Students who are looking for a formal chance to say "thank you" to faculty and staff will receive some help today.
Bowdoin Student Government's (BSG) first ever Faculty and Staff Appreciation Day will offer a variety of events that will allow students to recognize the adults who affect them on a day-to-day basis at the College.
Students voted on faculty superlatives?among them most valuable professor, best looking, best lecturer, and quirkiest?and signed thank-you notes to faculty and staff members prior to today's event.
"We did more programming specifically for students [in the past]," said BSG Vice President for Student Affairs Carolyn Chu '07.
"However, BSG thought it was something that needed to get done. Faculty get recognized for their work more than the staff, and we wanted to recognize them both as the contributors to our college lives," she said.
According to BSG President DeRay Mckesson '07, "Bowdoin is a family and it's important that we let the people who sustain this family know that they're important. This is our way to say it."
Following morning coffee and pastries in Smith Union for faculty and staff today, students are encouraged to invite their professors to lunch with meal tickets provided at the Office for the Dean of Student Affairs.
Afternoon activities include a concert featuring various campus performance groups. Winners of faculty superlatives will be announced at that time. Following the concert there will be an ice cream social for all staff members, and house dinners for select faculty members, chosen by the houses playing host to the faculty dinners.
Throughout the day, students will be able to sign thank-you cards to all departments, and stickers reading "I am appreciated" will be available to give to faculty and staff members. Students will receive the stickers in their Smith Union mailboxes today.
Though the event is new this year and many faculty members who were contacted about it were unaware of the details of the program, McKesson said that "the people who I've talked to think it's amazing."
Eamonn Hart '09 agreed.
"I really appreciate all that faculty and staff do for us, and it's nice to think that we can set aside some time to hopefully give something back to them," he said.