The Bowdoin Hello: A Couple of Seconds That Add Up Over Time

The Bowdoin Hello is rooted in the College's history of fraternities, when brothers would require pledges to bellow a greeting to them from across campus. Though fraternities are long gone, each new class of students continues the tradition, refashioning the gesture to fit their ideals for Bowdoin's community today.

Neiman Mocombe ’26, a multimedia student correspondent for Bowdoin's communications office, set out during the second week of classes to get a sense of what students think about the Bowdoin Hello, and whether they practice it themselves.

Along the way, Mocombe demonstrated one way it can be done—by fully committing to it, greeting friends and acquaintances exuberantly and with volume. But everyone seems to have their own style; some apparently even do it by silently mouthing a hello, along with giving a slight wave. 

For Kenny Ventress ’25, the Bowdoin Hello creates openings for engagement. "It makes it comfortable to approach people, and for other people to be comfortable approaching you.”

Eva King-Senior ’28 said in these first few days as a Bowdoin student she's noticed that every time she walks by her peers she gets a little smile and a 'hey.' “It means a lot, being a new student in a new environment. It's nice to know I can connect to anyone,” she said.

Isa Cruz ’27 said the warmth of the Bowdoin Hello, as practiced generally by students, “is a constant reaffirmation of community on a micro scale that is really awesome.”

Cruz added that at first they were suspicious of this friendly attitude, especially after graduating from a hyper-competitive high school. “It was a little foreign to me, the kindness and open arms of the campus. I was even put off by it at first. I thought, 'This doesn't feel real, no way people are actually this kind! They must be paid actors.'

But then I realized that, oh, there are ways to do education where we support and uplift each other, and it doesn't have to be this super-isolating, dog-eat-dog world. I feel Bowdoin has a unique way of doing this, and it is really lovely, and I have embraced it.”