Preppy. Intelligent. Well-rounded. Of the many words Dartmouth students use to describe one another, one that I've heard come up all too frequently is apathetic. People say Dartmouth students care more about their GPAs than about the world around us, our even about our own Dartmouth community. To these people, I say, "Open your eyes!" Everywhere I look, I see people who not only care about the world in which they live, but are working tirelessly to improve it.
It has been said that change begins at home. It's been pretty impossible to leave your dorm room or even check your BlitzMail lately without hearing about a group of students who are devoted to making Dartmouth a better place in the years to come. Unless you've been hiding in your closet for the past couple of months, you know who I'm talking about -- those Student Assembly members who began the Visions project and are now running around frantically trying to get everyone to write their Vision of Dartmouth for the new President. They want to see positive changes in the Dartmouth community as well as preserve our time-honored traditions. Most importantly, they care about making sure that the Dartmouth they urge the new President to envision is the Dartmouth every student on this campus envisions, not just the Dartmouth envisioned by members of Student Assembly. As many of the Visions discuss what Dartmouth should be like in ten years, we can see that not only do these students, and over 200 have already written their Visions care about the Dartmouth in which they are living, they also care about the Dartmouth they will leave behind when they graduate.
While the Assembly members deserve an immense amount of credit for their lack of apathy concerning Dartmouth, and lack of apathy is an understatement here, caring about the Dartmouth we leave behind is not a new concept. Dartmouth alumni, no matter how long ago they graduated, continue to care deeply about the Dartmouth community. They express their concern by donating large sums of money annually, visiting Dartmouth frequently and keeping lines of communication open between themselves and current Dartmouth students.
While working toward improving the community on our campus is certainly evidence against our so-called apathy, it does nothing to quiet the people who say we care only about Dartmouth and not about the world around us. Well, take a look at the Tucker Foundation. Better yet, take a look at the hundreds of students who, through this foundation, go into the Upper Valley to do community service. Students help children of the Upper Valley learn to read through Book Buddies and mentor Upper Valley youth through the Big Brother/Big Sister program, in addition to participating in countless other community outreach programs. And students do not need to be involved with the Tucker Foundation to help the community. For example, the Untamed Shrews donate all of the money they receive from performing to community service projects including Hannah's House, a home for teenage mothers. Habitat for Humanity works nearly every weekend to provide homes for the homeless.
Even after writing our Visions and helping children learn how to read, we still have time to show we care about the nation and world. I admit we might not all be as up-to-date on current events as we were at home, but even this fact is exaggerated on campus. We are not completely cut off from civilization. Many students do get the New York Times delivered to their door every morning, and yes, they do read it. Believe it or not, I've actually seen several students reading the newspaper. I've also had numerous discussions with students about things going on in the world today. Not only are we informed about issues facing our country and the world, but we also have opinions on these issues. And, oh my gosh, you might want to sit down for this one, we can actually spend large amounts of time discussing our opinions. Do people who are completely apathetic do this sort of thing? I don't think so.
In spite of all we do to improve the world, there will still be critics who claim all we care about is our GPA. Okay, I admit I want good grades. And so does every other student here. But there is nothing wrong with this. The desire to succeed is perfectly natural. We've cared about grades, at least to some extent, for our entire lives; if we hadn't, we never would've gotten here. But even in our academic pursuits, we express our concern for those around us. Government is one of the most popular majors at Dartmouth. Many of the students in the department are working to excel academically so that they may acquire the skills necessary to work in the government to improve the lives of the American people. Also high in popularity in terms of majors are the natural sciences. Many students in this field will go on to medical school, so that they can save lives. I urge you to find a less apathetic profession than that.
People who say Dartmouth students are apathetic have got to be living under rocks. Or perhaps they're just so busy complaining that everyone is apathetic, they haven't taken the time to look around and see how much we do all care about our school, community, nation and world. To these people, I say quit complaining and write your Vision, become involved in the Tucker Foundation and buy a newspaper. Join the Dartmouth community in caring about the world around us.
