From left, seniors Tyler Shambaugh, Serena Sen, and Elliott Vahey jump for joy after binding their senior theses on the Ladd Library Terrace in front of classmates, staff, and faculty, including Herzig (right), seen hoisting their three theses above her head.

 “She’s an incredible adviser,” Shambaugh said, speaking of Herzig’s ability to spend significant time with each of the three and their very different thesis projects.

 Shambaugh, a double major in biology and gender and sexuality studies from Chevy Chase, Md., wrote on “Sex on the Brain: An Analysis of 10 Neuroendocrinological Articles on the Impacts of Hormone Therapy on the Transgender Brain.”

 Sen, a gender and sexuality studies major from New York City, wrote on “‘The Snowflakes’ Aren’t Who You Think They Are: Tracing the Word ‘Comfort’ in The Bates Student.”

 Vahey, a double major in gender and sexuality studies and German from Shaker Heights, Ohio, wrote on “Bodies That Bleed: Framings of Menstruation in American Puberty Informational Texts.”

Martha Coleman (left) of Seattle, a double major in French and Francophone studies and in American studies, took to the steps of Coram Library on April 17 to celebrate her honors thesis.

To help bind her thesis, which explores the evolving significance of French in Maine, Coleman tapped a Bates staff member, Herb Saucier (right), who drives the college shuttle.

Saucier is a 73-year-old retired Lewiston policeman whose father spoke only French, thus he grew up learning and speaking French at home. He and Coleman got to be friends this year when Coleman took the shuttle to Lewiston High School, where she helped to teach French as a Bates education minor. “Three days a week we would talk French," said Saucier. "She would ask me questions on my upbringing. That was really neat.”

Saucier has been a “supporter and cheerleader,” Coleman says. His presence at the thesis binding “is a nod to how important community work and community members have been to this project.”

Two fellow seniors joined the party. Allison Fischman, a sociology major from Woodbridge, Conn., got help from Sam Manogue ’26 of Wynnewood, Penn., to bind Fischman's thesis on “Adverse Childhood Experiences: Conceptualizations in Research and Policy.” Professor of Sociology Emily Kane advised the thesis.

Liam Daly-Smith, a physics major from Montclair, N.J., got help from fellow senior Jing Fang of Beijing and Adriana Pastor Almiron ’25 of Asuncion, Paraguay, to bind his thesis on “Tidal Energy in Cobscook Bay: An Analysis of Tidal Range Energy and Tidal Barrage Generation Paradigms.” Professor of Physics John Smedley advised the thesis.

Huynh asked Darin Stockhammer '26 of Lawrence Township, N.J., to do the binding honors for his thesis, titled “Navigating Shifting Tides: Resilience Amidst Climate Change, Overfishing, and Industrialization Through Diverse Media Perspectives.” Then he got a running start from the amphitheater's terraced steps to throw himself into Lake Andrews, where he continued the celebration.