• President, Henry T. Geng ’13
• Vice President, Jen Crawford ’01
• Secretary, Ben Hughes ’12
• Treasurer, Donald McDade ’74
• Past President, Karen Finocchio ’92
• Staff Liaison, Stephanie Dumont, Associate Director of Alumni Engagement
• Advisor, Marianne Cowan ’92, Associate Director, Bates Center for Purposeful Work

Evelyn K. Dillon Award 

Funds given by the College Key provides two annual awards, one to a woman in field hockey and one to a woman in basketball. These awards recognize superior athleticism, leadership and dedication, and overall contributions to each respective sport, to be administered by the Athletics Department.

The 2022 recipients of the Evelyn K. Dillon Award are Meghan L. ’22, recognized for her accomplishments in field hockey, and Meghan Graff ’23, acknowledged for her achievements in basketball. 

Meghan L. ‘22, a psychology major from Wolfeboro, N.H., received the Senior Scholar Award for maintaining a cumulative GPA of 3.50 or better while participating in varsity sports for four years. In addition to her contributions to the field hockey team, she dedicated four years to Special Olympics and volunteered for Habitat for Humanity.

Meghan G. ’23, hailing from South Portland, Maine, served as the women’s basketball team captain for the past two years. She achieved notable milestones, including surpassing 1,000 career points, being named the NESCAC Player of the Year, and earning first team All-NESCAC honors. 

The College Key Music Award

Given by the College Key to provide one or more annual music awards to the man or woman in the senior class whose services to musical organizations at the College has been the most outstanding.

Mathieu M. ‘22, a magna cum laude graduate in mathematics and music with a minor in digital studies from Bates, excelled in violin and piano. Winner of the Bates Concerto Competition, he showcased his talents as a concertmaster and delivered a memorable senior recital featuring Tchaikovsky’s works.

Noah P. ‘22, also graduating magna cum laude at Bates, majored in music and theater, directed “35mm: A Musical Exhibition” for his senior thesis. In addition to directing this performance, he conducted a live orchestra, and performing on keyboard and accordion. He was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa.

College Key Leigh P. Campbell ‘64 Scholarship Fund

Provides financial aid for a student or students who demonstrate loyalty, campus leadership and potential for future service to Bates College, with preference for a student member of the College Key, or a child of a College Key member. This fund was renamed in honor of Leigh Campbell ’64, a lateCollege Key member, former director of financial aid and recipient of the 2016 Helen A. Papaioanou ’49 Distinguished Alumni Service Award, one of the College’s most prestigious honors.

Edmund Z. ’24, hailing from Monmouth, Maine, is pursuing dual interests in Biological Chemistry and Mathematics at Bates College. Apart from his rigorous academic schedule, he serves as a Lab TA for Organic Chemistry, guiding fellow students and grading lab reports. Beyond academics, Edmund enjoys engaging in chess, running, and leading two successful clubs as the vice-president of Chemical Society and co-captain of the Club Ski Team. An impactful experience in Organic Chemistry led him to shift from a pre-med focus to a passion for research, shaping his career goals.

Bates College has provided him with invaluable research opportunities, making the once-intimidating field accessible. Whether through research-based classes like Bio-195 and Bio-204 or summer collaborations with professors, Bates has played a crucial role in Edmund’s academic journey. He expresses profound gratitude for the support that has made his education at Bates possible, emphasizing the transformative impact it has had on his life.

The Mabel Eaton Bates Key Scholarship Fund 

Given by members of the Bates Key in honor of Mabel Eaton’10, founder of the Bates Key, who was the College’s librarian from 1921 to 1957. For an undergraduate student who works in the George and Helen Ladd Library. Added to by the College Key.

Amarachukwu O. ’26, originally from Harare, Zimbabwe, is an undeclared major at Bates College with a passion for dance and science. Balancing academic interests, Amarachukwu is actively involved in the Africana club, finding it to be a refreshing space that provides a sense of connection as a minority. 

As an international, first-generation student, Amarachukwu values the wealth of resources available at Bates. From mental health care to responsive support, the supportive environment contributes to a comfortable and enriching college experience. 

We were so pleased to continue the tradition of hosting the Bates College Key annual meeting on campus during Reunion Weekend this past June.  Presided over by Vice President Jen Crawford ’01, joined by Executive Committee members Secretary Ben Hughes ’12, Treasurer Don McDade ’74, Association Director of Alumni Engagement Stephanie Dumont and Associate Director of the Bates Center for Purposeful Work Marianne Cowen ’92, and attended by both in person and virtual members, it was an opportunity for the Executive Committee of the Key to give an update on the activities and engagement of the organization while recognizing two key individuals for their impact on the Bates community.  

We were proud to provide updates on our refined database and communication strategy that will provide more outreach to our members each year while also allowing us to determine your dues payment status and history.  We are grateful for the feedback that we have received on this issue and will continue to perfect this process.  We have also initiated a series of communications to new College Key members to alleviate some of the confusion as to the role of the Key and allow for the opportunity for engagement right from the start. Because of the transition out of COVID and conflicting schedules, we were unable to host DAIR this year but look forward to continuing the tradition this academic year.

Treasurer Don McDade, ’74 provided an update on the financial consolidation and accounting, including disbursements made this year.  We have historically made grants to Bates in reaction to annual requests for funds and with careful consideration of our reserves but are moving towards a proactive grantmaking strategy so that Bates can rely on a steady stream of funding for various priorities. This includes the Key’s support of Purposeful Work and Travel Fund and endowed funds that the Key supports, including the Eaton Scholarship, Campbell Scholarship, Music Award and Dillion Sports Award.  We are also formalizing a reserves policy so that as much funding as possible goes to support the Bates community. We think this shift in strategy will help the Key make an even greater collective impact on the College in the years to come. This is only made possible through our new database and through your continued dues support, which can be paid here.  You can read more about the finances at the “2022 College Key Finances at a Glance” tab in the newsletter.  Also, please note that after serving several significant years as Treasurer, Don’s term has come to an end so if you are anyone you know is interested in learning about the role, please contact a member of the Executive Committee. 

We were pleased to have inducted 27 members of the Class of 2023 during the ceremony at graduation weekend in May and 10 members of the alumni community at the Annual Meeting. Each of our new members has had a significant impact on the Bates community and we look forward to working with each of them to continue to move the Key forward.  We also held a moment of silence for the Bates College Key members we have lost this year and are grateful for the work each of them has done to help support the Bates mission.

Finally, we also recognized the contributions of two members of the Bates community.  Immediate Past President of the College Key, Karen Finocchio ‘92, received the Bates’ Best award for her impactful work as an alumni volunteer, including her work on the College Key, the Alumni Council and leadership of the Class of 1992. Presented to Karen by Vice President of College Advancement, Eric Foushée, the Bates’ Best honors are awarded annually to dedicated alumni and parent volunteers who express a passion and commitment for advancing the mission of the College.  Karen is known for bringing positive energy, big ideas and boundless enthusiasm to her many roles at Bates.  We also were pleased to present the Distinguished Service Award to Karen Diagler for her exceptional work at Bates.  You can read more about Karen and her contributions in the “Distinguished Service Award” tab on the newsletter page.  We thank you all for your continued interested and participation in the Bates College Key and we look forward to seeing you all at the next annual meeting. 

• Annual membership is on a calendar fiscal year (January 1st – December 31st).  
• State of ME annual report and IRS 990-N are filed and up to date.
• All financial information for The College Key, a 501 (c)(3) organization, is stored in Little Green Light, our CRM database.
• Total income in 2022 was $20,954.53.  While contributions vary from year to year, this achievement is significant.  Alumni gifts enable TCK to support Bates students/programs, and we distributed $8,500 to the Purposeful Work and Coat programs.  Our operating expenses were $1,034.28.  Our net gain for the year was $11,420.25.

As we head into the final weeks of 2023, we continue to plan for the rest of this academic year and to distribute meaningful funds from The College Key.  On behalf of the Bates community, thank you once again for your loyalty and excellent response to our newsletters and social media outreach for dues and for all designated gifts.  Please send your dues/gifts each year.

Sincerely,
Donald W. McDade ’74
Treasurer, The College Key

This year, we were proud to honor Howard Scher ‘72 as our 2023 Distinguished Alum in Residence, a medical oncologist who has served as Chief of the Genitourinary Oncology Service at the Sidney Kimmel Center for Urologic and Prostate Cancers at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center for 25 years. 

Due to unforeseen circumstances, we were unable to welcome Howard to campus this year, but we look forward to resuming on-campus DAIR activity in Spring 2024.

Annually, the College Key is proud to host the Distinguished Alumni in Residence (DAIR) program which brings together students and alumni to learn from impactful stories from remarkable Bates alumni. Recent DAIR honorees include US Marine veteran Stephanie Smith ‘87, Hubspot’s Chief People Officer Katie Burke ’03, Editor at The Boston Globe Brian McGrory ’84, U.S. Congressman Jared Golden ’11, and Microsoft’s Senior Researcher Susan Dumais ’75. If you have a potential nominee for a future DAIR, please email thecollegekey@bates.edu with information including the nominee’s name, class year, and a brief summary of the nominee’s qualifications for consideration.

The College Key was formed in 1992 by the merger of the College Club, which was founded in 1891, and the Bates Key, established in 1936. 

The purpose of the College Key is to recognize outstanding Bates alumni(ae); encourage and recognize student academic and extracurricular achievement; support academics, student life, and campus improvement; provide student aid including scholarships and other kinds of financial assistance; and contribute to the general welfare of the College. 

This year, we continued this tradition with the induction of 11 new alumni(ae) and 26 members of the Class of 2023 into the College Key. 

Current juniors and members of the graduating class can be nominated for induction by Bates faculty and staff. Inductees from the Class of 2023 were welcomed as part of their Commencement Weekend celebrations on May 26, 2023.

Alumni can be nominated by fellow alumni, staff, and faculty through the College Key’s online nominations form. For the 2023 cohort, the Alumni nomination committee was composed of Casey Andersen ’12, Gretchen Shorter Davis ’61, Roland Daivs ’92, and Benjamin Hughes ’12. Alumni nominees are considered by the College Key selection committee based on their continued service to the College, leadership in the community, success in a chosen field, and character. Alumni inductees for 2023 were welcomed during the College Key Annual Meeting on June 9, 2023. 

2023 Alumni Inductees

Class of 2023 Inductees