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The Dartmouth
March 28, 2024 | Latest Issue
The Dartmouth

Editors' Note

For this year’s Green Key issue, we chose to focus on class and money.

As students, we recognize that the College environment can artificially insulate students away from the grittier, often uncomfortable truths of the world that lie beyond this hill. But the current cultural momentum — a push toward recognizing social inequalities and privileges — penetrates even our Big Green bubble, and so we challenge our readers to reflect on these topics.

This type of note can hardly be complete without noting our own socioeconomic backgrounds. Michael, a sophomore from suburban Maryland, considers his financial background as upper-middle class. Rebecca, a sophomore from a coastal suburban Southern California city, identifies her socioeconomic class as upper-middle class as well. We recognize both the privilege of this background and the complexities buried beneath this label.

Class is often an invisible part of our identity and thus gets pushed to the fringes or completely out of our daily conversations. We urge our readers to reflect on the fact that every individual is made up of many parts — both visible and invisible. What we each struggle with, celebrate and value about ourselves does not all come across when we say hello to a peer in class or chat with a floormate from down the hall.

Class and money are enormous and complex issues that deserve millions of words written about them. With its page limitations, this paper can only capture small slices of the overall story. Nonetheless, we think this edition of The Dartmouth comes at a salient moment. In it, you will find a deeper exploration into a sometimes-invisible identity and a chance to reflect on the complexities of your own identities. We hope you enjoy this issue.

The project:

Class and money

News analysis:

Greek organizations expand financial aid, discuss inclusivity

Institutional support for low-income students is fairly recent

Experts and students discuss effects of socioeconomic status

Family situations, outside support affect financial aid

Undergraduate Finance Committee funding explained

Opinion:

Peters: Being Poor at Dartmouth

O'Donoghue: Deserving More from DDS

Features:

Careers after Dartmouth: Does one's major determine one's financial future?

Athletics and socioeconomic status: NCAA and Ivy League rules complicate recruitment

The invisibility of socioeconomic status: Low-income students discuss "culture shock"

Cheng: Through the Looking Glass

Photo essay: A look at student employees around campus

Students share stories of work and life at the College