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September 2025 at Bates

shared beginnings, the 150th anniversary of Bobcat football, and academic adventure

By Bates College

October 10^th, 2025

Scene Setter

A waxing gibbous moon hangs brightly over Bates at dusk. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Convocation

Faculty prepare to process into the Convocation ceremony for the Class of 2029. At front are Charles A. Dana Professor of English Lillian Nayder (left) and Kirk Read, professor of French and Francophone studies. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Students from the Class of 2029 process into their “Bobcat Era” at Convocation. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Student body co-presidents Zachariah Richards ’26 (left) of Princeton, Mass., and Mohammad Zayd ’27 of the Bronx, N.Y., spoke at Convocation for the Class of 2029, giving the student perspective on life at Bates. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Charles A. Dana Professor of Gender and Sexuality Studies Rebecca Herzig, who delivered this year’s Convocation address, chats with President Garry W. Jenkins. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Kicking Off the Season

Haley Dwight ’27 of West Newbury, Mass., prepares to hit the ball during the first home game of the season. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Lily Brown ’28 of Dallas, Texas, shields the sun from her eyes during a field hockey game against the University of Southern Maine. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

The field hockey team huddles before their game against USM, which they won 4–0. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Aydan Gedeon-Hope ’26 of Norton, Mass., gazes out at the soccer pitch during the men’s team’s first home game of the season. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

From left, Tomas Alberola ’26, Luke Cunniffe ’29, Andrew Goddard ’27, and Noah Greiff ’27 celebrate during a game against Saint Joseph’s College, which Bates won 3–0. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Luke Cunniffe ’29 of Windham, Maine, goes for the goal during a men’s soccer game against Saint Joseph’s College. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

The men’s soccer team celebrates after their win against Saint Joseph’s College during their first home game of the season. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

The Semester Begins

Students head into Commons on a sunny day during the first week of classes. (Phyllis Graber Jensen /Bates College)

Economics major Jillian Pastore ’26 of Ridgefield, Conn., reads How to Be Alone by Jonathan Franzen, inspired by Charles A. Dana Professor of Gender and Sexuality Studies Rebecca Herzig's Convocation address on hope. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Bates President Garry W. Jenkins strolls across the Historic Quad. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Olivia Thomas ’28 of Valley Stream, N.Y., and Alexandra Walker ’28 of Ellenwood, Ga., walk across campus on the first day of classes. Thomas thought the shirt would be fitting to welcome the incoming Class of 2029. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

This banner, quoting the Black National Anthem “Lift Every Voice and Sing” by NAACP leader James Weldon Johnson, hangs on the wall of the Student Center for Belonging and Community. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

On the first day of classes, Assistant Professor of Neuroscience Olivia Kim teaches students about brain structure in a neuroscience lab course. — On the first day of classes, Assistant Professor of Neuroscience Olivia Kim teaches students about brain structure in a neuroscience lab course. "It's a privilege to teach these students,” Kim says. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

From left, seniors Shira Futornick of Redwood City, Calif., Riley Lutz of Lake Mary, Fla., and Mavy Ho-Le of Gorham, Maine, study 3D-printed brains during a course with Assistant Professor of Neuroscience Olivia Kim. (Phyllis Graber Jensen /Bates College)

Faces and Places

Eric Shen ’29 of Hangzhou, China, Bryce Ahn ’29 of Bedford, N.H., and Otto Gross ’29 of Rumson, N.J., team up for a community-facing portrait at the Volunteer Fair, hosted by the Harward Center. (Sammy Weidenthal ’27 for Bates College)

Bates men’s rugby club team players George Drake ’28, Mohammed Mohammed ’26, Fernando Hokello ’28, Sam Fielder ’28, and Graham Spurrell ’26 share their sport with students at the annual club fair. (Sammy Weidenthal ’27 for Bates College)

A student strolls in front of Hathorn Hall on the Historic Quad. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

On the shores of Lake Andrews, flower petals begin to droop toward fall. (Phyllis Graber Jense/Bates College)

Geoffrey Swift, vice president for finance and administration and treasurer, poses with a rubber duck in front of Lake Andrews, where he helps take care of the puddle’s many live ducks. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Carrie Cushman, director of the Museum of Art, poses in the museum’s lobby. Cushman joined Bates in August. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Tess Black ’20, a park ranger in Acadia National Park, smiles on Little Cranberry Island during a stop on the boat tour she leads around the park. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Celebrating 150 Years of Football

William Crowley ’85 and other Bates football alumni sing “The Fight Song” during a reception to kick off the college’s 150 Years of Football Celebration. (Sammy Weidenthal ’27 for Bates College)

Bates football delivered a 26–23 win in double overtime in the season opener against Amherst. (Theophil Syslo/Bates College)

Students cheer on the football team during the season opener against Amherst College. (Brewster Burns for Bates College)

Jake Walters ’27 (left) of West Lafayette, Ind., and Quinn Carver ’28 of Dorchester, Mass., cheer during their winning game against Amherst. (Theophil Syslo/Bates College)

Jeff Vidou ’28 of Cornish, N.H., makes a spectacular touchdown catch during the football team’s season-opener, a 26-23 double-overtime win over Amherst. (Brewster Burns for Bates College)

Marcos Ruiz ’27 of Haskell, N.J. makes the game-winning field goal to secure a 26-23 double-overtime win over Amherst in the football team’s season-opener. (Brewster Burns for Bates College)

Land of the Bobcats

Auburn Middle School students spend a day on campus learning about college and life at Bates as part of a program by the student-run Aspirations Club. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Director of Health Services and Student Well-Being Brenna Callahan ’15 hangs a poster for Well-Being at Bates outside of Chase Hall during the Well-Being Suite Housewarming. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Clarisa Pérez-Armendáriz, professor of politics and Latin American and Latinx studies, winner of the 2025 Kroepsch Award for Excellence in Teaching, leads a panel featuring several staff and faculty members. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Clarisa Pérez-Armendáriz, professor of politics and Latin American and Latinx studies, moderated the 2025 Kroepsch Award pedagogy panel. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Fall foliage is in full swing on the Historic Quad. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Athletics in our Midst

From above, Garcelon Field shines on an early fall day. (Theophil Syslo/Bates College)

Team captain Ami Evans ’26 of Honolulu, Hawaii, digs the ball during a volleyball match against Keene State, a 3-0 win for the Bobcats. (Eno Little ’27 for Bates College)

Carolyn Kelly ’29 of Wynnewood, Penn., kicks the ball during a women’s soccer game versus Wesleyan. (Sammy Weidenthal ’27 for Bates College)

Luke Cunniffe ’29 of Windham, Maine, staves off a Wesleyan player during a men’s soccer match on Russell Street Field. (Theophil Syslo/Bates College)

Lia Swire ’29 of Sudbury, Mass., delivers a back-hand return during a women’s tennis practice in Merrill Gymnasium. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Bates and the Dempsey Challenge

From left, women’s lacrosse players Virginia Avery ’29, senior Amanda Edge ’26, Mika Bernard ’28, Raegan White ’26, and Megan McPoland ’29 run in the Dempsey Challenge 5K. (Brian Rimm ’05 for Bates College)

Bates women’s basketball players Abby Magendantz ’28, Danielle Adams ’26, and Ava James ’26 chat with actor Patrick Dempsey during the annual Dempsey Challenge in Lewiston. (Brian Rimm ’05 for Bates College)

Bates athletes gather together at the Dempsey Challenge, an annual fundraiser and race for cancer patients and their families started by actor Patrick Dempsey, who is from Lewiston. (Brian Rimm ’05 for Bates College)

Summer in September

From left, first-year students Natasha Dalziel of Wellesley, Mass., Celina Carman of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Asa Strauss of Newton Highlands, Mass., study together on the Historic Quad. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Sarah Danielson ’29 of Sudbury, Mass., lounges in an Adirondack chair on the Historic Quad. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Joe Hinchcliffe ’29 of New Market, N.H., eases across a slackline set up between two trees on campus. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Olivia Thomas ’28 of Valley Stream, N.Y., and Lev Katz ’28 of the Bronx, N.Y., pause to chat on the Historic Quad. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Lucilia Lu ’29 of Shanghai poses in front of a tree on the Historic Quad for a photography class assignment taken by new friend Ximi Xu ’29, also of Shanghai. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Nate Shore ’27 of Kennebunkport, Maine, and Kat O’Connell ’28 of Larchmont, N.Y., relax in a hammock set up at the edge of the Historic Quad. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Footnotes

Produced by the Bates Communications Office with photography by Phyllis Graber Jensen, Theophil Syslo, Eno Little '27, Sammy Weidenthal '27, Brian Rimm '05, and Brewster Burns

FootNotes

Produced by the Bates Communications Office with photography by Phyllis Graber Jensen, Theophil Syslo, Eno Little '27, Sammy Weidenthal '27, Brian Rimm '05, and Brewster Burns

© 2026 Bates College

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where 1,700 alumni and families of current students join to experience life on campus, reconnect with friends, and enjoy Maine's beautiful fall season

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The Bates Class of 2029 begins its journey

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