Faculty: records, minutes, and reports

Record Group

Identifier: A01.07

Staff Only
Please use the Collection Organization section below to place requests.

Scope and Content

Records of the faculty begin with the records of executive government in 1805 and continue through the records of the faculty, the reports of the faculty and minutes of faculty meetings, as well as reports presented to the faculty at meetings. Each series documents the governing of the college by the president and faculty. Records of specific faculty committees are also represented, especially the Committee on Educational Policy (CEP), the Recording Committee and the Lectures and Concerts Committee.

Dates

Creation: 1805 - 2020

Creator

Bowdoin College. Faculty (Organization)

Access Restrictions

Some material restricted. Consult finding aid for specific information.

Biographical/Historical Note

During the early years of the college, there was little distinction between faculty and administration. The executive government consisted of the president, the teaching faculty and the librarian of the college. This group debated curriculum and discipline questions and drafted the annual report to the Visiting Committee of the Board of Trustees. By 1875, this role of the executive government was superseded by the faculty meeting, although the records of the two groups overlap for a period of four years. As the college administration expanded, the faculty meeting became more concerned with academic matters and less with administrative policies. The president traditionally sat as head of the faculty. Official minutes of faculty meetings are held by the Office of the Dean for Academic Affairs until deposited in the archives. Copies of official reports of faculty committees are deposited in the archives when they are submitted to the faculty.