Dear Dartmouth,
It’s hard to believe our story began almost one year ago. In that time, we have only known this magazine, and our lives, through the lens of the pandemic.
Though maybe the question shouldn’t be ‘where do we go from here?’, but instead ‘where is here?’, ‘where are we right now, in this very moment?’
I’ll hope you take a moment to share in the thoughts, hopes, and outlooks of three Dartmouth students, Lindsey Kim ‘24, Lizet Garcia ‘23, and Shayne Miller ‘22.
What is the first word that comes to mind when you think of pandemic life at Dartmouth?
Lindsey: Restricted. I’d say it had been really fun, though it felt like I didn’t get as much out of it as I could have, if there hadn’t been the pandemic. I liked the experience, really, but I felt there could have been more.
Lizet: I just think of being home, taking classes on zoom. I guess now, I think back to how the pandemic had been something the school could not have predicted, but also how they had responded so awfully by not helping the students that actually needed the help.
Shayne: Confusing. ‘Confusing’ because it feels like it has been ‘do as we’ll tell you and not what we choose to neglect’. In the fall, there was a very big emphasis on not having large gatherings, logically because of the pandemic. But, in reality, what it did was push gatherings from a controlled environment to an uncontrolled environment. It is a little odd, because all of the campus measures were designed to help, but it almost doesn’t fully add up for me.
What was your first impression of life on campus?
Lindsey: I thought it was really pretty. The first day, and the first few days, I thought it was really hot too. But as I had more time at Dartmouth, the experience and the campus life definitely grew on me. I liked how much nature there was, how calm it was. Overall, I thought everyone was very welcoming and helpful.
Lizet: It was so intimidating. Walking into Foco, and to this day it is one of the reasons that I try not to go to Foco alone, I feel how intimidating it is, and how white the space is too. I’ve never really been around white people in that way before. That struck me more than anything in my first impression of Dartmouth. But being here, I’m also so shocked by the access to resources, and how available they are to everyone, which isn’t always true at home.
Shayne: I actually came in the middle of a sophomore summer. On one of the first few nights, we went to see an acapella and dance show. So in that sense, it felt like straight immersion into Dartmouth. It was really nice, mixing different people from all over campus into common spaces.
Collis or Foco?
Lindsey: Well, I lived pretty far away because my dorm was in East Wheelock, so I spent a lot of time eating at Novack. But I definitely like Collis food a lot more than Foco food, for sure.
Lizet: Collis, just because of the pasta and the bread. The bread is so good! If I could just get one small scoop of the pasta and four pieces of the bread, I would do that.
Shayne: Collis. Quality over quantity, that is what it boils down to.
Image courtesy of Dartmouth College
Where was/where is your favorite place to just pass the time at Dartmouth?
Lindsey: Honestly, I would have to say the Morton common room. It was definitely restricted, but in the common room they let you hang out with friends, socially distanced of course. I thought the common room was fun, and it definitely helped build a sense of community. The late night swipes at Novack was also a great place to see and spend time with all the familiar faces around you.
Lizet: I feel like I don’t have much experience, because when we were here it was during the cold weather. But I do remember the Green, and how nice it was. I’d love to spend more time there during the spring or the summer.
Shayne: By the Ledyard docks, there is a hammock, and there is also a pillow on the hammock. At night in the fall, it is so peaceful and you can see the stars and the distant cars across the river. The lights slowly fade in and out; it is so serene.
Can you see a Dartmouth future that looks like the ‘normal’ again?
Lindsey: I hope so. I think after the pandemic, it will definitely become somewhat more like the normal. I hope we can experience more places like the Hop, because during the fall, it was only open for Hinman Mail. I would definitely like a more normal experience; I’m not entirely sure, but I’d like to think so.
Lizet: It seems like every single day, things continue to get worse. We have the vaccine, but it’s inaccessible to so many different groups. It is possible, but I think more so for Dartmouth than for anywhere else. I wonder if the surrounding communities in the Upper Valley have the same access to these resources like Dartmouth does.
Shayne: Yes, on the surface, yes. I think things will start looking closer to normal but I believe that the change that has shifted in Dartmouth’s culture and classes in the past year will have ripple effects indefinitely throughout. Closer to normal, but I don’t think anything will truly be close to how it once was.
At this point in your Dartmouth journey, do you feel stuck? Why?
Lindsey: Somewhat, I definitely enjoy my classes a lot this term. I think the professors and the people in my classes have been very helpful. But I think in terms of making friends, I do feel somewhat stuck. It feels like I don’t know that many people, just given the restrictive nature of the term. I felt like I met a lot of people in my dorm because of how much Dartmouth emphasizes the housing community, but I know I would like to meet more people with different interests. I feel stuck in that sense, but I have still enjoyed the journey so far.
Lizet: Surprisingly, I don’t feel stuck. I think at home, I felt more stuck. And I really appreciate my family and I’m thankful that they are all okay, but in L.A., it felt like such a restricted place. I couldn’t participate in extracurriculars even virtually, because I was babysitting for a lot of the time. But being here, I feel like I have been able to get involved and connect with professors like I wasn’t able to before. Right now, I don’t feel stuck. But I have felt that way.
Shayne: I don’t feel stuck at this point in my Dartmouth journey. The biggest ‘why’ to not feeling stuck is taking a step back from classes. Trying to take on Dartmouth as all it can offer, more than just the class society. It has been really eye-opening and motivating.
What do you remember the most about Dartmouth before this all began?
Lindsey: It seemed like the culture was made up of people who knew how to balance working hard and playing hard. People could have fun and study really hard when they needed to, which I think was really appealing to me. It also seemed like the outdoorsy nature of Dartmouth was really important to the school. I’d loved to experience a Homecoming one day!
Lizet: I just remember it being so busy. Now it is still busy, but not like how it used to be. You used to go on the Green and you’d see people playing spikeball and being together all of the day. But now, it seems and it feels less congested.
Shayne: I remember Foco, and just running into people all the time at Foco. The meal ended up taking a lot longer, because you kept bumping into people. I feel that that is such a Dartmouth thing, but trying to explain that to the ‘24s is different, because they haven’t had that same chance yet.
Image courtesy of Section Editor Sarah Jewett from Homecoming 2019.
Where do you see yourself a year from now?
Lindsey: One year from now, I hopefully see myself on campus. I really want to experience a winter on campus. I hope that I’d be doing something in CS or Math, and that I would have met a lot of new people and would have become friends with a lot of new people. I didn’t really go to the library during the fall, but I really wish I had taken more time inside the library; I definitely will be spending a lot of time in the library going forward.
Lizet: I’d really like to be on campus next winter and to be more involved. I hope I can socialize with my friends more, and we would all be vaccinated. I can see myself here next winter, and would just hope that I’m doing well academically and spending time with the people that I care about.
Shayne: I see myself hopefully back here at Dartmouth. In a more general sense, I see myself applying a lot more of what Dartmouth teaches. I feel like the shared knowledge and exposure that we have is so vast, that in my gap year, that is what I will be trying to do. Hopefully in a year, I will be successful.
Hopefully in a year, we’ll all be right here.
All my best,
Lucas
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