As a senior in high school, Rex Morey '99 had no intention of coming to the College.
But last week he described how he came to appreciate his decision to attend Dartmouth.
"I went on my [Dartmouth Outing Club] trip and fell in love with the school," Morey said. "I can't imagine myself anywhere else."
"The truth is I really didn't want to come here at all," Morey said. "I wanted to leave New Hampshire and go somewhere different."
Morey said "financial aid reasons" led him to Dartmouth. It was not until his freshmen trip that he knew Dartmouth was the right place for him.
Luckily for the Class of '99 Morey decided to come to Hanover.
"Everyone should definitely get to know Rex before they graduate from Dartmouth," Sophomore Class Vice President Nahoko Kawakyu. "He is really great."
Besides being the president of the 1999 Class Council, Morey is an undergraduate advisor, a member of eight intramural teams and one of the most involved students on campus.
The sophomore class council has proved to be one of the most active and most well-attended class councils in recent years.
"The reason [the council has] been so successful is more because of the other members rather than my leadership," Morey said. "Everyone has been really excited and anxious to get projects done."
Morey said the members of the council are so eager he is able to focus on maximizing the council's effectiveness.
"I guess my biggest role is motivation and organization," he said.
Kawakyu said she agrees the people are what drives the council, but said Morey does play an important role.
"He is the person who keeps the people together," Kawakyu said. "He is the bond of the council."
One way Morey has attempted to motivate the council is with the creation of the "weekly inspiration." At the end of every council meeting a member of the council reads a quote which they choose for its inspirational value.
"I started that this year," Morey said. "I think it helps us to put things in perspective."
Morey endlessly accredits his success on the council to others.
"The reason we are doing so well is because of the other council members, especially the other executive officers," Morey said. "The council would be nothing without all the council members. They're the ones who come to all the meetings and work."
He said the council members work well as a team and are always there to support each other.
"If I have a lot to do, they definitely pick up the slack," Morey said. "The whole council has a lot of initiative."
One of the council's most successful initiatives was the recent Fall Leadership Retreat. About 50 "campus leaders" attended the overnight retreat held to discuss leadership and campus issues.
Sophomore Class Dean Langford said she has been impressed with Morey's modesty. She said he begins every class council meeting by thanking people for the work they did the previous week.
"He gives credit where credit is due," Langford said.
Langford said the first time she met Morey was when he had come to her office because "he was caring about a good friend."
"The first thing I'd say is that he's a caring young man," Langford said. "Rex is a man of action, he's genuinely friendly and he has a great sense of humor."
Kawakyu said she looks up to Morey for his kindness and unselfishness.
"I've never really met anyone like him," Kawakyu said. "How much he cares about people and how good a person he is can't really be expressed in words."
Between his schoolwork, his council activities and his job at the Collis Cafe, Morey has found time to be an undergraduate advisor and play on four intramural football teams and four intramural soccer teams.
Morey has made his group of freshmen an important part of his life on the third floor of Morton Hall.
"My freshmen are awesome," Morey said. "We hang out together a lot. It's a lot of fun."
During the first week of school, Morey had a meal individually with each one of his freshmen.
Morey admits it is not easy to pick and choose activities. He said he always wants to do more, but realizes there are limits to what he can do.
"The hardest part has been trying to balance my schoolwork with my extracurricular activities," Morey said. "I want to get involved in everything. It's really tough to make choices."
Morey smiled as talked about the intramural football championship he won with Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity where he is pledging this term.
"I have a lot of fun playing on all the different teams," Morey said. "Winning the championship was really exciting."
Morey's ability and interest in leadership were visible before he even came to Dartmouth. As a junior in high school, Morey was the president of the student council. The next year, he was president of the senior class.
Morey said his high school experiences gave him ideas which he is now implementing at Dartmouth. He said the inspiration for the council community service project planned for the spring came from a project he participated in as a senior in high school.
"I was student chair for a United Way project which took students from the area for the day to do volunteering and then ended up with a big barbecue," Morey said. "That's what gave me the idea for the community service project we are planning for the spring."
Morey said although he really likes most things about the College, it is the students that make Dartmouth a special place to him.
When Morey came to Dartmouth, instead of viewing the increase in leaders as competition, Morey said more leaders adds to the effectiveness of the student government.
"Here it's a council of leaders. It seems like everyone was president or vice president of their high schools," Morey said. "They have a lot more initiative to do things on their own without prodding."
