An Inspired Start
A cold drizzle did nothing to dampen student enthusiasm at Convocation September 20. Decked out in everything from suits and ties or chiffon dresses and stiletto heels to shorts or athletic wear with sneakers or muck boots, the class of 2015 gathered in Leede Arena to hear from speakers Max Yoeli ’12, president of the Student Assembly; Kul Chandra Gautam ’72, former deputy executive director of UNICEF and assistant secretary-general of the United Nations; and President Jim Kim. All three conveyed the message that the incoming freshmen have joined not only an intellectual community but also a family with a 242-year history. Gautam secured rapt attention by recalling his village in Nepal: “It had no roads, no electricity, no school, no health center, no post office.” Hearing Dartmouth described as “a small college in a small town in a remote area” amused him, he said. “My town was a five-day walk from the nearest bus stop, but it was not classified as remote. Remote was seven days from a bus stop.” Yoeli provided some Bret Easton Ellis-inspired advice: “Don’t be afraid to merge.” Kim, the final speaker, promised incoming freshmen and grad students that Dartmouth will provide them “with tools to become transformative thinkers.”

Downloading Dartmouth
Just in time for Homecoming, the alumni relations (AR) office introduced its first app for mobile devices. iDartmouth, now available at iTunes and Android Market, offers a schedule of weekend events, a campus map that includes a history of campus buildings, restaurant reviews and access to the alumni directory and the College’s Homecoming Flickr feed. “I’m hoping that alumni will give us plenty of feedback to help make the application even more helpful and fun,” says AR director of communications Diana Lawrence.

Pro to Coach
Janet Coles, a 13-year veteran of the LPGA Tour and a top-ranked golf instructor, is the new coach of the women’s golf team. Coles, who won four times on tour, says she’s ready to bring the team “up the leaderboard.” She adds that she’s not done with the team she’s been coaching at a California high school. “In a few years I will recruit them to Dartmouth,” she says.

Elm Felled
The Parkhurst Elm is gone. Planted about 1870, the towering tree had been considered a survivor of the ravages of Dutch elm disease until the Town of Hanover’s urban forester, William Desch, determined in August that further rescue efforts were futile. College officials did not want the tree taken down, but Desch deemed the decay a safety hazard. “We do not like to cut trees,” he says, “but it would be a terrible tragedy” if a large branch weakened by decay were to fall on pedestrians. For three days starting August 21 a team of tree surgeons took down the longstanding sentinel of the Green. Passersby viewed the dismantling, and some picked up chips and chunks of the wood to save as keepsakes or carve into something useful. The elm, which rose nearly 90 feet and measured 42 inches around the trunk, was reduced to 40 tons of wood that were trucked away. As two new elms were planted on either side of the stump site in September, Desch expressed concern that the elm fronting Collis could be the next to go.

Dodging Irene
Although Tropical Storm Irene hammered nearby parts of Vermont, the campus encountered little disruption the final weekend of August. The only impact was the cancellation of exams on the morning after the storm. The Tucker Foundation mobilized volunteers to Vermont communities: College employees were permitted one day of paid leave to help with storm-related projects. The rain brought back memories of the last “big one” to hit the area, in 1938. The Rauner Library blog posted a special bulletin published by The Dartmouth on September 22 of that year that stated Convocation as well as mail service had been canceled due to the “wild confusion and destruction surrounding Hanover.” Fraternity brothers, meanwhile, sacrificed more than just their first day of classes, according to The D: “At a meeting of the Interfraternity Council today, it was unanimously decreed that all drinking in fraternity houses should cease until the resumption of power. The increased fire hazard is the reason.”

Eating Well
Grilled halibut or roast lamb? Those were the entrée choices offered to students when Thayer dining hall first served dinner in 1937. Fast-forward to today’s newly renovated Thayer, now called the Class of 1953 Commons, and the range of menu options has grown considerably. Students can choose from seven food stations. A new international food station will offer something different each week, such as Indian or Korean dishes. Along with the expanded menu, the Commons now has seating for 1,000, up by more than 300, and a possible new nickname: “53.”

Corps Value
A short documentary by film and media studies senior lecturer Jim Brown will highlight the Tucker Foundation’s November 15 celebration “Fifty Years of Dartmouth and the Peace Corps.” “What has surprised me is how serving has continued to affect their lives,” Brown says of the more than a dozen alumni volunteers he filmed.

Vibrant Vocalists
For the Dartmouth Aires’ September 26 debut on  The Sing-Off, an NBC singing contest for a cappella groups, the performers donned a whole new look: orange and green and brown—and stripes and plaid. “We always wear something that we feel comfortable in,” Clark Moore ’13, an Aires member, told The D. The singers also practiced more than nine hours a day to incorporate dancing and movement into their TV appearances. The show, which airs Monday nights, features a $200,000 cash prize and a Sony Music recording contract for the winner.

Lion Tamers
In 55 years of Ivy League play the Big Green has dominated Columbia more than any of its other opponents. Here, thanks to Big Green Alert blog, is Dartmouth’s historical record and winning percentage vs. each of its league opponents.