VOL. CLXXIII NO.147
CLOUDY HIGH 49 LOW 28
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2016
Students react to Trump and elections
HANOVER, NEW HAMPSHIRE
Trump wins United States presidency
Alumni across the country run for positions down the ballot By ALEX FREDMAN The Dartmouth
MIRROR
THE 2016 BEAUTY
ISSUE PAGE M3-M8
MIRROR
TTLG: DANIELLE PIACENTILE ’17 PAGE M4-M5
MIRROR
CLAUDY ’18: MOST BEAUTIFUL ACTIVIST PAGE M8
MIRROR
ELLISON: MOST BEAUTIFUL PROFESSOR PAGE M8 READ US ON
DARTBEAT FOLLOW US ON
TWITTER @thedartmouth COPYRIGHT © 2016 THE DARTMOUTH, INC.
PRIYA RAMAIAH/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF
As the election cycle draws to a close, students watch anxiously in One Wheelock.
By THE DARTMOUTH STAFF Election Day was a day of strong emotions as Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton battled for the presidency. Throughout the day, students and town residents went to Hanover High School to cast their ballots. More than 6,500 Hanover residents voted for Clinton,
while 926 cast ballots for Trump. Volunteers and candidates turned out for one last day of campaigning on campus and at the polls, with candidates, students and community members coming together to get out the vote. Our reporters covered campus and town happenings throughout Election Day, speaking with voters at the polls and students
at watch parties to gauge the mood in and around Hanover. Students at watch party react to Donald Trump presidency The atmosphere in Occom Commons became increasingly depressed over the course of yesterday’s election as results from CNN’s news SEE ELECTION PAGE 2
Last night, Donald Trump won the United States presidential election against Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. The New Hampshire senate race between Democratic candidate and current governor Maggie Hassan and Republican candidate Kelly Ayotte was too close to call by press time. Clinton received 6,561 votes from voters in Hanover to get 84.9 percent, while Trump received 926 at 12 percent. Besides the presidential and senate election, several Dartmouth alumni ran for positions further down the ballot. Two Dartmouth alumni engaged in close races here in New Hampshire. U.S. Rep. Ann Kuster ’78 won reelection in the 2nd congressional district, defeating opponent Republican Jim Lawrence. Kuster is the first representative from her district to win three consecutive terms. Chris Sununu defeated Colin Van Ostern Tu’09 in the gubernatorial election with 49 percent of the vote. In Ohio, U.S. Republican Sen. Rob
Portman ’78 won reelection for a second term in the Senate, defeating former Gov. Ted Strickland. Republican U.S. Sen. John Hoeven ’79 from North Dakota won reelection for a second term in the Senate, defeating Democratic challenger Eliot Glassheim. In New York, Wendy Long ’92, a Republican, lost in her attempt to defeat incumbent Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer. In Delaware, current Democratic U.S. Rep. John Carney ’78 won his bid to become the next Governor of that state, defeating Republican opponent Colin Bonini. The incumbent governor, Jack Markell, is leaving office after reaching his term limit. Incumbent U.S. Rep. Mike Capuano ’73 won reelection in Massachusetts, having faced no opponents in the 7th congressional district. In West Virginia’s 2nd congressional district, Republican incumbent U.S. Rep. Alex Mooney ’93 won reelection for a second term, defeating Democratic challenger Mark Hunt.
New Hampshire leads voter power By ALEXANDER AGADJANIAN threshold according to The Dartmouth Staff
Drawn from FiveThirtyEight, the voter power index generally reflects the importance of voters in a state when deciding the winner of the Electoral College. Specifically, it’s calculated by dividing a state’s tippingchance probability — the chance a state puts the winning candidate above the electoral vote
FiveThirtyEight’s model simulations — by the expected share of the national turnout a state will have. According to FiveThirtyEight’s updates during election night, New Hampshire had the third highest voter power index at 4.3 in a range from 0 to 4.8. New Mexico ranked first with 4.8 and Nevada was second with 4.5.
ALEXANDER AGADJANIAN/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
PAGE 2
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2016
Election Day marked by excitement, anxiety over outcomes FROM ELECTION PAGE 1
coverage predicted a Donald Trump presidency. Students let out intermittent cheers when Hillary Clinton was shown to have leads in states including New Hampshire, but otherwise remained silent. First-time voter Christina Lu ’20 said that her hopes for the country’s future now rest on the Republican-controlled Congress disliking Trump enough to not vote for any of his proposed policies. Meanwhile, fellow first-time voter Jeho Hahm ’20 had only one word to describe the results of the election — “unbelievable.” “I was waiting for a miracle that in the back of my mind, I knew wasn’t going to happen,” Hahm said. – By Anthony Robles Election watchers try and get some homework done while waiting In Occom Commons, the watch party crowd rapidly grew once the clock struck nine. Most are students living in the McLaughlin residential cluster and a palpable sense of anxiousness filled the room. The provided pizza was gone within minutes of the watch party’s scheduled start. As more projections were released on CNN, most of the crowd let out audible groans as Donald Trump added to his electoral vote lead. A loud boo followed an update that showed Trump leading in New Hampshire. Cheers and applause followed as states were called in Clinton’s favor. A sizeable majority of the crowd wore stickers on their shirts saying that they voted today. Stickers on their laptops and water bottles showed support for their candidate of choice. A Bernie 2016 sticker emblazoned a laptop served as a reminder of how this election has been hotly contested since the start. The sound clacking keyboards echoed through the room. Amid writing essays and working on problem sets, students switched between tabs on their computers, keeping track of the election on multiple news websites. Elena Doty ’20 said that she would feel a lot better about being a first-time voter in this election if it wasn’t currently going in Trump’s favor. “Australia is looking really nice right now,” she added. – By Anthony Robles Collis watch party audience worried but optimistic With 28 people in attendance, students watching the election in One Wheelock ranged from excited to nervous after an early round of poll numbers were reported at around 9 p.m. last night at a party sponsored
CORRECTIONS We welcome corrections. If you believe there is a factual error in a story, please email editor@thedartmouth.com.
by Collis Governing Board. “I’m not nervous because we won’t know for so long,” Becca Rodriguez ’17 said. “While it’s easy to get emotional when swing states are close, we still don’t have all the votes.” Wendy Huang ’18 noted that the incoming poll numbers highlighted general trends among specific socioeconomic groups of voters. “It’s interesting because if Donald Trump wins he will be the first candidate not endorsed by the highly educated white population,” Huang said. “It says something of the current income inequality perception of U.S. citizens.” Across the Collis Center, students generally shared the same feelings when reflecting on the current poll numbers. Emma Miller ’19 said she was terrified, worried but still optimistic. “I think at this point, we are all just waiting,” said Miller.
Cryans for executive council. Voters interviewed all agreed that the voting process at Hanover High School was quick, easy and straightforward. Hanover resident Bart O’Connor said that he appreciated that he was able to bring his two young children along with him. O’Connor compared this election to a “horse race that has gotten out of hand.” He said he has been shocked by the lack of respect and dignity between the candidates and the amount of outside influences in the campaigning. Tess McGuinness ’18 said the process of this election has been incredibly elongated. She recalled first hearing that Donald Trump was running and thinking it was a joke. Noting that her mother grew up in a world where women couldn’t even own a credit card, McGuinness called today an “emotional day for all women.”
state of democracy, it is important for as many people as possible to get out and vote as possible,” said Matthew Vance ’18, who drove voters for the last two hours of the voting period.
– By Frances Cohen
– By Paulomi Rao
– By Paulomi Rao
Drivers come from far and wide to bring voters to the polls Dozens of volunteers drove voters to and from the polling station at Hanover High School yesterday. Transporting hundreds of voters, these volunteers shuttled voters from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Some drivers came from as far as New York and New Haven to volunteer their time and cars, helping students as well as locals get out to vote. Volunteers from Hillary Clinton’s campaign helped orchestrate the effort. “I wanted to work in a swing state with a very important senatorial race,” said Steve Ettlinger, a volunteer driver and the author of the book “Twinkie, Deconstructed” who traveled to Hanover from New York City yesterday morning. “This is a really charged election where people are really invested in which candidate they want. For the
Van Ostern Tu’09 makes final push for governor Dartmouth College Democrats hosted Democratic New Hampshire gubernatorial candidate Colin Van Ostern Tu ’09 behind Robinson Hall at 11 a.m. while students waited for shuttles to Hanover High School voting booths. Van Ostern, drawing a crowd of about 30, stressed the importance of voting all the way down the Democratic ballot. “There is so much power in our hands in New Hampshire,” he said in an interview with The Dartmouth. He added that New Hampshire voters have more clout during presidential and congressional elections than voters from almost any other state in the country. Van Ostern is up against Republican gubernatorial candidate Chris Sununu. They have both held positions on the New Hampshire Executive Council since 2012 and 2011 respectively.
Short lines close out the polls on Election Day Just 15 minutes prior to the closing of the polls, Hanover High School’s polling area was primarily empty. With no lines, the final voters made their way through the room and submitted their ballots. Those exiting the polls consisted of primarily Dartmouth students, as well as a few Hanover residents, some of whom brought their children along with them. Signs outside the polls supported Democratic candidates across the board. In addition to those supporting Hillary Clinton, signs reminded voters to consider Maggie Hassan for senator, Ann Kuster for congress, Colin Van Ostern for governor, Wendy Piper for county commissioner, and Mike
– By Peter Charamboulous Joe Kennedy moves campaign event to Keene State University Joe Kennedy’s “get out the vote” campaign stop at Dartmouth was cancelled today due to the high voter turnout among Dartmouth students. Expected to hold a meet and greet in Novak Café at 5 p.m., the event was cancelled according to Hillary campaigners. Sarah Atac ’18, a representative of the Dartmouth for Hillary organization, said Kennedy was instead redirected to Keene State University, a campus with previous low college student voting turnout, to encourage students to get to the polls and cast their ballots.
– By Emma Demers Early risers make their way to Hanover High School as polls open The path to the entrance of Hanover High School was filled with voters, students and volunteers moving in and out of the building on Election Day. At 8:30 a.m., five people stood outside Hanover High with placards supporting campaigns for Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine for president and vice president, Colin van Ostern Tu’09 for governor and Rep. Ann McLane Kuster ’77 for reelection. As voters walked by the placard-holders, friendly and personal greetings were exchanged. Lebanon High School American History teacher and Hanover resident Deb Nelson was one of those standing outside. Nelson has been involved in the political process since she was 12 years old, volunteering for Democratic campaigns or taking Election Day off from work to support the polls. Nelson stressed the importance of her students being informed about the election and the election process. She requires her students to volunteer for a political campaign for 10 hours and discuss where they receive political information. Competence, knowledge about foreign affairs, Planned Parenthood, climate change and lowering student debt are a few of the issues Nelson noted as important to her, but she emphasized that this list was not exhaustive. Nelson also mentioned the personal significance of voting for and possibly electing the first woman president. “I think I might do a little weep when I go and vote,” Nelson stated. – By Alexandra Steinberg
MIRROR //3
TANYA SHAH AND ERIC WANG / THE DARTMOUTH STAFF
Editors’ Note
Tonight is one of milestones. The end of a truly terrifying and wild election, a very lit issue and the closure of Hayley-the-jaded-senior’s™ reign as Mirror editor. “Co-editor,” Lauren corrected. If Hayley is currently trying to fight back nostalgia for her favorite extra-curricular and all the late nights laughing at memes with the sassy but beloved Lauren, this issue is her knight in shining armor. Sorry, Hillary. Hayley has been looking forward to this issue, which is themed around beauty, since she was a young, bright eyed, bushy tailed junior, when she dreamed of facilitating deep discussions among writers and members of the Dartmouth community. We sent out a campus survey asking people to submit the most beautiful people they know, with an emphasis on inner beauty. We received answers in which people wrote heartfelt descriptions of some of the most important people they knew. Some wrote about life-changing professors, while some listed less serious responses, including Harambe and “ur mom lol.” We picked the people who seemed to have the most soul power, then we instructed our writers to take them on dates. They got to know them and found out what makes them tick. The result? Storybook beautiful. Dartmouth might not be perfect, but we’re lucky that there are a lot of beautiful people to love here, and if we’re luckier, to love us back.
follow @thedmirror 11.9.16 VOL. CLXXIII NO. 147 MIRROR EDITORS HAYLEY HOVERTER & LAUREN BUDD EDITOR-IN-CHIEF REBECCA ASOULIN PUBLISHER RACHEL DECHIARA
EXECUTIVE EDITOR GAYNE KALUSTIAN
4// MIRROR
Through the Looking Glass TTLG
By Danielle Piacentile
I started @curvedandcontoured as an Instagram account dedicated to makeup, feminism and body positivity, which is a feminist movement focused on improving self-esteem and body image. In particular, I do so by addressing issues like fat shaming. I have always been interested in body image, largely because I have had an eating disorder for most of my life. In high school, I lost 35 pounds and was praised by friends, teachers and family for working hard to become “healthy,” even though these eating habits were incredibly harmful to my health. Because of my eating disorder, I spent almost every moment of my life obsessing over thinness, an ideal I could never seem to achieve. I eventually started eating again, so I naturally gained a lot of weight. Right now, I weigh about 90 pounds more than I did at the height of my eating disorder, and for the first time in my life, I don’t hate my body. Right before coming to Dartmouth, my friend from home took my phone and started an Instagram account for me and named it @whatahoot95 — I’ve always loved owls, so this seemed fitting. Around this time, I saw an article on Facebook about Robyn Lawley, an Australian plus size model who had landed the cover of Cosmopolitan Australia. This sparked controversy, as Lawley is a 6-foot-2-inch gorgeous model with a flat stomach and an hourglass figure. People were frustrated that someone with such a thin body was considered plus size. However, I followed her on Instagram (and still do) because she posts lovely photos about self-love and beauty standards. I started following a ton of plus size models and body activists, too, and the way I thought about my body changed drastically. Within a year, I genuinely felt like I loved my body for the first time in my life. I realized that I had never really seen fat people in the media portrayed as beautiful or attractive. I had seen fat people in the context of weight loss commercials or on “The Biggest Loser, but always within a narrative of weight loss. I had never seen fat people who were just fat, who were happy and who weren’t trying to lose weight or to change themselves. Seeing body positive plus size women who love their bodies unconditionally and unapologetically really challenged me to be kinder to my own body. Body positivity, to me, relates to my love of makeup. Growing up in theatre, I had a lot of practice doing my makeup. Personally, I don’t like the idea of wearing makeup to make myself look naturally beautiful because if I’m going to spend an hour doing my makeup, I want everyone to know. I started @curvedandcontoured with this in mind, posting tons of selfies and pictures of my body and plus size clothing. One picture in particular helped my account grow, as I gained over 1,000 followers in one day after posting it. This is a picture of me from behind wearing a white bikini at Manly Beach in Sydney, Australia. I captioned the picture, “They call me ‘fat’ like it’s a bad thing” with a few unicorn emojis. I’m joining the many body positive activists who have reclaimed the word “fat,” using it as a neutral adjective rather than an inherently negative word. I love this picture because to me, it represents how I want to profess my body positivity. I look fat and I look great, and those two things are not mutually exclusive. While models like Ashley Graham, the first plus size model to cover Sports Illustrated, have undeniably helped to make bigger bodies more accepted and celebrated, they still serve to uphold a near unachievable body ideal, that of the white, curvy, hourglass, flat-stomached, fullfigured beauty (Although to be honest, @ashleygraham once liked one of my Instagram pictures, and it was one of the better things that’s ever happened to me). In most mainstream media, plus size models still don’t look fat. And this leads me to my three most formative moments running @curvedandcontoured. The first happened because of the bikini picture, which received over 1,500 likes and nearly 100 comments, most of which were positive but a great deal of which were negative. In many comments, however, users simply tagged their friends. To my surprise, one of the people who tagged a friend had “Dartmouth” written in his description. I looked him up on Facebook and saw that he was a Dartmouth student, and we had a lot of mutual friends. So, I asked someone about him. My friend texted this guy, who said that he tagged his friend because he had a “thing” for “BBWs,” or “Big Beautiful Women” — basically a porn term for having a fat fetish. In this moment, I realized for the first time that people were actually looking at what I was posting, and that the more popular my account became, the more negative comments I was going to receive. This Dartmouth student who I had never met commented on my picture because he didn’t realize that I went to Dartmouth. All I could think of were the college students who see me online and see a random fat girl rather than a classmate. The second was when a Tumblr account dedicated to making fun of fat people reposted two of my pictures. One caption read, “Thunder thighs ahoy! Those boots must smell absolutely rancid when you take them off. How do you even take them off? It looks like your fat f**king legs would be stuck in them forever.” The other read, “Nice cake face, ham. How many hours did it take you to paint your face to look like a f**king clown? Thin privilege is having cheek bones without having to contour, I guess.” Not exactly. Thin privilege is being able to post a picture of your body on the internet without being called “ham,” “lazy,” “unhealthy,” “rancid” or “disgusting.” After these two experiences, I thought about deleting my account entirely. Like I said, I have an eating disorder, and I didn’t think that my account was worth the emotional harm that these comments were causing. Comments like these are painful, especially when I know that a lot of people in the world assume that being fat is fundamentally a bad thing. By posting pictures of myself online, I felt like I was inviting criticism, perpetuating body negativity and creating a space for the comments that I initially set out to combat. I felt like I was a part of the problem. But then I think of my third most formative moment — a plus size woman commenting on one of my pictures saying that I inspired her to wear a crop top for the first time. When I think of this woman’s comment, I remember the plus size women on Instagram who helped me overcome my own body image issues when I first got to Dartmouth over three years ago, and I remember why I started @curvedandcontoured in the first place. Loving my body loudly and publicly pisses some people off enough to try to tear me down, and that’s a problem. For me, body positivity is about loving your body when it feels like everyone around you says you shouldn’t. We need to fight for body positivity so that men who struggle with body image feel like they can ask for help. We need to center women of color in a body positive movement that currently upholds European beauty standards idealizing flat-stomached white women. We need to problematize well-intended body positive slogans like “healthy is the new skinny,” which may exclude people who are medically unable to exercise. I think of all the goodness and love within the body positivity movement, but so much work still has to be done. When I said “They call me ‘fat’ like it’s a bad thing,” a random guy commented “[be]cause it f**king is.” I and the 4,500 followers of @curvedandcontoured, say it’s not.
COURTESY OF DANIELLE PIACENTILE
MIRROR //5
Danielle’s Instagram Recommendations
Other wonderful plus size people to follow include: @ashleygraham, @tessholliday, @eff yourbeautystandards, @tasselfairy, @bigandblunt, @notoriouslydapper, @zachmiko, @Golden.Confidence, @crazycurvy_yoga, @abearnamedtroy @bae.doe, @dounia.t, @catieli
TIFFANY ZHAI/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF
Allison Chou ’17: Most Beautiful Facetimer STORY Allison Chou ’17 has over 1,000 likes on her Facebook profile picture, and while she isn’t exactly a celebrity right now, she will probably be in the future. For Chou, a huge part of her identity comes from her family. Her parents and two older sisters helped develop her sense of female empowerment, inner drive and outspokenness. As president of KDE, Chou is an unafraid presence on campus, speaking her mind. “I make things happen. If I think something’s wrong, I want to fix it. If I think someone’s saying something problematic, I’ll speak up. Hopefully that’s what people see in me. I try my best to walk the walk as well as talk the talk,” she said. The belief that women’s rights are human rights is fundamental to Chou’s worldview. “Locker room talk is a no-no,” she said, referencing recent comments by
Donald Trump and the subsequent debates about the power of language. She dreams of opening a restaurant, where she will likely serve foreign foods. On weekends, Chou can usually be found eating some sort of ethnic food off campus. As for her beauty secret, Chou says she rubs Vaseline on her face every night before bed, a trick she learned from her mother. She describes her style as luxury loungewear (“shapeless high quality fabrics”) and sneakers. Not taking oneself too seriously and dressing well are major pluses for Chou. It isn’t all about serious discussions about intersectionality. She’s an avid fan of “The Office,” the NBA and pug puppies. She knows how to beatbox. Her celebrity crushes are the Obamas. Even her feminism can take a lighthearted turn: she is a frequent peruser of a feminist fashion blog entitled “Man Repeller,” created with the goal of dressing for oneself.
By Carolyn Zhou
COURTESY OF ALLISON CHOU
6// MIRROR
Brooke Hadley ’18: Most Beautiful Caretaker By Anna Staropoli STORY
The communities we are involved in often help form our identities. Yet for Brooke Hadley ’18 a pre-existing identity led to her involvement in what she now classifies as her main Dartmouth community. “My home base community is probably the Native community at Dartmouth,” Hadley said. Originally from Oklahoma, Hadley lived in the Choctaw Nation, near Dallas. Her Choctaw roots transitioned from Oklahoma into her life at Dartmouth. “Before I came here, I only really knew about or identified with being Choctaw,” said Hadley, who entered Dartmouth originally intending to minor in Native American studies. After taking classes in the department, however, Hadley discovered a genuine passion for the subject and is now a Native American Studies major. “Learning about other tribes’ histories and how we all interact as a Native American body in the U.S. has been really interesting,” she
said.
Previously an Ivy Native Council representative and a member of the NAD executive board, Hadley is actively involved with the Native American community beyond her studies. Yet Hadley’s passion for the Native American community signifies only a small portion of what defines her. In addition to NAD, the Dartmouth Christian community, which Hadley participates in through X.ado and Christian Union and Sigma Delta sorority represent key aspects of Hadley’s Dartmouth experience. “They all obviously provide friendships and support as we’re navigating Dartmouth,” she said. “But they all contribute to my personhood in different ways.” In her role as a Sexual Assault Peer Advisor and beyond, Hadley demonstrates a clear recognition of the needs of others around her and takes an active role in making sure those needs are met. This initiative is at the root of her character. “I like to be everyone’s mom,” Hadley said.
“I would consider myself as a leader...I kind of just take charge of things to get them done.” This nurturing leadership surfaces in her daily life. Last weekend, for example, Hadley attended the Ivy Native Council Summit. There, she drove the car and took on responsibilities for the students with her. “I roll up [in the mini van], and I’m like, ‘Children, get in. It’s time to go,’” she recounted with a smile. Accounting for those around her also brings individual fulfillment. This personal satisfaction offers her a main source of joy: She notes that surrounding herself with people she cares about and finding moments to laugh are the main ingredients for her own happiness. For Hadley, beauty is a matter of confidence in what one does. “The way I see beauty is in warmth and confidence, so not a sense of being better than anyone else,” she said. “Seeing that a woman loves herself and loves the people around her confidently is very beautiful to me.”
COURTESY OF BROOKE HADLEY
Cindy Li ’18: Most Beautiful Lunch Date By Cristian Cano STORY
COURTESY OF CINDY LI
Cindy Li ’18 knows how to accept a compliment. Her immediate response to learning of her nomination for this issue was to put her hands under her chin. You know the pose. Li’s nominator praised her contagious bubbliness. In line for KAF, her smile is infectious, and she orders two drinks — one for her, one for a friend. Although she is wearing a Dartmouth Figure Skating hoodie, she isn’t on the team anymore. After skating for most of her childhood, she decided to leave the team after her first year at Dartmouth to pursue other activities. With a schedule like hers, who could blame her. Li also joined the dance group Fusion during her freshman year. While she hadn’t really danced before joining, she’s still a member today. As a mentor for DREAM, Li
builds connections with children who live in government-subsidized housing. She’s also involved in biological research at the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, where she goes four days a week. To top it all off, she’s also an undergraduate advisor in the FaheyMcLane cluster. Despite her many commitments on campus, she also finds time to get away. Li fondly recounted her experiences during the Spanish LSA+ program in Santander, Spain during the summer after her freshman year. Some highlights included taking field trips to other nearby cities in Spain, the luxury to lounge by the beach before and after class and hitting the late night club scene. A typical night, on the streets of Spain? “The clubs don’t open until 3:00 in the morning, and then you’re there until 6:30. Then you go to the beach again, and
then you go home at 8:00 a.m., except sometimes you have to go to class.” After her program ended, she even went to Morocco to visit some of the Dartmouth students on a different LSA program before heading home. During her freshman and sophomore years, Li would make a huge effort to catch meals with as many people as she could. She was “that person who had all of their meals planned out for the next two weeks.” When a friend would ask her to get a meal together, she would have to check her calendar to see when her next available time slot was. Her friends would make fun of her for trying too hard. Li emphasized that her super structured mealtime days are now over, and it’s relaxing for her to be able to just ask a friend to get a meal at any moment.
Morgan McGonagle ’18: Most Beautiful Emoji STORY
By Abbey Cahill
Morgan McGonagle ’18 has the voice of an angel, a smile that lights up rooms and brows that would make Cara Delevingne jealous. Plus, there’s her uncanny ability to make a rugby-induced black eye look like a fashion statement. But the people who know her best say that her happiness is her most beautiful quality. McGonagle muses about art, the necessity of alone time and the horrible reality that Donald Trump could be our next president. She is the kind of person who smiles with her whole face, and when she talks, she is patient and thoughtful — she doesn’t mind the natural pauses in a conversation. “I like the in-between moments,” she said when I asked her about her work in photography. “It’s exciting to capture people in their natural environments, when they are happy or when they are making an authen-
tic connection.” For her final photography project this term, she is studying the relationship between the human body and nature. She wants to see how landscapes change in the presence or absence of a figure. McGonagle was an everyday regular on Hanover running trails and swimming spots this summer; a semipermanent fixture in the river, head bobbing above the water with her signature dimples and dangly earrings. “I love being outdoors no matter what it’s like outside,” she gushed. “I love being surrounded by nature. I think it is so rejuvenating.” McGonagle’s enthusiasm is contagious. Studiou art Professor Enrico Riley ’95 is, in her words, “one of the coolest people ever.” He taught her how to pull from intangible concepts in creating her drawings. For one
assignment, she had to incorporate five different “things” into a drawing, but only one — a Picasso painting — was a physical image. Others were songs or emotions. She draws from the lessons she learns from Riley in ways that surprise her, and used her work in visual arts to succeed in her theater class. “Drawing and acting are similar. When you think about making a drawing, it’s almost a performance for yourself. You have to draw on real emotions to create a character or a picture that matters,” she explained. McGonagle’s secret to happiness is selfawareness. As a natural extrovert, she gets most of her energy from spending time with others, but recently, she’s been thinking about the importance of self reflection. “Understanding yourself is really important at a place like Dartmouth when you
COURTESY OF MORGAN MCGONAGLE
are constantly surrounded by people moving 100 miles per hour,” she said. “I think it’s important to take time for yourself.”
MIRR OR //7
Julian Bonorris ’17: Most Beautiful Chill Friend By Anna Staropoli STORY
TIFFANY ZHAI/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF
For the majority of Dartmouth students, the river is something to be enjoyed only for a brief timespan: from the end of spring term to early September — and that’s if
you’re lucky. This isn’t the case for Julian Bonorris ’17, who made it his mission to swim in the river every day of 16F. So far? 100 percent success rate. “Some ’16 friends got me into the idea of daily dipping,” Bonorris said. Despite the challenging logistics of this plan — rainy weather, unfavorable temperatures, midterm exhaustion and the long walk to the river — he finds it a fulfilling experience. “I feel like it cleanses me,” he said. “You go to the river, you’re in nature, maybe you get some leaves in your hair or some dirt on you, and that’s beautiful.” Bonorris self-classifies as laid back and easygoing. Others often perceive him in a like image. Yet, while Bonorris welcomes this reputation, he also disclosed that this nonchalant persona recedes when dealing with values
or interests that matter to him. He noted that there are certain identities and passions on campus that deserve energy, such as certain athletic pursuits or an outsider status. Bonorris’ accepting nature is another one defining characteristic: he said he takes pride in being a person around whom everyone can be themselves. In the dynamics he has created with his close friends. In prioritizing acceptance and openness with his peers, Bonorris not only finds personal fulfillment but an effective communication mechanism that strengthens bonds with those around him. “If someone takes the time to open up to you about whatever the issue is, why wouldn’t you want to be receptive to that?” Offering support and acceptance to his peers has enhanced Bonorris’ education experience and given him a chance to learn outside of Dartmouth’s classrooms.
“Just chatting with people about [big issues] is a form of doing that and a form of improving yourself, challenging your own viewpoints and also giving them an ear, letting them express themselves.” Bonorris’ openness extends to the many communities and people with whom he interacts. He maintains a diverse group of friends from all facets of campus. While Bonorris has been involved in many areas of campus, from Hanover Croo to Foley House, he diversifies where he spends his time. “I get a sense of community from just random groups of people,” he said. “Those interactions do a lot for me.” This comfort in Bonorris’ choosing not to conform amplifies his inner beauty. “Beauty for me is comfort in oneself,” Bonorris reflected. “If people feel beautiful themselves then that energy gets radiated out into the world and their surroundings.”
Joelle Park ’19: Most Beautiful YouTuber By Abbey Cahill STORY
Joelle Park ’19 knows who she is, and it’s inspiring. She mixes confidence with humility, hoop earrings with sports jerseys and badass dance moves with Bible study. She has mastered the anecdote. One time, Park used a penny board as her main form of transportation around campus, but she ran over a pebble, suffered the self described “lamest-fall-ever” and was confined to a cast for the rest of the term. One time, she was training for possible problem scenarios as an undergraduate advisor, and the simulation actors started crawling across furniture and throwing things, basically morphing into the cafeteria jungle scene from “Mean Girls.” One time, Park decided to make some YouTube videos and accidentally became semifamous. “It started out with videos for student council,” she explained. Park began filming and editing videos to accompany her school’s Monday morn-
ing announcements sophomore year of high school. The videos showcased students with special talents and unique stories. Park made fashion and makeup tutorials and eventually expanded to include other types of videos. “It started out so bad,” she laughed. “Really low quality, embarrassing makeup tutorials. After a while I noticed that people were actually watching them, so I started to include travel videos and advice videos about relevant issues in high school. I started to do more of what I wanted to do.” Park still loves beauty and fashion, and she’s a part of a makeup and fashion partnership on YouTube. The partnership creates networks of YouTubers, collecting and redistributing their individual monetary earnings in exchange for connections with different sponsorships and endorsements. “It gets you more legitimacy in the YouTube world,” she said. Park defines herself as a “floater,” span-
ning many different groups on campus, even to the point of being over-involved. Her family tells her to, “calm down, do less.” At school, she is a UGA for a group of ’20s who love her so much that they nominated her to be in this issue on beauty. She dances for both Street Soul and Ujima, although she’s taking a break from Ujima this term. She is also involved with Agape and Christian Union, which provide two different forums to talk about religion. Christian Union is larger and more institutionalized, so it has resources like adult staff members and guest speakers. Agape, she explained, is a specifically Asian and Asian-American Christian fellowship, so it often discusses issues of race in relation to faith. “It’s all very relatable and applicable to specific issues on campus,” she said. “It’s student-run, so we are learning and growing together.”
Ayanda Heita ’18: Most Beautiful By Carolyn Zhou International Student COURTESY OF JOELLE PARK
STORY
COURTESY OF AYANDA HEITA
How much love can fit inside one human being? While many people keep contacts in their phones with names such as “Dude From Bio Class,” Ayanda Heita ’18 goes out of her way to remember people’s names, sometimes using word association, and the circumstances of their first encounters to remind her. “You can really make someone’s day by
greeting them by their name. But often it just results in me pretending like I don’t know their name when I actually do,” she said. Heita rises above this world of rushed connections, unanswered texts and forgotten memories. Born in Namibia and raised in South Africa, she experienced quite the culture shock when she came to Dartmouth, a place where “let’s get a meal together sometime!” can mean absolutely nothing. Despite being on a campus where so many people dress the same way, talk a certain way and participate in the same kinds of activities, Heita has managed to remain her true self. The only kind of conformity she participates in are memes on Facebook — she admits that they make her laugh. On campus, Heita is known for taking risks in fashion. “I will wear purple lipstick on a Tuesday,”
she said. Her bold style belies the fact that she is actually an introvert. So what is the way to the heart of this meme-loving, fashion norm breaking, eyebrowson-fleek Math major? One thing to note is that Heita’s not looking for anything remotely close to a hook-up. “I’m really into dating. I really value relationships,” she said. “I’m the opposite of hook up culture.” She said she likes men who are feminists, willing to be vulnerable, funny and who dress well. Her celebrity crush is Jesse Williams. “He’s my woke bae,” she explained. If you don’t have movie star good looks and/or you don’t star in “Grey’s Anatomy,” you may still have a shot at Heita’s heart by being an activist, which is an important part of her identity. She’s proud of being aware of and
participating in protests on campus. “[I’m proud of] caring. In not being apathetic, being passionate, getting sad about things, angry about things. If there’s some event, I can’t not go even if I have something academic due,” she noted. For Heita, caring extends beyond her social justice activism. She cares deeply about the people around her. She’s known back home for her gifting skills. While many just throw a gift card into a paper bag and call it a day, she puts time and thought into them. One time, she made a friend a book for her 21st birthday. “[I am happy] knowing that someone is going to experience something that makes them feel seen, understood and loved for exactly who they are. The part of the gift that I don’t even get to see, like [thinking] about my friend and that book when I’m here, just makes me happy,” she added.
8// MIRROR
Phil Claudy ’18: Most Beautiful Activist STORY
By Marie-Capucine Pineau-Valencienne
Looking at Phil Claudy ’18 as he strolls across Baker lobby makes it easy to see why someone would nominate him. He’s tall, he’s buff and he’s got really good hair — but it quickly became clear that his boy next door good looks were not the reason he was nominated. Then what exactly was it about this self described “standard Dartmouth kid” — i.e. sporty Econ major — that warranted someone to anonymously nominate him for Dartmouth’s most beautiful person? It wasn’t the way his shirt hugged his biceps, or the way his hair was a perfect balance of neat and carelessly messy: Claudy is also an activist. With his passion for the LGBT community and his drive to make a positive impact, it’s no wonder why former Dean of Admissions Maria Laskaris ’84 decided to stop while
she was ahead and leave her job after hitting the jackpot the year she admitted him. His experiential learning gives even College President Phil Hanlon a run for his money. After just a couple of minutes talking to him, it was evident that not only did he care about issues surrounding the LGBT community on campus and off, he wanted to take action. Claudy ran an Iron Man triathlon as a way to raise awareness and funds for victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting. He also recently ran a marathon for the Trevor Project, an organization that serves as a suicide hotline for LGBT youth and provides mental health awareness resources for parents and individuals. When he’s not running what can be described (by NARP standards) as a vomit-inducing amount of miles or trudging through mud and swim-
ming across a lake while it rains fire and brimstone, he’s on campus serving as a freshman undergraduate advisor. “It’s reset my perspective,” he said, adding that “you get jaded the longer you’re here.” It energizes him because he gets to experience the excitement of freshmen. The passion and drive that characterize him today are a result of the struggles he faced in his first year at Dartmouth. “I didn’t really have a space where I felt safe and content with myself,” Claudy said. “I felt accepted here but I had yet to accept myself, and that’s the first step in coming to terms with your sexuality.” Claudy explained that when he entered college, he quickly felt overwhelmed, partly due to the fact that he already came from a background
in which Dartmouth was unfamiliar territory and inaccessible to many in his community. The stress of adjusting to Dartmouth was coupled with the inner turmoil that came with accepting his sexuality. All these factors resulted in what he described as “the perfect storm” and caused him to develop depression. He explained that he turned to running to cope with his depression and “come to terms with” his sexuality, which led him to use his physical health as a “vehicle” for his mental health. Claudy noted that for him, beauty is inextricably linked to passion. “It’s not enough to just be pretty, if you don’t have something you’re passionate about, if you’re not striving to be the best version of yourself, I don’t think you come across as beautiful — at least to me.”
TIFFANY ZHAI/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF
Treva Ellison: Most Beautiful Professor By Marie-Capucine Pineau-Valencienne STORY
Geography and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies professor Treva Ellison’s nomination came with an impressive superlative. “They are truly representative of how you can be beautiful on the inside, which leads to expression on the outside. They demonstrate beauty through their passion for teaching, for mentorship and for other human beings. They bring light to this campus, and each day I see them I am made beautiful by association,” wrote the anonymous nominator. Ellison said that the person who submitted the nomination probably noticed the lack of “visibly non conforming people working here.” Ellison challenged the very concept of “beauty,” both inner and outer. This con-
cept, they continued, could be different to someone who does not fit the standard mold of what society has deemed is beautiful. “Beauty is a hard thing, especially for queer and trans folks, because a lot of our notions of beauty and common understanding are very much tied to gender binary.” Ellison said that how we characterize beauty on a personal level speaks to our values. They also explained how the concept of beauty was complex because it is commodifiable. “It’s a social framework for expressing desire. It can be very powerful if it can be dislodged from its racial capitalist leverages.” They expounded on their definition by citing that “beauty can be a powerful framework to challenge that ideal, if dislodged from the way it is used as a rubric of discipline.”
Neptune-Bear ’20: Most Beautiful Mover By Julia O’Sullivan COURTESY OF TREVA ELLISON
They noted that people often don’t realize that everyone’s perception of beauty is a reaction to our relationships with ourselves, other people and “how they see you.” Beauty is innately linked to someone else’s acceptance which, for Professor Ellison, can prove problematic for people who don’t conform to society’s standard of beauty. They stated that this is why it is important to “challenge that mold.” It’s easy to see how the student who nominated Ellison saw their beauty through their love of teaching. They challenged the way in which they were characterized as “beautiful” and why. For Ellison, the “passion for teaching” come through their own powerful experiences with professors who challenged them as a student.
STORY
With a name like a song and eyes that twinkle like stars in a sky without air pollution, there should really be no convincing necessary. Selena Neptune-Bear ’20, who hails from the Penobscot Indian Reservation in Maine, is one beautiful, badass lady. Now, when it comes to Neptune-Bear, the question is not “what does she do?”, but rather, “What doesn’t she do?” A modern day Mother Teresa, NeptuneBear is the gift that keeps on giving. Throughout high school, she worked tirelessly to support and contribute to her community. As a member of the Tribal Youth Council, Neptune-Bear organized countless events and attended conferences around the country. But it doesn’t end there. Neptune-Bear is also a cultural educator who travels to different third grade classes around the country, Fancy Shawl dancing to the beat of her father’s drum group and teaching the youth about her native language and culture. If you want to see Neptune-Bear in action, however, take a
ticket and wait in line. During the 100th anniversary of Acadia National Park, this girl danced for American royalty — the Obamas. Yes, you read that correctly. The best part is, she calls them “Shell-Shell” and “B-boy.” All you Government majors better wife this dancing queen if you ever want to see the inside of the White House from any other vantage point but the walking tour. In addition, when the inevitable food purge hits campus and Collis stir-fry is nowhere to be found, you can call Neptune-Bear. She’s an archery instructor and registered tribal hunting guide. She offers Katniss Everdeen lessons and takes groups into the woods to catch their prey. Have a bear you need to hunt down? Have a reality show about surviving and looking hot while doing it but no one to star in it? Want to date someone out of your league? NeptuneBear’s your girl. Oh, and did I mention she’s pre-med? With brows always on fleek, cool but casual
attire, a rockin’ bod and a highlight so on point it could blind an unsuspecting frat boy at any moment, mirrors start to feel self-conscious when Neptune-Bear looks in them. But her beauty goes beyond what you can see in a selfie. This high school double-varsity athlete can kill it on the court and the soccer field. Whether it be to the sound of drum beats or Chance the Rapper beats, if you see Neptune-Bear on the dance floor, don’t dance next to her, you’ll look like an impala in “Planet Earth” trying to walk immediately after being born. I don’t care if you won your high school talent show for your moonwalk. It’s not happening. Any inspired young gentlemen reading this should know, Neptune-Bear’s dream date is a good, old-fashioned picnic under the stars. Put on a playlist of Chance, Marian Hill and Kanye, kick back and appreciate who exactly you’re on this date with. That is, if you can get through her four brothers first.
COURTESY OF SELENA NEPTUNE-BEAR