Bates Rower Pat Cohen Prioritizes Team Bonding and Academic Rigor

Pat Cohen, a sophomore at Bates College, identified the brief period before rowing practice as the defining feature of his daily routine. The economics and digital and computational studies major said he values the five to ten minutes Coach Steenstra allows the team to relax before stretching. Cohen stated that this unstructured time separates his student identity from his athlete role, reducing stress and improving focus during subsequent training sessions.

Cohen is a member of the men’s rowing team and the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. He is currently deciding on his specific subdivision within the team, a choice he expects to finalize within one week. He attributes his decision to attend Bates to the specific culture of the rowing program under Coach Steenstra, who leads both the men’s and women’s squads as a single unit.

The unified coaching model creates a distinct social environment for the athletes. Cohen noted that men’s and women’s team members treat each other as teammates and often attend classes together. He recalled a specific interaction during his official visit where a female rower, who later became a freshman year captain, hosted him in her class when his scheduled guide was delayed. Cohen said that moment confirmed the team’s collaborative nature and influenced his enrollment decision.

Cohen is from Haverford, Pennsylvania, and was a dual-sport athlete in high school. He played hockey and rowed for three seasons each. During his time in Pennsylvania, he served on a congressional district youth cabinet, meeting monthly with Congresswoman Scanlon. He also completed internships with a landlord to gain experience in finance, which informed his choice to major in economics.

The student is currently evaluating study abroad options for the remainder of his degree. He is attending informational meetings to determine whether to spend a semester overseas or remain at Bates. Cohen balanced the value of an international experience against the limited number of semesters available in a four-year program. He described the decision as a tradeoff between a unique opportunity and the importance of maintaining his current community ties.

Cohen has engaged with the local Lewiston community since his first semester. As part of his DCS 109 course, he taught computer science to students at Lewiston Middle School. He said the experience allowed him to compare the student populations at Bates and the local middle school. He noted that the interaction highlighted the mutual importance of the college and the town to each other.

Cohen described his academic goals as centered on completing his double major in economics and digital and computational studies. He expressed interest in seeing where his education leads professionally. He also looked forward to building deeper relationships with current teammates and maintaining contact with alumni. He anticipated observing how the team and the college environment evolve over the next three years.