Bowdoin College
PA-3: Governance

Students from four class years may run for leadership positions at the class level or for College-wide offices.

The following positions are elected each year in a democratic process: Class President; Class Vice-President; Class Secretary and Class Treasurer. Additionally, students may run for the following positions within Bowdoin Student Government: President; Vice President for Student Government Affairs; Vice President for Student Affairs; Vice President for Academic Affairs; Vice President for Student Organizations; Vice President for the Treasury; Vice President for Facilities & Sustainability.

College Departments such as Dining, the Library, and Information Technology have student advisory committees; members of the Bowdoin Student Government meet regularly with senior staff members of the College (Deans and Vice Presidents, the President). The best example from this year is that two current seniors were appointed to the search committee for Bowdoin’s President.

Bowdoin Staff (administrative and support staff) can participate on a number of committees (Advisory Committee for a Diverse Community[ACDC], Support Staff Advocacy Committee [SSAC], Bowdoin Administrative Staff [BAS], Benefits Advisory Committee, etc. – where they can either nominate themselves or elect a representative. There are a number of programs then sponsored by these committees for overall staff participation. Each year these committees look for new participants and offer opportunities for individuals to either self-elect or nominate someone and then they vote for representatives for these committees. Each committee has at least two support staff and two administrative staff participants.

Support Staff representatives serve on the standing committees as well as representatives are asked to staff ad hoc committees as needed. Representatives are asked to either self nomimate or to nominate peer support staff members. There is then an election process that happens each fall or as needed if members leave the committee mid-year. There are at least 2 support staff members on these committees.

Through the committee process and as needed on ad hoc committees, support staff can influence organizational decision making, organizational policies, programs or initiatives on campus. Support staff, through the same committee process, play a critical role in communicating to their peers and seeking feedback from their colleagues, to provide for transparency across all employees. Staff (support and administrative) at Bowdoin have participated in the Presidential Search process, they were represented on committees that considered new benefit programs offered at the College including a new revised disability program and the introduction of High Deductible Health Plans + Health Savings Accounts as health plan options. Representatives from the staff actively participate in the Advisory Committee for a Diverse Community where programming and campus climate are discussed and recommendations are put forward to the broader campus. At the suggestion of hourly staff, more programming on professional development, financial literacy and other wellness topics have been scheduled through Human Resources.

All faculty are invited to participate in faculty meeting, where a great deal of College governance is conducted by faculty vote. All tenure track and continuing faculty are eligible for service of a broad array of committees responsible for faculty governance, the curriculum, distribution of resources, and the oversight of College life. Faculty are also represented at Board of Trustees meetings.

Faculty representatives are appointed to the Board of Trustees and its respective committees by the Committee on Governance and Faculty Affairs (a committee composed of faculty and the Dean for Academic Affairs).

The faculty's formal role is discharged largely through the efforts of academic departments and program committees, participation in monthly faculty meetings, or the work of committees composed largely of faculty. For example, in the 2014/2015 academic year, a new academic program, Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies, arose from the consolidation of existing programs as a result of a faculty vote. By way of another example, three faculty members were appointed members of the search committee that chose our new President, Dr. Clayton Rose.