BWA – Forty Years: The History of Women at Bowdoin

The cover of the 1980-1981 Bowdoin Women’s Association Handbook features a picture of four naked women dancing beneath a crescent moon and reads, “Women Rising: Ten Years of Women at Bowdoin.” The word “rising” likely refers to the title of the alma mater, “Rise Sons of Bowdoin” (Document CS, 63). Ever since the arrival of women, daughters of Bowdoin were “rising” alongside its sons. These women featured on the handbook’s cover dance in celebration of 10 years (9 years according to our timeline) of women at the college. By holding hands they join forces as women, supporting and empowering one another.

In addition to providing women with information, this handbook aims to build community around women’s issues at Bowdoin. The writers express a hope for expansion of the Bowdoin Women’s Association. During this one-year, for example, they planned a celebration of ten years of women at Bowdoin, a symposium on life for women after Bowdoin, workshops on self-defense and healthcare, discussion groups and lectures.

The articles in the handbook provide information on a variety of women’s issues at the college. In one, the immediate past president of the Bowdoin Women’s Association and previous vice-president of her fraternity examines the recent history of women’s status in fraternities. She raises the pros and cons of joining a fraternity and is complementary of the choice to remain “independent.” She wishes the best to the incoming class of 1984 and writes, “May Bowdoin be as good to you as it was to me.” Another article lists the numerous options for women’s sports available to students. The authors encourage athletic involvement and mention the discrepancy in funding between male and female athletic programs. A section on healthcare urges Bowdoin women to take advantage of the free gynecological services. The two last sections provide information on security support and political groups on campus.

In a nod to the feminism alive on Bowdoin’s campus in the 1980s, the terms “freshpeople” and “freshpersons” are used throughout the publication instead of the word “freshmen.” Nowadays “freshpeople” are referred to as “first years” at the college.

The paragraph announcing the new Women’s Resource Center describes the center’s abundance of resources for the Bowdoin community. The article mentions event plans, the center’s new library, and the hope that the new headquarters of the Bowdoin Women’s Association will be a space reader’s feel comfortable visiting “for assistance or just conversation.”

The last section of the publication discusses how women had “made their mark at Bowdoin after this first decade.” The student body was now 50/50 male/female, the Bowdoin’s Women’s Association had “become the largest student supported organization on campus,” the Women’s Resource Center was opening this fall, and the results of a report on “the Status of Women at Bowdoin” were to be published. The authors identified the most substantial sign of change as the arrival of 13 new women faculty members.

CS63 Page 1 - Bowdoin Women's Association Handbook

CS63 Page 2 - Bowdoin Women's Association Handbook

CS63 Page 3 - Bowdoin Women's Association Handbook

CS63 Page 4 - Bowdoin Women's Association Handbook

CS63 Page 5 - Bowdoin Women's Association Handbook

CS63 Page 6 - Bowdoin Women's Association Handbook

CS63 Page 7 - Bowdoin Women's Association Handbook

“Co-education remained controversial and while less hostile with the senior class gone, there was still an atmosphere that we were guests at a male college.”

– Patricia Geller ‘75

The Bowdoin Women’s Association (BWA), a student led campus organization, began informally in the fall of 1972. Patricia “Barney” Geller ‘75 and Liza Graves ‘76, two of the clubs founding members, began organizing meetings before petitioning the student government for funding as an official campus organization. BWA was intended to help build community among male and female students while bringing to the forefront women’s issues that had not yet been addressed by the college. The organization tackled institutional and social issues, advocating the need for more female faculty and addressing what Patricia Geller called a “concern that some of the new students were taking what we [Geller and Graves] saw a(s) subservient roles in some of the frats and were not allowed to be full members.”

BWA’s constitution [DocumentAG, 40] describes the group as both a social and educational organization. Funding was used to sponsor social events that allowed women to gather informally, creating a space where women could articulate some of the issues they encountered at a traditionally male school. Funding was also used to sponsor non-academic educational programs on sex education and birth control. The second initiative was of considerable importance given that the College was largely unprepared for the arrival of women on campus, particularly in the department of women’s health. Geller recalls both a rule at the infirmary requiring women to wear a bra in order to be seen and the lack of a gynecologist available to women on campus.

BWA was also instrumental in educating students and raising awareness about issues of sexual harassment and abuse. Plans outlined in BWA’s 1975 budget proposal seek to bring speakers to campus in the fall of 1976 including the Executive Director of the National Organization for the Prevention of Rape and Assault. Other proposed speakers include women politicians, speakers on women’s history, and artists and writers on issues pertinent to women. Although many of the events hosted by BWA were focused on women, they were open to men as well.

BWA’s presence on campus during the early years of coeducation was important both in creating a space where women could meet and discuss the issues they encountered on a daily basis and in educating students, men and women alike, about issues that were likely not addressed prior to the arrival of women on campus.

AG40.1 - 1975 Funding Request and Constitution for the Bowdoin Women's Association

AG40.2 - 1975 Funding Request and Constitution for the Bowdoin Women's Association

AG40.3 - 1975 Funding Request and Constitution for the Bowdoin Women's Association

AG40.4 - 1975 Funding Request and Constitution for the Bowdoin Women's Association

AG40.5 - 1975 Funding Request and Constitution for the Bowdoin Women's Association

AG40.6 - 1975 Funding Request and Constitution for the Bowdoin Women's Association