2024 Orientation Schedule

We are excited to welcome the Class of 2028 to campus at Arrival Day on Thursday, August 29, 2024. Students, faculty, and staff have been collaborating throughout academic year 2023-24 to put together an Orientation schedule that introduces you to Bates and provides you with opportunities to form meaningful connections in your initial days on campus. 

Be sure to engage your Lyceum Summer Resources (which open to you in June 2024) and check your Bates email so you can access necessary information and resources prior to Arrival Day.

For students who wish to have a bank account in the local area, swing on by to open an account.

All new transfer students and families are welcome.

Drop in to connect with staff from a variety of offices to learn more about how families can engage with Bates and about important resources available to students.

The Bates Parent Team from the Office of Parent Giving and Engagement will highlight the many ways families can begin their own Bates journey through college events, volunteer opportunities, and philanthropic support.

The Center for Purposeful Work will share how they help students think about meaning and purpose in their work at Bates and beyond. The Center for Purposeful Work supports students in identifying their strengths and interests; cultivating the skills, knowledge, and confidence to explore and test potential career paths; and connecting with the Bates alumni network. Students are encouraged and equipped to find their unique voice, explore professional pathways, and tell their personal story.

Campus partners from Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) and Health Services will be available to answer questions about the resources available to support your student’s health and well-being.

The Dean of Faculty’s Office will also be on hand to answer questions about the curriculum and academic advising from 12:45-1:30.

Coffee and water will be provided. We hope you stop by!

All new international students and families are welcome.

Please join your fellow students in the Class of 2028 and new transfer students for a welcome address that will include in the following order of appearance:

Leigh A. Weisenburger, Vice President for Enrollment & Dean of Admission and Financial Aid and Interim Vice President for Communications and Marketing

Erin Foster Zsiga, Interim Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students

Garry W. Jenkins, President of Bates College

For first-year student athletes.

Immediately following the President’s Welcome, we ask that families say goodbye for now to their students. Before you all depart, come grab a cookie for the road. After saying goodbye, students will make their way to their Junior Advisors (JAs) and Orientation Week Leaders (OWLS) where they will be escorted to their first orientation session. JAs and OWLs will be stationed on the Historic Quad to assist students with this transition.


Immediately following Family Departure and Cookie Grab, first-year students will meet Junior Advisors (JAs) and Orientation Week Leaders (OWLs) connect with them and fellow residents. JAs and OWLs will then escort students to their first orientation program that will take place in the Bardwell Field and Library Quad tents.

Have questions about the schedule, locations, or Bates in general? Stop by the OWL’s nest to chat!

Session for: Adams, Gillespie, Page, and Rand

  1. Understand how to access the health-related offices and resources on campus
  2. Become familiar with the Well-Being at Bates framework and portal
  3. Set well-being goals for the year

Session for: Chu, Clason, Frye House, Kalperis, Milliken & Parker

  1. An understanding of your positionality.
  2. Knowledge of your role in making Bates an inclusive community.
  3. A call to action to impact your communities in ways that make them more inclusive.

BUILDING A WELCOMING COMMUNITY

CULTIVATING PURPOSE AND IDENTITY

PROMOTING HEALTH AND WELL-BEING

Session for: Chu, Clason, Frye House, Kalperis, Milliken & Parker

  1. Understand how to access the health-related offices and resources on campus
  2. Become familiar with the Well-Being at Bates framework and portal
  3. Set well-being goals for the year

Session for: Adams, Gillespie, Page, and Rand

  1. An understanding of your positionality.
  2. Knowledge of your role in making Bates an inclusive community.
  3. A call to action to impact your communities in ways that make them more inclusive.

BUILDING A WELCOMING COMMUNITY

CULTIVATING PURPOSE AND IDENTITY

PROMOTING HEALTH AND WELL-BEING

Join your JA and the other residents of your FYC for your first Commons dinner!

Join your fellow transfer students for your first Commons dinner. Simply go through the line at Commons and bring your food to the second floor of Commons to room 211.

Session for: Adams, Gillespie, Page, and Rand

  1. Safety Awareness: Incoming college students will develop an awareness of Campus Safety policies and procedures, including emergency protocols and the importance of personal safety measures.
  2. Role of Coordinators: Students will learn about the resources provided by Residence Life Coordinators, who are a support system available 24/7.

BUILDING A WELCOMING COMMUNITY

CREATING A SENSE OF PLACE

Session for: Chu, Clason, Frye House, Kalperis, Milliken & Parker

  1. Recognize Lewiston as a diverse community with many assets/strengths
  2. Recognize off-campus community engagement as a potential space of belonging, purpose, and growth while at Bates

FOSTERING EQUITY, INCLUSION, ACCESS, AND ANTI-RACISM

BUILDING A WELCOMING COMMUNITY

ENCOURAGING ACADEMIC INQUIRY AND EXPLORATION

CULTIVATING PURPOSE AND IDENTITY

CREATING A SENSE OF PLACE

Session for: Chu, Clason, Frye House, Kalperis, Milliken & Parker

  1. Safety Awareness: Incoming college students will develop an awareness of Campus Safety policies and procedures, including emergency protocols and the importance of personal safety measures.
  2. Role of Coordinators: Students will learn about the resources provided by Residence Life Coordinators, who are a support system available 24/7.

BUILDING A WELCOMING COMMUNITY

CREATING A SENSE OF PLACE

Session for: Adams, Gillespie, Page, and Rand

  1. Recognize Lewiston as a diverse community with many assets/strengths
  2. Recognize off-campus community engagement as a potential space of belonging, purpose, and growth while at Bates

FOSTERING EQUITY, INCLUSION, ACCESS, AND ANTI-RACISM

BUILDING A WELCOMING COMMUNITY

ENCOURAGING ACADEMIC INQUIRY AND EXPLORATION

CULTIVATING PURPOSE AND IDENTITY

CREATING A SENSE OF PLACE

Join your fellow FYC residents for a floor meeting with your JA to discuss guidelines for living in community.

Join the Orientation Week Leaders (OWLs) for some field games and group activities!

Join the Orientation Week Leaders (OWLs) for a night of tie dyeing! Bring your own items to tie dye or use some of the provided shirts and bags.

Have questions about life at Bates? Join the Orientation Week Leader (OWL) directors for a Q&A where they will answer your questions.

For first-year student athletes.

Join the Orientation Week Leaders (OWLs) for a walk around the neighborhood near Bates, ending with a chance to order some Dunkin’! Please bring your own way to pay if you plan on ordering.

Join your JA and fellow FYC residents for breakfast before you head to your first meeting of your First-Year Seminar. Please remember to bring a laptop, tablet, or smartphone to your FYS as you will need it to do some of the workshops. If you are not sure where your FYS is meeting, please go here to find the classroom location for today (your classroom location for your FYS will be different once all classes begin on Wednesday, September 4).

This is the first gathering of your FYS classmates with your instructor and pre-major academic advisor. Time will be spent at this session meeting your FYS instructor (who is also your pre-major academic advisor), meeting your classmates, reviewing the seminar’s syllabus, and working through the first FYE Workshop, which provides an overview of various technology resources you have access to at Bates such as Google suite, Degree Audit, the Student Advising Portal, and Bates Reach. You will also have time to discuss your course schedule with your FYS instructor.

  1. Meet your FYS instructor/pre-major academic advisor and your FYS classmates
  2. Review the syllabus of your FYS course
  3. Complete the first FYE Workshop together with your classmates
  4. Talk with your FYS instructor/pre-major academic advisor about your course schedule

ENCOURAGING ACADEMIC INQUIRY AND EXPLORATION

BUILDING A WELCOMING COMMUNITY

Please join your academic advisor, Professor of Politics and Associate Dean of the Faculty, Stephen Engel, and representatives from the Registrar’s office to discuss your plans for the Fall 2024 semester and beyond. Please bring a laptop, tablet, or smartphone to this session so we can review with you your academic records.

First-year students can check out the gear they need for their AESOP trip.

Stop by register to vote or just learn more about voter registration.

This is a great opportunity to meet faculty from all of the academic departments and programs at Bates as well as staff leaders of many of the resource offices at Bates. If you have questions about particular courses, exploring different major or minors, or learning about opportunities through the Center of Global Education, the Harward Center for Community Partnerships, the Student Writing and Language Center, the Student Academic Support Center, the Center for Purposeful Work and more, please be sure to stop by the Fair!

First-year students can check out the gear they need for their AESOP trip.

After your visit to the Academic & Resource Fair, join your JA and other residents of your FYC for lunch before you have a full afternoon of Orientation programs! If you go get your AESOP gear during this lunch hour, be sure to come back to Commons so that you can travel with your JA and FYC to your next Orientation session once lunch is finished.

Have questions about the schedule, locations, or Bates in general? Stop by the OWLs nest to chat!

Session for: Gillespie and Page

  1. Learn strategies to intervene if you see something that could lead to an instance of power-based personal violence.
  2. Consider your own part in helping to shape the Bates College student culture around preventing interpersonal violence.

BUILDING A WELCOMING COMMUNITY

CREATING A SENSE OF PLACE

Session for: Adams & Rand

  1. Learn strategies to intervene if you see something that could lead to an instance of power-based personal violence.
  2. Consider your own part in helping to shape the Bates College student culture around preventing interpersonal violence.

BUILDING A WELCOMING COMMUNITY

CREATING A SENSE OF PLACE

Session for: Chu, Clason, Frye House, Kalperis, Milliken, & Parker

  1. Consider Bates’ values around interpersonal relationships and how you hope to interact with peers in social settings.
  2. Learn who at Bates can provide support if you or a friend has experienced conflict or harm related to bias, harassment, or discrimination, including sexual violence.

FOSTERING EQUITY, INCLUSION, ACCESS, AND ANTI-RACISM

BUILDING A WELCOMING COMMUNITY

CULTIVATING PURPOSE AND IDENTITY

PROMOTING HEALTH AND WELL-BEING

Session for: Chu, Clason, Frye House, Kalperis, Milliken, & Parker

Session for: Kalperis, Clason, Frye House, & Milliken

  1. Learn strategies to intervene if you see something that could lead to an instance of power-based personal violence.
  2. Consider your own part in helping to shape the Bates College student culture around preventing interpersonal violence.

BUILDING A WELCOMING COMMUNITY

CREATING A SENSE OF PLACE

Session for: Chu & Parker

  1. Learn strategies to intervene if you see something that could lead to an instance of power-based personal violence.
  2. Consider your own part in helping to shape the Bates College student culture around preventing interpersonal violence.

BUILDING A WELCOMING COMMUNITY

CREATING A SENSE OF PLACE

Session for: Adams, Gillespie, Page, and Rand

  1. Consider Bates’ values around interpersonal relationships and how you hope to interact with peers in social settings.
  2. Learn who at Bates can provide support if you or a friend has experienced conflict or harm related to bias, harassment, or discrimination, including sexual violence.

FOSTERING EQUITY, INCLUSION, ACCESS, AND ANTI-RACISM

BUILDING A WELCOMING COMMUNITY

CULTIVATING PURPOSE AND IDENTITY

PROMOTING HEALTH AND WELL-BEING

Session for: Adams, Gillespie, Page, and Rand

At this annual lively tradition, you will meet your AESOP leaders and the other students on your AESOP trip. Be sure to get here early and get a good seat. 

Join your AESOP leaders and the other students on your AESOP trip for dinner.

Intersquad scrimmage: Garnet vs White! Come to Alumni Gym to watch the Bates volleyball team scrimmage against each other before they start their competitive season! Stay for a fan serving contest between sets 2 and 3.

One of your AESOP leaders will take you and your fellow AESOPers to various stations on campus, where you’ll do various activities to earn toothpicks! Some examples are “tell me your best joke,” or reenacting a scene from a movie. The group with the most toothpicks wins!

Come and grab a sweet treat with new friends or reconnect with others after you return from AESOP!

Stop by register to vote or just learn more about voter registration.

Take some time to write a letter to your future self! Our College Advancement Team will mail this letter to you after you graduate from Bates. All supplies will be provided by your JA.

Join the OWLs for a short hike up Mount David to view the sunset!

Join the Multifaith Chaplains & Fellows for fancy s’mores, a cozy fire with the new friends, and set intentions for the beginning of the year.

Come decorate cookies with the OWLs and relax after an exciting weekend of AESOP!

The schedule adjustment period known as add/drop opens today at 7 AM. Students can add courses that have available seats. Please speak with your academic advisor for more information or go to the Student Advising Portal for more information. Associate Dean of Faculty Steve Engel sent an email to all students with more information.

For first-year student athletes.

Start the morning with the OWLs and hike Bates’ own Mt. David!

Join your JA and other residents in your First-Year Center (FYC) for breakfast before you participate in Convocation, the annual ceremony marking the start of the academic year.

All first-year students are asked to line up to participate in the annual Convocation ceremony. Your JA and Student Affairs staff will be available to help with lining up for the ceremony.

Please join faculty, staff, and your fellow students in this annual ceremony that marks the official start of the academic year. Once the ceremony concludes, the entire Bates community is invited to lunch at the campus barbecue outside of Commons.

Once the Convocation ceremony has concluded, have lunch with other members of the Bates community.

After the campus barbecue, come meet elected representatives from student government, and learn how you can get involved – including information on the upcoming First-Year Representative Election!

For first-year student athletes.

Join the OWLS for some crafts to help bring your dorm room to life!

Have questions about the schedule, locations, or Bates in general? Stop by the OWL’s nest to chat!

Come meet the faculty and students from the Theater and Dance department!

Enjoy dinner at Commons!

Join us to root on the Bobcats at the first athletic home game of the fall season!

Students who participated in International Circle are invited to dinner in Commons 221/222.

Come hang out at the Keigwin Amphitheater at the edge of the “puddle” (also known as Lake Andrews) and see your fellow students perform in various a cappella groups as part of this annual Bates tradition.

Join the OWLs for one of Batesies’ favorite events, Big Prize Bingo and Trivia!