Dear members of the Bates community,

It will come as no surprise when I say that the past year has been a challenging one for higher education. Our sector is facing profound and unprecedented threats at the federal level. Despite the challenges, in all that we do—as always—we act according to our mission and in the best interests of our students, faculty, staff, and all who know and love the college.

Indeed, even as new challenges arise and require response, our core mission remains strong. Bates remains strong. We had another year full of joys and successes in 2024–25, and I wanted to share some of this good news with you.

Admission and financial aid

Talented students, full of potential, continue to vote with their feet, telling us that Bates is the college of choice for them. We had another banner year in admission in 2024–25, with the second-largest applicant pool in the history of the college. We expect to welcome about 500 students in the Class of 2029 and nearly a dozen transfer students in just a few weeks, representing a brilliant spectrum of backgrounds, experiences, and interests. Forty-four percent of incoming first-year students are receiving need-based financial aid amounting to nearly $13 million. As is typical, more detailed information about the entering class and the admission cycle will be released in late August.

Fellowships

Bates continues to do extraordinarily well with prestigious national fellowships. The Fulbright selection and award process was complicated by federal actions this year, but Bates—for 14 straight years a “Top Producer” of Fulbrights—still managed to secure awards for eight recent alumni.

Two Bates students also received Goldwater Scholarships, the leading honor for undergraduates working in the natural sciences, mathematics and engineering, and a third received a Truman Scholarship, another highly competitive award granted to undergraduates with outstanding leadership potential and interest in public service.

Faculty news and accomplishments

Bates also continues to recruit and attract some of the most talented and dedicated teacher-scholars working today. In 2024–25, we welcomed 13 new faculty from institutions such as Connecticut College, Harvard, Smith, Stanford, and William and Mary. Another 16 will join us for the coming academic year, with similarly impressive credentials.

Ten Bates faculty were awarded tenure and/or promotion this year, and two were named to endowed chairs: Amy Bradfield Douglass, the Whitehouse Professor of Psychology, and Therí Alyce Pickens, the Charles A. Dana Professor of English and Africana. 

In academic year 2024–25, Bates faculty published 73 journal articles, 10 books, 17 book chapters, and 51 artistic and professional productions while also giving 156 presentations, 55 invited talks, and 3 keynote addresses all around the world. Bates senior lecturer Jessica Anthony ’96 also found herself on the longlist for a National Book Award for her novel The Most. The book was included on Time Magazine’s 100 Must-Read List for 2024.

A new major

In March, the Bates faculty voted to create a new major in Digital and Computational Studies (DCS), which was previously offered as a minor. This will give Bates students, beginning with those in the Class of 2027 (current rising juniors), the opportunity to focus their studies in a field in high demand, all within the unique context of a Bates liberal arts education. 

This expansion of our curriculum is essential for the future. Computer science skills are in higher demand than ever, as nearly every industry and profession experiences a digital transformation and contends with new technologies like artificial intelligence. Computer science has moved to the mainstream; its tools are now vital well beyond the tech sector. We’re pleased to join the vast majority of the nation’s top-ranked liberal arts colleges in offering a DCS (or similar) major—but we also acknowledge the need to move faster to meet (and fund) the areas of study our students find most compelling.

Student success

We began the 2024–25 academic year with an eye on the upcoming presidential election and the democratic process with a thoughtful, expansive slate of 35 programs developed by faculty, staff, and students. Offerings included talks by nationally recognized scholars from across the political spectrum, a film series, and watch parties for debates and election night results. These programs provided valuable opportunities for our entire campus community to learn together and engage in dialogue—discussing important issues, exploring shared goals and values, and finding connections across apparent lines of difference.

Bates students studied off campus in greater numbers in 2024–25 than they had in decades—about 60 percent of the Class of 2026 (this past year’s juniors) took the opportunity to expand their horizons, enrich their perspectives, and explore the world beyond our campus. 

On Sunday of Memorial Day weekend, we celebrated the accomplishments of the Class of 2025 in typically joyful Bates fashion at our 159th Commencement. This year’s graduates are launching careers in medical research in Boston; in banking and finance in New York, Chicago, and San Francisco; in wilderness adventure leadership in Wyoming; in education in Bangladesh; in government in Washington, DC; and much more.  

In addition, many will continue their education in fields such as law, medicine, applied mathematics and statistics, counseling, international relations, nuclear engineering, and more—attending leading programs at Columbia, Johns Hopkins, University of Chicago, University of Colorado, and University of Pennsylvania, among others.

In all of this, Bates’ signature Purposeful Work program has prepared these students to understand the full scope of possibilities before them. Through Purposeful Work, students connect with graduate programs and employers as they explore a variety of opportunities and align who they are with what they do. Purposeful Work continues to offer a holistic, developmental, mission-based approach to life and career that works powerfully for Bates students. In the past year alone, 238 alumni and families offered job shadow opportunities to more than 400 Bates students; in summer 2025, 121 students are participating in internship experiences funded by roughly $500,000 from Bates. 

We also marked a very important milestone for Bates in 2025: the 50th anniversary of the Puddle Jump! As always, Bates students hurled their costumed selves by the dozens into frigid Lake Andrews in early February, but this year’s event was highlighted by the presence of three of the tradition’s founders: Chris Callahan ’78, Scott Copeland ’78, and Lars Llorente ’78. It was a great—and frosty!—day to be a Bobcat. (No, I did not take the plunge.)

Three new strategic partnerships

In addition to the collaborations centered on Purposeful Work, Bates has entered into several other key strategic partnerships in the past year.  

Bates is committed to bringing the most promising students to Bates from all socioeconomic backgrounds. In January, we were very pleased to announce a partnership with QuestBridge that will help us connect with high-achieving students from low-income backgrounds and make a Bates education possible for exceptional students we previously had a more difficult time reaching. 

QuestBridge is designed to support students who have excelled academically despite financial challenges. This year, with the addition of Bates and Harvard as the newest partner colleges, all eight Ivy League and nine of eleven NESCAC colleges participate in the program. The first cohort of QuestBridge Scholars will join us in the fall of 2026. 

In February, we announced that we had transferred management of the college’s endowment to Investure, a full-service investment firm with an outstanding reputation that works with a select group of colleges, universities, independent schools, research institutes, and private foundations. 

The Bates endowment—which stood at $446 million at the close of FY24—sustains every dimension of the college: from essential operating support to transformative opportunities like student scholarships, funded internships, curricular offerings, athletics, academic research, and co-curricular programs. In 2023, 688 colleges and universities took part in the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) endowment survey. The average endowment market value among participating institutions was $1.2 billion. Our endowment is well below that average—and below many of our closest peers—which underscores the critical importance of growing and stewarding our endowment with care and purpose. To learn more, we invite you to explore our new endowment website. 

Finally, we have also entered into an exciting new partnership with the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth to give Bates students exposure to the world of business. Offered in collaboration between Tuck and Bates Purposeful Work, the “Tuck Business Essentials” Short Term course filled up quickly, with 30 students enrolled and 15 more on the waitlist. The course, which is modeled on Tuck’s successful Business Bridge program,  is designed to prepare top liberal arts students to be successful candidates for internships and jobs. The program features a comprehensive curriculum taught by the school’s top-ranked MBA faculty and by Bates/Tuck alumni, including career exploration modules and a capstone team project.

Arts

One of my greatest joys over the past two years has been discovering the depth of talent and passion in Bates’ arts programs. There is so much great work being done in the studio arts, in music, in theater, and in dance. Some of this year’s highlights included the Bates College Choir’s performance of “Earth Song,” the theater department’s production of Chekov’s “The Seagull,” and extraordinary exhibits at the Museum, including “Across Common Grounds” (contemporary art) and the current show, a showcase of the works of Ralph Steadman.  

This year’s Senior Thesis Exhibition featured stunning work by seven senior studio art majors, including everything from painting to textiles to mixed media.

We were thrilled to learn this spring that six Bates dancers had been selected to perform at the internationally renowned Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival this summer. And of course, more locally, the Bates Dance Festival continues to bring talented artists and eager audiences from all over to enliven our campus this summer—be sure to check out a performance or two if you can!

Athletics

It was another great year for Bobcat athletics, with significant triumphs for teams and individual athletes. Our successes were reflected in a top 50 ranking for the 2024–25 Learfield Directors’ Cup for overall Division III athletics success. Among the top headlines were a national championship in the 100 freestyle for swimmer Max Cory ’26 (a biochemistry major from Dublin, California); men’s and women’s rowing both finished third in the country in their respective national championship races; and NCAA or equivalent tournament appearances by the field hockey, women’s basketball, and men’s and women’s swimming teams.

Several teams finished the season nationally ranked, including field hockey, women’s basketball, men’s and women’s rowing, men’s and women’s squash, men’s swimming, women’s tennis, women’s cross country, and men’s and women’s lacrosse. In addition, a whopping 394 Bates student-athletes in their sophomore, junior, or senior years received NESCAC All-Academic honors.

Bates athletes were honored at the second-annual CATSBY Awards ceremony in early May. The men’s lacrosse team took home the President’s Cup, which recognizes excellence in “in athletic competition, in the classroom, and in the community, while exemplifying leadership, dedication, values, and concern for their fellow Bobcats.” 

Capital investments

We began the year welcoming the first group of students as residents of 96 Campus Avenue. The building, which was previously owned by Saint Mary’s Health System, had been used by the college as temporary office space during the 2022–23 renovation of Chase Hall. Now it is a popular dormitory for up to 65 students.  

We also upgraded both the Russell Street Field and Leahey Field this year, adding artificial turf surfaces and making other improvements. These projects have already been absolutely transformative for our teams—and, in the case of Russell Street, for the neighbors who make great use of both the track and the field. The number of home games our teams are able to play has increased, the enhanced field quality has made it safer for our student-athletes, the practice schedules have greatly improved with more lighted and turfed fields allowing students to better balance their academics with sport, and our club sports have more playing options. Part II of the Leahey Field renovation will take place this summer.

As we continue to move forward on enhancing our athletics platform and improving the student experience, we are now focused on developing a new fitness and well-being center for the college, which will be funded by a combination of philanthropy and internal college funds. If we reach our target fundraising goals, construction is slated to begin in May 2026. If you would like to learn more and help the college reach its necessary goals to bring this exciting project to fruition, please reach out to the Advancement Office. 

Sustainability

Bates continues to live up to its mission of “responsible stewardship of the wider world.” Our new 5 MW solar array produced 8,300,000 kWh of electricity last year, equivalent to about two-thirds of the college’s total power use. In its first year of service, the array saved Bates nearly $450,000. The college also upgraded our 12 existing electric vehicle charging stations this spring and added 4 new ones, thanks in large part to a winning grant proposal written by Bates students. We now have about 80 electric vehicle (EV) drivers on campus, including a growing number of EVs in our own facilities and campus safety fleets. And Bates students continue to manage a 1.5-acre organic garden, which provides several hundred pounds of produce annually for use by both our own dining services and a local food bank.

Recognition for Bates 

Recognition for Bates came in from all directions in 2024–25. In the fall, our Bonney Science Center was recognized with an American Institute of Architects New England Award, which cited the building’s “thoughtful integration with the historic campus and innovative layout.” Also this fall, the Bates Communications and Marketing team won recognition in three categories from the University and College Designers Association. And the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge recognized Bates for its nonpartisan democratic engagement efforts in the 2022 midterm elections—specifically, for being the top achiever in both Maine and the NESCAC in both voter registration and voter turnout.

Leadership and strategic planning

In addition to attracting extraordinary students and faculty, Bates continues to recruit visionary and accomplished staff who come to us from a broad swath of impressive institutions. For example, in 2024–25, we added Rosanna Ferro (vice president for student affairs) and Kristen Lainsbury (vice president for communications and marketing) to our senior leadership team. Earlier this month, we welcomed Joanne Roberts (vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty), Stacey Bunting (director of athletics) to the college; Carrie Cushman (director of the Bates College Museum of Art) joins us in August. 

Many of these leaders are already deeply involved in our strategic planning effort, which launched with the development of a steering committee in early 2025. Strategic planning will continue throughout the 2025–26 academic year, with working committees comprising faculty, staff, and students considering Bates’ priorities for the coming years. We will have more to share with you as their work progresses.

Support for Bates

Last month, a record of over 1,500 alumni, families, and friends returned to Bates to celebrate Reunion Weekend. While the weather wasn’t quite what we ordered, the rain couldn’t dampen the spirits of our passionate, joyful Batesies, who reconnected with lifelong friends and made new connections at gatherings all across our campus (and throughout Lewiston). 

This passion and joy were reflected in giving to the college in the fiscal year just concluded, by alumni in reunion classes and others. Some highlights:

• Overall giving in FY25 reached $36 million in outright gifts, commitments, and bequest intentions.
• The Class of 1975, celebrating its 50th reunion, broke records with a total giving of more than $4.3 million. 
• The Bates Fund (annual giving) surpassed its goal by 9 percent, reaching a new record of nearly $8.5 million. 
• We saw a 12.5 percent increase in the number of Mount David Society (our leadership giving circle) donors this year.
• Friends of Bates Athletics raised over $1.2 million as we continue to strengthen our support for athletic teams and facilities.

These numbers are outstanding—and hugely gratifying. They signal that Bates alumni, families, and friends feel ownership of, investment in, and pride for the college. We are doing better and better, in terms of both dollars raised and rate of participation, but we still need to do more. If you love the college—if you feel ownership of, investment in, or pride for it—I ask you to give back to it, strengthen it, and sustain it for the generations to come.

In closing

No single list can fully capture all that has been accomplished over the past year by our students, faculty, and staff. Each achievement, taken on its own, is notable; together, they reflect the very best of Bates—from the extraordinary academic experiences shaped by our exceptional faculty to the enduring, generation-spanning relationships that form our community’s foundation. Here’s the bottom line: The world needs Bates graduates. Always. But especially now.

Your support matters. You make everything we do at Bates—every last one of our successes—possible. I’m confident in our future and deeply grateful to the students, faculty, staff, alumni, and friends whose partnership and support will be essential as we move forward—boldly and together.

With deep gratitude,

Garry W. Jenkins
President