Bates announces goal to add eight new permanent faculty positions

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Bates College announces goal to add eight new permanent faculty positions

Monday, January 23, 2023 1:03 pm

Expanding the Bates faculty “is a matter of central importance to the strength and vitality of our academic program,” said Malcolm Hill, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty.

Is it OK to target iconic works of art in the name of social justice? That’s what students from Bates and @morehouse1867 debated at the annual Rev. Dr. Benjamin Elijah Mays, Class of 1920, Debate as part of the college’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day programming. Seen above, Chijindum Dike (left) shares a post-debate celebration with John Curry. Both are students from Morehouse College, and traveled to Bates for the debate. The Bates community and friends crowded into the Olin Arts Center for a much-anticipated part of Bates’ Martin Luther King Jr. Day programming: the debate between four students; two from Morehouse, and two from Bates. The tradition honors Mays, who served as the president of Morehouse College for 27 years. King, then a student at Morehouse, referred to Mays as his “spiritual mentor.” Throughout the debate, the students responded to this year’s motion, “This house believes that the targeting of iconic works of art to advance social justice is justified,” and responded to each other and opinions from the audience. Manuel Machorro ’25 of Mexico City, a politics and philosophy double major, opened the debate on the government side with a quote from Martin Luther King Jr. “Dr. King said ‘if you can’t fly, then run, if you can’t run, then walk, if you can’t walk, then crawl, but by all means, keep moving.’ The claim that we’re gonna make from the government, is that when you’re not listened [to] by anyone, and when the government monopolizes power to destroy you, any way that you see fit is to some capacity justified in pursuing social justice.” Machorro was joined by Dike, a sophomore and double major in psychology and Chinese. The opposition was presented by Curry, a senior and triple major in philosophy, religion, and Chinese, and Andrew Montieth ’24 of Monroe, Wash., a philosophy major. The debaters referenced recent demonstrations, arguing that social justice is furthered by reclaiming spaces and public attention, and the opposition argued that some social activist action diverts attention away from the problem, and onto the targeted object.

Video: ‘Whatever wilderness you wander, you are all creatives’

Friday, January 20, 2023 1:43 pm

Watch some of the highlights of Martin Luther King Jr. Day at Bates: a day full of sharing, from poetry, music, and dance, to ideas about activism, education, and living in community.

Bates Magazine: Fall 2022

Friday, January 20, 2023 1:31 pm

Here's a flip version of the fall 2022 issue of Bates Magazine, which went in the mail last month.

2pm | All These Sons Screening and discussion. Chicago’s West and South sides are infamous for their high murder rates. In this documentary directed by Bing Liu and Joshua Altman, Marshall Hatch Jr. ’10 and Billy Moore (who served 20 years in prison for murder) create healing spaces for young men to reimagine themselves, find redemption, and embrace causes worth fighting for. Hatch, the subject of a cover story by Bates Magazine in 2021, will introduce the film. (2021; 88 min.) Sponsored by the Program in American Studies, Department of Anthropology, Department of Hispanic Studies, and Department of Rhetoric, Film, and Screen Studies. Location: Olin Concert Hall

Bates in the News: Jan. 20, 2023

Friday, January 20, 2023 10:10 am

Marshall Hatch '10 returns to Bates, tips from an alumna on how business leaders can help their teams combat the winter blues, and how Bates President Clayton Spencer has "defined her presidency" around the concept of work.

Professor Emeritus of English Lewis A. Turlish dies at age 80

Friday, January 13, 2023 12:02 pm

A member of the faculty from 1969 until 2008, Turlish was praised as a consummate teacher whose classroom style was “gracious, generous, witty."

Leana E. Amáez to join Bates College as vice president for equity and inclusion

Tuesday, December 20, 2022 8:58 am

Leana Amáez, who joins Bates on Feb. 27, 2023, is a seasoned equity and inclusion leader and longtime advocate for underrepresented populations. “I am thrilled to welcome Leana to Bates to lead our work in equity and inclusion — work that is central to our mission and to the success and well-being of every member of our community,” said Bates President Clayton Spencer.

“Peace begins with us.”That was the theme of this year’s United World College Day that a group of Davis United World Scholars at Bates celebrated by gathering with staff from the Center for Global Education in front of Roger Williams Hall. UWC Day is the annual global celebration of the UWC mission and values, which takes place on Sept. 21 every year, to coincide with the UN International Day of Peace. Each year, UWC Day is celebrated by thousands of people worldwide, including students and staff at UWC schools and colleges, national committees, UWC alumni and friends. Associate Dean for International Student Programs James Reese likes to recognize the day at Bates with a photograph and gathering.The spirit of friendship was in the air as students broke up from their large group to exchange hugs and words with classmates. Newcomers Rosina Makwabe ’26 of Arusha, Tanzania, and Verina Chatata ’26 of Blantyre, Malawi, who met at Bates, laughed and hugged. “I’m happy to have a friend,” Makwabe said.A $5 million scholarship gift to Bates College has expanded access for talented international students who come to Bates from the highly respected secondary schools of the United World Colleges movement.The gift, from Jonathan Blair Frank ‘89 and Tena Fishman Frank ’89, provides need-based financial aid for UWC students at Bates under the Davis United World College Scholars Program.The world’s largest international undergraduate scholarship initiative, the Davis UWC Scholars Program is dedicated to bringing together “promising students from diverse cultures and supporting their undergraduate educations at selected American colleges and universities…to create greater international understanding among the world’s future decision makers.”Bates is among 99 U.S. colleges and universities that have partnered with the Davis UWC Scholars Program, which helps provide college access to 3,800 students from 165 nations.(Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)Yvonne Chu ’25 of Changzhou, China, with Alan Wang ’24 of Henan, China

Bates photographers’ favorite images of 2022

Thursday, December 15, 2022 9:16 am

This end-of-the-year list — a tradition now in its ninth year — gathers our photographer's favorite images, both stills and video, that capture their own magic moments of 2022.

Bates’ 148th Commencement ceremony itself takes place at 10 a.m. Sunday, May 25, on the Historic Quad, Campus Avenue and College Street (or Merrill Gym in case of rain). Some 448 students will receive bachelor’s degrees, and President A. Clayton Spencer will confer honorary degrees on four notable Americans: John Seely Brown, visionary thinker and computer scientist; Glenn Close, renowned actress; David Shaw P’00, leading entrepreneur; Isabel Wilkerson, Commencement speaker and author of the acclaimed social history The Warmth of Other Suns.

‘Moments from the fall’: Meet 13 new Bates College professors

Wednesday, December 14, 2022 4:45 pm

View profiles of 13 new professors, tenure-track appointees or appointed as tenured faculty members, featuring photographic portraits, areas of scholarly expertise, an example of a Bates course they teach, and a telling moment from the nearly completed fall semester.

The 10 most-viewed BatesNews stories of 2022

Thursday, December 8, 2022 2:13 pm

As the year ticks to a close, here’s a top-10 countdown of the 2022 BatesNews stories with the most views, plus the average time readers spent on each story.

Bates College announces promotions of 13 professors

Thursday, December 8, 2022 9:43 am

Meet these newly promoted Bates professors, and hear each explain the meaning of being a Bates professor. Says one, "I get to help our students be fully themselves and see them thrive, alongside folks who care about it as much as I do.”