Alumni Council Frequently Asked Questions
The Alumni Council is the primary representative body of Bowdoin’s more than 23,000 alumni, and works to encourage and celebrate lifelong engagement with the College. The Council provides a voice for alumni in College affairs and helps build relationships and loyalty both among alumni and between alumni and the College by sponsoring social and educational events, creating internships, providing career support, assisting in fundraising, honoring outstanding alumni service, and fostering a spirit of inclusiveness in the greater Bowdoin community.
What are the primary responsibilities/expectations of an Alumni Council member?
- Councilors work closely with the Alumni Relations office and provide input, advice, and perspective on plans and initiatives designed to engage our alumni.
- Council members host and/or attend Bowdoin events virtually that take place throughout the year in their respective geographical regions when possible, and more informally are ambassadors for Bowdoin in other interactions.
- While the Council is not a fundraising body, they do fund a summer internship for a current Bowdoin student.
- In non-pandemic times, Council members bring their Polar Bear pride, spirit, and good ideas to campus twice annually, and spend the rest of the year being active alumni attending events, helping engage others, and connecting with fellow Bowdoin alumni, which they've continued to do throughout this current health crisis.
What sort of work does the Council do?
- The Council’s work is limited only by the desires and goals of its members. The Council works with the Alumni Relations office to discover new ways, and to expand existing ways, of engaging alumni with the College, other alumni, and current students.
- Recent initiatives from the Council have resulted in expanded multicultural alumni outreach and events, LGBTIQA alumni programming, and enhanced alumni to alumni and alumni to student career networking and support.
- When on campus, Council members interact with students at meals and receptions, and more formally in speed networking sessions.
- In addition, the Council annually recognizes members of the Bowdoin College community – alumni, faculty, and staff – by bestowing awards for exceptional volunteerism, distinguished career performance, and other outstanding work.
How can I become a member of the Alumni Council?
- Each winter, the Nominations Committee of the council issues a ‘call for nominations’ giving every member of the Bowdoin community the opportunity to nominate themselves, or other alums for service.
- Each year, the committee strives to elect a cohort that will help fulfill the mission of having a 32 member Council which represents the demographics of the College’s alumni body.
Who is currently on the Council?
- Please click here to see the current Council membership.
What should I do if I have other questions?
- Please email the Alumni Relations office at alumni@bowdoin.edu for assistance.