Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) did not meet this week, but that did not mean the group was not busy. On Tuesday, BSG introduced a new way for students to browse course syllabi and last night, BSG organized transportation to the long-awaited Harry Potter movie release.
As part of his campaign platform, BSG President John Connolly '11 promised students that syllabi would become more easily accessible online. The project involves posting syllabi from previous semesters on the BSG website; for now, only syllabi from the government department—the most popular department on campus—are available online, though BSG hopes to expand the program to other departments in the future.
Since the syllabi were released on Tuesday, the website has attracted over 300 views.
"A significant number of other schools have on their websites access to course syllabi from previous semesters that a class was taught—I think it's the best tool you can get," said Connolly. "You've got Rate My Professors, you've got BSG's internal course review site, but the best way to know how [a] class is going to be is to look at the [syllabus]."
BSG collaborated with Professor of Government Allen Springer, the department chair, to bring the project to fruition. Already, the initiative has received positive reviews and support from professors.
"It's obviously old syllabi from previous semesters and so it's not the exact same, but the professors' research, interest, and focus is usually well-reflected...and how they assign things...it's usually the same with grading methodology and that gives you a sense of how to balance your schedule," said Connolly.
"It gives you a little more control over your path for next semester," he added.
While some students browsed government syllabi, many others booked buses to yesterday's midnight screening of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Part 1." BSG arranged movie tickets and buses to be available on a first-come, first-serve basis at the Student Activities desk in Smith Union.
"Demand was incredibly high," said Connolly. "We originally planned to charter two buses, but we chartered a third." Connelly said he pleased with BSG's activity this week overall.
"It's been a great week for BSG, lots of services, lots of good stuff going on," said Connolly.