Happy 2012 to my favorite men and women. Sorry there was no column last month—not a good time for me; I’m in the throes of selling my home. ’Nuf said!


Received a letter from Iris Yu ’14, who is a sophomore this year and recipient of the ’38 Scholarship Fund. She passes along the following: “Thank you very much for your contribution to my experience here at Dartmouth. As I’m sure you agree, Dartmouth is an amazing place, and being here has opened up so many opportunities for me. I had the great fortune to be in Berlin this summer as part of a Dartmouth language study abroad through the German department. One of the revelations I had was that my host family had been hosting students from Dartmouth for 15 years. I had an opportunity to backpack for two-and-a-half weeks with some of my fellow students through Prague, Paris, Madrid, Barcelona, with a quick stop in Zurich. I’m actually a biology major concentrating on cell biology. Dartmouth provided the opportunity to get funding while working in the lab. Normally, the kind of work I’m doing would be unpaid, but through Dartmouth’s funding from Howard Hughes Medical Institute, I’m able to get paid as much as I would at any other campus job, while doing research. I’m working in a research lab attempting to develop a substance that could be applied topically to inhibit, or even prevent, HIV infection when people are exposed to the disease. I’m a tutor through the Academic Clearinghouse and a member of the Dartmouth figure skating team, a club team that competes nationally. This year we hope to surpass our performance at last year’s Nationals—we came in second by 2.5 points—and reclaim the national title. I’m also part of an organization called Link Up that matches freshmen and sophomore women with upper-class mentors. My thanks again. If you want to ask any questions, please e-mail me at iris.g.yu14@dartmouth.edu.”


And your achievements still go on and on—and always will! Much love!


—Jean M. Francis, 29 Decorie Drive, Wilbraham, MA 01095; dartmouth3@verizon.net