1. Commencement 2007 in words and images
Bates held its 141st Commencement May 27 before 464 graduates and thousands of family and friends. View a slideshow of the weekend events, read the Baccalaureate service, watch the four honorary degree recipients delivering their speeches, and more.
www.bates.edu/commencement.xml

Honorand and Segway inventor Dean Kamen was interviewed by NBC affiliate WCSH TV just after Commencement. The six-minute interview ran on its evening newsmagazine: http://www.wcsh6.com/life/lifestyle/207/video/article.aspx?storyid=61996

2. President convenes diversity and demographics symposium
A compelling glimpse of how diversity and demographics are shaping the College's future was presented May 10 by keynote speaker Jamie P. Merisotis, a 1986 Bates graduate, trustee and president of The Institute for Higher Education Policy in Washington, D.C. Merisotis spoke at a symposium convened by President Hansen, A College for "Coming Time": Diversity and Changing Demographics in Higher Education. About 150 faculty, staff, students, college Trustees and members of the local community attended and engaged in presentations and small group discussions at Olin Arts Center. Watch Merisotis' PowerPoint presentation, read remarks by President Hansen and former president and CEO of the Nellie Mae Education Foundation Blenda J. Wilson, and see a slideshow of the symposium. www.bates.edu/x164207.xml

3. Graduates offer thoughts on their four years at Bates
The rigor and satisfaction of senior thesis, genuine support from friends, faculty and staff, the habit of intellectual curiosity, the passion and excitement of learning in the liberal arts environment. These are some of the observations by this year's graduates at the Senior-Trustee Luncheon on May 13. At the luncheon President Elaine Tuttle Hansen invited students to share brief comments on his or her time at Bates. See a sampling at: www.bates.edu/x163071.xml

4. A record-breaking year for admissions
Admissions deans are impressed with this year's record-breaking applicant pool of 4,650. This exceptionally competitive year (28 percent admit rate) yielded Bates' most culturally diverse class ever, with the 443 members of the Class of 2011 hailing from 42 states and 24 countries. The 467 new students (first-years plus 24 transfers) include 17 percent U.S. multicultural students and 7 percent non-U.S. citizens, with India (three students), China, Japan, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan and Vietnam (two students each) leading the way. Ten percent of the new students are the first generation in their families to attend college. The top 10 states represented are Massachusetts, New York, Maine, Connecticut, New Hampshire, California, New Jersey, Illinois and Maryland.

5. Women's crew finishes third at NCAA Championships
Bates captured third place in its NCAA Division III Rowing Championships debut May 26. The Bobcats' first varsity eight nipped the University of Puget Sound by 0.07 seconds, 6:57.10 to 6:57.17, in the process clinching third place overall. The championships were held at the University of Tennessee. www.bates.edu/x163293.xml

6. Bates student awarded Fulbright to study political activity of Muslim women
New graduate Kristine Goulding of West Suffield, Conn., has received a Fulbright U.S. Student Program award for the 2007-08 academic year. Totaling approximately $25,000, the grant will support Goulding's studies in Tunisia, where she will explore the differences in political activity between women in conservative Muslim groups and those in the mystic Sufi branch of Islam. www.bates.edu/x159435.xml

7. The 11th summer reading list
It's time again for "The Non-Required Reading List (or Good Reads for Leisure Moments)." As a gift to graduating students, bookstore Director Sarah Potter '77 each May solicits and posts suggestions from Bates faculty and staff for interesting summer reading. www.bates.edu/x163276.xml

8. Campus Construction Update
Scheduled to welcome its first occupants this summer, the new student housing is looking much more finished, and engineers have started testing its electrical, mechanical and other systems. The construction of the housing, Alumni Walk and a new dining Commons have given Bates the chance to update many of its underground utilities, notably the campuswide steam heating system. www.bates.edu/x163277.xml

9. Did You Know?
Bates graduates will be enrolled in some of the nation's best MBA programs this fall. These include the Tuck School at Dartmouth, the Harvard Business School, the Johnson School at Cornell, the Kellogg School at Northwestern and Yale School of Management. www.bates.edu/x150332.xml

10. Bates People in the News
As the Bates Dance Festival prepares to celebrate its 25th anniversary, festival director Laura Faure and her peers in the Maine Performing Arts Network are seeking ways to expand Maine audiences. "Business as usual doesn't work," she said to the Maine Sunday Telegram. The Rev. Peter Gomes '65 told The New York Times that religion is regaining its appeal among college students. The Boston Globe Magazine devoted a cover story to Sally Goodrich — mother of 9/11 casualty Peter Goodrich '89 — who was inspired by the good works of Rush Filson '92 to start a school for girls in Afghanistan. Finally, in The Chronicle of Higher Education, the Institute for Higher Education Policy, headed by Jamie P. Merisotis '86, has reported on the growing influence of newspaper and magazine college rankings around the world. www.bates.edu/bates-in-the-news.xml