The Bowdoin Orient

In a change from past tradition, the Asian Students Association (ASA) did not host its annual fashion show as part of this year’s Asian Week. This marks a shift in ASA’s programming; the fashion show had been a staple of Asian Week since the 1980’s.

“One of the biggest changes we made was, our previous mission statement was that the purpose of our club was to serve the purpose of diversity recruitment and part of [how we accomplished that] that was the Asian Fashion Show,” said Son Ngo ’17, Co-Vice President of ASA. “We’ve realized that’s not what we want to do and that we want to focus more on identity, community and on bonding between members and the community.”

Co-President Jeffrey Chung ’16 explained that the change to Asian Week’s program reflected an attempt to turn away from presenting Asian cultures to campus and focus more on different views of all Asian and Asian American students.

In place of the fashion show, Asian Week will culminate with comedian and Bowdoin Alumnus Hari Kondabolu ’04 performing at Pickard Theater tomorrow night. Last year, Kondabolu was scheduled to perform, but he had to cancel due to illness.

In order to expand the diversity of programming, ASA has partnered with other multicultural groups on campus such as the African American Society, the Intercollegiate Sri Lanka Education (ISLE) Program and Anokha—the College’s South Asian student association.ASA, which boasts a membership of about 180 students, has coordinated a wider variety of programming because of these collaborations. 

On Tuesday, MacMillan House hosted “Panda Bear Tales” where students of all different ethnicities told stories about their personal experiences and identities. Ladd House hosted “An (Asian American) Portrait of the Artist” with writer and poet Jenny Zhang on Thursday night.According to Ngo, these shifts in programming have helped make this year’s Asian Week more successful than in years past.   

“There’s been great turnout so far. People seem to be more interested in the things we’re doing,” said Ngo. “We’ve seen a lot of participation we haven’t usually seen.”

While it is unclear whether the hype on campus about the presidential election will translate into students actually turning out to caucus this weekend, Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) has estimated it will be shuttling 42 students to the Brunswick caucuses. Five Republicans are signed up to attend the Saturday Republican Caucus, and 37 Democrats are signed up for the Sunday Democratic Caucus. Other students may also be walking or driving to Brunswick Junior High School where the Democratic caucus is being held.

“I think it’s really going to be a [problem], especially if there’s partying this weekend—people won’t want to go if they’re hungover,” said Nick Walker ’16. Walker is a leader of Bowdoin Students for Bernie, a student group that supports Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders’s candidacy for president. 

Maine is one of only 13 states whose parties use caucuses instead of primaries. Voters must show up to their meeting place—Brunswick Junior High School for Democrats and Greely Middle School in Cumberland for Republicans—where people will give speeches for and against candidates.

Republicans vote via ballot while Democrats will publicly stand in different parts of the room depending on who they support. Based on these votes, the number of delegates allocated to that caucus will be divided in proportion to the support that each candidate has received. If a candidate has too few supporters to qualify for a delegate, those voters have an option to switch candidates.

Student organizers on both sides of the aisle worry that the unique nature of the caucus system may ward off or confuse students and reduce participation rates. 

“It’s sort of how you would elect third grade student council,” said Emma Kane ’18, a Hillary Clinton supporter who will be caucusing in her hometown of Portland.

While both polls and student organizers are unsure which Democrat will win in Maine, both Walker and Kane indicated that the youth vote will be a major factor in deciding the election for Sanders or Clinton.

Kane thinks that the youth vote will tilt Brunswick toward Sanders, but she’s hopeful that other towns with older voters will help secure Maine for Clinton.

“I would be super excited if we could get maybe a fourth [of Bowdoin students voting in the Democratic caucus]. It’s very hard to tell. Hillary Clinton supporters have been quieter in this election,” said Kane. “I don’t know how they’re feeling up north—they vote really strangely up there.”

Jack Lucy ’17, chair of the Bowdoin College Republicans, explained that while he has heard many students will be driving themselves, the BSG-sponsored voter shuttles are integral to student turnout. Lucy expects between 10 and 20 caucus goers. 

Another Republican student, David Jimenez ’16, will be caucusing as the captain for the John Kasich campaign. He said that the race will be determined by turnout, which he estimates will be anywhere between 5,000 and 20,000 statewide. 

Jimenez was demure about Kasich’s popularity on campus, referring to his support on campus as “basically just me wearing Kasich attire all the time.”

Bowdoin Democrats has not officially endorsed a candidate yet. Co-President Amanda Bennett ’17 said that the group’s goal for this weekend is just to get students to turn out for the caucus in big numbers.

Same day registration to vote in the caucus is legal in Maine, but student organizers have urged students to register beforehand or submit an absentee ballot if possible.

“The Brunswick caucus has one of the largest democratic lines in the state, and that line is almost always students registering last minute as Democrats so they can vote in the caucus,” said Kane. 

As colleges and universities across the country are grappling with issues of sexual assault and race relations, Bowdoin Board of Trustees Chair-Elect Michelle Cyr ’76, P ’12 is uniquely prepared for her upcoming role. 

Cyr is a professor of medicine and medical science and an Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at Brown University’s Warren Alpert Medical School. She specializes in women’s health, particularly menopause. 

 As former co-chair of Brown’s Sexual Assault Task Force, current chair of Brown’s Title IX Oversight and Advisory Board and a member of multicultural committees at both Brown and Bowdoin, Cyr noted that she is not the conventional pick for chair of Bowdoin’s Board of Trustees. 

 “I did joke with someone that in the 222 years of Bowdoin, this is probably the first time that an announcement of the new chair of the Board has been associated with the words “sexual assault” and “menopause,” said Cyr. “I think this is a new day for Bowdoin.”

 This is not Cyr’s first time breaking into what have historically been male-dominated scenes. She was the only girl on her high school track team and was a member of the College’s second class of women. 

 Cyr, who attended a public high school, admitted that she was a little worried when she first came to Bowdoin in 1972. At the time, coming from public school to Bowdoin was not common, and that combined with her gender made her even more of a minority. However, she said that the College quickly adapted to being coeducational.

 “You had an option. You could be in an all-women’s dorm,” said Cyr. “I decided to go all in, and I went for a co-ed dorm. I was actually in Appleton.” 

An art and biochemistry double major, Cyr dabbled in medical illustration after graduation before going on to Dartmouth Medical School and fulfilling her residency at Maine Medical Center in Portland.  

Cyr is aware that her background is not common on the Board of Trustees—about half of its members have financial backgrounds. She sees this as a strength, especially given the issues that colleges and universities are facing today.  

“As trustees we come to the Board as outsiders, so we all bring areas of expertise from our lives,” Cyr said. “This just happens to be my expertise—sexual assault and misconduct, and multiculturalism. I am currently chairing the search for the medical school’s associate dean for diversity and multicultural affairs here at Brown.” 

Cyr explained that while her work can at times focus on hot-button issues, it hasn’t been an issue at Bowdoin. 

“Some of my work at Brown is in areas of controversy, especially sexual assault. At Bowdoin, I didn’t feel that there was controversy as a member of the Special Committee on Multicultural Affairs. We all agreed that diversity and inclusion are important goals for Bowdoin,” Cyr said.

At Brown, Cyr welcomes Bowdoin medical school applicants personally and tries to make interview days special by inviting current medical students who graduated from Bowdoin to visit with applicants. 

 “I am on a mission to bring more Polar Bears here to be Brown Bears,” said Cyr.

 Excited for her next trip to the College in the spring, Cyr was torn when asked about her favorite dining hall, and while she couldn’t make a final decision, she had an initial reaction. “There was no Thorne when I was at Bowdoin, so I have a spot in my heart for Moulton.”

Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) introduced a proposal on Wednesday to hold a referendum to add a multicultural representative as a voting member of BSG. The position was discussed last spring, but not put into a proposal until now.

BSG’s Executive Committee—comprised of President Danny Mejia-Cruz ’16, Vice President for Student Government Affairs Michelle Kruk ’16, and five other vice presidents—recommended the proposal to the committee and the small crowd of students who attended the meeting to support the proposal.

“[The fact that BSG] itself is composed of a diverse set of students does not mean that those students speak on behalf of whatever individual race they look like they are or sexuality that they belong to. It’s just not right and I think that we’re making the right move,” said Mejia-Cruz. “We cannot ask people to serve as something just because of the way they look or the way diversity is perceived.”

Currently, BSG has representatives from the Inter-House Council (IHC), the Athletics Council, the McKeen Center and the Entertainment Board who “serve as advocates of special interest groups on campus,” according to the proposal.

The referendum question would be whether or not the BSG constitution should add a multicultural representative to its specified list of representatives.

Special interest group representatives are not elected by the student body as a whole but are elected or chosen by the group they represent, like the Multicultural Coalition.

BSG will vote on December 2 to decide whether or not to hold a school-wide referendum. If that proposal is approved by a four-fifths majority of BSG, the student body would vote on the referendum from December 9-12. One-third of the student body would need to vote on the referendum for it to be valid and two-thirds of voting students would need to vote in favor for the multicultural representative position to be created.

Mejia-Cruz noted the significance of the proposal and the consequences of a referendum and urged BSG members to campaign aggressively assuming the proposal goes to the student body, explaining that a striking down of the amendment could be a symbolic blow to the embrace of diversity and inclusivity.

“I think a sufficient amount of campaigning will be done, but we will get it,” said Mejia-Cruz.

In light of the recent security concerns, BSG unanimously agreed to request greater availability of shuttle services and increased lighting at the college houses.

Jacob Russell ’17, IHC representative, cited the sexual assault that took place on November 10 at Mayflower Apartments and an incident on November 17 where a student was grabbed from behind near Union Street and Potter street as reason for the requested increases in security.

In response to the continuing questions from Justin Pearson ’17 on the constitutionality of the appointment and subsequent internal election of Emily Serwer ’16 as Vice President for Student Organizations, BSG approved a change to the bylaws in order to “codify” the actions it took.

Pearson disagreed, claiming that the proposal does not codify actions and that the bylaw change is in fact unconstitutional and would have to go to the student body as a referendum.BSG approved the change, though it requires a second vote at its next meeting in order for the bylaw change to be official.

Just two weeks after the sailing team’s “Gangsta Rap” themed party sparked controversy regarding cultural appropriation on campus, Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) kicked off “No Hate November”, a month dedicated to shedding light on bias incidents and issues of diversity. 

This will be the second time that BSG has dedicated the full month of November to focusing on issues of race and identity.

“We’re really hoping for it to be more proactive than reactive but now it looks reactive....especially considering how low-profile [No Hate November] was last year,” said Michelle Kruk ’16, vice president of BSG.

Kruk, who has worked on developing the No Hate November structure since fall 2013—when the bias incidents that galvanized BSG to create the month occurred—lamented the fact that this November’s programming may look reactive to recent campus incidents, but hoped that the charged conversations happening on campus would spur people to participate in this month’s events.

Vice President for Student Affairs Luke von Maur ’16 noted that one of the biggest shifts in this year’s event planning has been a stronger effort to reach out to different groups on campus, as both he and Kruk noted that minority students may have felt disaffected by a lack of outreach last year.

“Especially after what happened two weeks ago, we’re trying to make this issue more well known,” said von Maur. “I think after what happened at ‘Cracksgiving’ [last year], I think a lot of students felt removed from the event.”

Kruk explained that she hopes the scheduled events for November will cater not only to students who regularly engage with racial conversations, but also those who do not usually engage with issues of race or have been dissatisfied with race relations on campus.

“I think there are a lot of things that happen between interactions between students, faculty and staff that are incredibly problematic,” said Kruk. 

Kruk explained that over the past week she has learned of numerous incidents of what she believes would have been considered bias incidents if they had been reported, and that there are “students of color who walk around this campus harboring very deeply hurtful racist instances that are shaping their Bowdoin experience.”

In addition to bringing back the photo installation in the David Saul Smith Union—something BSG organized in 2013 in light of bias incidents—Kruk and von Maur are hoping to assemble a collection of anonymous stories submitted by students who believe they were the victims of bias incidents or micro-aggressions. 

In an attempt to better engage with the community on matters of race and identity, members of the BSG executive committee released an open letter at this week’s meeting, announcing some of their plans for the upcoming year. The letter was published in the Orient last week. BSG President Danny Mejia-Cruz ’16 said, “I think one of the problems BSG has is generally people don’t know about us and what we do, while the fact is, we have immense impact, and can have more impact.” 

Harry Rube contributed to this report. 

Courtesy of the new Bowdoin College Guide app, students now have a multitude of Bowdoin-centric information at their fingertips. The app—downloadable for free on the App Store and Google Play—includes a school calendar, dining menus, laundry and OneCard information, news, maps and other information. Originally developed to aid visitors coming to campus for events like class reunions and Commencement Weekend, the app was upgraded this past spring to serve as a tool for students.

“[The app] turned out to be incredibly successful over the last couple of years. We thought it’d be nice if there was a consistent guide for everyone to use, particularly students,” said Director of Digital and Social Media Holly Sherburne.

Sherburne, along with Senior Interactive Developer David Francis and Technology Integration Specialist Juli Haugen, began to upgrade and rebrand the event app. Additions to the app include “The Bowdoin Guide,” the primary tool for students within the app.

Since its start last spring, the Bowdoin app has been installed more than 2,200 times. The Bowdoin Guide within the app has been installed 1,658 times, with about 600 of those installations coming since August 22. iPhone users represent 85 percent of downloads, while 15 percent of downloads came from Android users.

Additional guides will be available for special campus events, such as Homecoming, Family Weekend, Commencement Weekend, Reunion and First Year Orientation. Guides for Homecoming and President Rose’s Inauguration are currently available.

This work coincided with a request from Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) for the creation of a better student calendar.

“It was something that few students looked at and that faculty and staff just crowded. It served no purpose because no one looked at it,” said BSG President Danny Mejia-Cruz ’16.

“The Orbit was created and it never reached its full potential,” Director of Student Activities Nate Hintze said. “This past year [students said], ‘It comes at 11:11 and I delete it.’”

Mejia-Cruz said that many students complain about the Orbit, claiming that student organizations never use it as was originally intended. 

“We want to get rid of it, we will be getting rid of it if it’s the last thing I do,” said Mejia-Cruz. While the Campus Digest still alerts students by email about announcements and events, the app aims to make information—particularly calendars—more accessible and more frequently updated.

“We’re trying to streamline a calendar system so people across campus can look and see what’s going on in Reed House, in athletics, in the government department, all in one location,” said Hintze.

Attempts have already been made to promote app use. Student Activities introduced the app to club leaders at a training meeting earlier this month, while first years could learn about the app at a table set up in the David Saul Smith Union during First Year Orientation. Posters will soon be going up around campus, though Sherburne said she hopes the app will gain traction from word of mouth.

While currently focusing on promoting the calendar, Student Activities and Information Technology shared hopes to expand the scope of the app. The app already overlaps with the popular student dining app, which includes similar features of dining menus and OneCard information. 

“The pinnacle would be if we could figure out how to get Safe Ride information on there…so you’ll have the phone numbers for Safe Ride shuttle and Brunswick Taxi right there,” Hintze said.

Students can download the new app at http://bowdo.in/app. 

It’s party time. 

Ivies weekend officially began on Thursday night with performances by Tree Farm and Reel Big Fish in Smith Union, but the College has been gearing up all week. 

The Meddiebempsters and the Longfellows got in on the Ivies hype, performing an ‘Ivies Kickoff Concert’ on Wednesday evening in the Chapel, as did a group who staged the second annual Bowdoin Night Live on Wednesday evening in Kresge Auditorium.

All week, Ivies was inevitably the subject of many conversations, as students began purchasing apparel and water bottles on Monday and rushed to finish homework before the events officially commenced on Thursday.

The fun has only just begun though. Today, the Student Activities Office is hosting an event on the quad of Brunswick Apartments in the afternoon and a party at the Harpswell apartments this evening. The main event comes tomorrow with performances from The White Panda and Logic, which will take place in Farley Field House for the second year in a row due to unpredictable weather forecasts and a muddy Whittier Field. The doors open at 2 p.m. and performances start at 3 p.m.

Some students expressed disappointment about the concert moving indoors, but the potential bad weather does not seem to have dampened all excitement on campus.

“I’m really excited to spend some quality time with my friends and enjoy great music and the outdoors,” said Devoe Arnold ’18. 

“I’m going to be excited, I’m just not there yet—I’m still doing homework,” said Maddie Daily ’16. “Also, [Hatch Science Library] will be open on Saturday because I’ll be working.”

This year’s celebration marks the 150th anniversary of the Bowdoin Ivy Day tradition, but acknowledgement of that milestone or of the event’s history has so far been minimal. 

While the Ivies hype is pervasive, some campus organizations have recognized that a drunken, sweaty and crowded concert does not appeal to everyone and have scheduled alternative events. Counseling Services and The Bowdoin Outing Club will hold a self care retreat at the Coastal Studies Center from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday. 

Planning and Changes

The Entertainment Board (eBoard) has been busy planning the Ivies lineup for months. In October, it conducted a survey of students’ preferences, which it used to narrow down the list of possible performers. The eBoard also considered factors such as cost and availability before finalizing contracts and releasing an announcement video in early March. 

This year for the first time, there will be porta-potties placed in the parking lot of Brunswick Apartments between apartment units L and M on Friday.

“We have porta-potties at Brunswick Quad, so use them,” said Director of Student Activities Nate Hintze. “There was some damage to doors [last year] for people wanting to get into rooms to use restrooms.” 

Hintze noted that there are not many significant changes being made to the different activities and protocols for the weekend. Since the concert was held indoors last year, the College is better prepared to hold the concert indoors if necessary this year.

On Monday, Director of Safety and Security Randy Nichols emphasized the importance of safety in his annual “SurvIvies Guide” email to the entire campus.

Nichols wrote that he and the Office of Safety and Security will be focused on mitigating the effects of risky behavior. 

“Our goal is always to get through it without any injuries or arrests or worse,” said Nichols.Security has added staff for the weekend and will maintain a sizable and visible presence at and around all of the major events. 

Nichols said he expects to spend the night on a cot he sets up in his office. Associate Director of Safety and Security David Profit will be sleep in a hotel in Brunswick to be closer to campus. While Bowdoin students pose a threat for risky behavior, Nichols said that students’ visitors and local residents have traditionally caused the most problems. 

As they have in recent years, guests from other schools are required to register with the Student Activities Office and pay $30 for entrance to the Saturday concert at Whittier Field. 

Nichols said that this policy minimizes disruptions because it makes students accountable for their guests’ conduct. He added that Security will not hesitate to confront a troublesome visitor.“If we do have a problem with a guest, we take it very seriously. We’ll remove the guest from campus and we’ll also notify their college—if they’re a college student—for any follow up action that they might take,” he said.

The Brunswick Police Department is aware of the event but will not be increasing staffing or patrols according to Commander of Support Services Mark Waltz. 

“We do routine patrol unless we get called,” he said in a phone call with the Orient.The College also hopes to mitigate potential health threats by making lots of food and non-alcoholic drinks available. 

Super Snack will be closed today and Saturday. This afternoon there will be a snack truck serving tacos and wraps at the Brunswick Apartments Quad and tonight there will be hot dogs and pizza sponsored by BSG in the Harpswell Apartments parking lot.

Dining Services will supply food at the Saturday afternoon concert and BSG is sponsoring a hot dog cart and pizza deliveries for a party at Pine Street Apartments Saturday evening. The College will provide water at each event.

On Saturday, Maine Students For Climate Justice (MSCJ) will hold a rally in Augusta to draw attention to issues of climate change and to pressure lawmakers to ensure that Maine’s economic development is environmentally sustainable. MSCJ is demanding that the the state of Maine refrain from building any new fossil fuel infrastructure.

At the time of publication, an estimated 500 students from across the state of Maine are expected to gather in front of the Capitol Building in Augusta. Forty students from the College are expected to attend. 

This rally comes a week after Bowdoin Climate Action (BCA), a primary member of MSCJ, ended its sit-in for fossil fuel divestment on the second floor of Hawthorne-Longfellow Hall outside President Barry Mills’s office. 

While Bowdoin students from BCA, Green Bowdoin Alliance,and Sustainable Bowdoin are among the primary organizers for the rally in Augusta, MSCJ is a state-wide alliance. Other participating institutions of higher education include Colby College, Bates College, the University of Maine, and Unity College.

Michael Butler ’17, a member of BCA and MSCJ, is the master of ceremonies for the event.“All these different schools are coming together and are basically calling on Governor [Paul] LePage to seriously address climate change,” said Butler. “He is such a symbol of climate denialism.”

While anyone is invited to attend the rally, Butler expects most of those in attendance to be college students.

“[The name of the rally is] called Generation Climate Rising, so it’s very focused on our generation— the power that we have to make a change,” said Julia Berkman-Hill ’17.Organizers of the event will be hosting a press conference in the morning and will proceed to march through Augusta, from the Capitol Building to the governor’s mansion, the Blaine House. 

“There’s been nothing like this in a very long time and it’s certainly going to galvanize the conversation in Maine,” said Butler. 

“There’s going to be a large group of high school students from the Portland area,” said University of Southern Maine student organizer Iris SanGiovanni. “We’ve got buses leaving from Portland, Ellsworth, and Bangor.”

SanGiovanni, who will be liaising between Maine Students for Climate Justice and local police forces, explained that there are no planned arrests for Saturday and that the event is largely to galvanize support. 

“We’re here for the long haul, we’re committed, we’re prepared to work with legislators and if things don’t start moving forward, we’re prepared to also escalate,” she said.

Ska punk band Reel Big Fish will kick off Ivies on Thursday, April 23, with experimental electronic act The White Panda opening on Saturday and rapper Logic playing later that afternoon.

Student reactions were mixed, with most of the excitement geared toward Reel Big Fish and White Panda, some students were not familiar with any of the acts.

“I don’t know any of the bands that are coming—that might just be me living under a rock,” said Selena Lorrey ’16.

“Honestly, I’ve never heard of any of them… From my understanding the music is not the most important part of Ivies,” said Mac Brower ’16.

According to Director of Student Activities Nate Hintze, the Entertainment Board (eBoard) decided to change the typical Ivies model, which usually features Racer X on Thursday night and two bands on Saturday. The eBoard declined to comment for this story.

“They try to get all the different genres that students like—it seemed like a good thing to try to put the indie-rock act on Thursday night and have the DJ and rapper on Saturday, just to try things a little bit different,” said Hintze. 

Hintze expects that there will be between 1,800 and 2,500 students attending Ivies with an additional 500 for the performances on Saturday.

“I’m excited about Reel Big Fish, but I’m guessing I’m in the minority,” said Katie Coleman ’16. “I’m exited to have something different from the past two years—I’m consistently surprised by the choices [the eBoard makes].”

Hintze declined to specify the eBoard’s operating budget or how much any act is getting paid some contracts stipulate that the College cannot say how much the performers charge, he said, adding that the College finalized the contracts two weeks before Spring Break.

None of the performers could be reached by the time of publication.

Notably absent from this year’s performers is Racer X—the professor comprised 80s cover band that has performed at most Ivies in recent years.

“I’m pretty excited [for Ivies performances], pretty sad Racer X isn’t performing because it’s my senior year, but I’ll survive,” said Kristen Nocka ’15.

While students largely consider Yik Yak to be a peer-dominated outlet for anonymous posting, faculty members are not naïve when it comes to the “Yakking” phenomenon.

“I’m a little surprised that much of the chatter can fit into three categories,” said Assistant Professor of German Jens Klenner. “The weather, food—in its various stages of production, whether before or after digestion—and sex life on campus.”

Yik Yak is a social media app used for posting anonymous messages that has become popular at Bowdoin over the past two years. Users can view the messages, or “Yaks,” within a 10-mile radius and vote on whether a Yak is good or bad. However, the students are not the only ones drawn to the app. 

“You would be surprised by the number of faculty members across this campus that have Yik Yak on their phone,” said Klenner.

Faculty members have found it both enjoyable and surprising to observe the sentiments that unguarded students have expressed.

“It’s really fascinating, you get access to this collective id of Bowdoin,” said Assistant Professor of English Maggie Solberg. “A lot of us study human nature, it’s hard not to be interested in Yik Yak. You’re here—you’re an anthropologist, you’re a sociologist, you’re not going to use this tool?”

Solberg explained that while at times Yik Yak can be too sobering to her view of the student body, it provides an unusual insight into the campus zeitgeist.

“You really put your finger on the pulse of the culture,” said Solberg.

Visiting Instructor in History and Asian Studies Tristan Grunow noted that while he no longer has the app, he enjoys talking to colleagues about the Yik Yak culture on campus.

“When I had it, when we [faculty members] would get together and hang out, we would read through it and be like ‘Oh, that’s kind of funny,’” said Grunow. “I saw a lot of jokes about pooping.”

Despite all the fecal and sex jokes, Solberg explained that after talking to colleagues at other colleges about their Yik Yak culture, Bowdoin’s level of discussion was far more enlightened.

“I remember us junior faculty joking how nerdy the Bowdoin Yik Yak voice is,” said Solberg. “It’s very charming; it’s a very intellectual Yik Yak; it’s often very high minded.”

However, Solberg explained that reading it became too depressing during finals period and she has since deleted the app.

“The level of hysteria during exams? It reminded me of myself as an undergrad and as a high school student, but it’s a part of yourself, as an adult, that you want to forget,” she said.

While he enjoys actively reading the usually clever and humorous Yaks, Klenner noted anonymity can lend itself to abusive language or hate speech. 

While Grunow, Klenner and Solberg all explained that they do not Yak nor know any professor who has, Klenner shared a story he heard.

“I’ve heard of one incident where someone [a faculty member] made a comment in response to racial slurs,” said Klenner. “It was before my time here.“

“When I was in college, ‘Yakking’ meant ‘throwing up,’ added Grunow. “It’s almost relieving—these are normal students that have normal frustrations.” 

College houses are struggling to address this year’s increase in urine-related damages in public spaces. 

The rugby team’s annual toga party “Epicuria” at Ladd House was the most egregious night for urination in public spaces, according to President of the Inter-House Council (IHC) Jillian Burk ’16.

“‘Inches of pee’ is the quote we were given,” said Burk, referring to a meeting she had with the Office of Residential Life (Res Life).

But according to Burk, “unprecedented amounts of pee” have been discharged in hallways, public rooms, stairwells, and other public spaces in college houses throughout this semester. 

“My roommate was at a party in Helmreich House and saw a boy who shall not be named peeing in our trash can,” said resident Mimi Paz ’17. 

Assistant Director of Residential Life Mariana Centeno explained that Res Life wants students to be respectful of the living spaces of house members and that urinating on their living space is highly disrespectful for the house members and the College. 

Members of the IHC think that the problem is largely due to a shortage of available bathrooms during registered events. 

“It is a form of damage to the house, but people don’t often think about it at the time,” said Burk.

According to Burk, the Office of Residential Life informed the IHC that the excessive urination may lead to rodent problems. 

“There are mice. I hear them every night,” said Paz. “Over Fall Break, one girl [in our house] saw one.”

Burk explained that there have been conversations about having College Houses have one porta-potty per registered keg, but the idea was dismissed because it would force College House residents to incur high costs for other students’ offenses. 

While the College hasn’t created a new policy for addressing the urination, the IHC has encouraged house members to try to get the names of urinating students so that they may be held responsible for the damages. 

However, Centeno explained that she has not had any students turned in for their transgressions, though Burk noted that some students were held accountable for urinary damages last year. 

“Pee’s nasty” said Centeno.

Due to a suspicion that a rash potentially could have been chickenpox, Health Services requested that Maya Norman ’17 voluntarily isolate herself from October 28-30.

“They didn’t really know what it was, but they thought it might be chicken pox—even though I was vaccinated twice when I was younger and I had been very much exposed [to chickenpox as a child],” said Norman.

On Monday, October 27, Norman developed a rash and went to the Health Center where they made an appointment for the next day.

Norman received an evaluation Tuesday morning, was called back several hours later to take a blood test to diagnose her rash, and then was visited later in the day by Director of Health Services Birgit Pols and Lisa Rendall, associate director of housing operations

Pols explained to Norman that while they were not sure if she had chickenpox, the potential for it was serious enough that she would have to temporarily live alone in a crash room in Coles Tower.

“They told me it would take a couple days to get the results back,” said Norman.

Once it had been determined that she did not have chickenpox, Norman was assured that she could move back to her residence immediately.

“They worded it very perfectly I think,” said Norman. “They were like, ‘We don’t want you to leave, but there’s no lock on the door.’”

In an email to the Orient, Pols explained that the College does not quarantine students, but it frequently asks them to “voluntarily isolate themselves,” and will occasionally work with the Office of Residential Life to relocate students so that they do not use a shared bathroom.Norman did not leave her crash room in Coles Tower for three days, and Pols advised her to only allow visitors who had been vaccinated against chickenpox or had previously had the disease.

Once blood test results determined that Norman did not have chickenpox, Pols informed Norman that she could move back to her Ladd House residence.  

The next day, Norman went to the Mid Coast Walk-In clinic where she was prescribed medication for her rash, as the College’s Health Center had only provided her over-the-counter prescription medication. The Health Center has since made appointments for Norman with a local dermatologist.

Regarding the process and treatment by the College for her temporary relocation, Norman only had one qualm.

“I definitely feel like they weren’t really investigating a plan B when I was quarantined,” said Norman. “I felt like they could’ve been looking into what else it could be, because the likelihood of it being chickenpox given my medical history wasn’t incredibly high.”

The men’s rugby team’s annual toga party at Ladd House, Epicuria, was more successful in terms of student safety than previous years, thanks to increased security measures from the Office of Safety and Security.

“There was one transport [to Mid Coast Hospital] associated with Epicuria—a first year female student,” said Director of Safety and Security Randy Nichols. “Two years ago, we had four transports; one is too many but at least we’re going in the right direction.”Epicuria is one of the busiest nights of the year for Security, so a number of  new security procedures were put in place this year, including a larger officer presence around Ladd House and an increased number of wellness checks.

In order to keep the event safe, Security added three extra shift supervisors on top of their normal Saturday night staff.

One of the most frequent problems Security encountered at the event was public urination. One student was caught urinating in a Ladd House hallway and has been reported to the Office of the Dean of Student Affairs. 

“It was a little ridiculous this year with the amount of urine flowing around,” said Nichols.

The event organizers—the men’s rugby team and Ladd House residents—held several meetings with members of Security and the Office of Residential Life, which is unusual, even for a campus-wide party.

“It was a really bumping party that one doesn’t often see at Bowdoin and no one got into trouble or was unsafe, so it went as well as we could’ve asked for,” said rugby team captain Varun Wadia ’15. 

The Office of Student Activities contributed to keeping the event safe as well by renting a taco truck and having it stationed in front of Ladd House. They also provided an inflatable bouncy castle in front of Osher Hall.

“I thought they [Security] did a good job monitoring the event without being overbearing,” said Christian Boulanger ’15, a member of the rugby team’s senior leadership. “Having the taco truck outside was pretty nice, it gave people an opportunity to get out of the heat.”

“That’s a carry over from a strategy we used during Ivies,” said Nichols, referring to the taco truck. “We have found that by providing copious amounts of pizza and other food items, we are able to affect safety in a positive way.”

Despite the several live bands that played during the night, noise levels were kept low enough that the College did not receive any noise complaints from town residents this year, though they have in years past.

“The police did not get a call associated with Epicuria at all this year,” said Nichols. “When you put on a toga, sometimes you act a little differently.”

This year’s Epicuria stood in stark contrast to the infamous 2012 toga party, a night during which the College determined that the rugby team had violated its hazing policy. The events of the party led the president and the vice president of Ladd to voluntarily step down, and to security increasing alcohol security. On the night of the 2012 Epicuria, four students were transported—two from Ladd, one from Coleman and one from the off-campus Union Street house—and two students were cited for underage drinking at Union Street. 

Last week, a Bowdoin student’s painting that had been missing for over a year and a half was returned to its rightful owner.

During the 2012 fall semester, Dana Hopkins ’14 painted a master copy of Georgia O’Keefe’s “Red Canna” for her Painting I class.

“It probably took me about 30 hours to copy it to a stage where I felt comfortable with it,” said Hopkins.

Students in the Painting I classes had their best pieces put on display in an open gallery in the third floor of the Visual Arts Center (VAC).

“Each of us had five to seven paintings in there and there were 12 to 15 of us in that class, so there were a lot of paintings,” said Hopkins

But when Hopkins came to pick up her artwork last December when the exhibit was ending, her master copy of the O’Keefe painting was gone.

“It was the only one that wasn’t there,” said Hopkins. “None of my other stuff was gone so I didn’t really think it was a personal vendetta.”

After Hopkins searched the building, she contacted the Office of Safety and Security about locating the painting.

“At that time, there hadn’t been any cameras around the VAC that actually worked,” said Hopkins. “Randy Nichols was super nice about it and called the Brunswick Police.”

Despite emails from security to students and an article in the Bangor Daily News publicizing the apparent heist, nothing was found.

“I had pretty much given up hope after a month or two. My best guess was someone took it for whatever reason—for aesthetic purposes,” said Hopkins. “My dad likes to say that they were trying to sell it.”

But after a year and a half, Hopkins’ painting showed up last week when a staff member was packing up some of the remaining art supplies in the VAC to move them to the Robert H. and Blythe Bickel Edwards Center for Art and Dance.

“[A technician] for Edwards put it with my senior studio stuff and I walked into the room and I was like ‘What?’” said Hopkins. “It was a really nice surprise. I really have no clue what happened or how to find out about it.”

As for who might have been the perpetrator of the theft, Hopkins has her own opinion.

“I feel pretty confident that someone took it and returned it at a separate time just because nothing else was moved from the room; none of my other work was taken, no one else’s work was taken; nothing else was out of place,” said Hopkins. “It was very strange.”

David Phipps ’14 has been raising some eyebrows this week with his new eyewear: Google Glass. The technology is so new that it is not yet available to the public.

Google Glass is a pair of glasses with a mini-computer mounted in the top corner. The operating screen is activated by voice and by facial and head movements.

Users can take pictures, record video, look up directions, search the web and use other applications on the device.

Phipps is a Google Explorer, meaning that he is one of a select group of people who applied to have early access to Google Glass.

Phipps picked up the new eyewear while on a trip to San Francisco over Spring Break.

“I applied sometime last year. I don’t remember when, and I don’t remember what I said actually,” said Phipps.

One of the most innovative things features of Google Glass is the way it transmits sounds to the user.

“You’ll hear noises when you use [the Google Glass] but you don’t have any headphones in. It vibrates your skull to actually make you hear things,” said Phipps.

Phipps said he has really enjoyed learning how to use the new technology and is excited to keep experimenting.

“The things I’m really looking forward to—I’m in a band and the only bottle neck is that I really have to learn lots of lyrics which is really annoying, so now I might be able to just put them up here,” said Phipps.

“I might try it this Saturday,” he said, referring to the concert tomorrow at 9 p.m. in Smith Union.

Phipps sees potential for Google Glass to become very popular in the future, but one perk is certainly making it popular with him.

“One thing that’s really cool—they also give you free beer at Google,” said Phipps.

When I sat down to interview Phipps, he let me test out his new hardware. I winked aggressively to turn on the camera and take a picture and was also able to test out the maps and compass apps. Wearing Google Glass seems   futuristic—like something out of Star Trek or The Jetsons.

The technology is not as intuitive as picking up a cell phone, but learning how the different features operate is part of what makes it exciting. I don’t imagine purchasing one anytime soon—something about it seems a little robotic to me, but they’re a lot of fun to try out and play with.

This weekend, students from Bowdoin Climate Action and the Bowdoin Democrats will take a bus to Washington, D.C. to be arrested in protest of the building of the Keystone XL pipeline.

Matt Goodrich ’15 has been one of the primary organizers of the protest and has been working with 350.org activists since January on the event.

 “We’re trying to pressure Obama to keep his promises,” said Goodrich. “We want him to know that we want a climate champion and not a pipeline president.”

“We’re aiming for 500 students to get arrested right now and right now our numbers are at 800 who will attend,” said Goodrich, referring to those students from Bowdoin and other schools who will be protesting.

At least 15 students from Bowdoin will go to D.C., with 10 planning on getting arrested.

Goodrich has been working closely with the D.C. police and does not expect any of the protestors to be jailed or convicted, but to instead pay fines.                                                                       

Allyson Gross ’16, vice president for the Bowdoin Democrats, will travel to D.C. as an individual, as the Bowdoin Democrats have not officially endorsed the protest. Gross, a native Texan, staunchly opposes the pipeline and refinery in her state.

“TransCanada said there would be one spill in seven years and there have been 12 in the past year,” said Gross. “It goes through the heartland of America—from Alberta down to Houston.”

“Hopefully, we’ll have a lot of people dressed in black and oily colors and stand in front of the White House,” said Goodrich. “The police will give us a few warnings to move and we won’t.”

In addition to the recent launch of “Chipotle Friday,” another entrepreneurial business on campus has been gaining popularity since its start in January.

Gab Renaud ’16 has recently launched Luigi Laundry, a laundry pick up and delivery service.“One night my roommate and I—well, actually, he pretty much gave me the idea,” said Renaud, referring to his roommate Monty Barker ’16, an owner of the Campus Food Truck.

“I thought it was a great idea,” said Renaud. “I think that there’s definitely a demand for that—maybe for people who don’t have close laundry machines like at Pine or Harpswell [or] off-campus [houses].”

This afternoon, 162 students are taking part in an entrepreneurial experiment, hoping to receive a rarity on the Bowdoin campus: Chipotle burritos. 

“I’m going to be placing a mass order for over 100 Bowdoin students and I’m going to drive down to Chipotle [Mexican Grill] in Portland and come back to school and deliver them throughout the campus,” said Sam Silverman ’14, the man behind “Chipotle Friday.”

Silverman said the idea initially came from a discussion he had with a friend while he was studying abroad.

In their first meeting of the semester, Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) authorized funding for Winter Weekend and announced plans to sponsor viewings of the Olympic Games. 

The Winter Weekend motion—proposed by the Executive Committee—included approximately $200 for advertising, $1,325 for Campus Food Truck to be provided both at the Ladd House Blizzard Bash and prior to basketball games, and $354.25 for cups that will be given away at the Blizzard Bash. The proposal passed unanimously.

A revival of a tradition dating back to the 1920s, Winter Weekend 2014 started with the Entertainment Board’s hypnotist on Thursday night and will continue through Saturday night, culminating with the Cold War Party, hosted by MacMillan House and Quinby House. The BSG, E-Board, Inter-House Council (IHC), Alcohol Team (A-Team), Bowdoin Outing Club (BOC), and Class Councils are all sponsoring various events for the weekend 

The Colby men’s and women’s rugby teams have secured funding from the college administration for the 2014-2015 season.

On November 19, both teams were informed that the college would be defunding the rugby program after the spring 2014 season.

But all that changed on the morning of December 6, after both teams received an email from Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty Lori Kletzer stating that the Colby rugby program would be funded for the 2014-2015 season.

This year, the Office of Admissions changed the way Bowdoin welcomes its admitted students by combining the Bowdoin Experience, a program for admitted students from diverse racial, socioeconmic or geographical backgrounds, with the open houses it has offered in past years.Many of the prospective students who came agreed that it was a successful weekend.

Julie Randolph, a prospective student from New York, said that the weekend was very informative and helpful for her decision.

Randolph has unofficially made up her mind and has chosen Bowdoin over Tufts, Colby, Colgate and Hamilton, amongst other schools.

State Senator Stan Gerzofsky (D) holds office hours and meets with constituents on the first Saturday of every month at the Little Dog Café in Brunswick. This Saturday, he sat down with the Orient to discuss his history of public access hours, as well as his stance on the legalization of marijuana, prison development and Brunswick's relationship with the College.

“I’ve been doing these for about 12 years and I’ve never missed a meeting because it’s a great way for me to talk to people,” Gerzofsky said.

Gerzofsky is currently serving his third term in the Maine State Senate, representing the 10th district which includes Freeport, Brunswick, Harpswell and Pownal.

Professor of Natural Studies Nathaniel Wheelwright is leading the charge to add an environmental studies distribution requirement to the College’s academic regulation. Wheelwright has repeatedly raised the idea at several faculty meetings this year. 

“We aren’t fully educating our students,” said Wheelwright. “Climate change is primarily driven by pollution, but there are many different types of pollution. That’s missing from the conversation.” 

Wheelwright noted the large attendance at Tuesday’s “Reaching Day Zero: Living Sustainably at Bowdoin and Beyond” discussion that was led by faculty outside of the environmental studies and biology departments. He sees this as evidence that, “we’re entering a new phase where the seriousness of environmental problems is becoming apparent to everyone.”

The new weekly student lecture series “Food for Thought” is quickly becoming popular with students looking for more lighthearted academic perspectives.

Every week, “Food for Thought” features two students who each speak for 20 minutes about whatever he or she would like. The first six speeches have focused on a range of topics that lie outside the Bowdoin academic curriculum. The first series on February 8 featured senior Daisy Alioto’s description of growing up as a Christian Scientist and senior Carl Spielvogel’s musings about President Barry Mills’ plot to create diabetic squirrels. 

Forums are organized by Bowdoin Student Government’s Academic Affairs Committee and held in Hawthorne-Longfellow Library. However, it has been so popular that the event has moved from the first floor Chandler Room to the larger third floor Nixon Lounge. 

Despite a struggling economy and a slow winter, many local Brunswick businesses are thriving thanks to faithful customers from the Bowdoin community.

“Surprisingly, things have been great here,” said Sydney Wall, manager of Wild Oats Bakery. “We’re always seeing new people.”

“Even with the seating we have now it’s still not enough,” said Wall, referring to the 2010 expansion of the bakery's seating area.