Class of 2023 portrait shot on Garcelon Field in May 2023. Bates is committed to meeting 100 percent of students’ financial need for all four years. This commitment is supported by generous philanthropy from our alumni, parents, and friends. Nearly one-third of donors to the Bates Fund direct their gifts in support of financial aid.

The Bates College Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Bates Invitational in September 2022. Gifts to the Friends of Bates Athletics enhance the experience of all our student athletes. Bates athletics promote teamwork, leadership, and integrity, and lead to lifelong friendships.

Assistant Professor of Biology Lori Banks works with summer research scientists Blessing Akinmade ’25, Starr Bradley ‘25, and Hayden Kittell in her Bonney Science Center lab. The Bonney Science Center, which opened in September 2021, is a transformative home for science at Bates. Its teaching and research spaces, advanced instrumentation rooms, state-of-the-art vivarium, and beautiful spaces for study and exchange inspire innovation and collaboration.

The Department of Theater and Dance presented “An Artistic Showcase” in the Marcy Plavin Dance Studio, located in Merrill Gymnasium. Bates’ robust academic arts offerings—in disciplines including theater, dance, music, writing, and art and visual culture—encourage creativity, experimentation, and rigor. The entire Bates community benefits from the depth and breadth of the ongoing artistic work on campus.

Professor of Earth and Climate Sciences Beverly Johnson takes her summer research students who are studying blue carbon cycling in salt marshes to Bates-Morse Mountain in Phippsburg. Bates offers financial support for students conducting research during the academic year and the summer.

Frances White ’23 holds the thesis binder open as first-year Fenna Oliphant-Linden ’26 of Bethesda, Md., slides the pages of White’s thesis into place. Gifts in support of student research help us to offer opportunities for students to develop the skills and background they need to embark on a senior thesis or capstone project, guided by committed faculty mentors.

Frieda Kickliter ’23, a studio art major from Mobile, Ala., is making large abstract paintings inspired by architecture and landscape that were featured in the Senior Thesis Exhibit. at the Bates College Museum of Art. Bates’ robust academic arts offerings—in disciplines including theater, dance, music, writing, and art and visual culture—encourage creativity, experimentation, and rigor. The entire Bates community benefits from the depth and breadth of the ongoing artistic work on campus.

Not long before Fall Recess began, (from left) Lucy Green ’26 of Upland, Calif., and Carly Freund ’26 of Newfields, N.H., found a beautiful place to study on the Historic Quad. The Bates Fund provides critical support for students experiencing Bates at this very moment. Gifts to the Bates Fund impact every aspect of life at Bates, including financial aid, student-faculty research, and campus programming.

Purposeful Work intern Rebecca Anderson ’24 at MDI Biological Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine. Grounded in the Bates mission, Purposeful Work helps students align who they are with what they do. It helps students identify and cultivate their interests and strengths and provides opportunities for them to acquire the knowledge, experiences, and relationships necessary to pursue their aspirations.