The Dartmouth Mirror 3/7/17

MIR ROR 3.8.2017

VOX CLamantis

A behind the scenes look at the "stars" of DDS | 2

Balancing acts: students juggle jobs and academics | 4-5

Beyond the Dartmouth stereotype | 6 JEE SEOB JUNG/THE DARTMOUTH

2 //MIRR OR

Editors’ Note

A behind the scenes look at the “stars” of DDS STORY

The hourglass is emptying quickly, grains of sand falling faster than expected. Winter days have slipped by, and like most students, we’re being bombarded with dreaded group project meetings, final presentations tossed together and frantic goodbyes to friends before off term departures. Have we used each moment fully, we ask ourselves? Time is the most precious thing we have, and it is flying by.

Here we find ourselves, two almost-graduates and a sophomore about to leave Hanover for Argentina. Lucy will climb mountains and practice her Spanish in Buenos Aires, while Mikey and Ali make their last desperate attempts to cross off everything off our senior year bucket list.

We’re saying goodbye to the Mirror too, saying goodbye to our writers and our production team. It has been an honor and a privilege to help craft something original, to help people’s voices be heard and to maybe even make people think a little more deeply about this place we call home.

To our readers (and everyone else), we’ll miss you.

follow @thedmirror 3.8.17 VOL. CLXXIV NO. 45 MIRROR EDITORS MICHAELA LEDOUX ALEXANDRA PATTILLO LUCY TANTUM EDITOR-IN-CHIEF RAY LU

PUBLISHER RACHEL DECHIARA

EXECUTIVE EDITOR ERIN LEE

By Ali Hagen

A voice cries out in the … kitchen? While says ‘Hey, Kevin’ that makes my day.” the College’s motto may not seem to apply C o l l i s C a f é , wh e re s t u d e n t s c a n to employees of Dartmouth Dining Services, personalize their order, is a particularly their voices are worthy of attention. DDS communicative environment. Despite the workers have more to offer than a familiar chaos at busy mealtimes, Collis employees face at mealtime; they work passionately not look forward to even brief conversations only at Dartmouth, but also after-hours to with students. pursue unique interests.

“It’s become like a thing that people even DDS locations and menus evolve along come in here to say what’s up and chat, even with student body, yet many DDS employees if they’re not getting food,” Moretti said. have worked at Dartmouth for years. In fact, “And then when it’s busy it’s obviously tough Don Reed, associate director of DDS, has to interact but we still manage to have mini been at Dartmouth for over 35 years and conversations. And sometimes you work with has witnessed the dining services change the same people every day and it’s frustrating over time. Reed is proud of DDS and its at times. It’s always the students that are the impressive employees. key to keeping us all intact and happy here.

Students may be surprised to learn about I enjoy cooking food, don’t get me wrong. I the employees’ hobbies outside of work. For do it at home too, but I do definitely enjoy example, Steven Moretti, the intellect behind the students a lot more.”

“Steve’s Special” stir-fry Given the at Collis Café, dedicates opportunity to voice most of his time outside “One of the things I any message to students, of work to golf. Moretti feel is 100 percent of DDS employees simply has talent outside of the reiterated their desire to the people that work kitchen — he has been be as helpful as possible. the Club Champion at here care about the Moretti clarified that his local golf course for students.” employees do not find a few years. students’ requests “I’m a golfer on the annoying and they find inside and I just can cook -KEVIN COLLIER, CLASS OF purpose in their work food,” Moretti said. “I beyond serving food.

1953 COMMONS COOK feel like I should be on “[The students] the golf course. And I should know that we love just being outside enjoy doing things for because I’ve grown up them,” Moretti said. in New Hampshire, and “We enjoy cooking your that’s all there is to do. food and when there are But golf is definitely the major key to my specific orders people want, like their food life basically. If I didn’t have that, I’d be cooked a certain way, we love doing that. very sad probably.”

That’s what makes us who we are. Sometimes Shane Walton, a store keeper for DDS it feels like they think that they’re a problem and employee for almost 15 years, also or annoying us because of that but we want practices a hidden talent outside of work. them to know that we’re here to please you Walton is a drummer in local bands such as and help you in anyway, even if it’s not Wherehouse. Besides his passion for music, cooking food.”

Walton also spends a lot of time with his With the understanding that food is an 9-year-old son. essential part of student life, the employees Another DDS employee, Eric Lemieux, work diligently to provide high quality and who works in the dish room in ’53 Commons, diverse food options. was recently recognized for his remarkable “One of the things that I feel is that 100 athleticism. Lemieux will have the honor percent of the people that work here care of participating in the snowshoeing about the students,” Collier said. “I couldn’t competition at the 2017 Special Olympics pick out any person that I’ve worked with World Winter Games in Austria later this in the last nine years that didn’t care about month. the students.”

While DDS takes pride in their ability to It’s easy to take the effort of DDS workers offer impressive food, employees often find for granted, but it is important to appreciate interacting with students to be the most their voices. Perhaps next time you walk into satisfying part of their job. Kevin Collier, ’53 Commons, you can introduce yourself to a cook at Ma Thayer’s station of the Class the employees and match names to the friendly of 1953 Commons, had a quick response faces or ask the cooks behind the stir-fry station when asked about his favorite part of the at Collis to make you “Steve’s Special.” Either job. way, DDS workers just want to let students “Oh that’s easy: my interaction with know that they are eager to listen. the students,” Collier said. “Cooking and “We tell people you can come here for making the food, I’ve done that for 30 years conversation if you’re having a bad day,” and that’s second nature, but the interaction Moretti said. “Come by, we’ll crack some that I get with the students is incredible. I jokes or we’ll make you smile and laugh. know a lot of students’ names and where They should know we’re here and not just to they’re from. If I’m having a bad day and get you in and out and cook you food, we’re a student comes up and they know me and here in many ways.”

MIRROR //3

’20: "You've gotta turn that love triangle into a love line segment."

’19: “Dude I went into SAE this Thursday at like 5 p.m. and just walked into the brothers playing pong with their professor.”

’19 #1: "Yeah, I feel lowkey bad about getting smashed at a religious house." ’19 #2: "Dude, Jesus drank wine." ’19 #1: "Jesus drank BATCH."

Overheard in FFB: “I almost failed my driver’s test because I didn’t know what the stop sign was. They removed the word STOP so it was just a red octagon, and I was just like *shrugs*. I passed with the bare minimum.”

Crystal bridges COLUMN

By Elise Wien

Vox clamantis in deserto. I thought We are Fessus, Fessa, Fessum about writing of how much sleep I got this They did not switch their oil 6, they sold week with my roommates away. I dared to the grant land and kept burning, burning, imagine what living without them would until one day deserto became desierto, which do for my health. How many lost hours of is to say, gone, finito. sleep would be recovered? But I remembered They started dyeing the dirt on the Green joy, which I say (romantically, naively) but it just kept getting swept away by the cannot be quantified wind, bald.

(I remember cortisol and serotonin and hold “And I said, ‘Alice, you THE GEOLOGY back). I dismiss the idea. need to feed me. I’m LESSON I think of writing Today in geology we a b o u t t h e s t u d e n t dying.’ And she said, learned about sedimentary activists and advocates ‘Yes, Rick, well we’re rock. This is stone that with voices that fall builds up in layers, if you all dying. Some just on an administration take a cross-section of it wh o s e ch i e f t a c t i c faster than others.’” you can see history. The seems to be committeerock looks like this: ization and delay. Delay, On the bottom-most layer referral, delay, until is dirt, then it’s cities, then students graduate. But people, then a lot of water, the people reading are then more people, then likely not the people mountains. who need to be told.

Here we have the Besides, this idea isn’t continents. Mount Walton, particularly poetic.

Mount Rothschild, Mount I think, instead, I will go for a walk. There Zuckerberg, Mount Gates. Everything else are some people who claim that winter here is underwater or too muck-covered to wade is easier if you get outside. I am not one of through so we’re living up in the mountains, those people. I give it a try. I sit by a tree. I at the peak of the mountains the tippy tippy fall asleep. When I wake up I am on a raised top of the mountains, Mount clamantis in plateau surrounded by water. I do not know deserto, we’re the highest point you can how many thousands of years have passed, see around here for thousands of miles. but this is what I see: Thousands of miles.

A candle is lit. A woman enters. Her hair’s a mess and her face is dirty, but she wears a silk gown.

ALICE Gather round, children. Have some blinis.

-She passes around a sleeve of Ritz crackers.Have some paté.

-She passes around a jar of peanut butter and a knife.Maybe they eat off of Picassos.

There was once a school whose motto was “Vox clamantis in deserto” and it liked to think this was true, but if you looked close enough you could still see the Indian heads painted on the back walls and if you talked long enough you found it all tended toward money. Remember money? After awhile it got fed up putting on airs and changed its motto to “Vox obstructum ab pecuniam manducatum.”

Fessa! The students cried.

THE BODIES The bodies are buoyant. Some of them, if you wear stilettos, will get holes torn in their bellies and a foul-smelling gas comes out. I was going from one mount to another for a birthday party and there was a woman, a body, and she was pregnant and she gave birth. It’s called postmortem fetal extrusion.

I asked Rick who found it in the Internet books. The scribe for this one was really good, actually. You know how some of books, D, F, R, especially R, had mediocre scribes who smeared the ink, and the words are faded a little, being from 50 years back when they wrote down the Internet, because we were losing the people who maintained the servers.

But this book, volume C, is perfectly clear with some, um, illustrated diagrams, you know? So it’s postmortem fetal extrusion and the gasses build up in the belly and they push out the baby and it floated out like a little island, connected by an umbilical bridge.

’19 #1: “Has your own frat ever denied you entry before?” ’19 #2: “No but it came close.

I was a ~risk~”

THE BRIDGES The bodies are buoyant, but it’s distasteful.

So we’re building bridges. So we’re in the crystal warehouse, we’re collecting the Swarovski — we’re not touching the Baccarat — but we’re collecting the Swarovski for the bridges. Crystal because we have a surplus and we only use it at Christmastime and during balls, so we’re giving it to the cause.

Our family is historically altruistic.

So we crushed up all the Swarovski in the warehouse and constructed these bridges.

They glimmer beautifully. A trip from one continent to another is 10 days by foot or three by Segway.

THE WARS The chefs staged a coup on Mount Walton when they decided the money wasn’t worth much. We’ve figured out how to access and prepare the food now. The guards shot the chefs down when they refused to cook a meal.

We were starving, forced to eat the leftover crystal.

RICK Hi, I’m Rick, Keeper of the Internet.

I worked — before coming to Mt. Walton — I worked at a startup.

I have an excellent memory, I’m good at looking things up in the Internet books relatively quickly and I am unthreatening in the physical sense. So really, uh, the ideal keeper. I’ve gone on strike a couple times because they haven’t been feeding me, which basically looks like I don’t look things up for them which they can do without, for a while, so I don’t know how effective the strikes have been, actually. And I said, “Alice, you need to feed me. I’m dying.” And she said, “Yes, Rick, well we’re all dying. Some just faster than others.”

THE WALL So we built a wall on the border.

On the Canadian border. Because Canada — Canada was underwater. The melting glaciers and such, and our position so close to Canada makes us vulnerable. So the Canadians, um the Canadians were losing food with the flooding and no one wanted to trade with them because that meant opening the floodgates. So they went without and floated around on rafts in their country that was now this cold cold soup. And all that remained were the pines.

Balancin

4// MIRROR

Students juggle jo STORY It’s no secret that college life is pricey.

On top of costs for tuition, housing and meal plans, students must also consider the fees associated with textbooks, clubs, sports, Greek life and medical services — and more.

For students looking to make some money over the course of the term, there is a wide variety of jobs on campus, and students are very likely to find a job that fits both their interests and schedule. The Mirror interviewed several students to learn about their experiences working on campus.

Asha Pollydore ’17 has been working in the Class of 1953 Commons dish room since her freshman winter, and during her junior winter she began a second job at Collis Market. While initially reluctant to work for Dartmouth Dining Services, she decided

to begin her job search after feeling guilty asking her parents to pay for expensive textbooks.

“Here I am in college — I should be supporting myself and not relying on my parents because they have their own expenses and are struggling too,” Pollydore said.

After she successfully applied for the job, Pollydore had to learn how to balance her schedule with academics and her rugby practices. Unfortunately, her athletic schedule was not usually finalized until a few weeks after each term started, so she often had to sign up for tentative shifts without knowing if they would interfere with her practices.

Working in the dish room can be tiring, especially during rush hours, and Pollydore began her second job at Collis Market so that she could work more hours without physically exhausting herself further.

“It’s when you’re on the carousel and it’s the 7 o’clock rush, and there’s three of you there but you’re still behind, and plates are going by you,” Pollydore said. “That’s when the dish room is crazy and you’re sweating.”

By C

For the most part, though, Polly enjoys both of her jobs, and she is fond of her coworkers. Recently, on Pollydore’s coworkers brought in a the day before her birthday, even th she had only mentioned it briefly the before. She found that moment particu memorable, and she said that the good she shares with her coworkers are a m reason why she looks forward to her j Josephine Cormier ’17 has had sim positive experiences working whi Dartmouth. She has been a ski instr and an usher for the Hopkins Center her freshman year, and this year she ha worked as a French drill instructor.

Cormier is required to work on cam as work-study is a part of her fina aid package, but she has found wa embrace her passions and use her jobs t advantage. For example, she receives ski pass as an instructor, and her ush job allows her to see performances a Hop without needing to buy tickets.

“I really like going to shows, so I fig if I had to work, I may as we something w I can see shows I

acts ng

MIRROR //5

obs and academics ristian Cano

ydore quite ne of cake hough week ularly times major job. milarly ile at ructor since as also

mpus, ancial ays to to her a free hering at the

gured ell do where e the want

to see and get paid to be at things I might already be at — and not have to pay to go to them,” Cormier said.

Cormier began learning French her sophomore year, and after attending the language study abroad program in Lyon, France, she decided to return to Lyon the following year to serve as a director’s assistant for the LSA. She enjoyed helping students learn French so much that she decided to become a drill instructor this year for introductory French courses. Cormier even threw a small Mardi Gras celebration during drill to surprise her students earlier this term.

Cormier emphasized that working on campus does take up a significant amount of time, and she noted that some students have unrealistic expectations about being involved in many extracurricular activities while also working multiple jobs.

Emely Cantor ’17 discussed the balance between jobs and other extracurricular commitments. Cantor, who has worked every term she has been on campus, initially worked at America Reads but decided to switch to working at Novack Café during her sophomore summer when local elementary schools were closed.

“A lot of students who are working at

Novack, in my personal experience, are students who need to for financial reasons,” Cantor said. “Often it’s forgotten that people take jobs not because they want an extra block of money, but because they have to take those jobs for various reasons.”

Cantor said that she has few complaints about her job at Novack. She enjoys the laidback atmosphere and camaraderie between coworkers, many of whom she said already knew each other before working together.

While most students are very polite, Cantor said she wishes that more students understood that student workers must abide by all store policies. For example, she has encountered students that complained about Novack’s 25-cent charge for empty cups, but she cannot simply give the cups away for free.

Despite a few minor stressors, such as long lines of customers, Cantor enjoys her experience working on campus and finds it to be a nice break from studying for classes.

Rachel Inman ’19, who is currently a spin class instructor at the gym and an employee at the Dartmouth College Child Care Center, said that she appreciates how her jobs provide her with an escape from academics.

“Even though [having a job on campus] can be time consuming, it’s a good way to de-stress … and take your mind off of your studies,” Inman said.

Of cour se, many jobs can come with unexpected duties. Inman had not considered the time it would take to make playlists for her spin class, and she said that her first one took around three hours to make. While she gradually learned to make playlists more quickly, she is still mindful of the time commitment that comes with being employed. Next term she plans to drop her job at the Child Care Center to free up her schedule.

If Inman had to give one piece of advice to other students, she would tell them to look for jobs that match their interests. She said that students can leverage the assortment of jobs on campus to find one that corresponds with what they want to do, and then working will feel like less of a chore.

LUCY TANTUM/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF

6// MIRROR

Beyond the Dartmouth stereotype STORY

By Marie Capucine Pineau-Valencienne

Dartmouth students are known for having prep in their step. It is no secret that the College is known as one of the preppiest of Ivy League schools. Stereotypes of Dartmouth students generally depict a sporty and attractive econ major wearing Sperry topsiders or L.L. Bean boots, depending on the season. Campus attire can seem like an amalgamation of green varsity sports attire and Greek organization gear. Then again, this is only a stereotype, and students often defy the norm.

Remember the old saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover?” At Dartmouth, this saying rings true.

I, like many affiliated students, wear my Greek gear around campus, more often than not have a KAF cup in my hand and think that Patagonia fuzzies are a chic way to get away with wearing sweats to class. I am all too aware that my exterior may cause some to categorize me as a “stereotypical Dartmouth student.”

But the image that I inadvertently exude does not encompass my entire identity as a Dartmouth student because, unlike my appearance, my path to Dartmouth has been anything but typical. I was one of the 19 students who transferred to Dartmouth in the fall of 2016. I’m also an international student, which most people cannot tell from a quick glance in my direction. Only eight percent of students in the Class of 2019 are not from the United States, and this blonde is one them. I, like most international students, encountered a learning curve when I arrived at Dartmouth. For the first time, I

was introduced to Greek life, varsity sports and general collegiate enthusiasm. Coming from Paris, I was surprised when students I didn’t know said hello to me in passing.

Maybe they thought I was someone else … or are people just nice here?

Hattie Van Metre ’17, another transfer student, shared her experience transitioning from Marquette University to Dartmouth after her freshman year.

“That extra push to get involved ended up making my Dartmouth experience way more enjoyable because I was forced into finding a community on campus a lot quicker,” Van Metre said.

Van Metre said she noticed the difference of being a transfer student in “small things that might seem trivial to a lot of people, like not having a freshman floor or not having tripees.”

To top it off, I did not take the common path of heading straight to university after high school. Upon graduating from my traveling boarding school, I decided to take a gap year to pursue a passion for acting before starting my university studies. The beauty of Dartmouth is that there are many students with unconventional paths to college. The characteristics that made my path so unique are — in Hanover at least — not unique at all.

Mahnoor Maqsood ’18, a fellow international student, explained how she also experienced a considerable amount of culture shock when she arrived at Dartmouth from her native Pakistan.

Coming to Dartmouth, she struggled with

“social norms,” such as the “hookup culture” and the differences between the British and American education systems. Even dinner time was different here. Having dinner at 8:00 p.m. is considered “early” in Pakistan, while it is on the later side here in the states.

But nonetheless Maqsood testifi ed to Dartmouth’s diversity.

“There are so many different kinds of people at Dartmouth,” Maqsood said.

Maqsood said that she thought one of the most positive things about Dartmouth is that she, as an international student, knows she is just as much of a Dartmouth student as any other student on campus.

“I’m able to connect with [friends] on more than just being from the same place,” Maqsood said.

“That’s [what’s] so special about Dartmouth, that there’s so many different people ... You bond over who you are as humans and what you enjoy rather than your national identity or your cultural identity,” Maqsood said.

Although not all students may have the same interests, trajectories or even dinner times, there is a common sense of dynamism that is typical to all Dartmouth students. The conventionality of Dartmouth students lies in our unconventionality. Each student’s unique perspective, drive and set of interests are the common threads between us, not the preppy exterior you may see at first glance.

Some students split their time between multiple educational institutions. Ellie Toll ’17, a fifth year engineering student, is a part of the 3-2 engineering program with Bates College. Having finished her freshman and sophomore years at Bates, she came to Dartmouth as a junior.

Not only did she attend two different schools but her attendance was also split over her five-year college career. After junior year at Dartmouth, she went back to Bates for senior year and is now back at Dartmouth this year to finish her engineering degree.

Although she explained that she identified as more of a Bates student than as a Dartmouth student, she said she was shocked at how seamless her transition was.

“I felt welcomed at Dartmouth,” Toll said.

“It’s a pretty great community.”

Toll found that joining Greek life during her first year at Dartmouth was a big reason why she found the transition so easy.

“Joining Greek life was really helpful,” Toll said. “I was immediately able to connect with people and find a community.”

Kylie Simpson ’18 also took part in the 3-2 engineering program, but at Colby College.

She also felt that Greek life helped ease the transition.

“Socially, I’m very glad I rushed,” Simpson said. “I don’t know how many other 3-2’s do that because I think they feel like their time is limited. I guess it would be a little easier to be a girl going into rush, not knowing people, as opposed to a boy, so maybe they would be less likely to get involved with a different community outside Thayer [School of Engineering.]”

Simpson explained that being involved with things outside of schoolwork and meeting people outside of your classes helps build your sense of community.

#TRENDING

’19s ON DARTWORKS Does anything actually happen if you don’t declare your major by the end of your fifth term?

EGREGIOUS WIND

I can’t feel my face when I’m with you ...

STUDY ABROAD RESULTS

“Soo honored/excited/ blessed to announce that next summer I’ll be studying in...”

FORMAL

Get ready for long bus rides with dates.

SPRING BREAK

Everyone is in the gym getting ready for Cabo.

Vox Clamantis in Raleigh COLUMN

By Clara Guo

The figure skating team had our second qualifying competition this past weekend at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia.

We left campus Friday morning at 5 a.m., and we were supposed to arrive in Hanover late Sunday night (Monday morning?) around 12:30 a.m.

After the competition ended on Sunday afternoon, we drove from Lynchburg to Raleigh-Durham International Airport. We were greeted upon arrival at 7 p.m. by the following news: the flight, already delayed 35 minutes, would now be delayed an additional two hours. Estimated time of departure: 10 p.m. Estimated time of arrival to Hanover: 2:30 a.m. The collective team response?

Groans.

We passed security, dragged our luggage to Five Guys (despite their lack of shakes) and sat down at our gate, our phones and laptops occupying every outlet within a 100foot radius.

I checked the status of our flight online.

ETD: 11:30 p.m.

At 8:40 p.m., our flight was “canceled” due to mechanical issues and delayed until noon the next day due to limits on work crew hours.

Our coach and administrator tried rescheduling to an earlier f light to accommodate skaters with quizzes, finals and presentations Monday mor ning.

Unfortunately, rescheduling a group of 21 people proved to be not exactly the easiest of

tasks. So we compromised: the airline paid for our hotel rooms with one bed per skater (a luxury compared to our two usual skaters per bed), with three meal vouchers each.

Twenty-one skaters in black pants and green tops walked up, then down, to ground transportation.

Here are some of the many shenanigans that occurred during the hour-long wait outside for our hotel shuttles: Our coach, Jacki, wore a pin on the top of her head that read “Just Doing Good to Be Here” created by our very own in-team artist Regina.

Our skater ’19s (Alex, Regina, Ellen and Anna) piled up on the concrete floor to reenact a photo taken freshmen spring for the perfect “Transformation Tuesday” on a Sunday.

Maddy aggressively offered skaters pretzels, failing to realize that only crumbs littered the bag.

Someone yelled, “Bang Bang!” and the team yelled back, “My baby shot me down!”

Torri and I silently questioned whether or not dry policy was still in effect. Probability of mimosas? Low. Alex and Emma mimicked trust falls (Emma was only dropped once).

Mia stepped into the middle of the road, offering to sacrifice herself so our hotel shuttle, still nowhere to be found, would see us and stop.

Jessie, our a cappella captain, led our team in singing Rihanna’s “Love on the Brain” until

we realized we only knew one phrase, “Must be love on the brain,” and consequently faded into laughter after 20 seconds.

Maddy stretched out her arm for a selfie to commemorate being stranded in Raleigh with finals fast approaching. Claire was the only skater who looked genuinely happy. A façade, she said.

The first hotel shuttle, a minivan, took our administrator and three or four skaters to the Hilton. We expected a second hotel shuttle to arrive soon after.

It didn’t.

The Boston University Figure Skating Club eventually joined us on the curb. We were a Christmas spectacular, Dartmouth in forest green and BU in terrier red.

The consensus emotions at this point were, in no particular order: exhaustion sprinkled with exhilaration, incredulity sliding into acceptance and happy relief stemming from the realization that we could have been stranded with people we do not love.

So, thanks to our exhilarated relief, we began yelling at passing cars. Not aggressive, road-rage yelling characteristic of my sister driving in northern Virginia. More like happy, fun yelling, tinted with the knowledge that these shuttles, from every other hotel in the region, would not stop for us. We yelled “Oh”’s that fell in pitch like Liszt’s downward glissandos, not once, not twice, but upwards of seven times, collective hope devolving into amused, unsurprised frustration.

The hotel shuttle had to come for us eventually … right?

MIRR OR //7

Spoiler alert: it did. After an hour of waiting on the curb, a large, white Embassy Suites shuttle arrived. We cheered collectively, nearly as loudly as our cheers for our teammate’s clean skate after a difficult six-minute warm-up.

The shuttle normally seats 12 to 13. We fit over double that, refusing to wait longer for a third shuttle that was never requested.

Dartmouth and BU packed together, sitting on laps and backpacks, standing in corners, red and green mixing into a dark purple. We “Oh”ed in unison when the car turned, bodies mingling together in a collegiate form of the elementary school game “jello.”

Instead of staying up to do work, I crashed before midnight, falling asleep with my laptop open and one paragraph of this piece written.

As of Monday, 2:01 p.m., our original flight has been delayed, canceled, delayed and officially, inexplicably, irreversibly canceled.

Skaters are stressed, frantic, confused, piled together at Gate C15 and heavily using all four of our $15 meal vouchers.

Delta has put us on another flight at 7:30 p.m. Hopeful ETA: midnight.

We’re sitting in silence right now, some having just left to grab lunch, others studying, working on problem sets, writing papers. It’s been a long weekend, but I am so thankful that I have shared this experience with a family I love.

Jacki put it best: “Whether your skate was amazing or not quite what you wanted, the memories we all share will be what we remember … Unless you have a pin to remind you.”

8// MIR R OR

Imagine for a moment that you are walking down Webster Avenue in short sleeves after losing a fracket that you could have sworn had been tied to six others. You are awaiting the warmth of Novack, which you will duck into for respite on your journey home. Maybe the shorts you wore for the beach-themed party were not the best decision you have ever made. You think, “Vox clamantis in deserto” or, in English, “a voice crying out in the wilderness.” Why did you ever fall in love with a college in the frigid woods? Your college counselor must have forgotten to mention that New Hampshire winters may be beautiful, but they are not for the faint of heart … or the fracket-less. The school motto, you think, is surely designed to describe this very moment. You do not know who penned such a phrase for the sweatshirts you have seen around campus, but surely it must have been on the long journey from Collis to Chi Heorot.

Though the interpretation of the school motto may change over time, the phrase has religious roots. In fact, the motto is almost as old as the school itself. For some background, Dartmouth was founded in 1769 as a result of King George III’s approval of a charter for an institution to educate Native American youth. Its goals were very much in line with colonial ideologies of “enlightening” the original inhabitants through Christianity and Western civilization. The founder,

Eleazar Wheelock, a clergyman from Connecticut, was very much impassioned by this objective.

When Wheelock built the College in New Hampshire, the landscape was an uninhabited, untouched forest of pine trees. Wheelock’s motives were very much religious. In 1773, when the original seal was adopted, “Vox clamantis in deserto” was included, as it appears five times in the Bible. Most relevant is its use in Isaiah 40:3, which reads in the English Standard Bible as, “A voice cries: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.’” Given the dense forest setting of the original campus and the Native Americans he deemed “wild,” Wheelock might have found particular meaning in this biblical quote that he could apply to his greater mission of serving the Lord.

In the original seal, the words seem to emerge from a light shining onto seemingly naked figures wearing what look like feathers on their heads.

These figures are walking up the hill, upon which is a College building. This particular ar rangement prompted Jonathan Good ’94 to write a term paper for a “History of New England” course, which was published in the Dartmouth College Library Bulletin in 1997. He argues that the seal served as effective propaganda, a way for trustees to idealize and justify their nascent institution.

However, he notes that this depiction was never honest, because despite

Wheelock’s mission and seal depiction, Native Americans were a minority even in the beginning years of the College.

However, as time has passed, the motto has taken on new, perhaps more genuine meanings for individual students.

“Essentially, it means that our identity is our voice, and if we’re crying out, we’re choosing to make it heard as opposed to just existing,” Evelyn Eichler ’19 said.

“We are making our presence known and transforming these intrinsic voices into action.”

Cate Heisler ’20 focused more on the community as whole.

“It represents us students as independent beings who have been placed in an environment that encourages us to reach out to one another,” Heisler said.

Jordan McDuffie ’20 gave an explanation more rooted in the physical location of the College.

“I think it means that despite being in the middle of nowhere we’re still relevant,” McDuffie said.

Alas, while the motto might accumulate different meanings through the passage of time, it is rooted in a colonial, Christian message of civilizing native peoples. In this way, it is arguably better that students today remember the roots of the institution, but rewrite the motto’s meaning as they see fit. Perhaps, a more inclusive interpretation better represents the spirit of Dartmouth today.

THE ORIGIN OF VOX CLAMANTIS IN DESERTO

By Julia O’Sullivan ALEXANDRA PATTILLO/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF