While many Dartmouth students dream about becoming doctors, investment bankers or lawyers, summer Class Council President Paul Holzer '00 wants to be a public school English teacher.
Holzer said "being friendly" is the motto in his life.
"Nothing makes me happier than being friendly to everyone," Holzer said with a big smile. "I just love meeting new people."
"He has a huge heart, and he always makes sure it is filled with the people and endeavors that are important to him," Council Vice President John Phinney '00 said. "There's not one person here whose willingness to help others I respect more."
Holzer said one of the priorities of the summer council is to make the Summer Carnival successful. The carnival will be held on August 1.
"We want to make the Summer Carnival big," Holzer said. "We have planned a lot of things with the Programming Board."
He said the council is planning to have a band, arcade, basketball shoot-out, fortune-telling, cotton candy, T-shirts and big tents on the Green.
In addition to the Summer Carnival, the Council is planning a few class trips, including an overnight trip to Montreal and a day trip to Water Country in New Hampshire.
"He will get excited about and involved in anything, because he believes that we are here to try everything," Holzer's close friend Christopher Bradt '00 said.
Holzer said the nice thing about being the president is that he "can organize and be involved in everything."
"Paul carries a lion's share of the weight in the Class Council, and he's always there to pick up the slack when it's needed, even if it means sacrificing something else he'd rather be doing," Phinney said.
Holzer was born in Rockland, N.Y., but moved to Wilton, Conn., before high school. He said that "diversity" is one of the big changes from his high school, which was located in an upper-middle class town.
"Diversity is not only the color of skins, but there are diversities in the way people behave and think," Holzer said. "And I think it's very important."
Holzer almost went to the University of Pennsylvania because he liked the location and its diversity, but he chose Dartmouth because his parents liked the "safeness" of Hanover.
An English major and education minor, Holzer said the "laid back-ness" of the College's atmosphere fits him well.
"Here, everyone doesn't compete with each other," Holzer said.
Holzer said student government takes a huge part of his time.
Otherwise, you can find him playing basketball in intramural games, or hanging out at his fraternity, Alpha Delta.
"He is the best representation of what Dartmouth is that I know of," Bradt said. "He is very involved in and concerned about nearly every campus activity, from the Greek scene to the Rockefeller lecture series, from [the Dartmouth Outing Club] to student government."
Holzer said he wants to be an English teacher at a public high school, because "they need the most help." His love for literature is the reason why he wants to teach English.
"You can find everything in life somewhere in books. That just fascinates me," Holzer said. "And books can be so valuable to the kids."
Holzer is still undecided on which route he should take to his teaching career. Holzer said he might join the Peace Corps, or go to graduate school to earn a Master's degree in education, or go straight into teaching.
