Slideshow: This Month at Bates

We shouldn’t worry, but each September we do: Will this year’s campus foliage be as brilliant as last year’s? Might the recent drought rob us of the pigments we’re so passionate about?

But then it happens: The leaves turn crimson and gold, and our jaws drop. Why we’re repeatedly surprised we’ll never know. But this we do know: On a campus where our brains and bodies are engaged in a herculean effort to pursue education in good health, the dramatic beauty of autumn is a balm for everyone.

We declare our gratitude, here and now.

Morning Magic

Early morning light filters through the trees on the Historic Quad.

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Ship Shape

Outside Page Hall, Junior Advisor Kama Boswell ’23 (right) of Bellevue, Wash., plays a game of Battleship with Julia Johnson ’24 of Cleveland Heights, Ohio. Boswell has used the game as a way to get to know her first-year students in Page while staying physically distant, per public health protocols.

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Testing 1,2,3

Henry Morjikian ’22 of Pelham, N.Y., swabs his nostrils in a curtained-off testing space at the Bates Testing Center in Underhill Arena. To ensure proper technique, the tests are observed by medical assistants and certified nursing assistants who are overseen by a registered nurse.

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Making Up Her Mind

Philosophy major Julia Nash ’21 of Jaffrey, N.H., works on her senior thesis outside Coram Library. Advised by Associate Professor of Philosophy Susan Stark, Nash is investigating women’s use of makeup through the lens of feminist philosophy.

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Veterans Plaza

An aerial view of the new Veterans Plaza, a small campus park that honors Bates military veterans and invites reflection on the impact of war. The plaza, celebrated with a dedication event on Oct. 9, is located near the Residential Village, just northwest of Garcelon Field.

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To Batesies Go the Soils

During fieldwork for the environmental studies course “Soils,” Christian A. Johnson Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies Holly Ewing works with Sophia Miller ’21 of New York City.

The fieldwork was at Pettengill Farm, a historic saltwater farm in Freeport, where students dug shallow pits to examine soil “horizons” — parallel layers of soil that have different characteristics from those above and below. Ewing uses the knife to scrape the sides of a pit, exposing a smooth surface for examination.

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Dining Dash

Students line up for their grab-n-go Dash lunches in the Gray Athletic Building. This fall, all dining is on the Dash program, with students picking up meals in Gray or Commons at scheduled times.

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Golden Gate

Ali Manning ’23 of Sydney, Australia, walks through the Class of 1906 Gate onto the colorful Historic Quad.

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Game Night

Physically distanced, the Discordians hold their Friday evening meeting in Chase Hall’s Little Room. Chem-free and community-oriented, the gaming-and-gathering club hosts everything from magic tournaments and snow-decorating contests to the campus-wide Humans vs. Zombies game.

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Hello Again

Kyle Larry ’21 of Chicago waves hello to a friend passing by on the Historic Quad.

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Misty Morning Memories

With the morning temperature near freezing on Oct. 18, mist gathers on Lake Andrews as colder air moves over relatively warmer water.

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Bird House Builder

Roy Mathews ’21 of Columbia, S.C., constructs a bird house in the Library Arcade during the first shop day of the fall for Bates Builds, a club that partners with local nonprofits on projects involving painting, cleaning, and carpentry, to benefit the local area. Lewiston’s Healthy Homeworks supplied wood for the project.

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Under the Hedge Maple

A cyclist passes beneath the Hedge Hall maple tree’s canopy.

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Ping Pong Revisited

A balloon offers Mayra Gomes Spencer ’22 of Dorchester, Mass., a chance to take a fresh approach to ping pong in her Chu Hall residence.

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Magic Carpet Ride

Newly fallen leaves create a colorful carpet on the Historic Quad.

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Lakeside Confab

Three of the college’s Restorative Justice Fellows, Ashka Jhaveri ’22, Sanika Shah ’22, and Anna Hadar ’21, meet with Gwen Lexow, who is Bates’ Title IX officer and a lecturer in the social sciences. The fellows advance college efforts to give students the skills needed to successfully navigate conflict and difficult situations throughout their lives.

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The Cure

Fall foliage provides a seasonal backdrop as Katherine Buetens ’24 of Orono, Maine, works on a final project for her First-Year Seminar, “Vaccines,” taught by Bruno Salazar-Perea, lecturer in biology and faculty fellow for medical studies.

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Taking His Medicine

Michael Bulman ’22 of Hanover, Mass., works out with a medicine ball in Merrill Gymnasium.

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Hanging Out

Max Freund ’22 of Newfields, N.H., enjoys an outdoor study session on a hammock strung between two trees adjacent to Garcelon Field.

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Night Lights

The surface of Lake Andrews reflects the lights of Olin Arts Center on an early fall evening.