Alex Spear

The Bowdoin College Museum of Art (BCMA) is a quintessential part of campus life, a venue to facilitate student learning and even a meeting point for students to protest, as seen at the recent Mahsa Amini candlelight vigil. Since 1984, the museum has been a center for the Bowdoin community to learn, gather and inspire.

The museum started a student ambassador program last spring. Student education assistant Sinclaire Ledahl ’23, one of the architects of the program, spoke on the motivation behind creating the student ambassador role.

Although the museum is accessible to all and even offers free entry, Ledahl, who is starting her second semester of work at the museum, wants to expand the BCMA’s outreach among students.

“The museum would love to be accessed more by students. I think most of the people that visit live in town, so we are working on outreach to the [campus] community,” Ledahl said.

Ledahl emphasized that the museum can not only be a place for social events and learning but can also serve as a space for more casual outgoings.

“[The BCMA] is a nice, peaceful place to hang out.” Ledahl said. “I also want to encourage people to use the museum as a resource and just to spend time here because it’s a really cool place.”

To counteract a lack of student engagement, Ledahl and others have worked to spearhead a group of student ambassadors that work to make the museum more accessible and engaging to the Bowdoin community.

“We want [the ambassadors] to be a bridge between campus and the museum because they are more in tune with the needs of campus and the kinds of events students are interested in,” Ledahl said.

Ledahl spoke on the importance of student representation.

“We are hiring students to design programs that are focused on Bowdoin’s campus life so that they can bring their clubs, friends and other groups into the museum space,” she said. “We specifically hire students because they are more in tune with the needs of the campus and the kinds of events that students are interested in.”

Although this initiative is fairly new and was only kick-started last spring, Ledahl explained that the program also facilitates growth for the ambassadors themselves.

“From the time that they were hired, they had extensive training,” Ledahl said. “They learned how to analyze works in view as well as get some inside scoop on the curation process and putting together exhibits.”

Ultimately, the ambassadorship program aims to make the BCMA a thriving center for student activity on campus. Ledahl also expressed excitement for future programming.

“This year there are two near-professional staff members that both have a background in museum education and are excited about campus activities and K-12 students in Brunswick.”

With its student ambassadors and much more to come, this year can only bring new and exciting things for the BCMA.