Marimac McRae
Marimac (’21) is a staff writer for the Mirror section of The Dartmouth, and she is from Nashville, Tennessee. At Dartmouth, she is majoring in English with a concentration in creative writing and minoring in philosophy. Marimac is also the co-head tutor at RWIT, Dartmouth's peer tutoring service, for the 2020-21 academic year.
Dartmouth students have great affection for our libraries — take our interactions with the Dartmouth Library Instagram account. When I was a freshman, my First-Year Trip leaders showed me which parts of Baker-Berry were social and which were designated for intense studying. Although different spaces within the library function in different ways, the library as a whole feels like home to many students. This time last year, I remember stacking my belongings — essay drafts, extra pens, flaming hot cheetos and caffeinated yellow vitamin water — in the shelves of the periodicals, preparing to practically live there until finals were over.
For members of the Class of 2020, nothing about their departure from Dartmouth was ordered, especially with regard to their belongings.
In the six months since campus closed, I have craved a long walk around Hanover. So, when I returned this term, I headed out to enjoy the fall weather. Along the way, I discovered all the ways in which COVID-19 has altered the College’s physical spaces, transforming how freshmen will experience life at Dartmouth.
Many Dartmouth traditions have been put on pause to prevent the spread of COVID-19, including those that used to define the social integration of freshmen.
From diving headfirst into nonprofit work to founding innovative startups, seniors have found creative ways to give back during the COVID-19 pandemic.
When I set out to write an article on how the coronavirus has affected senior honors theses, I searched the Dartmouth website for a page describing what a thesis is. I found no such page. Each academic department has its own description of what a thesis looks like, and even within those departments, every project is unique.
I hesitate before I open DartBoard. Navigating the present is hard enough, and grappling with an uncertain future is daunting. Clicking the center of the DartBoard bullseye, I see “Attention!” written in bold, bright red letters at the top of the screen. I brace for bad news. We all know these announcements too well now: The COVID-19 notices on Instagram and Facebook and the popup panels on websites always bear unsettling information. But this one is different. Beneath “Attention!” I read, “Seeking a job or internship? These sites are sharing new postings daily.”
Health care workers are like firefighters: They will risk their lives running into a burning building to save people they don’t know. Unfortunately, right now there are often too many people for them to save, and they are entering burning buildings without protective equipment. But they keep running and trying anyway.
