Don’t rain on the parade

Editorial: Point of order

An article published in the Orient this week investigated several questions that arose on the ethics of the recent Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) Executive Committee election, which concluded on Monday. While we do not have reason to believe that anyone acted with malicious intent, or that the election should be repeated, uncertainty about the integrity of elections has real potential to damage BSG’s credibility on campus. We think there are a number of ways BSG can clarify or expand its election rules to prevent future problems:
• Before the polls closed last weekend, a limited number of candidates were unofficially informed about the real-time margins of the vote, which might have given them an advantage over their uninformed opponents. There are currently no rules concerning the dissemination of vote totals, even though asymmetrical knowledge of these numbers can influence the election’s outcome. One solution to this problem is to add a rule to the by-law stating that BSG will not release information about the election until it concludes.
• In November, BSG approved a change to the election bylaws that set a $12 cap on campaign spending, all of which is provided by BSG. The initiative aimed to prevent a candidate’s personal financial resources from affecting campaigning. While the change is a good improvement to the election bylaws, there are no mechanisms for enforcement. When candidates go to the Copy Center, they pay using a BSG project code, and there is no oversight as to how much is spent and no system to determine if candidates spend their own money. BSG should implement a process for auditing candidates’ campaign spending.
• This year, for the first time in recent memory, two candidates campaigned together. Since each candidate is allotted $12 to spend on campaign materials, a pair of candidates would technically be able to promote themselves with more funds than a candidate campaigning alone. BSG should make it clear whether or not candidates can campaign together, and if they are allowed to, should not give them an unintentional funding advantage over single candidates.
• After a large influx of last-minute votes crashed BSG’s voting website on Sunday night, the voting deadline was extended twice. BSG could not have anticipated its website would go down, but not being clear about how it decided to extend the voting deadline, and for how long, does threaten the election’s credibility. BSG does not have any rules about extending the deadline, and since some members can have knowledge of the vote tallies before a deadline extension, the lack of rules about extensions is an opportunity for abuses.
• Lastly, throughout the years, members of BSG’s Election Commission, including the Election Coordinator, have actively supported or campaigned for candidates. Although doing so is not against any BSG rules, it could lead to conflicts of interest. BSG would do well to define what types of interactions the supervisors of an election can have with candidates’ campaigns, and should ban any form of public endorsement from the members of the Commission.
Collegiate student governments provide a model for future civic involvement, and bestowing students with strong democratic values should be one of Bowdoin’s goals. While BSG officer elections are obviously not as high stakes as U.S. presidential elections, it should still matter to the student body that its representatives are elected in an ethical, systematic and transparent manner. And if BSG wants its efforts to be taken seriously, it should begin by taking its electoral process more seriously.
This editorial represents the majority view of the Bowdoin Orient’s editorial board, which is comprised of Garrett Casey, Ron Cervantes, Sam Chase, Matthew Gutschenritter and Nicole Wetsman.

Editorial: The Bowdoin goodbye

When members of the Bowdoin community reminisce about President Barry Mills in five, 10, or 15 years, they will talk about his expansion of financial aid, his fundraising skills and the many campus buildings constructed during his career. But when the students who matriculated during Mills’ tenure talk about him, they’ll remember other things: the times he sat down with students during lunch at Thorne Dining Hall, his slow walks across the Quad, his printed face glued to popsicle sticks during this year’s Bowdoin-Colby hockey game. President Mills achieved the ultimate success at Bowdoin: He grew the College’s national profile while still making it feel like home.
Considering how well he fits the identity of the College, it is ironic that Mills was an afterthought for the 2001 presidential search committee—a committee Mills himself chaired. A biology and government double major and a member of the Class of 1972, Mills took full advantage of the liberal arts experience while a student at Bowdoin. After leaving Brunswick, he continued his varied academic pursuits, earning a doctorate in biology and a law degree. Mills then became a successful lawyer in New York and began volunteering his time as a Trustee of the College shortly thereafter.
Once chosen as President, Mills’ prowess as a fundraiser stood out among his other achievements. Some may only remember him for the capital campaign from 2004 to 2009 that raised $250 million, or for his stewardship of the College recession, but Mills was much more than just a financial leader. He took a genuine interest in the experiences of the students, attending and participating in lectures, performances, presentations and athletic events. He also took campus issues head on, responding directly to the National Association of Scholar’s conservative critique of the College in 2013 and meeting continuously with campus activists throughout his tenure.
President Mills’ accessibility and affable nature extended to his approach to admissions, an area in which he did hands-on work to bring the best and brightest to Bowdoin. Many remember Mills approaching them and their parents at Accepted Students Day to give an honest assessment of the College, while others received personal phone calls from Mills when they were still in the midst of choosing the right school. For Mills, bringing the best to Bowdoin meant relentlessly dedicating himself and the College to increasing financial aid funds and ensuring that no accepted student would be unable to attend for monetary reasons. This past December, the faculty endowed a scholarship in honor of Mills and his wife, Karen, and their commitment to the practice of need-blind admissions. The faculty gave him a standing ovation, and he deserved nothing less.
Although Mills will not officially relinquish leadership of the College until July 1, he is probably experiencing many of the same sentiments of nostalgia that graduating seniors are feeling. Fittingly, he will soon be made an honorary member of the Class of 2015. When you see President Mills around campus before you pack up for the summer, don’t hesitate to stop him and thank him for what he’s done for the College. If we’ve learned anything about him, it’s that he’ll be more than happy to stop and chat.
This editorial represents the majority view of the Bowdoin Orient’s editorial board, which is comprised of Garrett Casey, Ron Cervantes, Sam Chase, Matthew Gutschenritter, Nicole Wetsman and Kate Witteman.

Editorial

This piece represents the opinion of The Bowdoin Orient editorial board.

April 23, 2015

It’s party time. Many Bowdoin students look forward to this weekend of raucous celebration all year—or even go as far as to plan their semesters abroad around it—and a collective sigh of disappointment could be heard on campus when it was announced that for a second year in a row, the concert would be held indoors. Though the weather may not be ideal, and the floor of the Farley Field House pales in comparison to the grass of Whittier Field, the show and the weekend’s fun should go on uninterrupted. All ivy needs both rain and shine to grow and thrive.

An urge for restraint may fall on deaf ears this far into the week of revelry, but it is important to remember that other peer schools have ended long-held traditions they deemed unsafe. This year, the Bates campus erupted in controversy after its administrators decided to end Trick or Drink, an aptly-named off campus Halloween celebration, stating that the event encouraged underage and binge drinking. Colby ended an annual tradition for graduating seniors called Champagne Steps after a slew of transports and property damage in 2009. The Tufts administration decided in 2010 to ban alcohol from its Ivies-equivalent, called Spring Fling, following a year when more transports were called in than the local ambulance companies could handle. Last year, Bowdoin had three transports over the Ivies Weekend. Damage was also done to Bowdoin dorms and nearby Brunswick residents often complain about the noise. After several incidents in previous years involving visitors who did not know anyone at the College, the administration began charging guests to enter the Saturday concert in 2012. And this year, to help mitigate the problem of public urination during the annual Brunswick Apartments Quad celebration, the College will provide portable restrooms for the first time. Hopefully, preventative actions like these will continue to be the norm for the College’s approach to making Ivies safe and fun every year.

While Ivies is a carefree time for students, that is not the case for everyone at the College. Director of Safety and Security Randy Nichols is sleeping on a cot in his office for the next few nights, and many Office of Safety and Security officers are required to work multiple shifts over the weekend. Dining Services workers must be prepared to handle especially big rushes of students coming from the Brunswick Apartments Quad and the Saturday concert. Facilities Management shoulders the burden of some of the cleanup and repairs the damages that are too often a byproduct of the festivities. Student Activities has poured its time and energy into improving Ivies each year and ensuring that it runs smoothly. And finally, the Entertainment Board carefully considered students’ survey responses and spent months planning the weekend; in addition, its members will forgo some of the weekend’s freedoms in order to staff events. Numerous people go above and beyond this weekend so that we can enjoy ourselves, and for that we should all be appreciative.

When the last of the champagne is poured and Security closes up shop at Pine Street Apartments, we hope to have done past generations of revelers proud. It may only be three (or four, or five, or six) days long, but Ivies usually provides many of the most memorable moments of the year. Happy 150th, Ivies, and here’s to many more.

This editorial represents the majority view of the Bowdoin Orient’s editorial board, which is comprised of Garrett Casey, Ron Cervantes, Sam Chase, Matthew Gutschenritter, Nicole Wetsman and Kate Witteman.

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