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Liberal Arts and the Common Good
The Offer of the College
Bowdoin's seventh president, William DeWitt Hyde, wrote the "Offer of the College" in 1906, and nearly a century later it still serves as a guiding principle at Bowdoin:
To be at home in all lands and all ages;
To count Nature a familiar acquaintance,
and Art an intimate friend;
To gain a standard for the appreciation of others' work;
And the criticism of your own;
To carry the keys of the world's library in your pocket,
And feel its resources behind you in whatever task you undertake;
To make hosts of friends...
Who are to be leaders in all walks of life;
To lose yourself in generous enthusiasms
And cooperate with others for common ends —
This is the offer of the college for the best four years of your life.
—Adapted from the original "Offer of the College," published in 1906 as the foreword to "The College Man and the College Woman" by William DeWitt Hyde, Seventh President of Bowdoin (1885-1917).
For much of the history of Western higher education, the purpose of a college was to cultivate the whole person so that its students might become responsible stewards of "civilized" society. While much has changed over the years, this underlying principle of a college's responsibility to both the individual and to society is as critical as ever. In our increasingly global society, it is important that graduates have exposure to a range of ideas, disciplines, and cultures so that they can respond in creative and sophisticated ways to their environment – both for their own benefit and society's.
Attending college is an opportunity like no other. The right college experience can be a catalyst for personal and intellectual growth that resounds within a person throughout his or her life. At Bowdoin academic learning is paramount, but the learning doesn't end in the classroom. Every aspect of college life is geared toward helping each student reach his or her full potential: personal interaction with faculty; the opportunity to engage in research, independent study, internships and more; the high standard of facilities and resources; the innovative residential system; the extracurricular clubs and activities; the coaching staff's commitment to academics; the culture of support and growth that reaches across all sectors of campus; the deeply held belief in working for the common good... The experience can be intense, but the support for students is solid, and the sense of satisfaction profound – just ask our alumni, who stay involved with Bowdoin at record levels throughout their lives.
The Common Good
“It ought always to be remembered, that literary institutions are founded and endowed for the common good, and not for the private advantage of those who resort to them for education. It is not that they may be enabled to pass through life in an easy or reputable manner, but that their mental powers may be cultivated and improved for the benefit of society. If it be true, that no man should live to himself, we may safely assert, that every man who has been aided by a public institution to acquire an education and to qualify himself for usefulness, is under peculiar obligations to exert his talents for the public good.”
Reverend Joseph McKeen
First President of Bowdoin College
September 2, 1802
During his Inaugural Address
Concern for the common good is a binding characteristic of Bowdoin's culture. Students volunteer thousands of hours each year, whether through activities outside the classroom, service learning projects, or through spring break service projects or pre-orientation community immersion projects. The commitment to community involvement continues after graduation as well – whether they go into public service, start non-profit organizations, or work for the community outside their career environment, Bowdoin graduates' concern for the common good is not an extra-curricular activity, but a way of life.