Home can be as simple as a few scattered picture frames and a collection of favorite books. Others, however, find the meaning of home to be a much more complex idea.
"Home is where my clothes are," Noah Smith '15 said.
For others, however, accepting a new home that is different from their hometown is a lot more difficult. Many Dartmouth students not only retain their hometown as their singular home even after coming to Dartmouth, but also try to incorporate aspects of it into their lives at school.
Thea Stutsman '13 said the substantial disparity between the environments of Dartmouth and that of her hometown of Malibu, California initially made her not view Hanover as a home.
"When you're a freshman, you're looking for things to define who you are and what your identity is, especially when you come from a very different culture than the one found at Dartmouth," she said. "That's why all of freshman year I hung on to my hometown as my idea of home."
Michelle Deloison-Baum '15, who hails from Oakland, Calif., said because she identifies so closely with her hometown friends, Dartmouth has not yet become her true home.
"It's the people that make [my hometown] the most like home," she said. "Interactions with people from my area are how I most try to make Dartmouth like my home. I'm not trying to make Dartmouth become home because I know that it's a separate place."
Besides the absence of friends and family, some students pinpointed specific elements of their hometowns lacking at Dartmouth that make the College feel less like home. Smith, a West coaster, said that people at Dartmouth from his hometown always miss "their friend, the sun."
Ashley Augustin '12 said that whenever she's at Dartmouth, it is the absence of her mother's presence that makes her feel less at home.
"She's my rock," Augustin said. "She's very understanding, and whenever I'm in trouble or need advice, she knows the right thing to say."
Smith, who hails from downtown Los Angeles, said the remote locale of Hanover is what disconnects Dartmouth from his idea of home. "We're isolated in the middle of nowhere," he said. "It's hard not to miss the outside world. Even as a freshman, I feel the culture shock of returning home to freeways and skyscrapers.
Deloison-Baum had similar feelings about the discrepancies between Hanover and her hometown, which she felt limit any sentiments of homeyness towards Dartmouth.
"It's not my house," she said. "It's not where I've lived my whole life. I think it's just different the people are different, the weather is different, the lack of city is different."
Faced with a new setting for college, many students have tried to bring aspects of their hometown to Dartmouth. Whether it is decorating their dorm rooms with pictures of family and friends, looking for familiar cultural connections or bringing friends and significant others from home, Dartmouth students have found various ways to bring their hometowns to Hanover.
Ankan Dhal '13 helped form the a cappella group Taal his freshman year at Dartmouth. Coming from an Indian background, Dhal said he only developed feelings of home towards Dartmouth when he found this aspect of his hometown at school.
"Going to Taal practice feels like home," he said, "I feel like the other members are my brothers."
While Dartmouth may never replace many students' true homes, it can certainly become a place where students grow and learn, developing lasting friendships and challenging themselves as individuals, according to Augustin.
"Home is when the people around you in your environment are there and support you, embrace your mistakes and encourage you," she said.
