VOL. CLXXIII NO.148
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2016
HANOVER, NEW HAMPSHIRE
Students hold demonstration against Trump
SUNNY HIGH 50 LOW 39
By DEBORA HYEMIN HAN The Dartmouth Staff
PETER CHARALAMBOUS/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF
ARTS
WINTERHILL RELEASES FIRST EP PAGE 8
OPINION
ZHU: A NEW DUOPOLY PAGE 7
OPINION
SCOTT: THE TWO AMERICAS
Students and members of the public rallied on the Green opposing Donald Trump’s presidency.
DARTBEAT AN ANALYSIS OF HANOVER GIRLS
By DEBORA HYEMIN HAN AND JULIAN NATHAN The Dartmouth Staff
At 4 p.m. this afternoon, over 300 Dartmouth students, faculty and Upper Valley community members participated in a “Walk for Love and Justice” to protest the elec-
tion of Donald Trump to the White House. The march — organized by Alyssa Jorgensen ’17 and Ashley Zepeda ’18, among others — follows a night in which more than 6,500 Hanover residents voted for Clinton and 926
SEE MARCH PAGE 3
By SARAH MCGAHAN AND MICHAEL QIAN The Dartmouth Senior Staff
In the wake of Tuesday’s election results, several groups on campus have organized events for community members to gather, discuss and reflect. Dartmouth staff, faculty and administrators have also responded by offering additional services.
Online MPH students to come to campus By MEGAN CLYNE
The Dartmouth Staff FOLLOW US ON
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SEE DEMONSTRATION PAGE 3
Over 300 march in Post-election discussions and events to be held on campus protest of Trump
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READ US ON
A small, impromptu camp-out on the Green has since grown into a larger demonstration of solidarity against President-elect Donald Trump. The demonstration — which was initiated by two seniors early Wednesday morning — has now attracted over 60 Dartmouth students, faculty and community members. At 4 p.m., students began “a peaceful walk for love, unity and community,” starting from the center of the Green. Students, some sobbing and others holding their heads in their hands, held signs reading, “This is not acceptable. Com-
The inaugural class of The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice’s two-year online master of public health program will make its second visit to campus over winterim. The new program offers the first online Dartmouth degree. The 28 mem-
The Office of Student Life and the Collis Center are co-sponsoring a lunch and community gathering today in Collis Commonground from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. today. The Undergraduate Dean’s Office expanded its staffing during its drop-in hours yesterday. Students were encouraged to use undergraduate deans as a gen-
eral campus resource. The Center for Gender and Student Engagement — located in the Choates — remained open until 7 p.m. yesterday for any students who wanted a place to debrief or receive emotional support. The Dartmouth Center for Service and the Tucker SEE DISCUSSION PAGE 3
NOT MY PRESIDENT
bers of the class include clinicians, nurses, doctors, physical therapists, policy analysts and nonprofit workers. TDI’s Director of Education Tim Lahey said he is optimistic about the progress that the online MPH has made since its debut. TDI slated 20 spots in its first class of online MPH students, but the program decided SEE MPH PAGE 2
DEBORA HYEMIN HAN/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF
Students gather on the Green with signs protesting the election of Trump.
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2016
Roslin’s Sushi expands Programs emphasize connection By PETER CHARALAMBOUS The Dartmouth Staff
Students craving Asian food can find it a little closer to home. Roslin’s Sushi is expanding to the residential community house centers: the North Park and South House study space and the Allen and School House communal space. Chang Lin has spearheaded the sushi production, which operates out of Collis Café as well as from a warehouse in Lebanon, since 2012. Lin, who began making sushi in 1997, moved to West Lebanon in 1999 to open his own restaurant. He began working with the College in 2005 by helping Sunja Hayden, a Dartmouth Dining Services worker who was in charge of sushi production at the College then. When Hayden left the College in 2012 to pursue a full-scale kimchi production business in Vermont, Lin stepped up to take over the operation. Lin and his business partner Stephen Ross combined their last names to create Roslin’s Sushi. Today, Roslin’s Sushi supplies Japanese and Chinese food to the Collis, Courtyard and Novack
Cafés as well as the residential community house centers. Roslin’s also operates during Late Night Collis on Sundays and Mondays and the Collis Cafe for in-person custom orders after 3:30 p.m. Roslin’s Sushi also caters for large events at the College. Lin also operates Oriental Wok Express, a restaurant popularly known as “Gas Station Chinese.” Lin prides himself on using fresh, local and sustainable ingredients. “I want to bring fresh products to every customer of mine,” Lin said. “I treat them like friends.” He sources his fish from the Earth and Sea Fish Market in Vermont and purchases other supplies from JFC International in Boston. Utilizing a production warehouse in Lebanon, Lin said he is able to consistency supply fresh products across campus. Lo mien, egg rolls, sushi and other products are made at 4 p.m. and then stocked in refrigerators the next morning. Associate Director of DDS Don Reed said that Roslin’s Sushi is important to DDS because it is an “opportunity for DDS to provide an ethnic item that is produced locally and fresh.”
FROM MPH PAGE 1
to take 28 due to the volume of qualified applicants. The residential MPH program has about 60 members per class. TDI Academic Director for Education Alice Andrews and Senior Director of Admissions and Recruiting Marc Aquila both said an online program was started to appeal to individuals who wanted to pursue their degree and career simultaneously. Most of those in the online program are mid-career professionals who have been in the work force five to seven years prior to beginning the program. Aquila and Andrews also acknowledged the increase in the number of people hoping to pursue a MPH degree, adding that they see the online program as another way in which the College can help supply the growing demand. The online program uses the same teaching methods as the residential program. The residential program is more heavily applied to individuals in the Upper Valley, while the online initiative allows the College
work with more diverse regions of the United States, Lahey said. Though the majority of the program is completed online, Lahey emphasized the importance of fostering a close-knit, interpersonal academic setting comparable to being at Dartmouth. On-campus visits and class layout are two initiatives the program is trying to use to facilitate this setting. Students are required to come to Hanover a total of six times and stay for one week to graduate. Before starting the online program, students come to the College and participate in a group immersion activity to foster community, Lahey said. Andrews added that after students’ initial visit, they must visit campus five more times where they have the opportunity to network with other students and professors, review their previous coursework and prepare for future endeavors. In addition, Lahey said that the class layout also aims to promote community. The program is held in a blog format and students are assigned to groups of about four people with whom they are required to be in regular contact.
Each of the small groups is deliberately designed to include students involved in careers that pertain to different aspects of medicine, according to Andrews. Efforts to integrate residential MPH students and online members have been a priority. Though the schedules for the two programs often do not align, TDI sent two students, one residential and one online, to the American Public Health Conference this past fall in order to begin fostering informal relationships between students from both programs in a setting of shared interest. Faculty members are still learning how to teach students via the web, but they have found the online experience to be new and exciting and the students to be engaging, Andrews and Aquila said. This program is one of three masters’ programs offered by TDI that seek to teach the importance of healthcare and need for improvement. The other two programs include a one-year accelerated master of public health and an 18-month master of science in healthcare research.
DIVYA KALINDIDI/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF
Roslin’s Sushi is expanding beyond the Collis Café
KRISTIN KNUTZEN/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF
Online master of public health students came to campus for the second time in their program.
CORRECTIONS We welcome corrections. If you believe there is a factual error in a story, please email editor@thedartmouth.com.
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2016
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Student create posters with positive messages FROM DEMONSTRATION PAGE 1
placency is not an option,” while others made signs related to gender equality, the #BlackLivesMatter movement and other social justice causes. Many students also created posters with positive messages on them, such as “take care of each other,” with plans to distribute them around campus. Sleeping bags, pizza boxes, donuts, blankets and yoga mats were strewn across the grass. “[We’re here] to show the school and the world that we care and that we are not going to be complacent and we are not going to sit by and do nothing,” Julia Dressel ’17 said. Dressel and her roommate Grace E. Carney ’17, who jointly initiated the demonstration, stayed on the Green all night after viewing the election results. The pair awoke to strangers, classmates and friends
dropping off food and warm drinks, and decided to reach out to various groups on campus to join the peaceful sit-down. This afternoon, Provost Carolyn Dever spoke with the students demonstrating, offering assistance. “I’m inspired by our students’ compassion and warmth and caring. I’m inspired by this vision right here,” she said about the group. The group was primarily composed of women, something Hannah Markowitz ’18 noticed when she first arrived. “The people who are affected are the only ones who care enough to do this,” she said. “This is the first time being a woman — I’m otherwise not a minority student here — has really made me feel so much empathy and makes me start to realize how scared people must be every day. I think it’s terrible how few men are here.”
KATE HERRINGTON/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF
After the presidential election, students put up posters spreading postive messages around campus.
College and student Various speakers addressed the crowd groups hosting activities FROM MARCH PAGE 1
FROM DISCUSSION PAGE 1
Center hosted a pizza dinner and informal discussion yesterday evening. House communities are open to students for reflection. Yesterday, School and Allen House residents had a de-stress session, where they learned mindfulness techniques held in House Center B. In addition, School House professor Craig Sutton held a discussion on “The Day After: Evaluating the Election” at his home on 7 School Street. The discussion was cosponsored by the Tucker Center. Rollins Chapel was open yesterday at 1 p.m. as a place for reflection and prayer.
The Tabard stayed open yesterday from 6 p.m. to midnight. The house welcomed community members who felt affected by the election and offered an opportunity to have conversations and play with dogs. Cutter Shabazz held a postelection discussion and community healing for two hours last night, which was co-hosted by Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, Dartmouth’s chapter of the NAACP, Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity, La Alianza Latina, Afro-American Society, Native Americans at Dartmouth, Asian-American Students for Action and the Dartmouth Coalition for Immigration Reform, Equality and DREAMers.
cast ballots for Trump. The march began on the Green at the site of a sit-in where students had camped out the night before. At the outset of the march, about 100 people were present, including demonstrators who had been sitting-in throughout the day. By the end of the walk, over 300 people had joined the group. As they walked into Hanover through Main Street, Lebanon Street, Crosby Street and East Wheelock Street, demonstrators alternated between chants of “Love trumps hate,” “No justice no peace,” “Fuck Donald Trump” and “Black Lives Matter.” Demonstrators occupied the right lane of the road and brought vehicular traffic to a standstill on Main Street. In a show of support, several drivers gave demonstrators a thumbs-up. Upon the demonstrators’ return to the Green, the crowd formed a circle and began chanting “down with white supremacy.” Following this chant, Jorgensen addressed the crowd, calling for a moment of silence to honor “the people here today who choose compassion and love over what our nation chose last night.” Afterward, various speakers were given the opportunity to address the crowd. Among them was Corinne Kasper ’17, who said, “Apparently we are loud and
apparently we are powerful.” Though several subsequent speakers were greeted with widespread applause when they encouraged demonstrators to hold onto their beliefs and resolves despite the results of last night’s election, a divergence of opinion within the crowd became clear when speakers addressed the fragmentation of political movements along racial lines. Keva Bui ’17 expressed frustration with what they perceived to be a failure of mainstream political movements, such as feminism, to address the issues faced by LGBTQIA groups and people of color. “This is not about Hillary Clinton. This is not about white women…this is not about white feminism,” they said. “This is about our communities’ resistance and revolution against the system of violence that has been perpetuated against us for centuries.” English professor Alexis Jetter later challenged Bui’s indictment of “white feminism.” “As a white woman, and as a feminist, and as a lesbian, and as a leftist, I don’t want anyone here to say ‘This is not about white feminism’ as if white feminists didn’t fight for Bernie, didn’t fight for Hillary,” she said. Jetter then explained her belief that splitting the feminist movement across racial lines makes it easier for right-wing politicians to create and exploit divisions within the liberal electorate.
“Don’t do the right-wing haters’ work for them,” she said. “Don’t divide up like that.” Maieda Janjua ’17 rebutted, saying that she believed feminism should address various racial and socioeconomic factors. She then vocalized her perception that “white feminism” has failed in this regard. Janjua had the final word before the group dispersed. “Your feminism is not feminism if it is only for white people,” she said. Immediately following the demonstration, Jorgensen explained that the demonstrators’ walk around Hanover was organized by Kappa Delta Epsilon sorority, but that many of the demonstrators assembled serendipitously. Zepeda added that she was pleasantly surprised by the large turnout of students and residents and was particularly impressed by the demonstrators’ rapid postermaking. While she explained that she was still upset following the results of last night’s election, she found the large body of support for today’s demonstration empowering. Jorgensen echoed this sentiment and explained that observing the crowd’s large size as she walked through Hanover caused her to feel a sense of empowerment. Eliza Rockefeller ’17, who said she was upset by the election results, found it consoling to feel supported by “like-minded people.”
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THE DARTMOUTH EVENTS
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2016
DARTMOUTHEVENTS TODAY 5:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.
“Finally, It’s Over: The 2016 Election and Its Aftermath,” panel moderated by professor Ron Shaiko, Rockefeller Center 003
7:15 p.m. - 8:45 p.m.
3rd annual TUCK VETS vs. ICE VETS sled hockey game, James W Campion Ice Rink, West Lebanon, NH
8:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
“Intimate Apparel,” fall main stage production, directed by Tazewell Thompson, Moore Theater, Hopkins Center for the Arts
TOMORROW
3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
“Science Policy for Scientists,” Heather Bloemhard, American Astronomical Society, Wilder 104
4:45 p.m. - 5:15 p.m.
Veterans Day Retreat and Drill Ceremony, conducted by the Dartmouth ROTC, Dartmouth Green
8:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
“Circle Mirror Transformation,” written by Annie Baker, directed by Liza Couser ’17, Bentley Theater, Hopkins Center for the Arts
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THE DARTMOUTH OPINION
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GUEST COLUMNIST JON SCOTT ’19
STAFF COLUMNIST IOANA SOLOMON ’19
The Two Americas
Pricey Politics, Cheap Media
This election reveals that there are two Americas – I just didn’t realize it. We had a hot summer this year — and not just because of the weather. Tensions rose and protests exploded across the country after police officers shot and killed Alton Sterling and Philando Castile in two separate altercations within the same week, adding to the growing number of black men killed by the cops. The shootings of several police officers in Dallas and Baton Rogue, Louisiana further added to the chaos. Only weeks earlier, the United States had been rocked by the shooting at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, which has become the largest mass shooting in American history and the deadliest terrorist attack since 9/11. Meanwhile, social media flooded with disturbing images of the war in Syria while nativist policies, intended to stem waves of immigration, gained popular support in Europe, manifesting most notably in the United Kingdom’s vote to leave the European Union. Despite these controversial events, I fully expected America to make what I believed was the right choice by electing Hillary Clinton to be the 45th President of the United States. I was wrong. As I type this at 2 a.m. Eastern Standard Time on Nov. 9, there is little doubt that Donald Trump will be my next president. This is a reality I never imagined. His comments on Muslims, women, taxes, immigrants, minorities and war heroes did not sound like the rhetoric of a president of any developed country. I thought the public shared my conviction that Trump’s views are not American views — are not our views. But this election proves there really is no “our” in today’s America. Perhaps that was my greatest mistake, to believe that America acted as one, that the country as a whole shares the same values. Yet the signs were all around me. Americans remain deeply divided on gun rights, policing, gay marriage, abortion, healthcare, international security commitments, immigration and even whether athletes have the right to kneel during the national anthem. With such myriad schisms on so many issues, it is impossible to pinpoint any collective ideology. I have come to realize there are two Americas, and the one
that stood for racial homogeny, protectionism, nativism and what it calls “law and order” — to put it nicely — won the 2016 election. So where does this leave those who were on the other side? Perhaps the biggest realization that the losing side — including myself — must face is that America doesn’t believe what we thought it did. We thought America was tolerant, open and accepting. Recent victories in healthcare and gay marriage, let alone two terms of a black president, convinced us that we were close to realizing the free, democratic and equal society we believe the Constitution stands for. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Clearly, there are many Americans who not only disagree but also sharply reject everything we thought we had achieved. There are many Americans whose idea of what constitutes a free, democratic and equal society is drastically different from our own. This election was a referendum on the Obama administration, and everyone opposed to his administration voiced their opinion loud and clear through their ballots. Last night, half the country decided against every measure the other half was trying to further — an eye-opening division that we all must recognize and consider when we think about the future and the country we think we know. So with the president decided, what does our country’s — no, America’s — future hold? No one really knows. Did Trump supporters ever reach a consensus on what “Make America Great Again” really means? Is it building a wall and making Mexico pay for it? Is it not building a wall if Mexico refuses to pay for it? Is it repealing the Affordable Care Act? Banning Muslim immigration? Deporting illegal immigrants and breaking up families? Turning our back on our allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and aligning with Russia as it becomes ever-more aggressive? Or will things remain the same? Will things, quite incredibly, get better for everyone — or just for white, male voters? Anyone’s guess is as good as the next. All I can say is, I’m going to enjoy the last two months of Obama’s presidency, and hope for the best in the years ahead.
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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2016
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SUBMISSIONS: We welcome letters and guest columns. All submissions must include the author’s name and affiliation with Dartmouth College, and should not exceed 250 words for letters or 700 words for columns. The Dartmouth reserves the right to edit all material before publication. All material submitted becomes property of The Dartmouth. Please email submissions to editor@thedartmouth.com.
American journalism has lost its objectivity, and we need it back.
In an Oct. 26 interview with Donald Trump, CNN reporter Dana Bash noted the presidentelect’s large bank account and grilled him on how much money he was willing to spend on advertising in his final two-week sprint towards the White House. Eventually, Trump had to ask Bash to move on to a different question, and in doing so he implied a major — even alarming — flaw in the news and media industry, namely money and what its ramifications are for the journalism that reaches us. Now, and particularly over the course of this election, money has played too great a role in politics, exposing not just our damaged democracy but also our shallow indifference to truth. Bash’s line of questioning, fixated on Trump’s checkbook instead of his policy outlook, shows how disoriented the media has become. We have allowed money to considerably influence the media and, by extension, popular opinion, resulting in communication that depends more on our wallets than on our minds. I was born in Romania, a country with even more rampant political corruption than the 2016 presidential election cycle has implied about America. I expected more from journalism in a country with better resources and greater freedoms, one of which is the coveted freedom of speech. Most of all, I expected more from American citizens who keep getting fed outrageously biased information every single day and never wake up to see the truth. This bias has been confirmed by legitimate research. A 2015 study by Cornell University and Stanford University used a computer algorithm to analyze bias in news outlets based on selections of quotes from public figures. Instead of subjectively assigning bias to news sources, Cornell computer scientist Cristian Danescu-Niculescu-Mizil and his colleagues took a different approach, trying to see if an entirely objective computer could perceive patterns of media bias. They used 2,274 speeches made by President Barack Obama between 2009 and 2014 and analyzed the 275 media outlets that quoted him. After churning through more than 200,000 quotes, the study definitively concluded, “there is systematic bias in the quoting patterns of different types of news sources” that “goes beyond simple newsworthiness and space limitation effects.” In other words, news outlets report the news they want to hear. On a similar note, a report done by the John F. Kennedy School’s Shorenstein Center on Media Politics and Public Policy at Harvard University analyzed news coverage from the 2016 primary races and found that mainstream media outlets were guilty of “journalistic bias.” Not only did the press provide unequal coverage of Democratic and Republican candidates but they also did it while ignoring factual and substantive content. In its overcoverage of the Trump campaign and undercoverage of Democratic candidates (Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, in particular), the press contributed to the rise of Trump’s popularity while paying little attention to the Democratic nomination process. Because much of American journalism has come to overemphasize just getting a “good story” and following the
most lucrative path instead of policy issues, it has become void of substance. The report estimates that only 11 percent of coverage focused on candidates’ policy positions, leadership abilities or personal and professional histories. In this election, Sanders and former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton were overshadowed by the Republican race and news stories about Trump. However, it is important to note that the American mass media has adopted a pervasive and quantifiable leftwing bias since the 1980s.While Trump appeared in news headlines more frequently than did Sanders or Clinton, stories about him were also more likely to be negative than pure journalistic objectivity would generally allow. Admittedly, I have liberal leanings and a visceral reaction to Trump and all that he stands for, but regardless I expect the news to report news, not political advertisements, and the information I receive to be objective and complete — yet, clearly, that is not the case. Much of this bias, however, is not entirely deliberate. Rather than producing outright, intentionally false content, news reporters manifest their bias through what they choose not to report. The facts or quotes they omit in order to avoid contradicting the political narrative they are trying to advance are where the real prejudice lies. Media researchers Tim Groseclose and Jeffrey Milyo remark that, “for every sin of commission…we believe that there are hundreds, and maybe thousands, of sins of omission — cases where a journalist chose facts or stories that only one side of the political spectrum is likely to mention.” This media partisanship is obvious, and the extent to which our news sources are polarized is increasing far too rapidly. However, there are those who claim that political leanings balance themselves, canceling out their effects and producing a stabilized battleground of differing ideologies. In theory, this effect should render any of our worries baseless. As a 2012 Washington Post article explained, “left-leaning reporting is balanced by reporting more favorable to conservatives.” The article cites David D’Alessio, a communications sciences professor at the University of Connecticut at Stamford, who claimed that “the net effect is zero.” But even if biases balance out and the net effect is zero, the fact that our media is just as polarized as our politics is problematic. Most people only pay attention to news sources they already agree with, so this balancing act is lost on the majority of the American electorate. No rational person would claim that, just because Republican extremism balances Democratic extremism, the American political sphere is a healthy one. It is not — and neither is its media. In the 2016 presidential race, the media’s critical coverage of the Trump campaign and its blatantly optimistic view of Clinton’s chances may have made some potential Clinton voters complacent while making Trump supporters even more desperate to get to the voting booths. Had the news industry produced the fair and neutral journalism that should characterize a sound democracy, this election’s result might have been different.
THE DARTMOUTH OPINION
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2016
PAGE 7
CONTRIBUTING COLUMNIST JULIA HUEBNER ’20
CONTRIBUTING COLUMNIST MICHAEL ZHU ’20
To Read or Not to Read?
A New Duopoly
I read my admissions files through FERPA – and do not recommend it. I walked out of McNutt Hall, home of the Dartmouth Admissions Office, feeling mostly ambivalent, a bit dazed and somewhat bigheaded. Why, you might ask? I had viewed my Dartmouth admissions file. However, I would not recommend other students to do the same. Under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, any student can view the personalized files that their postsecondary school holds. The act’s primary purpose is to “set out requirements for the protection of privacy of parents and students,” and it stipulates rules about a student’s access, ability to amend and right to disclose private information that their college or university holds. Any college that “receive[s] funding under any program administered by the Department [of Education]” is subject to the law, and that includes Dartmouth. It’s important to note that the right to access one’s admissions documents only applies at the school a student was both admitted to and currently attends. Thus, the process of viewing your admissions files, although lengthy and bureaucratic, is completely legal. However, it took going through the six-week process for me to realize that viewing my admissions files was both self-serving and a waste of the College’s time and money. First, the process itself: On Sept. 25, I drafted a request to view my admissions documents to the Office of the Registrar . “I was wondering if I could have access to all files pertaining to my admission at Dartmouth held by Dartmouth’s Office of Admissions,” I wrote. “Under FERPA, I understand I’m allowed to ask for admissions files to be released to me…” Even knowing that I had the legal right to view these files, I still debated whether or not to push send. I felt like I was overstepping my bounds. Sirey Zhang ’20 felt the same after he requested to view his admissions files through FERPA. “I was a bit nervous,” explained Zhang. “I heard rumors that it negatively impacts your experience here. Maybe because you’ve looked at the College’s secrets on letting you in, which is a really intense process.” A voice in the back of my head reminded me that I was already lucky to have gotten in. Shouldn’t I just be happy and leave well enough alone? I pushed send. The College did everything correctly from a legal standpoint. I received a timely response detailing that, as FERPA stipulates, a representative from the Admissions Office would be in touch within 45 days with instructions on how to review my records. Within a week, I forgot that I had sent a request. On Nov. 2 — 35 days after receiving an initial response — I was told that my files were ready for me to view. On Nov. 4, I climbed the grandiose
staircase to the third floor of McNutt Hall, presented my student ID, signed some paperwork and was led into a room by an admissions employee. Under the employee’s supervision, I was allowed to read and take handwritten notes on my admissions records. Like at a museum, photography was prohibited. The only notable documents in my file were a report from my alumni interview and feedback from the two people who reviewed my application. The two admissions readers “graded” my application on a scale of one to five according to my overall academic and personal rating, testing, school performance, intellectual qualities, extracurricular achievement and personal qualities. Additionally, they each wrote a short paragraph summarizing their thoughts on my application and “recommended action” in regards to admittance. The whole ordeal was bureaucratic and sterile, but not ultimately insightful. Reading my report simply reinforced my hunch as to why I “got in.” There was nothing sinister or surprising within my application files. This all makes sense: If the Admissions Office wanted you to matriculate, it’s only logical that they write nice things about you in their notes. Even what you really want to see — a big, juicy, reason for your acceptance — might be redacted if it references another applicant or quotes content from your letters of recommendation if you had waived the rights to see them. I saw references to redacted information in my file, meaning that an admissions employee had been forced to take the time, and paid for by the college, to comb through my file and redact information before I saw it. If Dartmouth dollars are being spent, it’s ludicrous that they be spent on that. There are also possible ramifications for the language of admissions. If admissions officers know that their comments can be relatively easily viewed by students, I suspect that they might be less transparent and honest in future evaluations; using my right to FERPA my admissions records may whitewash the process for future applicants. That being said, it’s healthy to push against the opaque and secretive systems within colleges — and college admissions tops that list. Personally, viewing my file allowed me to compare what I thought was my main “selling point” with what the admissions staff prioritized in their notes. But ultimately, my [redacted] peek behind the iron curtain of admissions and the halfhour ego boost wasn’t worth the time and money the admissions office spent. If would be worth everyone’s time and money would be to conduct an independent audit of all original, non-redacted admissions files to check for abuse and discrimination. While a students do have a right to access their information, that right need not always be acted upon. FERPA may have been well-intended, but taking advantage of it is not worth the effort.
The current shift of party ideology lends itself to pessimism. For many of us, the most incredulous aspect the facts of modern life. Is accepting Trump of this presidential election cycle was the rise of the GOP’s way of dealing with a country that is Donald Trump. Never in recent history have becoming increasingly diverse and non-white? we seen such crudity, vulgarity, pomposity and Is that how the Republican Party will define blunt honesty combined into one candidate. itself, by what they fear and want to reject But perhaps more importantly, the current rather than what they hope for and support? election has drastically changed the political The Democratic Party, on the other hand, landscape of the United States. Gone are the is moving in the opposite direction. With the time-worn ideologies of the Democratic or Re- deep, fatherly boom of Vermont Sen. Bernie publican parties. This election has caused both Sanders and his democratic socialism, the parties to adopt beliefs party has almost begun they have not necessarily to absorb economic ideas “The ideologies that the that are too distanced from embraced before. But with evolution parties have assumed reality, too wistful and too must come caution. The hopeful. Instead of trying ideologies that the par- can be dangerously to return too far into the ties have assumed can divisive in nature, past, Democrats are trying be dangerously divisive to go too far into the future. in nature, and this elec- and this election has But such wistfulness is tion has unfortunately unfortunately revealed not driven by the party as revealed much about a whole — it is driven by not just the candidates much about not just the the millennials who are but also the parties that candidates but also the shifting increasingly to nominated them. This the left. Disillusioned with reformation of party parties that nominated 21st century economic ideology, therefore, needs them.” issues and high levels of to begin with some form wealth inequality, many of self-reflection, and the millennials have looked parties need to be cautious about the beliefs to radical beliefs such as socialism to deal they champion before they actually adopt them. with our discontent. We’re willing to go as far For the Republicans, it’s easy to understand as possible to tax the life out of the wealthy why it’s important to be wary of them by and provide more and more to those less examining the new beliefs they’ve adopted. privileged, even if many of the wealthy have Nominating business mogul Donald Trump worked hard for their privilege while some of — and rejecting 21 other qualified candidates the less privileged chose not to. We’re willing along the way — reveals much about what the to take the easy step of redistributing wealth GOP has become. In this election cycle, the rather than doing the hard work of alleviating Republican Party has abandoned the notion the effects of poverty and solving the extreme of conservatism and has become associated inequality that perpetuates it. We’re willing with guises of xenophobia, sexism and nativ- to raise the minimum wage as far as we want ism. It deserted the increasingly popular ideas without thinking about how it might affect busiof spending less while spending more wisely, nesses and companies. We’re willing to spend instead largely endorsing a candidate who on unnecessary programs without regarding advocates for trade wars and turns a blind increasing public debt and budget deficits. eye to real economic progress. Under Trump, I’m not criticizing millennials’ ideas. But the GOP refuses to trust before the Democratic factual science simply “Disillusioned with Party informally adopts because Democrats adthese beliefs, it should think vocate for it and instead 21st century economic about their implications hopes to halt any action issues and high levels and complications. How that combats man-made it justify to people that of wealth inequality, can climate change. In terms endless spending is actuof gun control, most many millennials have ally beneficial? How can it members of the party the finances needed looked to radical beliefs muster repeatedly tell themselves to pay for such overwhelmthat anyone with different such as socialism to deal ing programs? How can it beliefs wants to take guns immense taxawith our discontent.” reconcile away from households tion of the privileged with and restrict people from the rags-to-riches ideals owning firearms, which of the American dream could not be further from the truth. The party — the same dream that led to much of the is currently refusing to even consider what the privileged class? majority of Americans desire — namely, to This article is not an outright criticism of consider a completely qualified judge for the American political parties, but it’s also not an Supreme Court — and is thus further validat- optimistic look at our political future. It’s just ing the belief that Congress has truly become a skeptical warning about the new ideologies partisan to a fault. set forth in this past election as a result of men As the Republican Party morphs from a like Trump and Sanders.Going forward, both party of conservatism to one of anti-intellec- parties need to reflect upon the ideas they’ve tualism seeped in nationalism, one can’t help begun to take in and their potential future in but ask if it will ever fully come to terms with American politics and society.
THE DARTMOUTH ARTS
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2016
PAGE 8
Student band Winterhill releases first EP and single By EMMA GUO The Dartmouth
“Game Changers” by Winterhill opens with a gritty guitar riff and delves into a string of infectious melodies and clever lyrics ripe with social commentary and angst. Active since fall term of 2014, Winterhill consists of four members: Lloyd May ’18 (guitar), Zoë Sands ’18 (vocalist), Thomas Hodsden ’18 (bass) and Zach Plante ’18 (bass). May and Sands met through the international orientation coordinator, Lanphord Cao ’16, after performing independently at the international talent show. “Lanphord kind of brought us together, and we all mentioned that we were songwriters, so we just started playing together,” May said. Hodsden was added to the lineup soon after they happened to walk in on him playing the drums. “We were absolutely taken aback by how good he was, and we asked him if he wanted to play with us, and he was really keen,” May said. After Cao’s graduation and a few more lineup changes, the band added Plante on bass. With perfect pitch and more soul/jazz background than the rest of the band, Plante adds a melodic edge to the band’s sound. Winterhill’s first gig was an overflowing house at Amarna during winter term in 2015. “There were people around the house looking through the windows, and the crowd was really enjoying it,” May said. “It felt like the first time we truly locked as a band.” The band is inspired by a wide variety of genres, partly because each member comes from a different part of the world. May is from South Africa, Sands from Iceland, Hodsden from Vermont and Plante from California. “There are these weird Venn diagrams you can make of who we listen to,” May said. While Hodsden and May listen to deathcore, May and Sands love David Bowie, and the entire band loves The Beatles. Even the band’s two songwriters, May and Sands, look up to different artists. For example, May is influenced by Jack White, while Sands finds inspiration in Michael Jackson, Ella Fitzgerald and classic rock. Both are influenced by the Icelandic band Kaleo, a rock, folk and blues group.
Sands’ songs are mainly about her personal experiences, usually negative ones. “I wrote about my parents’ marriage problems that really affected me, and that was one of my muses, you could say,” Sands said. “I also write about a lot of guys, and a lot of people probably don’t realize I’ve written a song about them.” Both Sands and May said that the personal nature of their songs can
make it difficult for them to demo a song to the band because it requires so much vulnerability. They called the support they receive from their bandmates “incredible.” “I feel like they know me in a different way than any other [people] on campus,” Sands said. One day during the past summer, while rehearsing for a gig at Chi Gamma Epsilon fraternity, Sands noticed that some of her bandmates
would always take their tops off during practice. “We were just practicing, and I figured I would do the same,” Sands said. “So we were all at Chi Gam playing topless, and everyone felt so weird about it, but after a while it just felt so comfortable and normal.” While divergent D-plans scatter the band, all members will be back on campus this spring and for the entirety of their senior year.
Winterhill recorded its first EP over the summer, which consists of five tracks, and they are currently in the process of releasing their first single, “Game Changers.” In the future, the band plans to go on tour and possibly continue pursuing the members’ musical aspirations after they graduate. “We’ve made a conscientious effort to take our music more seriously,” May said.