A message to the Bowdoin community
Dear faculty, staff, and students,
Like many of you, I have been following the news about higher education with deep concern. Since the full campus returned from spring break, I have had the opportunity to talk with some of you, and I know from those conversations that many of you feel the same.
In a community as large and diverse as ours, there are different opinions, including political opinions on various issues, just as it should be. But transcending those differences are the values that guide an academic institution—values that guide the work that we do together every day.
As we stand up for our values, it is important that you know that we are not doing this work alone. We are in regular contact with our peer institutions and with legal experts. We are also working closely with higher education advocacy groups including the American Council on Education and the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities. Just this past week, members of the senior team were in Washington, DC, advocating on our behalf and telling the story of the transformative nature of the education we provide.
What does that transformative work look like in practice? I have the privilege to see that work up close. Every year, hundreds of Bowdoin students pursue faculty-mentored research in our labs and libraries, working on some of the most challenging problems of the day; hundreds of our students contribute their time and energy to volunteering in the many communities we are a part of; hundreds of students create original works of music, perform in theater productions, and produce pieces of art that make our community a richer and more beautiful place. None of this work could happen without faculty, who in addition to teaching are also generating new knowledge and producing amazing works of creativity, and staff, who are working with our students and faculty in everything we do.
The time our students spend here with our faculty, with our staff, and with each other matters. They graduate having developed and practiced the skills of listening to and learning from others; of navigating conflict and sometimes being transformed by different points of view; of working through frustration and failure with patience and curiosity. They go on to become engaged and collaborative members of society.
I am sharing what you already know as a way to underline the importance of what we do, what is at stake, and how we will continue to protect it.
Some of you may have seen a letter to the College from a congressional committee about the recent student encampment. We are in the process of reviewing the letter, and I want to reassure you that we are confident that our policies and practices are in full compliance with the law. These policies and practices allow us to live up to our values and cultivate a campus environment that rejects antisemitism, Islamophobia, and all forms of hate so all members of our community can thrive. They support our students in pursuing their own intellectual interests and personal goals and they also support our faculty in pursuing their interests, curiosity, and questions in their teaching and in their research.
Thank you, all of you, for everything you do to contribute to this mission.
Sincerely,
Safa