The Bowdoin Orient

After dramatically decreasing 17 percent in 2009, Bowdoin's endowment grew by 10.3 percent in fiscal year 2010. Following a decade in which the College's endowment regularly outperformed other school's funds, this rate fell below the 12.2 percent that Cambridge Associates reported as the median return among the educational funds the firm tracks.

A new poll suggests a dead heat in this cold state's race for governor. Data released Wednesday shows 30 percent of likely voters supporting Democrat Libby Mitchell and 29 percent supporting Republican Paul LePage. These numbers come just 10 days after a poll that had put LePage at a 13-point advantage and is welcome news for Democrats, with only one month left until the November 2 elections. All polling data was generated by Critical Insights of Portland, Maine. The poll size was relatively small—405 likely voters were polled.

Bowdoin will award its highest honor, the Bowdoin Prize, to Leon Gorman '56, L.L. Bean Chairman and Trustee Emeritus of the College today. In 1960, Gorman joined his grandfather's mail-order business in a time of unforeseen decline and considerable challenges. Gorman's grandfather, Leon Leonwood Bean, founder of L.L. Bean revolutionized outdoorswear by creating The Maine Hunting Shoe, a boot with a rubber sole and stitched leather that protected hunters from the dampness of the Maine woods.

The Board of Trustees begins its yearly evaluation of College funds this weekend, beginning with meetings starting today. Aside from its presentation of the Bowdoin Prize to Leon Gorman '56 tonight, the Board's focus this weekend will be primarily fiscal. "It's going to be a pretty routine meeting, there is nothing overwhelmingly important taking place," said Senior Vice President for Planning and Development and Secretary of the College Bill Torrey. Torrey noted that the October meeting is generally a time for the Board to discuss the College's financial standings at the end of the fiscal year and assess how the College fared in terms of budget and financial returns.

He has been interviewed on NBC Nightly News and the Tavis Smiley Show; he has been profiled as the ABC News "Person of the Week"; and, to put the seal on his recent explosion into the limelight, Geoffrey Canada '74 has been on "Oprah." Canada has been popping up all over the media to build enthusiasm for the already acclaimed documentary, "Waiting for Superman," of which he is a subject.

Although the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the H1N1 pandemic over on August 10, College Health Services is still preparing for the onslaught of seasonal flu. The H1N1 virus, commonly known as swine flu, swept the globe last year, infecting hundreds of thousands of people, including over 200 Bowdoin students. In response to the high-infection rate last year, the College set up quarantine rooms in Chamberlain Hall during September to contain transmission of the virus.

For Susannah Burrage '11, the printers at Bowdoin are like the vending machine that takes one's money, but gives nothing in return. On September 26, Burrage printed a document from a library computer, and after swiping and confirming her print order, she waited. Five minutes later, no documents had come, but in terms of her $60 allocation for printing, it was as if they had.

"I couldn't really be confident," said Grant Easterbrook '11, discussing last week's class council election in which he ran for President. "It's anyone's guess what will happen when you have four people running." Easterbrook's concerns, however, were alleviated when the results of the senior Class Council elections were announced Sunday night, with Easterbrook winning the presidency for the second year in a row. The Orient Express predicted Easterbrook's victory on Sunday afternoon.

Money makes the world go round in higher education. Money keeps students comfortable with dorm renovations and the College cutting edge with brand new buildings. Money allows students who could otherwise not afford to come to Bowdoin with the aid they need. Money enables everything from the large-scale to the unseen functions of the College to keep ticking.

I was absolutely dead set against it. After eight years of basketball, tennis and soccer, I decided that college was not going to be just another year of athletics for me. This was going to be a year of "fun" weekends, academic-filled weeks and Gossip Girl Mondays. However, my floor had different plans for me.

After reading "Coe Quad memorial too close to Ground Zero" (September 17), it took several minutes and another reading to consider whether this article was either so dripping with sarcasm and laced with "irony" that it could have been written in earnest, or was rather intended as a jarring parody. All politics aside and without delving into the propriety of the College Republicans erecting a memorial to 9/11 on campus this year, I find it in very poor taste to make a mockery of the notion of sacred ground and commemoration.

Yesterday, when the campus sorted through its daily flood of e-mails, there was an especially important one waiting. Each student received the Judicial Board (J-Board) and Student Sexual Assault and Misconduct Board's (SSAMB) 2009-2010 Annual Report.

Andy Serwer '81, the managing editor of Fortune Magazine, is not a bad guy. By all accounts, he's actually a pretty good guy, a real good guy, even. Before his speech at Common Hour today, he will probably be introduced by President Barry Mills or Dean of Academic Affairs Cristle Collins Judd, either of whom will undoubtedly shower him with praise. Perhaps he deserves it.

Last week's editorial supported the new printing policy, stating that it is an "important environmental move" and "we should accept the cost of this worthwhile cause." I don't.

Welcome to the first installment of "Ask Peer Health," a place where your health-related, Bowdoin or non-Bowdoin related questions, concerns and issues will be addressed. This week, our main focus is going to be alcohol, especially when it comes to returning to campus.

Bowdoin College seems to be a place where comfort never goes out of style. The ostentatious is frowned upon, the frills are scoffed at and nice outfits are always inquisitively received with: "Did you have an interview or something?"

In deference to a sensible student who publically denounced my use of the term "townie," I shall experiment with a few other words.

In the search for a perfect pizza pie, The Cabin falls short. The restaurant, located in Bath, is a locally revered pizza joint that many consider the best around.

Each year Bowdoin welcomes several language teaching fellows from across the globe to teach at the College and take classes. This year the College is playing host to two teaching fellows from France, one from Germany and one from Spain.

The students of Professor of Art Mark Wethli's Senior Seminar left Maine and got an invaluable glimpse into the world of professional visual artists last weekend. The trip took the class comprised of the senior visual arts majors to the epi center of the art scene in America: New York City.

A Louis Vuitton bag did David Little '85 in. No, it did not send him into a spiral of debt or cause him to rob his local department store to get his hands on one.

There have been few films in recent memory that coax the allegiance of their viewers onto the side of the villain, but Oliver Stone's "Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps," the sequel to his 1987 hit "Wall Street," does just that.

In the 1950s, television combined film with the radio and the log-burning fire: a device emitting light, security and nightmares. Now, the laptop and headphones combine the film with the radio and the codex: for the first time, private viewing has become a widely assessable option.

Lectures and dance performances are typical fare for Kresge auditorium, but the Women in Action (WIA) brought a unique combination of both art forms to the stage last night. The six female Nicaraguan dancers of WIA performed traditional Nicaraguan folk dance pieces while incorporating informative lectures about WIA's humanitarian initiatives to combat poverty in Nicaragua.

For Samantha Farrell '05, an aspiring musician with golden hair and a soulful, jazzy voice, it is an amazing honor to be nominated among the first round of nominations for "Best Pop Album of the Year."

Award-winning photographer Sandy Flint will come to Bowdoin for his upcoming exhibit, "A Perspective View." Over 20 digital prints, portraying Flint's landscapes and wildlife scenes, will be on display in color and black and white, as well as on the inkjet canvas.

The men's cross-country team drove home from its last race in high spirits, and, to celebrate the events of the day, first years on the team sang solo performances over the bus microphone.

Despite humid weather and unfamiliarity with the course, the women's cross-country team dominated at the Wesleyan Invitational. Although the Polar Bears were underdogs to Wesleyan, ranked No. 9, running smart allowed them to escape with a victory last Saturday.

On Monday night, the men's soccer team proved they are a team to be feared in the NESCAC. Playing through steady rain on a slick field at Colby College, the Polar Bears controlled the game from start to finish to earn a 4-0 victory.

On Wednesday afternoon, the women's soccer team cruised to a decisive 5-1 victory against the University of Southern Maine (USM).

"Bowdoin has never seen a women's golf season like this year." Chelsea Gross '13, herself an integral part of the team's success, expressed the significant steps that women's golf has taken during the 2010 season under new head coach Gerry Caron.

At last weekend's West Point Invitational, a tournament comprised of all D-I teams except for Bowdoin and Amherst, the women's tennis team showed that its members have the grit and talent to play at any level.

In women's rugby this Homecoming Weekend, the Polar Bears will seek to claim the crown as the top bears in Maine when they face-off against the Black Bears of the University of Maine-Orono (UMO).