edition of The Bates Student spoof paper is ready to be read both online and in print.

To read the best scoop of the year online, visit the link in our bio.

04/30/2024

In a letter sent to The Student on Apr. 23, Dean of the Faculty Malcolm Hill shared findings from his team’s ongoing investigation of the allegations of inequitable conduct and financial mismanagement against Director of Debate (DoD) Sammi Rippetoe.

Hill’s most recent letter claims that allegations of financial mismanagement are unsubstantiated. “I have found no evidence of any financial impropriety on the part of Professor Rippetoe,” he wrote. He added that the attendance of the additional faculty member was pre-approved and was “an appropriate step to assist Professor Rippetoe in fulfilling her responsibilities to the debate team.”

Hill’s letter did not address the allegedly excessive length of the Oxford trip.

Additionally, Hill indicated that Professor Rippetoe has continued her role as both a visiting assistant professor of Rhetoric, Film & Screen Studies (RFSS) and as director of debate, indicating that she will return to Bates in the winter of 2025 following her parental leave. “Additional coaching support for BQDC will be provided in the fall of 2024,” Hill added.

To continue reading, visit the link in our bio.

✏️ : Trinity P**n ‘26
📸 : Charlie Gainey ‘24

04/30/2024

Interested in working for the Bates Student next academic year? Apply for one (or more) of these positions on Handshake.

- Managing News Editor
- Assistant News Editor
- Managing Sports Editor
- Assistant Sports Editor
- Managing Arts Editor
- Assistant Arts Editor
- Managing Features Editor
- Assistant Features Editor
- Managing Forum Editor
- Assistant Forum Editor
- Digital Editor
- Social Media Editor
- Copy Editor
- Managing Photography Editor
- Managing Indesign Editor
- Graphic Designer

02/19/2023

| Comment below what you’d caption this comic by Colin Thoman ‘24 for a chance to win a Forage Market gift card!

02/16/2023

A&L | When my friend told me that there was going to be a guest chef visiting Bates, my ears immediately perked up. As I exited Commons with them, I was greeted by a sign and subsequently, enthusiastically marked the events in my planner.

Link in bio to continue reading.

✏️ Leah Belber ’26
📸 Katherine Merisotis / The Bates Student

02/16/2023

NEWS | Neuroscience majors in the class of 2024 will not be able to complete a thesis during their senior year at Bates, according to an email sent to current majors in the class of 2024 from Chair of the Neuroscience Program Jason Castro on Jan. 20

Link in bio to continue reading.

✏️ Maple Buescher ’25

📸 Katherine Merisotis / The Bates Student

02/04/2023

FEATURES | This year, 284 students are participating in the Purposeful Work Job Shadow Program, an “exploration focused program that allows students to explore different career paths by shadowing alumni or parent volunteers,” as Senior Associate Director for Exploration Amy Jaffe explains. Currently, there are shadows in 36 different states, with 42 shadows taking place in Maine.

Last October, 688 students applied, and in November, applications were reviewed and 495 students were matched with sponsors, bringing the number of participants back to pre-COVID-19 years, according to Jaffe.

Link in bio to continue reading.

✏️ Nora Fox ‘25
📸 Vanessa Paolella ‘21

02/02/2023

SPORTS | With an eye-popping 44-point performance against Tufts on Jan. 21, senior Meghan Graff became the program’s all-time leading scorer, breaking Emily King’s 23-year-standing record of 1,478 points in the process. However, despite this plaque-deserving achievement to go along with numerous other accolades, Graff would prefer to shift the focus to the teammates, coaches and program who have helped shape her as a player.

“I feel like other people think it’s cooler than I do,” she said. “But it’s still pretty exciting. And I think it’s just like a nice time to have a perspective of appreciating being a part of such a great program.”

Link in bio to continue reading.

✏️ Nichol Weylman-Farwell ‘24
📸 Katherine Merisotis / The Bates Student

01/31/2023

BREAKING NEWS | Six vehicles were vandalized while parked behind the Village complex last Saturday night. Included in damaged vehicles was the Bates College Emergency Medical Services (EMS) vehicle. As of now, no one has come forward with information regarding these crimes, but Bates Campus Safety and the Lewiston Police Department (LPD) are investigating the events. There is no security footage available that would help identify a perpetrator.

Swipe for more photos. Link in bio to continue reading.

✏️ Fiona Cohen ‘23
📸 Katherine Merisotis / The Bates Student

01/28/2023

FEATURES | It’s 8:00 p.m. on a Monday night, and I’m sitting on a little ledge in the library staircase right next to the third floor entrance. That’s when the rumbling starts. Cheers arise, and I think, ‘That’s odd, this is a quiet floor and it’s finals week.’ As soon as I swing my legs off the ledge to investigate, I am face to face with several naked bodies.

It’s my first year at college, and I’m barely a couple months in, trying to have a mellow night and email a professor. Instead, I’m curled against the wall, panic laughing, listening to the thuds of bare feet on the concrete stairs and trying not to make eye contact with any naked people.

Link in bio to continue reading.

✏️ Catalina Passino ‘26
📸 Savannah Walske / The Bates Student

01/28/2023

FEATURES | It’s 8:00 p.m. on a Monday night, and I’m sitting on a little ledge in the library staircase right next to the third floor entrance. That’s when the rumbling starts. Cheers arise, and I think, ‘That’s odd, this is a quiet floor and it’s finals week.’ As soon as I swing my legs off the ledge to investigate, I am face to face with several naked bodies.

Link in bio to continue reading.

✏️ Catalina Passino ‘26
📸 Savannah Walske / The Bates Student

01/26/2023

NEWS | In a letter to faculty and staff earlier this month, Vice President for Finance and Administration and Treasurer Geoff Swift announced that the college has asked senior staff to reduce their programmatic budgets by five percent across the board next year.

Though he assured employees that the college is “stronger than ever,” he cited a changing economic environment as the reason that departments need to be more frugal. Since the 2020 fiscal year, Bates’ operating costs have grown by $15 million, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Link in bio to continue reading.

✏️ Ellie Wolfe ’23
📸 Katherine Merisotis / The Bates Student

01/22/2023

MLK Day 2023 | The last few years of my life have been marked by healing, growth, and love. But like for many of you they’ve also been filled with violence, death, and the burning question of when will my life, Black Lives, truly Matter? With this in mind I want to lead us through a moment of remembrance, guiding us all to reach into ourselves and reflect on the loss that has filled our community throughout the years, and the grief that often feels anything but beautiful.

Link in bio to continue reading.

✏️ Sam Jean-Francois ‘23

01/19/2023

MLK Day 2023 | On MLK day, there were two workshops hosted by Bates’ Center for Inclusive Teaching and Learning on equity in grading. The first workshop, “Mythbusting Grading for Equity,” was hosted by Director of the Center for Inclusive Teaching and Learning Lindsey Hamilton ’05, Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies Tyler Harper and Wagener Family Professor of Equity and Inclusion in STEM April Hill.

Link in bio to continue reading.

✏️ Christina Leonard ‘23 & Ferzan Coskun ‘26
📸 Christina Leonard / The Bates Student

01/15/2023

A new semester means a new opportunity to get involved with The Student! See you TONIGHT 🗞️❤️

11/16/2022

NEWS | On Oct. 24, Bates students met at the Multifaith Chaplaincy to discuss steps that could be taken to ensure that accessible and gender neutral bathrooms would be widely provided on campus. There is only one academic building on campus that doesn’t have a single-occupancy, gender neutral restroom: Pettengill Hall. Disabled students have not been provided with the facilities necessary to feel comfortable, too.

Link in bio to continue reading.

✏️: Fiona Cohen ’23
📸: Charlie Gainey / The Bates Student

11/10/2022

FORUM | Bates’ proposal to secure five tenure-track positions, anchoring a program on climate and environment is a bold step forward. But, Bates will stumble if it overlooks the fundamentals of Geology—the foundation of geosciences—that Bates has provided for decades.

It may be, as Vice President and Dean Malcolm Hill, imagines, “kind of a ‘if you build it, they will come’ scenario.” However, what is certain is that Bates Geology (today called Dept. of Earth and Climate Sciences) has been “building it” and “they have been coming” to it for well over the last 35 years. Take for example, some of the work of recently retired Bates Geology Professor Mike Retelle – whose position, as of now, has been discontinued.

Link in bio to continue reading.

✏️: Dr. Wesley Farnsworth ‘11
📸: Katherine Merisotis ‘23

11/09/2022

NEWS | Election day took place across the country yesterday, with several important elections in the state of Maine. Local races trended blue, with the hotly contested congressional competition still too close to call. Three Bates affiliates won their regional races: State Senator Peggy R. Rotundo, State Representative in the 94th district Kristen Cloutier and State Representative for the 95th District Mana Abdi.

Link in bio to continue reading.

✏️: Ella Beiser ‘25 and Ellie Wolfe ‘23
📸: Katherine Merisotis ‘23

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