Dartblog

Sitting at the Republican National Convention right before Sarah Palin’s speech, a man tapped me on the shoulder and handed me a handwritten note. It read simply “Vox Climantis in Deserto”, the Dartmouth motto. I knew instantly that he was an alumnus who had noticed the Dartmouth lanyard I wore around my neck. Turning around, I struck up a conversation with him and felt immediately warmed by the knowledge that the Dartmouth family is everywhere. I have fallen in love with this community over my three years at Dartmouth and each person I have spoken to over that time has felt the same way. Yet even knowing this, I love to hear thoughts of new arrivals to the beautiful place I call home.

In the Financial Times today, I found an article written by Thomas Park, a new student at the Tuck School of Business. This section particularly struck me:

“…the leading US business schools boast similar qualifications - top notch faculty, rigorous core programs, illustrious alumni and - most importantly - high recruitment rates in the world’s most prestigious businesses around the world.

Yet for me, Tuck distinguishes itself from other top US schools in two important ways.

First, Tuck seems particularly focused on ensuring that its students have one of the best MBA curricula in general management and leadership by having faculty interact with students in a meaningful way.

All members of the faculty are expected to teach as well as publish; more faculty members are being added but class size will not increase; and teachers are expected to get to know their students. In fact, close faculty-student interaction is one of the hallmarks of Tuck.

Second, it was the nature of the school’s community that ultimately won me over. It has been two weeks and I can already see why the student body is so close knit.

There are only 250 students in the first year class and minimal distractions available in town. In fact, at first, I had trouble falling asleep at night because it was “too quiet” outside. But after a few days of orientation, I feel that I have already made some great friends with incredible stories to tell. Many are former military officers; one had biked from Alaska to South America; and another had been a photographer at Saddam Husain’s [sic] trial. We eat, drink and socialise [sic] together, exchanging stories and figuring out how to get the most out of the next two years. Indeed, for those students who are not “people persons”, Tuck should be the last place on their list - it’s impossible to be anonymous here. “

These words could just as easily apply to the undergraduate program at Dartmouth. Professors at Dartmouth are leaders in their field, conducting brilliant research, but their primary focus is, as it should be, on the students. Seminars and the myriad undergraduate research opportunities offer students of all years the opportunity to work closely with and learn from these brilliant professors.

Occasionally, we find men and women on the faculty and staff who truly exemplify the Dartmouth spirit. Andy Harvard was one. As Director of the Dartmouth Outing Club (DOC), he worked closely with students to foster their ideas. One notable result? The reinvigoration of the Dartmouth Bait & Bullet program. For those of you who are unaware, Dartmouth was once renowned for its Trap & Skeet team, yet with institutional neglect, it eventually disappeared. Bait & Bullet is a hunting and fishing program run through the DOC that offers students trips each week to the local range and facilitates student teaching. Harvard supported student led initiatives like this one and always encouraged the student led DOC to grow and expand. Former leader in the Bait & Bullet program, Chris Polashenski ‘07, said “I greatly suspect and fear that his vision for a club which is student run and which expands and changes to always better itself, more than the flaws of his methods, is why he was fired”.

Petition trustees T.J. Rodgers, Peter Robinson, Todd Zywicki, and Stephen Smith are also such men. During their time on the Board of Trustees, they have worked tirelessly to bring issues like class shut-outs and understaffed departments to the forefront of the College agenda. Their devotion will serve current and future students by challenging Dartmouth trustees, faculty, and staff to look past the way things are to the way things could be. What should be the first step in this process? Choosing a new Dartmouth president with a vision for the College, a vision of a renowned faculty committed to teaching, a vision of student led initiatives, and a vision of positive alumni involvement that will hold him to the standard they expect for their beloved alma mater.