In my Bowdoin student surveys for Gov 2080 (Quantitative Analysis in Political Science), we have regularly asked students to complete a feeling thermometer question about the President of Bowdoin. The question is:

Choose any number between 0 and 100. The higher the number, the warmer or more favorable you feel towards the [Bowdoin President]; the lower the number, the colder or less favorable. You would rate the [Bowdoin President] at the 50-degree mark if you feel neither warm nor cold toward them.

We’ve asked this question on 11 different surveys over 10 years and across three presidencies. Barry Mills left Bowdoin in 2015 (after 14 years at the College) and was incredibly popular with students. Clayton Rose started at a lower point than Barry Mills ended, but he had a near 70-point score over his first three years at the College. COVID took its toll, however, and he left Bowdoin at roughly 50/100. Safa Zaki, the current Bowdoin President, has comparatively high scores (she entered Bowdoin at the same spot on this measure as Clayton Rose in 2016), but has seen a slight decline in her favorability in the last year. We’ll see how things take shape in the years to come!