This editors' note is featured in the 2021 Commencement special issue.
To the Class of 2021,
You have seen the College transform, and now, you prepare to enter an ever-changing world. The social, political and ecological landscape has morphed in unpredictable and unprecedented ways over the course of your four-year education. You, the Class of 2021, are a class of resilience and brilliance — to say the least — and we’ve tried to capture the remarkable nature of your intellectual and athletic breadth in this year’s commencement issue.
Like the trees that blanket Dartmouth’s campus, you and your peers are diverse, bright and immensely wise. You have seen Dartmouth’s campus physically evolve — the construction of new buildings, the closing of Hanover restaurants — and you’ve experienced the trials, joys, discomforts and beauty of growing alongside it. In the past year alone, you’ve witnessed Dartmouth researchers bolster a record-breaking vaccine development, the expansion of efforts to combat racial injustice and the removal (and subsequent reinstatement) of sports teams on campus. You’ve spent the last four years watching, wondering and weathering storms; now you enter a vastly changed world.
You, the Class of 2021, are leaving the College on the Hill. But, like an American elm, your roots will remain deep in the soils of Dartmouth. We know you will extend your limbs and reach remarkable heights. You have stood your ground and now you’re ready to wow the world.
This one’s for you, ’21s — your presence will be greatly missed, but we’ll be cheering you on from your Hanover home as you seek new ones all around the world.
Congratulations, Class of 2021!
Soleil Gaylord ’22 & Meghan Powers ’23
