Isa Cruz

If you live off-campus, your neighbors might be Bowdoin faculty or staff. A number of faculty members live within walking distance of the campus, which has not only been convenient for them but has also added to the sense of community they feel both with Brunswick and the College.

Assistant Professor of Sociology Jamella Gow currently lives in new faculty housing near campus, which is offered to Bowdoin professors for the first three years of their employment to help them acclimate to the neighborhood and figure out long-term housing plans. She explained that while her proximity to the College has let her see many students to and from her way to work, her location has not played a big part in shaping her interactions with them—for now.

“If you ask me that question five years from now, it might change. I think mostly I feel like I interact a lot with students anyway. Because basically if I’m not [at home], I’m in my office. So I hang out here [on campus] and meet a lot of students,” Gow said. “I’ve heard of professors that have students over for dinner and stuff like that, but I haven’t had that happen yet.”

Professor of Cinema Studies Tricia Welsch, on the other hand, has been living near campus for a long time. Around 20 years ago, she bought her house from a retiring faculty member who wished to sell it to someone who he knew would have students in the house. Welsch has since been carrying on this tradition.

“I had this one student that I met at the academic open house in the beginning of her first year…. She walked my dog for four years. I danced in her wedding…. We’ve been friends for many years since then,” Welsch said. “I think it’s been good for students to have a grown-up this local. And it’s certainly been good for me because I live alone. So it’s very nice, and it has deepened and strengthened my relationship to the students that I’m close to.”

Professor of Government Andrew Rudalevige, one of Welsch’s neighbors, also added that the proximity to campus has created opportunities for him to get to know students.

“You do have a chance to interact with students, to have a sense of what their lived environment is, and it can sometimes be helpful,… but I don’t think it makes a massive difference,” Rudalevige said. “I don’t think that a professor who lives further from campus has any real disadvantage in being able to understand student life, but it’s a nice bonus for us [because] we very much like the students that we’ve gotten to know over the years.”

Living close to campus is also convenient for accessing Bowdoin’s many resources, especially for families.

“Bowdoin brings all kinds of resources into Brunswick…. A huge range of things are centered around the campus. We moved to town when [my] kids were still middle school-aged, so the ability to take advantage of those resources without having to get in the car or drive a long way is really appealing,” Rudalevige said.

Welsch, reflecting on her experiences getting unofficial mentoring from senior colleagues living close by, encouraged more junior faculty members to live in Brunswick as well.

“I wish that more junior faculty felt encouraged to live in Brunswick, and I certainly understand the draw of Portland,… but I think you do miss out on some of the after hours fun in Brunswick and the casual encounters that can really make the place feel like a community,” Welsch said.

While work and home life may blur together, a deepened sense of community among faculty and students has been valuable to Welsch in her time living close to campus.

“I really understand if people feel like they need to draw a strict line between their time at work and their time at home,” Welsch said. “But I value community more highly than privacy. And community is something living near the College offers in abundance.”