Truth be told, this column has a habit of sneaking up on me, particularly at this time of year. Even though John MacManus and I have been handing-off this column for more than 25 years, which certainly lightens the load, it seems I just finish putting one of these to press when I’m back in the queue. And I’m sure for those of you with school-age kids (whatever ages), getting through May and June with end of school projects, exams, class parties, graduation ceremonies, performances, teacher appreciation, etc., just about wipes you out for the summer. (A friend of mine commented that she had just participated in her fifth “moving up” ceremony—and she only has three kids!) But I am not letting you guys off the hook that easily. When there is no classmate news, we are forced to fill in with local Hanover news, and that will only start getting really random—so please get in touch. Even just a quick status update will suffice (but please don’t expect us to patrol Facebook to retrieve it).


Here is an update from Eric Beinhocker. Formerly a partner at McKinsey and a senior fellow at the McKinsey Global Institute, Eric has recently become the director of the Institute for New Economic Thinking at the Oxford Martin School (yeah, that Oxford). This is a major interdisciplinary research center being established at the University of Oxford, intended to encourage fresh thinking in economics to mitigate global challenges, such as the creation of sustainable jobs and the wide-ranging challenges of development. Basically, an economic think tank with funding from George Soros (yeah, that Soros) so my guess is we will be hearing more from Eric and inet@oxford in the very near future.


Now back to the random news. Hardly a day goes by without some e-mail update from the College on the Hill. In summary: the class of 2012 bid adieu to Hanover with a “so long” from outgoing President Jim Yong Kim and encouragement from Teach for America founder Wendy Kopp to be “builders who slant the world toward yes”; the men’s rugby club won its second national title, and the women’s track team crowned Dartmouth’s first-ever female individual champion; Dr. Seuss is now overseeing the Geisel Medical School (“Are you a star-bellied Sneetch or a plain-bellied one?”); the Hanover Inn completed its renovation; and the trustees approved construction of a North Campus academic center. I am not really sure exactly where that is going to be located, but I assume some big space on campus where you will be able to find it once it is built. Stay tuned!


At the risk of repeating myself (which I am entirely entitled to do when there’s little other news), the 2011 Class Day speech by Charles Wheelan ’88 has been expanded into a small, hardcopy book titled 10 1/2 Things No Commencement Speaker Has Ever Said. It is a gem and I encourage you to get a copy. It is both entertaining and thought provoking, not just for college graduates but for anyone graduating through life. Regrettably, one of Charles’s insights, “It’s all borrowed time,” has proved to be all too true for one among us. I am sorry to inform you of the death of Jim Alex in a motorcycle accident on May 29. Jim had been living in Boston and running the Weston Center for Cosmetic Surgery. Please share your memories and thoughts on our webpage, www.dartmouth85.com. 


Enjoy and embrace every day of the journey, my friends—wherever the road may lead.


All the best to all of you!


—Leslie A. Davis Dahl, 83 Pecksland Road Greenwich, CT 06831; (203) 552-0070; dahlleslie@yahoo.com; John MacManus, 188 Ringwood Road, Rosemont, PA 19010; (610) 525-4541; slampong@aol.com