"...To carry the keys of the world's library in your pocket...make hosts of friends...lose yourself in generous enthusiasms and cooperate with others for common ends—This is the offer of the College for the best four years of your life."
These are the final words of a campus tour led by DeRay Mckesson '07, who was elected last spring by the student body as the '05-'06 President of the Bowdoin Student Government. He has taken the "Offer of the College" by William DeWitt Hyde, seventh president of Bowdoin, to heart, stressing that this is only an offer, not a guarantee. He asks fellow students, "When will you accept this offer?"
Since coming to Bowdoin, a place that even from a visitor's perspective he felt cared about all students individually, Mckesson has learned the art of questioning himself honestly. He promotes what he calls "processing" when analyzing what it means to be a part of Bowdoin College. His advice? "Stop and think," and remember that times "won't always be easy, but that's okay, because that's real."
McKesson feels that the Bowdoin family really exists, and his most memorable experiences at Bowdoin relate to his own creation and maintenance of this sense of community. As a proctor in Maine Hall last year, currently as an R.A. in Stowe Hall, and through a continuing involvement in student government that dates back to elementary school and includes two terms as the president of the Class of 2007, he has been able to continually foster the type of environment valued at Bowdoin.
Eventually Mckesson plans to put these experiences together with a major in Government with a Political Theory concentration and minor in English to attend graduate school in law, business, or education.
After a summer's work at the Juvenile Division of the Baltimore City State Attorney's Office, DeRay has seen the myriad problems facing his Maryland hometown. Ultimately, he would love to work in government as an elected executive official—perhaps eventually as the mayor of Baltimore.
For now though, it is the office of president of the Bowdoin Student Government that awaits McKesson's influence. As he looks forward to the coming year, McKesson states, "I definitely live in a world where anything is possible."
Waking up each morning, most recently to the music of Marc Broussard, McKesson prefers to call his days full rather than busy. "It's a lifestyle," he says, "[It's] never a chore to do what you love."