In the busy lives we lead at Dartmouth, it's easy to take things for granted and accept them as the norm. Between new freshmen, graduating seniors and off terms, many changes seem to go unnoticed and therefore unchallenged. As Dartmouth students we often get plenty of perks (for a $49,974 price tag) that students at other colleges don't enjoy. From beautiful new dorms and academic buildings, to $20 worth of Greenprint per term and unlimited access to rivers of Keystone and fields of gorf, I'd say we're living the high life in Hanover. I know everyone is freaking out about budget cuts, but if there is anything I've learned in my years at Dartmouth, it's that while a lot may change, some things never will. Maybe the Hop will have shorter hours and maybe the school will do away with the "Take Your Professor To Lunch" program, but fear not, fellow students these next few things have staying power.
Difficulty getting into classes: The College has suggested that one way to recover from our budget crisis could be to increase the size of incoming classes, possibly with the Class of 2014. This is a terrible idea for so many reasons, one of the most important being that class sizes will increase while the number of professors will, at best, remain the same. I'm sure many of you feel my pain when I say I have been refused entry into countless classes since coming here. While government and economics classes are notoriously difficult to get into, there are other less common majors that have notoriously easy classes that are equally difficult to get into. Basically, the problem is across the board and always has been. I probably should finally declare a double major, even if it's my last term taking classes, regardless of whether or not I actually plan on completing it. By declaring a major you automatically increase your enrollment priority, giving you an edge over clueless youngsters and desperate seniors. Trust me, by your final term, "Clapping for Credit" and "Music and Technology" are bound to be on the top of your list to complete distributives or get in that final A.
Greenprint: In Fall 2009, every student's automatic Greenprint allocation decreased from $40 to $20, and with more cuts to come, our allocations could easily be cut completely. Not cool! Between my goverment seminar with no books on the syllabus and the PowerPoint printouts of my econ notes, I'm going to be using a ton of Greenprint this term. The system may start charging more, but I don't think campus-wide printing will ever be in danger. Also a tip while I haven't really ventured to Sudikoff since my CS2 class sophomore winter or Thayer Engineering School since my freshman writing seminar, rumor has it that there is free printing in both of these buildings just found my new study spots! Housing: It seems that the most noticeable cuts relating to our residential experiences may be reduced staff in dorms, including UGA's and custodial staff. For most of us, I don't think this will have much of an impact on our treasured Dartmouth Experience. Despite loving my wiser-than-his-years '07 UGA on my freshman floor what up Sussel Rage! I can't think of any really useful reasons for having a UGA beyond freshman year. As for custodians, I've been lucky enough to have a private bathroom or half-bath in five of my seven dorms, so I feel like I wasn't exposed to the situations custodians dread like communal bathrooms or high traffic hallways (especially on the first floor of MidMass). As a non-believer in Dartmouth's UGA and residential advisor system post freshman year, I generally feel that our lives won't be affected much by budget cuts in the dorms. However, I would like to thank ORL for picking up the tab after my three suitemates and I managed to cause thousands of dollars in damage in Mid Mass thanks to busted pipe incident in our private bathroom that flooded a room in the basement, but that's another story!
Social Life: Since my freshman year Zete has left and returned, Lone Pine became One Wheelock (open bar tonight!) but generally Dartmouth's social scene hasn't changed in decades. I'm fairly confident that both Greek and non-Greek social options will remain largely unaffected by budget cuts. Dartmouth's Greek social scene is primarily funded by student-paid "slush" funds and house dues that allow the rest of campus to drink for free and party in their basements. Non-Greek and society social options include concerts, parties and events run through Programming Board, Friday Night Rock and other COSO organizations which are funded by the $80 student activities fee that every student pays each term, which are largely unaffected by budget cuts. Rage on.
Staying warm: To reduce energy costs, there could be mild reductions in heating provided to buildings. While many students already support this as a way to reduce Dartmouth's carbon emissions and increase sustainability, I have a far better reason to support a chillier campus. I propose that campus invest in a single piece of fabric that hadn't quite entered the scene my freshman year as I made the torturous transition from New Orleans "winter" to Hanover well you know. I have one word for you: Snuggies. Can you imagine how amazing it would be to see Snuggies in the classroom?! Let's be honest, most Dartmouth students would rather wear flair than be fashionable, so why not add this to your wardrobe? Ok, so maybe the administration will continue to heat buildings, but I may invest in a Snuggie "just in case."
