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

I sat across from Ilenna Jones ’15 at a high-top table by the stairs in the Collis Center, just talking for half an hour. From my vantage point I could see countless students going about their days — leaving with cardboard stir fry containers in hand, checking flyers on the bulletin board for job and lecture postings, exiting Collis Market with ample snacks for their Sunday in the library.

Through the Looking Glass: “Inevitably it comes up. ‘How is Dartmouth going?’”

\n I avoid going home because I can’t avoid mealtimes. The scene plays out almost exactly the same way each time.

Students share stories of work and life at the College

“You don’t realize something when you don’t know what to look for," Emily Chan '16 said. "I first noticed when I was on my [language study abroad] with other people. They were really nice, of course, but you see the obvious differences — half the group could afford to do a lot more than you can. Money can actually be real constraint for a lot of people, and it was just interesting that I myself had been so ignorant about it. Then I couldn’t stop seeing or noticing"

Photo Essay: Student Employees

Editors' Note

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.

Style Watch

The student body was looking good on Monday. Maybe it was the glow from the remnants of a great weekend. Maybe it was excitement for the next round of midterms. Or maybe it was the weather. After several weeks of questioning why this term is called “spring term” when there was still snow on the ground and nightly temperatures often below freezing, spring has officially sprung, and on Monday, the sun was out, the sky was blue and the Green looked kind of green in some places.

Through the Looking Glass: The Great Ashley

Ashley was a green light I never expected.

Out of Style

Here, we take a closer look at changes to how students have communicated over the years, what the most facetimey spots have been and how the job market has evolved.

The Art of Email

This is an age of brevity. Mounting time pressures shorten the day, and communication has become increasingly instantaneous and concise. In-person meetings become email threads, email threads become texting conversations and even written text often devolves into Emoji soup. On this campus, even the world “email” is clearly one syllable too long.

Editors' Note

While the dopey egoists are away, the mice will play.