Students who study abroad are currently unable to win Sarah and James Bowdoin awards in the year following their time off-campus and after a debate at Bowdoin Student Government's (BSG) Wednesday night meeting, that is how the policy is going to stay.
BSG representatives studied the academic honors systems of peer schools and discussed possible ways to include students studying abroad in the honors system. The proposal to change the Sarah and James Bowdoin awards failed 8-11-1.
Vice President of Academic Affairs Bryce Spalding '10 proposed that students who study abroad for one semester be considered for an award based on their grades during their semester at Bowdoin.
Spalding provided the representatives with a list of 18 of Bowdoin's peer schools and their requirements for academic honors. Of those schools that had academic honors, two-thirds based their awards on a semester system.
"My perception is that this proposal kind of cheapens the Sarah and James Bowdoin Award" said At-Large Representative Kata Solow '10. Solow continued that the Sarah and James Bowdoin Award is about "sustained achievement" and that comparing students who achieved a level of grades for one semester with students who achieved that level for two semesters was like "comparing apples and oranges."
The conversation moved from the proposal to the idea of reinstituting a semesterly dean's list honor system, which was used about 10 years ago. The dean's list honor, which was eliminated by the Dean of Academic Affairs because, according to At-Large Representative John Connolly '11, "too many people were getting awards."
"Why don't they raise the standards?" said At-Large Representative Hannah Hoyt '13. She received no answer.
Finally, Vice President for Student Organizations Branden Asemah '12 called for a final vote on the original proposal, which was defeated.
After voting, BSG was briefed on the post-Spring Break shuttle service.
"The shuttle didn't turn out as well as we hoped...whah whah," said Connolly. According to Vice President for Facilities Isa Abney, not nearly as many students signed up for the shuttle service as had been expected. As a result, BSG lost a total of $50 and will likely not be providing a similar service after future college breaks.