One club that certainly understands the ups-and-downs of life is the College's Yo-Yo Club.
The club was founded by Sol Diamond '97 "to create a forum in which members of the Dartmouth Community from diverse backgrounds can better themselves academically, socially, spiritually and physically through activities motivated by and involving the yo-yo. And to have fun," he said.
When it was founded last spring, the club boasted a membership of over 40 and met weekly.
But Diamond said right now he considers the club in a "leadership crisis" since many members graduated in last year. The club currently has 15 to 20 members, and Diamond said he hopes more underclassmen will decide to join.
Despite the declining membership, Diamond said the club has great potential to serve both the College and the wider community.
"A yo-yo club is a light-hearted way of addressing issues of race at Dartmouth," Diamond said. "It's a club that can bring together people from any walk of life to meet and have some fun. A yo-yo doesn't discriminate."
Diamond himself was drawn back into his high school yo-yo interest when he saw a classmate play with one in an education class at the College. "I dug out my yo-yo and started to walk around with it," Diamond said.
Many students approached Diamond while he was practicing his yo-yo moves around campus. Encouraged by their interest, Diamond began to discuss casually with his friends the idea of forming a club.
The club drew up a constitution, decided on a motto -- "Just say yo" -- and held meetings that culminated in last spring's Fro-Yo-Yo, an event in the Hyphen featuring yo-yo tricks and frozen yogurt.
The club's members include students from "any major you can imagine," Diamond said, but many are science majors who understand the greater forces behind yo-yos.
"The physics of yo-yos is a substantive field for those interested," Diamond said. "Today's yo-yo's are highly engineered."
However, he added, the engineering doesn't take away from the basic idea of the toy -- to have fun. "Some of our members still only know one trick but they're still excited," Diamond said. "Having a yo-yo is like a smile."
Diamond said he appreciates the yo-yo as something more than just a forgotten childhood toy. "I think of the yo-yo as a spark that can really catch on if people can see its potential," Diamond said.
Diamond said he hopes to attend the Yolympics, which are held annually in New Hampshire, and to bring a professional yo-yo performer to Dartmouth to entertain the student body.
In addition, Diamond said he hopes to take the club into the local elementary schools to demonstrate tricks.
"It's an excuse to get out into the community," Diamond said. "In working with kids, you can use the yo-yo to draw them in."
