Several hundred Bates students braved extreme cold to leap into Lake Andrews on Jan. 18, continuing the annual tradition of the Puddle Jump. With commentary by Ellie van Gemeren ’13, co-president of the Bates Outing Club. Produced by Mike Bradley.

Even the fusilli figurine, fondly known as the E-room troll.

On the evening of Jan. 9, Bates Outing Club moved their longtime headquarters (and stuff therein) from Alumni Gym, across the Library Quad and into newly renovated space in Chase Hall. In true can-do BOC spirit, they chose to execute the move mostly themselves.

The BOC, whose basement space in Alumni Gym had been the club’s meeting room since 1929, will have its equipment room, now in Hathorn Hall, also move into Chase Hall in the coming months.

Chase, formerly dominated by the campus dining Commons, which in 2008 moved into a Sasaki-designed building of its own, has recently been renovated to better accommodate student-life programs.

Below is a time-lapse video of the BOC move below and a gallery of images, both by Mike Bradley of the Bates Communications Office.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

• a panel on “The Intersecting Identities of the Rev. Peter J. Gomes: Navigating Race, Religion, Sexuality and Politics”

• a 31-6 Bates football victory over Colby

• Campus-wide concert featuring Universal Republic recording artist Dev

• an alumni photo gallery and reception

• an alumni recognition reception

• Schaeffer Theatre’s Bates Performance in Action

Singer Francine Reed, a rhythm and blues singer whose 2011 performance wowed a Bates audience, returns to the college for a performance at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 13, at the Olin Concert Hall at Bates College, 75 Russell St.

Seating is by reservation. Advance tickets cost $15 for the general public and $10 for seniors and students, rising to $20 and $10 on the day of the show. Buy tickets at www.batestickets.com.

The performance is jointly presented by L/A Arts and the Olin Arts Alive concert series. For more information, contact 207-786-6135 or olinarts@bates.edu.

Although Reed did not receive national recognition until she began recording with Lyle Lovett in 1985, she has always been a singer, first performing with her family gospel choir at age 5.

Reed began singing professionally in the 1980s, picking up gigs in jazz clubs and functions in Phoenix, Ariz. She became known for her powerful voice and commanding stage presence, offering an eclectic blend of jazz, blues and R&B. She was asked to open shows for such names as Miles Davis, Etta James, Smokey Robinson and the Crusaders.

In 1985, friends introduced Reed to Lovett, who was searching for a female singer for his new band. Lovett was still a struggling performer when they met, but as his star rose, Reed became an integral part of his show.

Reed toured with Lovett and his Large Band as a background vocalist, but also performed duets with the country musician. She was featured on several Lovett albums and sang with him on such television shows as Late Night with David Letterman, The Tonight Show and Regis and Kathy Lee.

After moving to Atlanta, Ga., she recorded her debut solo album, I Want You to Love Me (Ichican International, 1990), which featured a duet with Lovett. The follow-up, Can’t Make It on My Own (Ichiban Old Emd, 1996) included a duet with Delbert McClinton. The success of these early works resulted in nominations for the prestigious W.C. Handy Award (Blues Song of the Year and Soul/Blues-Female Artist of the Year, 1997).

Reed performed on Willie Nelson’s acclaimed 2000 album Milk Cow Blues, lending her talent to the title track as well as to Nelson’s countrypolitan classic “Funny How Time Slips Away.” In recent years Reed has appeared as the “Chanteuse” for the avant-garde theater Teatro ZinZanni in San Francisco.

Return to the main story.

Each year, graduating seniors attend Baccalaureate, an opportunity for reflection and festivity sponsored by the Multifaith Chaplaincy. With guidance from Multifaith Chaplains Bill Blaine-Wallace and Emily Wright-Magoon, senior students plan and lead this unique and joyful celebration on the eve of Commencement. The 2012 student planning committee chose “forever forming, transforming” as the theme for this year’s service. In this presentation, recorded at Baccalaureate, several seniors and parents reflect on the service and a Bates education.

Audio and production by Rob Rosenthal. Photography by Phyllis Graber Jensen.

Karl Fisher '14, left, talks with Charles E. Clark '51 at the Mount David Society Scholarship Luncheon on March 30. Clark is the author of Bates Through the Years: An Illustrated History, published as part of the college's 2005 sesquicentennial.

Romina Istratii ’12 of Athens, Greece, says she was fortunate to find Bates on the map when she did her college search.

“And that is how it happened — I opened a map,” she said with a smile.

Her quip, delivered at the Mount David Society Scholarship Luncheon on March 30, drew a warm laugh from the gathering of donors whose philanthropy helps to fund the college’s nearly $30 million outlay of scholarship aid each year.

Indeed, the warmth radiating from the audience toward the several student speakers reflected something senior Jeff Beaton of Haverhill, Mass., said in his remarks.

At Bates, he said, “We all want to see each other succeed. We are interested in each other’s passions. We thrive on celebrating each other’s achievements and we care wholeheartedly about each other’s success.”

Bates, she says, “gave me confidence and it gave me a dream.”

And Istratii made sure the donors understood the value-added proposition of their philanthropy to Bates, a place of “extraordinary character in a world of very ordinary things.”

Romina Istratii '12

Interim President Nancy Cable

President-elect Clayton Spencer

Don Rupasinghe '13

Addie Pelletier '12

Jeffrey Beaton '12

Walter Garcia Fairfax '12

Bates, she says, “gave me confidence and it gave me a dream.” Without Bates, “I would not have a vision today. Without Bates, I would not be who I am. Most importantly, I would not have become closer to who I wish to become.”

Each year, the Mount David Society Scholarship Luncheon, held in conjunction with the Mount David Summit, personifies the value and immensity of the Bates financial aid program.

At Bates, four out of every 10 students receive college-administered scholarships. The average grant is $35,089, while the average financial aid package (including grant, loan and campus employment) is $38,700.

President-elect Clayton Spencer addressed the intersection of excellence, access and financial aid in her very first public comments last December.

With only a small percentage of U.S. families financially capable of paying the full price of a higher education of the kind offered by Bates, it’s absolutely essential to have a robust financial aid program to make that education available to the vast majority.

“Bates is not an opportunity for the privileged; it’s an opportunity for any student who has the talent and desire to seize it and use it as a transforming piece of their lives,” Spencer said.

With the support of the college’s Digital Media Center and the Bates Communications Office, the threesome pitched stories, interviewed participants, recorded sound, and shot candid clips. Materials in hand, these “backpack journalists” edited their digital assets into final pieces that covered a range of stories, including the campus Emergency Medical Services, a local college aspirations program and President-elect Clayton Spencer’s first full day visiting campus.

See the Bates community through their eyes. Watch their videos.

Sunrise Paddle with the BOC

Striking Chords

Tree Street Youth

Bouldering at Bates

'Happy to Be Here'

Bates EMS

Students Love Hedge and Bill

Skill and Grill

They're In!

Katalin Vecsey enjoys figuring out characters in plays and shares a basic tenet with actors: “You must love your character.” A demanding teacher and exacting voice coach, Vecsey inspires love and devotion in her students.

Learn more about Vecsey, senior lecturer in theater and winner of the 2012 Ruth M. and Robert H. Kroepsch Award for Excellence in Teaching, by watching a short video. The award exemplifies the Bates principle of extraordinary academics backed by constructive support.