Ready to respond, 501 new students hear the call as Bates begins 145th year

Wednesday, September 8, 2010 3:13 pm

"What we do today is symbolic of what we do all year long," Professor of Religious Studies Marcus Bruce '77 told some 501 new students during Bates College's Convocation on Sept. 7. One of five speakers at the ceremony on the Historic Quad, Bruce's keynote address eloquently wove together an explication of the College's new mission statement with the meaning of "convocation" itself -- and, most importantly, what it all means to the new arrivals.