This list of notable people associated with Bates College includes matriculating students, alumni, attendees, faculty, trustees, and honorary degree recipients of Bates College in Lewiston, Maine. Members of the Bates community are known as "Batesies" or

bobcat The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the red lynx, is a medium-sized cat native to North America. It ranges from southern Canada through most of the contiguous United States to Oaxaca in Mexico. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUC ...

s. This list also includes students of the affiliated

Maine State Seminary The history of Bates College began shortly before Bates College's founding on March 16, 1855, in Lewiston, Maine. The college was founded by Oren Burbank Cheney and Benjamin Bates. Originating as a Free Will Baptist institution, it has since sec ...

, Nichols Latin School, and

Cobb Divinity School Cobb Divinity School (also known as Bates Theological Seminary or the Free Will Baptist Bible School) was a Baptist theological institute. Founded in 1840, it was a Free Will Baptist graduate school affiliated with several Free Baptist institution ...

. In 1915,

George Colby Chase George Colby Chase (March 15, 1844 - May 27, 1919) was an American intellectual and professor of English who served as the second President of Bates College succeeding its founder, Oren Burbank Cheney, from March 1894 to November 1919. Known as "t ...

, the second president of the college, opted that the college include former students (those who did not complete the full four year course of study) as alumni in "appreciation of their loyalty". Throughout its history, Bates has been the fictional ''alma mater'' of various characters in

American popular culture The culture of the United States of America is primarily of Western, and European origin, yet its influences includes the cultures of Asian American, African American, Latin American, and Native American peoples and their cultures. The U ...

. Notable fictional works to feature the college include '' Ally McBeal'' (1997)'', The Sopranos'' (1999), and '' The Simpsons'' (2015). , there are 24,000 Bates College alumni. Affiliates of the college include 86 Fulbright Scholars, 22

Watson Fellows Watson may refer to: Companies * Actavis, a pharmaceutical company formerly known as Watson Pharmaceuticals * A.S. Watson Group, retail division of Hutchison Whampoa * Thomas J. Watson Research Center, IBM research center * Watson Systems, maker ...

, and 5

Rhodes Scholars The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...

. , the college counts 12 members of the United States Congress–2 Senators and 10 members of the House of Representatives–among its alumni. In state government, Bates alumni have led all three political branches in Maine, graduating two Chief Justices of the

Maine Supreme Court The Maine Supreme Judicial Court is the highest court in the state of Maine's judicial system. It is composed of seven justices, who are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Maine Senate. From 1820 until 1839, justices served lifetime a ...

, two Maine Governors, and multiple leaders of both state houses. Bates has graduated 12 Olympians, with the most recent alumni competing in the

2018 Winter Olympics , nations = 93 , athletes = 2,922 (1,680 men and 1,242 women) , events = 102 in 7 sports (15 disciplines) , opening = , closing = , opened_by = President Moon Jae-in , cauldron = Kim Yun-a , stadium = Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium , winte ...

. More than 20 universities have been led by Bates alumni as of July 2016. This list uses the following notation: * B.A. or unmarked years – recipient of Bachelor of Arts either at the

or Bates * B.S. – recipient of Bachelor of Science * B.S.E. – recipient of Bachelor of Science in Engineering from an affiliated engineering school with Bates * V-12 – recipient of the V-12 Degree through the college's V-12 Navy College Training Program * S.T.B. ''–'' recipient of

Sacrae Theologiae Baccalaureus The Baccalaureate in Sacred Theology ( la, Sacrae Theologiae Baccalaureus; abbreviated STB), not to be confused with a Bachelor of Arts in Theology, is the first of three ecclesiastical degrees in theology (the second being the Licentiate in Sacred ...

from the college's

defunct Defunct (no longer in use or active) may refer to: * ''Defunct'' (video game), 2014 * Zombie process or defunct process, in Unix-like operating systems See also * * :Former entities * End-of-life product * Obsolescence Obsolescence is t ...

Cobb Divinity School, which merged with Bates' religion department in 1908

Notable graduates

Arts and letters

Literature and poetry

Journalism and nonfiction

Film and television

Music

Art, architecture, and design

Government

: ''Note: alumni who have served in multiple political offices are noted in all relevant sections respective to their position at the time for continuity''

U.S. Cabinet-ranked officials

Although Bates alumni have served in a variety of capacities in American federal government, namely in executive departments and agencies, the following have served in Cabinet-level positions, advising the

executive branch of the United States The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a fed ...

in one form or another. Other alumni–serving in secondary federal capacities–are catalogued in the succeeding section.

Federal officials and ambassadors

The following catalogues notable officials or ambassadors in American federal government, typically in the executive, judicial, and legislative branches. Alumni who have served in leadership roles in federal government or in Cabinet-level positions are documented in the preceding section; members of the U.S. Congress (along with

state government A state government is the government that controls a subdivision of a country in a federal form of government, which shares political power with the federal or national government. A state government may have some level of political autonomy, or ...

officials) are noted in the succeeding sections.

U.S. Senators

From 1965 to 1968, both

Edmund Muskie Edmund Sixtus Muskie (March 28, 1914March 26, 1996) was an American statesman and political leader who served as the 58th United States Secretary of State under President Jimmy Carter, a United States Senator from Maine from 1959 to 1980, the 6 ...

(1936) and Robert F. Kennedy (1944) served together in the United States Senate, representing Maine and New York, respectively. Many of the following alumni served in leadership positions within the Senate.

U.S. Representatives

The first Bates alumni to serve in the United States Congress was John Swasey (1859) in the

60th United States Congress The 60th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from March 4, 1907, to M ...

. During the 73rd and 116th U.S. Congresses, four Bates alumni served simultaneously–

Carroll Beedy Carroll Lynwood Beedy (August 3, 1880 – August 30, 1947) was a U.S. Representative from Maine from 1921 to 1935. He was born in Phillips, Franklin County, Maine, on August 3, 1880. He attended the public schools of Lewiston, Androscoggin Co ...

(1903) and

Charles Clason Charles Russell Clason (September 3, 1890 – July 7, 1985) was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts and an attorney. Clason was born in Gardiner, Maine. He attended Bates College, and received his ...

(1911) during the former sitting with Ben Cline (1994) and Jared Golden (2011) during the latter. Approximately 45% of alumni elected to the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

have done so in pairs. Many of the following alumni served in leadership positions within the House of Representatives.

Governors

State officials and cabinet-ranked officials

The following alumni have served in U.S. state governments, typically in the state judiciary and executive cabinet. Many of the alumni also served in additional leadership roles within state government.

State Senators

Many of the following alumni served in leadership positions within their respective state's upper house, including

president of the senate President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for e ...

, majority leader, minority leader, as well as minority and majority

whip A whip is a tool or weapon designed to strike humans or other animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain. They can also be used without inflicting pain, for audiovisual cues, such as in equestrianism. They are generally e ...

State Representatives

Many of the following alumni served in leadership positions within their respective state's lower house, including

speaker of the house The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hungerf ...

, majority leader, minority leader, as well as minority and majority

Mayors

There have been six Bates alumni to serve as the Mayor of Lewiston, Maine, the hometown of the college. The smallest city to be governed by a Bates alumni is Gardiner, Maine, while the largest is San Francisco, California. John Jenkins ('74) is the only alumni to serve as mayor to two different cities (Lewiston and Auburn, Maine).

Royalty

Law and legal studies

Federal and state judges

The following section documents Bates alumni who have served in both the federal judiciary of the United States (including the U.S. district court system) and state judiciaries. Alumni who have served in executive positions, such as attorneys general (both on a state and federal level) are noted in the " federal officials and ambassadors" section above.

State Supreme Court Justices

All Bates alumni who have gone to serve on a state supreme court have done so in the Maine supreme court system. There have been two chief justices and seven associate justices.

Legal academics and other legal figures

Alumni who have served in political or judicial offices are noted above. The following catalogues notable alumni who have contributed to legal studies, the law, or maintained notability in academia.

Academia and administration

University founders and presidents

Professors and scholars

Athletics

During the

1912 Summer Olympics The 1912 Summer Olympics ( sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1912), officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad ( sv, Den V olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Stockholm 1912, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, be ...

there were two Bates alumni competing in the sporting event, both representing the United States in baseball exhibitions. Nancy Ingersoll Fiddler ('78) and Andrew Byrnes ('05) are the only two alumni to compete in two Olympic Games, competing in two successive winter and summer olympics, respectively. Byrnes is the only Bates alumni to medal at the Olympic Games, winning a

Gold Medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have bee ...

rowing for Canada during the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

Business

Religion

Science

Military

Fictional people

Notable faculty

Professor John Stanton of Bates College on a bird walk

Sociology

Modern languages A modern language is any human language that is currently in use. The term is used in language education to distinguish between languages which are used for day-to-day communication (such as French and German) and dead classical languages such a ...

Religious studies Economics English Debate Political science

Philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

History Visual art Theater Music Anthropology

Presidents of Bates College

Commencement speakers and honorary recipients

The following lists notable people who have spoken at a Bates College commencement ceremony or received an honorary degree. Those who are counted as alumni of the college and have received honorary degrees (or spoken at commencements) are noted in the preceding sections.

References

External links

Bates College Alumni Serving in the Civil War (1863)
{{Bates College

Bates College people Bates may refer to: Places * Bates, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Bates, Illinois. an unincorporated community in Sangamon County * Bates, Michigan, a community in Grand Traverse County * Bates, New York, a hamlet in the town of Ellingt ...