The Dartmouth 04/29/2022

VOL. CLXXVIV NO. 5

FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2022

David Millman ’23 and Jessica Chiriboga ’24 elected student body president, vice president

HANOVER, NEW HAMPSHIRE

Family weekend returns for the Class of 2025

TIFFANY CHANG/THE DARTMOUTH

This weekend, families of first-year students will engage in various activities on campus, ranging from Dartmouth-themed trivia to campus tours.

BY CARLY RETTERER The Dartmouth Staff

PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVID MILLMAN

The pair, who ran uncontested, plan to focus on student housing and mental health.

BY BEN KORKOWSKI The Dartmouth Staff

Students elected David Millman ’23 and Jessica Chiriboga ’24 as student body president and vice president, respectively, after the end of a two-day voting period on Tuesday. In the election, students also selected next year’s house senators, senior class leaders and other student representatives for Student Assembly.

The Millman-Chiriboga campaign ran on a platform dedicated to providing better mental healthcare options, improving student housing infrastructure and bringing back dining options such as late night at Collis Cafe.

Millman and Chiriboga, who ran uncontested, will succeed current Student Assembly president Jennifer Qian ’22 and vice president Maggie Johnston ’22. The new leaders will

assume their roles when Qian and Johnston graduate in June, and Millman said they hope to begin laying the groundwork of their administration’s initiatives during the summer.

A total of 1,458 ballots were cast in the election for student body president and vice president. Millman received 1,349 votes and Chiriboga received 1,360 votes.

“I think the amount of votes we got, which was very similar to last year’s turnout, but in an uncontested election, just shows that people are excited about what we want to do next year,” Millman said.

Millman, who previously served as a South House senator, said he hopes to continue his previous efforts on Student Assembly, such as addressing food insecurity by bringing back the Co-op voucher program — which provided gift

cards to students during breaks when groceries are needed — adding more meal options and improving ongoing issues with student housing. Millman added that his experience running for Hanover’s Selectboard in summer 2021 has allowed him to connect with members of the Hanover community and make progress toward re-writing the zoning restrictions currently in place on West Wheelock Street.

“I have already written and introduced a warrant article to rezone West Wheelock Street to allow for more construction and upwards of 300 more bedrooms for students, which currently due to law would not be possible,” Millman said.

Millman also said he hopes to create concrete changes through Student SEE STUDENT ASSEMBLY PAGE 2

NH redistricting mired by partisan divisions

PARTLY CLOUDY HIGH 51 LOW 32

BY NOAH DURHAM

The Dartmouth Staff

This article was originally published on April 28, 2022.

NEWS

INFLATION, LABOR SHORTAGES AFFECT HANOVER BUSINESSES PAGE 2

OPINION

SPENCER: THE BIG GREEN IS NOT SO GREEN PAGE 3

ARTS

‘SPAMALOT’ EMBODIES LOVE OF THEATER PAGE 4

SPORTS

SENIOR SPOTLIGHT: CLAIRE AZAR COCAPTAINS EQUESTRIAN PAGE 5

MIRROR

WHY CAN’T WE HAVE MORE SUNNY DAYS? PAGE 6 FOLLOW US ON

TWITTER

@thedartmouth COPYRIGHT © 2022 THE DARTMOUTH, INC.

New Hampshire’s once-in-a-decade congressional redistricting process is currently underway, with Democratic and Republican state lawmakers in disagreement over how to draw representative boundaries.

The news comes after the Republicancontrolled state legislature passed a proposal on March 17 that would make the first congressional district, currently held by Rep. Chris Pappas, D-N.H., more Republican, and the second congressional district, currently held by Rep. Ann Kuster, D-N.H., more Democratic. Under the plan, about 25% of New Hampshire voters would switch districts, according to New Hampshire Public Radio. Hanover’s position in the second district would remain unaffected.

In response, New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, a Republican, proposed his own map on March 22 that would preserve swing district competitiveness rather than carving out two partisan enclaves. In a letter to state Senate president Chuck Morse and house speaker Sherman Packard, Sununu wrote that his version “keeps our districts competitive, passes the smell test and holds our incumbents accountable so that no one elected official is immune from challengers or constituent services.”

In an emailed statement to The Dartmouth, the governor’s press office wrote that Sununu “remains in contact with legislative leaders, has encouraged alternative approaches in addition to the map proposed by him in April and is optimistic that a fair solution will be reached.”

New Hampshire congressional maps are required by the New Hampshire Department of State to be finalized by the June 10 filing deadline — the last day congressional candidates are able to enter into a race. As of publication, New Hampshire is one of four states nationally without a finalized congressional map.

Republican House member Ross Berry, who represents part of Manchester and Litchfield, said that the deadline is subject to change, should it be necessary.

“New Hampshire law allows the Secretary of State to move the filing deadline,” Berry said. “We’re obviously going to try to still make that [deadline].”

Government professor and Democratic representative Russell Muirhead, who represents Hanover and Lyme, expressed disappointment with the plan passed by the state legislature. According to Muirhead, less competitive districts will lead to more polarizing candidates, which exacerbates political tribalism.

“Safe districts select for extremists because there’s almost no way that in a safe Democratic district, that Democratic candidate can lose, or in a safe Republican district that the Republican representative can lose,” Muirhead said. “The primary electorate can mold the general election, then hold the seat safely. Extremes don’t represent the sensible center of either the American electorate — or the New Hampshire electorate — very effectively.”

Though Muirhead said he thought Sununu’s map did not “visually represent” an obvious attempt at gerrymandering, he said he still had reservations with the governor’s proposal.

“I think it still reflects an obvious effort to move Republicans around so that we have less competitive districts,” he said.

However, Berry defended the maps passed by the legislature, as he said that his definition of competitive was “based on results.”

“So, when they say the current maps are competitive, I just got to call BS on that,” Berry said. “[The House Republicans] were the only ones that produced a competitive map. We produced a map that the Democrats would likely win, and we produced another district where Republicans had a chance.”

Over the course of the last redistricting cycle, only one Republican has won a New Hampshire congressional race, when Republican Frank Guinta represented the first district from 2015 to 2017. Berry said this fact indicated Democrats had won in “90%” of New Hampshire congressional races over the last decade.

Without an agreed-upon map, the New Hampshire Supreme Court intervened on April 11, appointing Stanford Law professor SEE REDISTRICTING PAGE 2

Family Weekend for the Class of 2025 will take place from April 29 through May 1. Throughout the weekend, friends and family will be able to attend lectures, campus tours, a Dartmouth-themed trivia night, acapella performances and other assorted activities, according to Family Weekend co-chair Deshielo Advincula ’25.

Families of first-year students were mailed a physical invitation this past winter, which included instructions on how to register online for free, according to student life assistant director Jenny Adams. Adams said “about 1500” people registered for the event, matching previous years’ attendance rates for Family Weekends from before the pandemic.

An email sent to the Class of 2025 by the Class Council outlined programming for the coming weekend, which includes postcard writing and “Cones & Class Council” — an ice cream event — on the Collis Center patio. Collis will also host a welcome event on Friday for families in Collis Commonground, where attendees can meet with student organizations from various offices from the Division of Student Affairs, according to Adams.

In addition, Allen House will host a family weekend brunch on Sunday, according to an email sent to first-year students in Allen House. Advincula added that he and his Family Weekend co-chair Mariya Vahanvaty ’25 will run a Dartmouth-themed trivia night on Saturday, while families can also enjoy lectures and performances throughout their visit.

According to Adams and the Family Weekend website homepage, the weekend has been organized primarily by students such as Advincula and Vahanvaty. Adams said the students’ main role has been to connect with different organizations in order to help facilitate some of the programs that will occur. Family Giving and Engagement also provided support for the event.

“Our job is that we liaison with other groups,” Advincula said. “We’ve kind of taken the lead in terms of reaching out to faculty to have lectures to show to the parents. We’ve also planned some of the events and we’ve been reaching out to acapella groups for the big acapella showcase. ” Students have expressed excitement for the upcoming festivities.

“It’s a lot different now compared to the beginning of the [academic] year,” Mihir Bagul ’25, whose family is visiting for Family Weekend, said. “When [my family] dropped me off, I felt very sad and

lonely because you never know if you’re gonna make that many friends, but now looking back at it, it’s a lot better. It’s nice that they are now coming up, and I have a solid friend group and strong footing here.”

Family Weekend also coincides with Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr. According to chemistry teaching science fellow Maryam Aswad ’21, a first-year student brought the overlap to the attention of Student Involvement, which responded with updated programming. Collis reserved the Top of the Hop for Al-Nur Muslim student organization’s Friday prayer and discussion, and will also sponsor the organization’s Sunday Henna charity event at One Wheelock, according to Al-Nur board member Yusuf Ebrahim Med’22.

“When Collis initially set the date for family weekend, they weren’t aware that it coincided not just with Ramadan, but the last couple days of Ramadan which are particularly important,” Aswad said.

“Collis has put a lot of effort into supporting us celebrating the last few days of Ramadan and also in allowing us to expand our activities to include the families of the students as well.”

This year marks the first first-year Family Weekend since 2019, as the pandemic temporarily halted on-campus visitors. Family Giving and Engagement hosted a family weekend for the Classes of 2023 and 2024 last fall to compensate, according to Adams. That said, some students said their families visited campus last spring anyway, despite the lack of a formal event.

“Even though there wasn’t an official family weekend last spring, a lot of my friends ended up asking their parents to come and visit, but it was still very hard because, for example, they were not allowed in the library,” Izzy Hamlen ’24 said. “They weren’t allowed to see what their kids were up to in College because of the COVID-19 restrictions.”

Sanjana Dugar ’22, whose parents and brothers visited when she was a first-year, said she remembers activities such as a welcome barbeque in Collis Common Ground and an a capella and dance showcase at the Hopkins Center for the Arts.

“It’s really refreshing to see all these excited ’25s showing their parents around because their parents are starry-eyed, the students are starry-eyed, so it’s just a really great atmosphere in general along Main Street and also on campus,” Dugar said. “I remember feeling all those things when I was a freshman, so it’s like a full circle moment . . . it’s bittersweet. It’s bitter because I’m leaving, and it’s sweet because it’s nice to know that some traditions will just keep going.”

FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2022

PAGE 2

THE DARTMOUTH NEWS

Inflation, labor shortages take toll College Republicans on Hanover businesses face $3,600 security fee, confront College administrator

BY Arizbeth rojas The Dartmouth Staff

DIVYA KOPALLE/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF

National economic issues collide with high costs of living to create unique challenges for local business owners.

BY ANGUS YIP The Dartmouth Staff

This article was originally published on April 28, 2022.

As the effects of inflation, labor shortages and the prospect of a recession loom over the national economy, Hanover business owners said they have faced unique challenges in finding ways to adapt their business models. Business owners also mentioned that the high living costs of the Upper Valley and seasonal flow of business around the Collegepose further difficulties with employment.

According to The New York Times, the consumer price index, which measures general prices of goods and services in an economy, was 8.5% higher in March 2022 than it was a year ago, marking the highest inflation rate in 30 years.

The effects of high national inflation are playing out in Hanover, where local business owners said they are grappling with expensive shipping costs and production delays.

Bryan Smith, owner of Hanover poster store rpmNH, said plastic top holders for posters have doubled in price since the start of the pandemic, while Lemon Tree Gifts owner Melissa Haas said the cost of shipping for her business has “quadrupled” in the past six months.

“I don’t think there’s a single company I’ve worked with who hasn’t been affected [by inflation],” Haas said.

“Some companies are still putting heavy surcharges on overseas shipments to account for shipping costs … and they’re getting more and more comfortable [doing so].”

Economics professor Elisabeth Curtis said that while the causes of the current wave of inflation are not fully understood, it is likely driven by strong consumer demand and supply chain shortages. In addition, inflationary prices may have been “exacerbated” by the ongoing war in Ukraine which has disrupted food

and energy markets. Curtis also pointed towards the possibility of a wage-price spiral — a situation in which consumers spend more now in expectation of future price increases — which creates “selffulfilling inflationary expectations.”

“When I teach my [macroeconomics] class, I’ve had to teach [inflation] in an imaginary situation,” Curtis said. “We haven’t had inflationary pressures for a very long time, so we’ve almost forgotten what inflation looks like and how to live with it.”

In response to rising production costs, Haas said she is trying to “meet in the middle” by increasing prices by “a few dollars here and there” for customers, but she said she has stopped purchasing some items because of large cost increases.

Hanover Strings manager Duncan Carroll said that the store has managed to avoid significant price increases since they stocked up on inventory at the beginning of the pandemic.

“We could tell there was something serious going on with the pandemic and that our suppliers would be completely closed,” Carroll said. “We bought a ton of stuff at that point, and that’s the only reason we made it through the pandemic — because we acted really quickly.”

In addition, both Smith and Haas said that ongoing supply chain shortages have affected their ability to purchase items. Haas added that because of the war in Ukraine and lockdowns in China, some manufacturers have been unable to produce items like manicure sets or nail files, which they have “typically been able to get for years.”

She added that there are significant production delays for some items now, noting that she has only recently received items which were originally slated to arrive last Christmas.

“I don’t know if I can buy them again in time [for next Christmas], so I’m [buying] things now that I wouldn’t normally,” she said.

Beyond the problems created by inflation, Curtis said that “the [United States] is closer to full employment

than ever,” but there is still a persistent “mismatch” in the labor market as employers cannot find employees with desired skills. She added that Hanover’s businesses face unique challenges as most full-time job seekers, apart from those associated with the College, do not live in Hanover due to the high cost of living.

Smith said that although he has not faced difficulties hiring part-time workers, he has been unable to fill fulltime management positions. Similarly, Haas said the term “labor shortage” is the “understatement of the century,” adding that “it’s been a huge problem” as she has been unable to hire a manager for several months now.

Curtis said that the “gazillion-dollar question” now is whether the U.S. will soon head into a recession. She noted that economists disagree on whether interest rate increases can rein in inflation, adding that the Federal Reserve must strike a balance by understanding the causes of inflation and acting appropriately.

The last time inflation rates were this high — the late 1970s and early 1980s — the Federal Reserve sharply increased interest rates and tightened monetary policy to reduce inflation, contributing to a recession and increased unemployment rates, according to Curtis.

Smith expressed worries about the potential effects of a recession. He added that rent is “very high” and that foot traffic to his store is inherently cyclical, as prospective students and tourists mostly visit from May to October.

Haas said that she has not thought about the possibility of a recession.

“It’s just too much to think about,” she said. “I feel like I have to live in the moment, think one day at a time right now.”

Carroll expressed optimism about the future.

“There’s no rushing your way out of the pandemic,” he said. “You just have to stay busy and stay focused … We’re going to come out of this so much stronger and better than we were before.”

Millman & Chirboga plan to restructure Student Assembly FROM STUDENT ASSEMBLY PAGE 1

Assembly’s efforts and areas of advocacy, as was the case with successful past projects like spearheading the ongoing “take a faculty member to lunch” program.

“Student Assembly’s budget doesn’t allow us to unilaterally re-open late-night dining at Collis Cafe or provide universal teletherapy,” he said. “So we’re going to try to make sure that these initiative side programs, which can’t be run forever on the Student Assembly’s budget, are taken up and institutionalized by the College.”

Chiriboga said she is looking forward to continuing her work as a member of Student Assembly’s mental health committee while vice president. She said her goals include advocating for the establishment of universal teletherapy as well as implementing the JED Foundation’s strategic plan upon its release later this spring, among others.

“We are also thinking about ways we can support different identity groups on campus, such as undocumented and international students, by hosting dinner conversations as well as providing vouchers or giftcards that can cover any sort of hidden cost they’ve been carrying

because of the nature of their identity,” Chiriboga said.

Chiriboga added that she and Millman plan to restructure Student Assembly to provide more accountability, structure and transparency.

“Some of our proposals include creating an executive council, being clear about the attendance requirements and adding project managers that will help us delegate work more efficiently, all in the interest of making a more powerful and effective Student Assembly,” Chiriboga said.

In a joint statement emailed to The Dartmouth, Qian and Johnston congratulated the Millman-Chiriboga campaign on their win and expressed optimism in seeing what the new Student Assembly will achieve.

Qian and Johnston wrote that they look forward to seeing the new student body leaders continue projects whose “foundations” were set in their administration, such as vouchers for the Dartmouth Coach and the expansion of menstrual product and “wellness space” projects. They added that they trust in the incoming leaders’ ability to expand upon existing collaboration channels with College administration, such as

structured meetings with the Board of Trustees.

Students cast their vote for a number of other positions in the election, including house senators and class council executives. Anthony Fosu ’24, who will serve his second term as South House Senator next year, said he hopes to continue his efforts with respect to student aid, including the Dartmouth Coach voucher program as well as maintaining the free menstrual products available throughout campus facilities.

Fosu added that a number of the ideas in the Millman-Chiriboga campaign were “solicited” from other students and house senators.

“I am very excited to advocate for many of these causes,” he said.

Qian and Johnston added that Millman and Chiriboga had made substantial contributions to the projects of their administration, especially during the “trials of COVID-19.”

“We believe that there is no better team to further the legacy of Student Assembly in improving the Dartmouth experience moving forward,” they wrote.

Chiriboga is a former member of The Dartmouth staff.

Following a Dartmouth College Republicans event with conservative journalist Andy Ngo and libertarian activist Gabriel Nadales in January, the student organization incurred $3,600 in security-related fees from the College. According to College Republicans advisor and anthropology professor Sergei Kan, the organization, which did not expect to incur the fee, is now assessing “how they’re going to raise money” to pay the fee.

Last Wednesday, when the College Republicans hosted Project Veritas founder James O’Keefe, the student group approached administrators to inquire about the security fee.

According to director of student life David Pack, O’Keefe was joined by College Republicans president Chloe Ezzo ’22 and “showed up” outside Pack’s office in Collis Center, filming the interaction.

In a video posted to O’Keefe’s Instagram story, a student off-camera says to Pack, “We want to know why we’ve been saddled with $3,600 of debt.”

In an emailed statement to The Dartmouth, Pack explained that O’Keefe and Ezzo were looking for Council on Student Organizations chair Anna Hall. Pack wrote that he instructed Ezzo to schedule an appointment with Hall at a later time.

After watching a video on O’Keefe’s Instagram account, Pack confirmed that he had been recorded by the group.

“I suspected ... that I was being recorded, which I did not consent to, and I told those present that I did not give permission to be filmed,” Pack wrote.

On Wednesday, the Hanover Police Department was made aware of “some type of unwanted videotaping,” although no official complaints have been made, according to Hanover Police Department captain James Martin. The department is not currently investigating and will not until someone comes forward and makes a complaint, he said.

Deter mining the legality of the videotaping — as recording an inperson or telephone conversation without the consent of the two parties of the conversation is illegal in the state of New Hampshire — depends on multiple factors.

“Different things that come into play with [legality], as far as [if it was] in a public access area,” Martin said. “Was it in a private place where somebody would have an expectation of privacy?”

According to College spokesperson Diana Lawrence, the College is “investigating the incident.”

“Any policy or legal violations, including the recording of individuals without their consent, will be followed up on,” Lawrence wrote.

The College Republicans are still carrying a deficit, according to Lawrence. Lawrence wrote in an emailed statement that the group received an emailed estimate of the security fee on Jan. 17, three days before the event was scheduled to take place. Despite this, COSO never received a funding request from the College Republicans, Lawrence wrote.

“All student organizations holding events are responsible for related security costs, which are overseen by Dartmouth’s department of Safety and Security, and the [College Re publicans] is no exce ption,” Lawrence wrote.

According to Safety and Security

director Keysi Montás, there is a flat security fee for all events, which pays any present Safety and Security officers $50 an hour for a minimum of three hours. Safety and Security also makes staffing recommendations that are “appropriate” for the event, Montás said. The security detail for the Andy Ngo event on Jan. 20 included a number of Safety and Security officers as well as Hanover Police officers due to “safety issues.”

According to Martin, a security detail provided by the Hanover Police Department is always paid by a private entity and not by town funds.

“Whoever is promoting the event has to pay for the detail,” Martin said.

“Sometimes it’s Dartmouth College, if it’s a school event, or if it’s on behalf of a club, then [the club] would pay [the detail cost].”

Kan, who became the College Republicans’ advisor in the fall of 2021, said that two weeks before the club hosted O’Keefe — the College Republicans’ first scheduled speaker event since hosting Ngo and Nadales — he attended a COSO hearing with members of the club, including Ezzo.

The purpose of the meeting was to “plead” with COSO to waive or reduce the fee, Kan said.

“My impression from hearing [Ezzo] talk about it is that they didn’t expect to be hit with such a large fee,” Kan said.

Regarding online threats prior to the Ngo and Nadales event, Kan said that the group of students who “hate” the Republican students, such as the Dartmouth Anarchists, are not large, but are “vocal” and “energized.”

According to Kan, the College then uses that as a “justification” for charging the College Republicans “large fees.”

“It’s frustrating to me and to the students that they seem to be the only student organization that ends up owing money, because they’re the only organization that generates some strong negative rhetoric and threats online,” Kan said.

E z z o w ro t e i n a n e m a i l t o The Dartmouth that the fees are “disgraceful” and there has been an “absolute failure” from COSO to protect the group’s freedom of expression.

“Instead, [the College has] chosen to stick our group with thousands of dollars of security fees from the Andy Ngo event that the Dartmouth administration unilaterally moved to Zoom,” she wrote.

On Jan. 26, the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, an organization that focuses on protecting the freedom of expression on college campuses, sent a letter to the College “concerned” with the state of free speech on campus after the Ngo event had been moved to Zoom. According to FIRE, the College responded that the College Republicans had been free to exercise their freedom of speech.

“From where I stand, the College has gone above and beyond to make sure that every voice is heard on campus,” Montás said.

Last week, the O’Keefe event proceeded as planned.

“All questions addressed to O’Keefe were friendly, it was almost strange,” Kan said. “[The event] went smoothly and the College was cooperative.”

Hall referred requests for comment to Lawrence. College Republicans vice president Victoria Xiao ’22 and O’Keefe did not respond to a request for comment.

College Republicans faculty advisor and engineering professor Ronald Lasky declined to be interviewed.

State officials remain split on drawing of congressional boundaries FROM REDISTRICTING PAGE 1

Nathaniel Persiley as a “special master” to evaluate redistricting efforts. The move came after former Speaker of the House Terie Norelli, along with other plaintiffs, brought a lawsuit against the Republican legislature’s approved map.

Berry said he wished the Court had not involved itself in the redistricting process, which he said was “jumping the gun.”

“It’s already a politically fractious process, and I don’t feel that they made it any easier,”

Berry said.

The redistricting process has energized voters from around the state and across the political spectrum, Muirhead said. As a state representative, Muirhead said he has received considerable feedback from his constituents on the issue. “[My constituents] want maps that pass the common sense test,” Muirhead said.

“They just want a fair politics that responds to the common sense interests of voters.

They think gerrymandering skews that and distorts it, and I think they’re right.”

FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2022

PAGE 3

THE DARTMOUTH OPINION

THE DARTMOUTH EDITORIAL BOARD

GUEST COLUMNIST KYLE SPENCER ’23

Verbum Ultimum: Community After COVID

The Big Green is not so Green

The Editorial Board encourages students to embrace College traditions as a way of building community.

The snow has melted, the sun is out and the flowers are beginning to blossom: Spring has arrived in the Upper Valley.

This spring has been a particularly important one for Dartmouth as most students are back in Hanover. After six terms of remote learning, campus-wide mental health challenges and the deaths of four classmates, this spring, above all else, presents a critical opportunity to redefine and strengthen our campus community.

Bringing students back to Dartmouth and rekindling our long-lost sense of community has been a key goal throughout this year. At the start of the fall term, the Editorial Board recognized the importance of successfully harmonizing this campus after pandemic-era discontinuity. In doing so, we acknowledged that community is not about the efforts of one person or one group of people but all of us “work[ing] together to determine what a post-pandemic Dartmouth ought to look like.”

Students have rallied around this lofty goal, making significant progress towards rebuilding our damaged community over the past seven months.

Looking back at the last two terms, we have a lot to be proud of — but also a lot to work on. On the bright side, our time-honored traditions have returned to campus: First-Year Trips in September welcomed the Class of 2025, Homecoming in October brought together generations of past and present Dartmouth students and Winter Carnival in February offered us all a bright spot to light the way during an otherwise dreary winter term.

Despite these successes, however, we are far from rebuilding our campus culture. During the pandemic and its periods of isolation, many students felt that the “Dartmouth community” was simply some abstract, immaterial idea, typically thrown around by the Admissions Office. However, with the return of in-person gatherings, the lifting of the mask mandate and the return of old traditions, we have come to understand that community can actually mean so much more. While it is impossible — and, perhaps, undesirable — to fully return to prepandemic Dartmouth, it is essential that all students actively participate in shaping our long-awaited “return to normalcy.”

Unfortunately, however, this was not the case last term during Winter Carnival. During his post-weekend interview with The Dartmouth, Winter Carnival council chair Chris Cartwright ’21 expressed concern with the shortage of volunteers to run the weekend: “Normally these events and clubs continue through people being aware of how it previously ran, but because of [COVID-19], we had to start from scratch … because so many people haven’t done it before.” Another staffer, snow sculpture chair Cady Rancourt ’24, explained that “[there is

a] generational gap where we have almost half of our student population that doesn’t really understand what Winter Carnival is or once was.” As a consequence, some events were left understaffed and others reduced in scope.

The lack of participation in Winter Carnival cannot be discussed without addressing the intense schedules of Dartmouth students. In some ways, the COVID-19 pandemic offered a welcome reprieve from the stressful nature of campus life. However, for better or worse, there is no return to “normal Dartmouth” without the increasingly prominent hustle culture that accompanies student life. In a column last February, Katherine Arrington ’24 described a “culture that has created [a] harmful relationship between individuals and their work, where people will work themselves to pure mental and physical exhaustion.”

Students may simply feel too overwhelmed to devote meaningful amounts of time to the big weekends. However, as Arrington notes, this sort of thinking can do more harm than good: When taken in moderation, social weekends such as Winter Carnival may actually offer students a much-needed break from their otherwise difficult studies. Study after study finds that breaks actually improve focus, result in better performance, boost productivity and lower stress in students — all essential to a campus mired in a mental health crisis.

Green Key offers one such opportunity to take a break from Dartmouth’s rigorous academic calendar and enjoy the traditions that define the College culture. As most alumni will enthusiastically tell you, Green Key is an essential tradition at the College, featuring a full range of festivities: live music, great food and a series of day parties. With only the Class of 2022 having been present for the 2019 celebration, this may present difficulties for events planned and staffed almost entirely by students — as they may not remember much about the 2019 celebration, or, by virtue of being first-years, may not have had a leading role in planning it. In this sense, we are all facing the unknown together and Green Key offers the unique opportunity to develop shared memories as an undergraduate community.

While Green Key is less student-led than Winter Carnival, we encourage every student to see Green Key weekend as an opportunity to bring our community together. Regardless of class year or level of prior experience, there are opportunities for every student to participate, from volunteering for the Collis Governing Board or the Center for Student Involvement to simply enjoying a break to partake in festivities with peers. After all, Dartmouth is more than just a collection of academic buildings; it is also a community that requires our time, attention and care.

Gabriel Modisett ’25: Green2Go Needs To Go

Dartmouth’s lack of progress on fossil fuel emissions is worrying both for its reputation as an academic institution and the future of the planet.

This column was originally published on April 28, 2022.

Noticing the billowing smokestack towering over the southern part of campus and the oil trucks that regularly make deliveries there, I decided to do some research. I discovered that Dartmouth’s heating plant, which has been supplying heat to campus since 1903, uses 3.5 million gallons of No. 6 fuel oil each year to heat campus.

No. 6 fuel oil is considered one of the dirtiest fuels and is only still in use due to its energy density and low cost. As a result, Dartmouth emits 65,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year, making it the largest polluter per student in the Ivy League as of 2013, with over 10 metric tons per student.

Earth-warming carbon dioxide is not the only product from the plant; the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services considers Dartmouth a major source of nitrous oxides, sulfur dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions. This is completely out of sync with Dartmouth’s values, and I feel that Dartmouth lacks the foresight and urgency necessary to tackle this crisis.

I spoke with Dartmouth alumnus William Schlesinger ’72, a distinguished biogeochemist who previously worked as the dean of Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment.

Schlesinger was one of the authors of a public letter opposing a wood-burning biomass plant originally planned to replace the existing fossil fuel plant at Dartmouth. Burning wood would have actually increased Dartmouth’s carbon dioxide emissions, so plans for the biomass plant were scrapped in December 2020. Schlesinger said he believes Dartmouth has not taken its sustainable footprint seriously “I think what Dartmouth needs to do is … realize there is not going to be a cheap fix to this,” he said. “If they want to get carbon off their emissions, it’s going to require solar and a big battery system to back it up and/or a pumped-hydro system. This is not going to be a small project, it’s going to cost the equivalent of a new science building or a few new dormitories on campus.”

When asked how he would manage Dartmouth’s sustainability going forward, Schlesinger said that he “would charge the Thayer School [of Engineering] and Irving Institute [for Energy and Society] to explore all renewable energy sources available. There is not a better institution in the nation to come up with a better plan than Thayer and Irving working together … When their report comes to the table, there ought to be money to get to work. We really must be carbon-neutral by 2030.”

Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management professor of management John Sterman ’77 acknowledged the need for all institutions to find solutions that align with national and global climate targets. Sterman, who also opposed the wood-burning biomass plant, stressed an “integrated design process,” in which the campus is retrofitted to create a unified energy ecosystem, rather than making decisions in a “piecemeal fashion.”

This approach aligns with what Dartmouth is doing currently —making campus more energy efficient through building retrofits and changing the piping network from steam to hot water. The piping project will cost $200 to$400 million, take 10 years to complete and make campus 23% more energy efficient, according to the director of sustainability Rosi Kerr. Increased energy efficiency will mean an overall decreased energy demand for whatever renewable energy system replaces the power plant, allowing for an easier and more affordable transition.

These energy-efficient measures require swing space for residents, research space and classrooms.

Dartmouth is experiencing an undergraduate housing crisis so this swing space is nowhere to be found. The retrofitting of Dartmouth Hall has taken two years and is still ongoing, and the hot water system likely will not be completed until 2030.

Sterman also stressed that energy transitions have many ancillary benefits. For example, energy-efficient buildings are more comfortable and quieter due to increased insulation and better windows. Additionally, these projects create jobs and lead to the better health of those working in the buildings. Rather than being framed as a cost, Sterman stressed that the College should view these changes as an “investment” that protects the itself from volatile fossil fuel prices, enhances the reputation of the school, pays for itself in significantly reduced energy and heating

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costs and, above all, is aligned with the health and well-being of the planet.

On Earth Day in 2017, Dartmouth committed to a wide-ranging set of sustainability goals. This included a commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions from campus operations by 50% by 2025 and 80% by 2050 and having Dartmouth be supplied with 50% renewable energy by 2025 and 100% by 2050. This was contingent on the now-scrapped idea of building a biomass plant. Dartmouth has since looked into various renewable energy sources but has been radio silent on the actual technologies and strategies it is pursuing. Dartmouth should consider airsource and geothermal heat pumps that can run on clean electricity as they now work in sub-zero climates. There is also plenty of fallow farmland in New Hampshire and Vermont suitable for large-scale solar farms. Additionally, most East Coast states are installing offshore wind turbines in the Atlantic Ocean for their power needs.

Power from offshore turbines could be fed into the grid at the Seabrook nuclear power plant on the New Hampshire coastline. New Hampshire has favorable topography to build pumped hydroelectric storage facilities to store this solar and wind power.

During Earth Day this year, Dartmouth updated campus on its sustainability initiatives. It was my sincere hope going into these announcements that the College would lay out a specific path to sharp emissions reductions. Ultimately, College president Phil Hanlon emailed the student body, announcing — without any supporting data — that Dartmouth’s greenhouse gas emissions had declined 30% from the 2010 baselines, which meant we were closer to the 2025 goal of 50% emissions reduction. 30% efficiency in 12 years is noteworthy, but will it be possible for Dartmouth to reduce emissions by another 20% in three years? I am not so sure.

In a significant step forward, Dartmouth’s Board of Trustees agreed in March 2021 on an infrastructure renewal fund. Normally, 5% of the endowment is used to fund the operating budget, and under this new policy this percentage would increase. The IRF would use a percentage of this bolstered operating budget to provide funds for new residential buildings and to make buildings more sustainable and energy-efficient.

However, it felt like we took two steps backward at the Earth Day conference when the panel of College administrators spoke about the annual capital expenditures necessary to maintain Dartmouth’s standing as a world-class educational institution: investing in cutting-edge research, hiring brilliant professors and constructing new buildings, in addition to the energy transition.

Concerning the sustainable transition, the panelists said, “We don’t have enough money to do everything we need to across all these dimensions.”

Additionally, the panelists mentioned many of the challenges of the energy transition at Dartmouth, including that over 60% of the buildings on campus would have to be totally renovated to meet sustainability standards, and over 90% would need some work done. Given the speed of the construction project at Dartmouth Hall, it is unclear if this can be done in a timely manner. There was also little discussion about specific plans to meet stated goals. Dartmouth currently has a goal of reducing emissions by 80% by 2050. While there was talk of increasing efficiency, there was no mention of any concrete plans or a timeline for the transition to renewable energy — the most crucial aspect for reaching that reduction objective. Five years after Dartmouth set its sustainability goals, it feels like no work has been done. There are plans for a strategic review of Dartmouth’s sustainability goals with updated recommendations in the fall of 2022. I truly hope these are more specific than the Earth Day conference and reflect the situation’s urgency.

Dartmouth is largely defined by its external environment. Being surrounded by forests, rivers, lakes and mountains fosters much of the experience of living and studying here. Rather than being a laggard, Dartmouth must fully embrace its motto, Vox clamantis in deserto — “a lone voice crying out in the wilderness.” The biblical verse refers to the call to speak the truth even if you are not being heard. We must be the lone voice crying out in the wilderness for change, to protect the nature that defines our very being.

Kyle Spencer is a member of the Class of 2023 and a staff writer at The Climate Capitalist, a newsletter focused on helping companies, investors and consumers invest in the transition to a clean energy global economy.

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FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2022

THE DARTMOUTH ARTS

Northern Stage brings ‘Monty Python’s Spamalot’ to Upper Valley

BY Armita Mirkarimi The Dartmouth Staff

This article was originally published on April 26, 2022.

From April 13 until May 15, Northern Stage theater company is performing “Monty Python’s Spamalot” — a musical comedy adaptation of the beloved movie “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” — as part of its 2021-2022 season. The tale is a parody of King Arthur’s quest to find the Holy Grail, featuring nods to the history of musical theater and feel-good ballads. In the play, King Arthur and his knights are sent on a mission by the elusive Lady of the Lake to first find the Holy Grail, and then to put on a Broadway show.

Stacia Nugent ’23 and Sophia Serpas ’24 performed in the ensemble while Betty Faul-Welfare ’23 worked on the show’s lighting design with the theater department chair Dan J. Kotlowitz.

Theater professor Carol Dunne directed the show and also serves as producing artistic director of Northern Stage.

“Spamalot” is famously one of the silliest shows in musical theater, bringing the humorous energy of Monty Python onto the stage. The setting changes often, ranging from the castles of France to Camelot reimagined as Las Vegas.

“This spectacular and very silly show is more than just catchy — it is a Valentine to everything we love about musical theater,” Dunne wrote in a statement from the show’s program.

“We’ve got tap dancers for you, and ninjas and love songs and winks to the history of musical theater.”

Nugent, who is performing in the show with professionals as part of her experiential learning “e-term” program, plays multiple characters in the ensemble.

“My roles range from being a Monk to a Knight of Ni,” Nugent said. “Due to this, I have quite a few quick changes, which means I have to get creative. If you see a bunch of religious monks walking around with Bibles in hand,

know that at least one of them is wearing full Camelot Turret Girl attire underneath.”

The constant location shifts are one of the driving factors of the decisions of the lighting design. Kotlowitz emphasized that the lighting makes the setting shifts between Camelot and Finland clear for the audience.

“You’re in the middle of a King Arthur play and then suddenly they break into Fiddler on the Roof,” Kotlowitz said. “The lighting sort of helps to make those transitions visual.

There are moments when suddenly you’re in a disco, and playing with those different styles has been rewarding.”

While “Spamalot” is a silly show by nature, the professional setting of Northern Stage demands a seriousness and decorum when performing with the cast. Nugent and Serpas both reflected on the professionalism of their e-term experience.

“This is my first full production that’s in person since the pandemic started,” Serpas said. “Additionally, it’s been really cool to work alongside professional actors and get a glimpse into how people make this their career.”

Nugent specified that the unconventionality of the show is aiding her growth as an artist.

“Sure, ‘Spamalot’ is a silly show that definitely doesn’t take itself seriously, but I’ve observed that in order to believably live in its silliness, I have to not only be comfortable with who I am but become willing to share it all without fear of judgment or condemnation — no matter how weird or unconventional it may seem according to societal standards,” Nugent said.

However, Nugent added that the e-term has been physically and mentally challenging as well, noting sometimes feeling inadequate when surrounded by such accomplished actors.

“As I watch my beautiful castmates sing melodiously and dance rhythmically on the stage, it’s hard not to be amazed,” Nugent said. “But whenever I find myself sharing the stage with these

PHOTO COURTESY OF MARK WASHBURN

professionals, I feel like, well, an impostor. Part of me feels guilty and undeserving of being around them, and I can’t help but think that I’m ruining scenes that we share. Additionally, I find it challenging to not downplay my abilities.”

The musical is filled with nods to the canon of musical theater: Joseph Stein’s “Fiddler on the Roof,” Stephen Sondheim’s “Company” and references to famous Broadway divas like Liza Minnelli. In Act 2, the Lady of the Lake, a parody of Guenevere portrayed by Michelle Beth Herman, laments “Whatever Happened to my Part,” playing into the trope of Minnelli, a notorious prima donna.

She complains about the “producers” and belts longingly into the audience.

At one point, the stage managers of the show make an appearance and Herman criticizes them, playing up the trope of the “difficult” Broadway diva.

“One of my favorite parts about the show is how it’s a caricature of the culture of theater and the canonical works of what we deem like American musical theater,” Kotlowitz said. “I liked that we got to kind of make fun of ourselves in this way. It’s a self-effacing but joyful kind of work.”

The musical attempts to capture the many sub-communities within theater itself. Songs like “His Name is ‘Lancelot’” and “You Won’t Succeed on Broadway” respectively allude to the robust LGBTQ+ and Jewish artistic communities in theater.

“There are a lot of aspects of theater that the show touches on — the people who have historically contributed to it and the general working environment of musical theater,” Kotlowitz said.

While addressing theater culture, performers also made jokes relevant to inhabitants of the Upper Valley. During the show, the cast picked an audience

member to find the Holy Grail. King Arthur, played by Jonas Cohen, asked for the audience member’s name and said that he is part of the “good people of the Upper Valley, next to Bernie Sanders and Ben and Jerry.”

More than anything, the performers’ humor in “Spamalot” created an energetic and lively atmosphere. The Northern Stage audience was cracking up at almost every joke and lighting shift.

“It’s impossible to work on ‘Spamalot’ and not end up with ‘Always look on the bright side of life’ stuck in your head,” Dunne said, referencing one of the show’s recurring songs.

With triple-threat performers, Monty Python’s humor, a little bit of satire and the intimate space of the Northern Stage theater company, “Spamalot” managed to poke fun at musical theater, retell the tale of the Holy Grail with a Broadway twist and bring joy to an Upper Valley audience.

Student Spotlight: Booth DJ Collective performs across campus

BY Veronica Winham The Dartmouth Staff

This article was originally published on April 28, 2022.

Booth, Dartmouth’s DJ collective founded in 2016, is a social and art group that provides DJ services to Greek houses and other functions on campus. The collective is currently expanding their services by branching out to cover more events to fit a growing campus demand for DJs. “Our main purpose is to provide DJ services … but more than that, we think of ourselves as an art collective o n c a m p u s, ” B o o t h ’s founding member Juhnwi Kim ’22 said. “There’s a very strong DJ culture at Dartmouth [and] we provide high quality service.”

Booth perfor ms primarily at fraternities and sororities, where it is hired for on-nights, semis and formals.

It also puts on Booth raves, which are shows typically hosted at Chi Gamma Epsilon and Scarlett Hall.

In addition, Booth performs at campus events, ranging from shows at the Hopkins Center for the Arts and the Thayer School of Engineering to the Friday Night Rock performances at Collis Commonground. A couple weeks ago, the Prog ramming Board hired Booth to play during intermissions at Battle of the Bands, according to Booth’s director, Luis Verdi ’22.

“We’re trying to expand beyond Greek houses. Something that we really value is a relationship with the school,” Verdi said.

The members of Booth all have their own distinct styles, which means that every show is unique and has a different aesthetic. For example, Verdi specializes in dance, pop and electronic dance music, while new member Raegan Padula ’24 said she prefers house and techno.

“We all have different niches that we love to explore in music, and that combined with our ability to get a crowd going is so important to bring new sonic spaces to campus,” Padula said.

Booth also encourages its current members to incorporate new styles.

Padula is excited to experiment

in her Booth perfor mances over sophomore summer when she returns from London, where she is currently studying electronic music.

“Getting to go around the city and take some of the experimental stuff done here and grunge and grime and bringing those back to campus is going to be really exciting,” Padula said. “[Booth’s] function is to introduce students to new flavors and new styles.”

Despite each member’s niches, Kim said that Booth has a “commercial front,” in which they still play pop music that people recognize and enjoy.

“My favorite thing is just seeing a crowd of people singing the words.

To me, there’s nothing cooler as a performer than seeing everyone excited about what you’re putting on,” Verdi said. “Having that liberty to say ‘I’m in control, but I want to make sure that you’re all having fun with me.’ Because it’s about having fun but also making sure everyone else is having fun.”

Booth members meet once a week to discuss upcoming shows and contribute to external projects, such as their SoundCloud account. Padula said that at these weekly meetings, people will bring their boards and mix songs back and forth between each other. “[This] is a real challenge, especially since some of us have quite different tastes,” Padula said. “To go from hip hop to experimental funk is a really fun switch.”

New members typically join Booth during their freshman year, with a variety of experience levels. Some are experienced DJs, while others simply show interest in getting started.

According to Verdi, Booth’s expanding popularity on campus makes it easier to recruit.

“Over the years we’ve gotten a lot more interest over time,” Verdi said.

“It feels cool to have that presence on campus.”

Verdi said he first experimented

with DJing in high school, when he taught himself how to play using a friend’s equipment and performed at his school’s dance. He discovered the opportunity to continue his passion for DJing in college through Booth.

“Once I got [to Dartmouth], I felt like [DJing] was something I wanted to get back into and keep working on,” Verdi said. “Once I found out about Booth, met people in Booth, I was completely sold.”

A f t e r j o i n i n g, n e w m e m b e r s are trained in the winter quarter.

According to Kim, winter training consists of mastering techniques and learning how to navigate the Dartmouth music scene.

“We make sure that they are technically proficient enough to perform at a high level that people require and want,” Kim said. “Our members are not only DJs, but they produce and are in bands, so we like to think we are one of the leading musical voices on campus.”

Kim helped start Booth in 2016 when he and a group of ’20s identified the need for a DJ group at Dartmouth.

He said they were inspired by the Boiler Room group, which Kim said had a “more varied music scene.”

In the beginning, Booth started performing at BarHop, an event held every Thursday at the Hopkins Center for the Arts. Booth then transitioned into DJing fraternity and sorority formals through personal connections.

Now, Kim said that Greek houses ask Booth to perform at their events.

In addition to providing DJ services, Booth provides a sense of community for its members. Verdi commented on how the social aspect is his favorite part, and how he still keeps in touch with Booth alumni.

“I have met some of my biggest mentors through Booth,” Verdi said.

“Those are really solid relationships we got to build through this shared interest, and I don’t think I would have met them otherwise.”

Thayer Prize

Dartmouth College's Mathematics Prize Exam for First-Year Students

Saturday April 30, 2022 10 a.m.- 1 p.m.

Kemeny 004

Up to $1000 is available for prizes.

Creativity and originality are weighed heavily.

Please contact the Mathematics Department in advance by Friday April 15 if you want to take the Thayer Exam but can not take it on Saturday, April 30 and you will be allowed to take the exam on Sunday May 1

FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2022

PAGE 5

THE DARTMOUTH SPORTS

SPORTS

Senior Spotlight: Claire Azar ’22 co-captains equestrian in her penultimate season for the Big Green BY lanie everett The Dartmouth Staff

This article was originally published on April 25, 2022.

Claire Azar ’22, the co-captain of the equestrian team who competes in open fences and flat, has led the team ever since arriving at Dartmouth. During her sophomore year, she won the Cacchione Cup after scoring the most points in Region 2 of the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association. More recently, Azar led the Big Green this spring in the Eastern College Athletic Conference championships in March, where she won all of her points and was named to the ECAC all-tournament team.

Even when she’s not competing, Azar is a driven leader who plans on always keeping her time with horses close to her heart. As soon as Azar arrived at the College in 2018, she said her relationship with her team was strong; Azar described Dartmouth as the perfect fit.

“I’ve been riding since I was seven and I knew that horses had to be part of my life in college,” Azar said. “[Dartmouth] was the perfect combination of being the right fit for me academically but also having a competitive riding team.”

For all competitive riders, college is an adjustment. In non-collegiate competition, an individual competes with the same horse they train with and is able to build a relationship with their horse. However, Azar said that one of the major challenges to her success was figuring out how to compete on a horse drawn randomly for each athlete at the collegiate level. To overcome this challenge, Azar stays incredibly focused to yield the best outcomes possible.

“She takes the time to prepare, she always walks the course ahead of time,” head coach Tenley Walsh said. “She sets herself up for success.”

In addition, last year, the equestrian team switched from competing in the IHSA to the National Collegiate Equestrian Association. The two associations differ in teams and competition guidelines. For example, in the IHSA horses are drawn randomly and each individual rider rides a different horse, while in the NCEA each rider rides the same horse. Furthermore, Brown

PHOTO COURTESY OF CLAIRE AZAR

Azar was named to the ECAC all-tournament team in both the flat and the fences.

University and Cornell University, which are the only other Ivy League schools with equestrian teams, compete in the NCEA. In a new conference, Azar has relied on her relationship with her teammates to support each other at these more competitive shows.

“I’ve definitely found some of my closest friends on the team,” Azar said.

“I remember being a freshman and looking up to all the upperclassmen and becoming super close to them, especially the ’21s — I miss them a lot.”

With the support of her team, Azar

has worked hard to get where she is today — she was awarded the Cacchione Cup Rider trophy her sophomore year, which is given to the highest scorer in the region, and was named to the ECAC all-tournament team in March.

“She’s been extremely competitive this year as we have transitioned to a more competitive format,” Walsh said.

Walsh also noted that Azar is especially attentive to her teammates, encouraging them before every competition. Azar’s co-captain, Sophia Aran ’22, echoed Walsh’s statements, emphasizing how

appreciative the team is of Azar’s leadership.

“She’s very caring and everything she does she thinks deeply about,” Arana said. “She really does have people’s best interest at heart.”

Azar and Arana, along with the rest of the team, competed at the Ivy Show Championship at Cornell in Ithaca, N.Y. on Sunday. The two have been gearing up for this show for a long time, as the team has not competed at the championship since Azar’s freshman year.

While this is Azar’s final spring

season for the Big Green, she is not done yet: Azar will stay on next fall to compete for Dartmouth in her final collegiate season. Afterwards, Azar, who majors in government, plans to move to Washington D.C. to work in communications. Although her time at Dartmouth is ending soon, Azar emphasized that her relationship with horses is far from over.

“It will be bittersweet to know in what way horses will be in my life continuing forward…but I’ll keep them in my life, one way or another, ” Azar said.

Golf teams compete at season-ending Ivy League Tournaments

BY LANIE EVERETT The Dartmouth Staff

Both women’s and men’s golf finished their seasons over the weekend at their respective Ivy League Championships. The men traveled to Century Country Club in Purchase, N.Y. and finished fifth in the Ivy League. Team captain graduate student Jason Liu tied for fourth overall in the tournament and was named to the All-Ivy League First Team on Tuesday.

The women competed against Columbia University, Princeton University, Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania and Yale University at the Ridge at Back Brook Golf Club in Ringoes, N.J. Overall, the team finished with a score of 902 — the Big Green’s lowest team score ever at the Women’s Ivy League Championship. Katherine Sung ’24 finished her first collegiate season tied third overall in the tournament after climbing seven places on the final day of competition. Sung was also named to the All-Ivy League First Team on Tuesday.

Although both teams’ seasons ended

with successes in the tournament, the season itself was by no means a guarantee. In July 2020, both programs were eliminated by the College as part of an effort to ease budget constraints amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The Hanover Country Club was closed as part of the same effort. The teams were reinstated in January 2021.

“With our team getting cut and us having to deal with the repercussions of that this year, we did a great job of picking up the pieces and being fully committed to the team and trying our best,” Sung said. “We’re in a great place.”

After a 2021 season littered with injuries and attempts to gather people back on campus, Liu said the 2022 season was “busy.” For the men’s team, the spring consisted of eight straight weeks of golf — seven of those including events — along with a spring break trip and the Ivy League tournament to conclude the season.

After competing at Ivies, the men’s team feels back on track, according to Liu. “At Ivies, we definitely left a lot out there but had a really fun time, especially the last day,” Liu said. “I

think each year we are always looking better, always putting ourselves in a good position to compete and to win Ivies, so I think it’s just a matter of time really.”

On day one of the tournament, highlights on the men’s side came from Liu and Eli Kimche ’25, who both scored three-over 74. Kimche birdied three holes in the first round — a team best for the day.

On day two, it was Liu and Mark Turner ’22 who scored two-over 73 to put Dartmouth in fifth place. Over a dozen holes, Turner went on a streak of nine pars and three birdies, before ending the day with two bogies on his last two holes.

Finally, on the last day of the championship, all eyes were on Liu as he jumped up three places to finish at three-over 74, securing a tie for fourth place. Although tensions were high, Liu said that he focused on enjoying the moment and playing in a relaxed manner. In the end, Liu birdied his last hole.

The women’s team saw major success at the tournament, which Sung attributed to her teammates’ re l at i o n s h i p s w i t h e a ch o t h e r,

their commitment to head coach Alexander Kirk and the women team’s competitiveness.

At the Ivy practice round, the team “helped each other out on the course … sharing the best way we thought we should play the hole, which is something that we don’t get to do in competition because we play with other teams,” Sung said.

On day one of the championship, Sung and Samantha Yao ’23 both finished in the top 10, scoring a one-over 73 and a three-over 75, respectively. Sung and Yao both birdied the par-five fifth hole.

In the second round, Claire Xu ’25 had a very strong day, securing five birdies, four of which occurred in the last six holes. Additionally, Penelope Tir ’24 dropped her stroke count by nine from round one, ending the day with a two-over 74.

The final day of the tournament was Sung’s, who hit the ball well and consistently to climb seven places into third. Sung remembered walking through her last hole — a par five with a hazard in front of the green — with her coach as the rest of her team looked on.

“I looked around and just took it all in, really commemorating my first season and just got a little bit emotional,” Sung said. “That was a really surreal moment for me.”

“We have five players who stuck it out and did their best and I’m proud of them,” Coach Kirk added.

Sung and Liu both expressed their gratitude for their respective teams for cheering them on in the last round.

“That last hole, being able to birdie the hole in front of my team, my parents, in front of the coach, it was definitely a special moment.” Liu said.

Although the Ivies marked the end of Liu’s Dartmouth career, he said he will always be rooting for the Big Green.

As Sung was part of the last group to play the tournament, her whole team and coach sat watching and cheering her on. On a par five, she got to the green in two strokes. From there, Sung became emotional as she played to finish off the season.

“I got goosebumps that I had finally completed my first season,” Sung said. “I was proud of myself to get here and everything I had done throughout the season to prepare me to where I was.”

PAGE 6

MIRROR THE DARTMOUTH MIRROR

FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2022

Why Can’t We Have More Sunny Days?

STORY

By Street Roberts

This article was originally published on April 27, 2022.

Let’s start with two different ways to wake up.

Option one: I awake to sunlight slipping in through the bottom of my green Dartmouth shade. The sound of birds chirping drifts into my ears, and even though my sleepy eyes urge me back to sleep, I can’t help but rise to meet the day. As I step outside my dorm, squinting to adjust to the light, the sun’s warmth tingles down my arms. It just feels like it’s going to be a good day. Even if I have to sit through an hour of dry math lecturing, it seems like nothing can go wrong.

Option two: I wake up to rain thudding against my glass window. It’s dark and dreary.

There is no sunlight streaming in and no birds chirping outside. I reach over and check the time on my phone, only to discover that I have a mere twenty minutes until my 10.

Ugh. All I want is to let the sound of falling water coax my anxious brain back to sleep.

But I can’t. I have a midterm in a week. So I begrudgingly get dressed and put on that raincoat with the hood that drapes over my eyes. Vision somewhat obscured, I walk outside my dorm as rain pours off the gutter up above. Splash — my right foot lands in a massive puddle. Damn. Now my shoes are wet. I slowly trudge to class, weaving around puddles that seem to have sprouted out of nowhere, yearning to return to the coziness of my bed. Instead, I have to deal with the stupid rain.

I may have tweaked those two versions with a bit of creative license, but let’s face it: Sunny days are simply better. Especially after my first real Dartmouth winter — and a truly shocking snowfall on my first day of spring term — these recent warm spring days have felt like magic. There’s a possibility in the air, a newness of life — to put it simply, the vibes are immaculate. Of course, not every sunny day is perfect. There have been many beautiful days where I felt sad and overwhelmed, or felt some innate

anxiety to take advantage of every moment, even if there was nothing to do. But even so, on the whole, I can conclude with certainty that I feel happier on sunny days than dreary ones.

So why are we so inclined to sunshine?

Science has a lot to do with it. In 2011, a study found that people interviewed on exceptionally sunny days report significantly higher levels of life satisfaction than people who were interviewed on days with “ordinary” weather. In 2013, Canadian researchers showed a strong correlation between a lack of Vitamin D and depression, suggesting that the “sunshine vitamin” really does play a role in our mental health.

And let’s not forget about seasonal affective disorder , that cruel beast that sneaks up on us every winter. Despite skiing and frozen ponds and hot chocolate, the fact that the sun disappeared at 4:30 everyday slowly took its toll on me this winter. I simply felt worse without the sun. But life doesn’t have to be like that, right?

I remember being shocked to hear that one of my friends from L.A. had never shoveled a driveway before. I looked at him with a strange mix of confusion, jealousy and pity — I mean, how have you never shoveled a driveway? But then again, part of me wondered what it would be like to live in California. Sure, it’s not perfect weather all the time, but even as I write this article, the weather report for the week doesn’t list a single day below 65 degrees in L.A., with no chance of precipitation. What would it be like to live somewhere with exceptional weather, to go to a school like UCLA where “bad weather” means 55 degrees with a chance of light afternoon showers? I think we all dream of a life of perfect weather.

But we don’t have it. And even in California, it doesn’t exist. So why do we let the weather affect our mood? Why do we give weight to something so far out of our control that many have attributed it to the mood swings of Gods above? If there’s nothing we can do about something, why

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let it control us?

The truth is, I do it all the time, and not just about the weather. I let a friend’s playful smirk trigger my anxiety into a spiral over whether they like me or not — and when I ask them if everything is okay later, they look at me like I’m crazy. I let a comment on my paper from a professor I barely know become a massive part of my self-image for the week. I let the menu at Foco change how I feel about the whole day. Isn’t that ridiculous?

After suffering through the pandemic and finally acknowledging my mental health despite years of pithy boomer expressions running through my head (“You’re not sad, Street. You’re just not working hard enough”), at a certain point it just hit me.

Why was I letting the uncontrollable control

me? Why was I letting bad weather affect my life so drastically?

When I think back on the happiest moments of my life, many of those memories don’t take place on a perfectly sunny day. I remember dancing in puddles with my family outside of my childhood home during a torrential downpour, singing and laughing hysterically. We didn’t care about the rain. I didn’t care that my clothes were soaked or that my feet were starting to prune. I was only focused on trying to duck out of the way while my dad splashed me and my sister with a bucket. I also remember playing soccer in a random park with my brother and two Nepalese men who barely spoke English. Rain was pouring down — hair so wet that droplets flew off everytime

I spun around — and yet all four of us, who could barely communicate with each other, ran around that field like little kids, giggling when our clothes became stained with mud.

There’s something wonderful about embracing the rain. Of course, I am still grateful for those days when the sun peeks its head out from behind the clouds. There’s nothing I love more than an afternoon spent lounging on the Green or a hike up Balch Hill to a sun-soaked meadow. But on days when that doesn’t happen, and those dark clouds circle around Baker tower, there’s no use clinging on to some idealized version of the weather. Why not embrace the rain?

Why not get out of bed and walk out into the world — even if I might step in the odd puddle along the way.

Drunk Thoughts, Sober Words? Fits on the Green STORY

By Annabel Everett

This article was originally published on April 27, 2022.

I was in that fuzzy space between sleeping and waking when I remembered that I couldn’t remember.

The trash can beside the bed, the backwards t-shirt, the taste of frat in my mouth. Nice. Within minutes I was out the door, sneakers slamming hard against the cracked sidewalks.

There was a part of me that desired some sort of physical undoing, like the act of sweating would somehow rid me of my poor decisions from the night before. I ran four miles that morning and jumped into the Connecticut with all my clothes on, probably still half-drunk. Soggy and confused, I returned to my room with the lyric line of “Why the fuck did I just do that?” reverberating around the inside of my skull. I didn’t know the answer to my own question, but I suspected that it had something to do with what I couldn’t process, what I didn’t want to sit in. Waking up to the taste of stale tequila on your tongue and foreign bruises all down your body from drunken falls makes for a depressing morning.

I’ve blacked out twice in my life. The first time was when I was 15 and tried hard alcohol for the first time, completely unaware of my limits or how the sharp, clear liquid in a pretty bottle could

STORY

magically erase an entire night’s memory.

The second time was on a random night during fall 2021, and there was literally no rhyme or reason to why it happened.

I had gone way too hard for no good reason, but I soon became aware of the universality of this experience for college students, however perplexing and unappealing it seems to the non-drinker and drinker alike.

I think about alcohol a lot, perhaps because I have some personal stake in the matter. My family has a history of alcoholism, and just this past summer, someone within my immediate family ended up in the ICU because of it.

I wonder why we’re so much worse than our parents were, why beer isn’t enough, why we don’t stop after one, two, even three blackouts, why it’s become so commonplace to drink yourself to regurgitation or unconsciousness. The fact that men’s rush culture encourages knocking back as much alcohol as you can without puking, the fact that I know only the intoxicated versions of too many people here, the fact that going out isn’t fun unless you’re drunk doesn’t sit well with me — like too many Keystones on an empty stomach. And there’s hardly ever a compelling justification for any of it. We get smashed just to say we got smashed, then limp back to our flimsy college-grade mattresses to sleep off the poison in our bodies

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before we rise for another round of overachieving.

I’ve run through the possible reasons for our generation’s appalling relationship with alcohol. Do we drink to forget or remember? To feel something or nothing at all? Is it panic?

Are we afraid that we’ve lost too much time to the pandemic to not squeeze all the wild nights of our youth into four years of binge drinking? Is what we really crave when we drink the brave, bold versions of ourselves that exist only in the context of intoxication? I mean, what else is there to do in the middle of nowhere?

I’d love to believe in our parents’ romantic notion that we do it because it makes us look cool. It certainly makes for a nice image: The attractive Dartmouth partiers, clad in seersucker and silk, lapping magic liquid from crystal glasses and getting buzzed enough to actually understand Kant.

But this absurd romanticisation doesn’t usually withstand the reality of Dartmouth pregames, with their vodka-crans in Nalgenes, sneakers coated in the elusive film of frat basement and the ever-present conviction that the night will end in either boredom or vomit.

There is some truth to all of these possibilities, I suppose. For me, drinking masks the disappointment of Dartmouth’s social scene, makes me far more ballsy with my frat-boy banter (and I’ll admit that all the boys I’ve met here seem far more interesting when I’m under the influence) and suspends me in a world that doesn’t seem to require anything of me. The lack of responsibility, is that it? Perhaps we’re so anxious about entering the real world that we’ve resorted to pumping ourselves full of toxins to temporarily alleviate the pressure of what’s to come.

Whatever the reason — and we all have our reasons — it’s certainly worth thinking about, lest we forget the reallife dangers that accompany the throat burn of a shot or the intolerable, fruity carbonation of a White Claw Surge.

Though my past behavior bars me from taking any moral high ground, I believe it’s worth giving more critical attention to why we drink and the implications of having a college culture obsessed with the altered state of intoxication.

By Marius DeMartino

This article was originally published on April 27, 2022.

I have been completely deceived.

My week three was positively luxurious.

With two of my classes having temporarily moved online, I spent my afternoons lounging on the Green, doing my readings while laying back on a picnic blanket and enjoying the bright blue skies. While it was concerning that I now considered 60 degrees to be tanning weather, I relished the fact that I could (finally) wear shorts again. It was looking like spring had finally sprung — and with it any vestiges of winter depression had disappeared.

For most of the week I continued under these delusions of leisurely frolicking, excited for the summery weeks to come. So I was appalled when I walked out of my building on an otherwise nondescript Saturday morning to find that not only had the temperature returned to a chilly 30 degrees, but there was actually snow falling from the sky.

I felt like this past week was a dreary return to pre-spring break weather, but my hours spent relaxing on the Green allowed me to take notice of my fellow Dartmouth students’ outfits. Amidst my readings and random dog sightings around campus, many of us sprung at the opportunity to wear something a little different. While some people jumped at the chance to wear short sleeves, others clung to their down parkas.

And when the temperature dipped back down, I saw many who continued to wear their shorts and flip-flops, maybe as an act of defiance.

There is, of course, that time-worn classic: The guy who, regardless of temperature, can always be spotted sporting flip-flops as if it were the middle of July. On one morning walk to Foco, I asked Zach Ojakli ’25 about his choice to wear shorts despite the 40-degree weather.

Despite being from outside Washington D.C., Ojakli didn’t seem to be bothered by the chilly morning.

He commented that “after that long winter, everyone is just trying to take advantage of the warm weather as soon as they can, so I’m definitely doing that too.”

Unfazed by the chilly morning, Ojakli held out hope that the afternoon would be a little warmer.

He said that his clothing “might be a little unseasonal in the morning, but not in the afternoon. That’s just how Hanover weather works.”

Others, like Cooper Whalen ’25, took an even more extreme position on the coldweather shorts debate. Being from Vermont, Whalen seemed to have no problem wearing flip-flops even on a cloudy and windy morning.

“Basically anything above 50 degrees is a justification to wear shorts,” Whalen said.

Sadly, as the temperature took a turn for the worse this week, even the most steadfast flip-flop wearers began to disappear, so I instead got an interesting look at some students’ cooler weather pieces.

On one sunny but chilly day, I spotted Sam Ford ’23 sporting a shearling leather jacket. While Ford said it wasn’t exactly a springtime getup, she said it made the perfect “cozy outfit, which is good on days like today.” Ford added that she was inspired by the movie “The Devil Wears Prada,” where a similar jacket is featured.

“I used to watch that movie when I was younger, so I wanted a jacket like this. I had a hard time finding one and then I found this vegan leather one that was perfect,” Ford said.

Ford wasn’t the only student I interviewed who put quite a bit of thought into her outfit. Rebecca Xie Tu’23 caught my eye in a colorful cardigan with tufted flowers. Xie lamented our current transitional phase of spring, which is “still too cold for the spring ’fit,” but said that her cardigan provided the perfect “texture and pop of color.”

Xie said that the eye-catching cardigan was pre-owned, and shared that her passion for sustainable fashion influences the way she buys her clothes.

“I love Poshmark and Depop,” Xie said.

“I usually do keywords, like ‘cardigan,’ and I just find something I like.”

The outfits I spotted around campus certainly spanned the spectrum from nonchalant shorts-wearers to sustainability aficionados. Often, people’s fashion choices meant a lot more than just the clothes they were wearing — whether it was a childhood memory like Ford’s or an environmentally conscious choice like Xie’s. Even the stubborn flip-flop wearers seemed to be proving their mettle against the frigid New Hampshire mornings.

My foray into others’ fashion showed me that there’s usually some intentionality, whether a lot or a little, behind what people choose to wear. Even though I dreaded walking to class on yet another dreary day, seeing people’s colorful choices — and the occasional flip-flops guy — made my day just a little brighter.