On Monday, First-Year Trips Program director Jack Kreisler ’22 and associate director Brandon Zhou ’22 announced the 20 new members of the 2022 First-Year Trips directorate in an email to the Dartmouth Outing Club.
Kreisler said that the application process began at the start of the term and that one of his goals for the directorate was to make it reflective of the diverse backgrounds of the Dartmouth community.
“We tried to connect with different communities and organizations at Dartmouth to promote the application,” Kreisler said.
First-Year Trips staff advisor Kellen Appleton ’20, who directed the program last year, added that Kreisler and Zhou made “concerted efforts” to ensure that the messaging around the application was inclusive. In particular, Appleton said that they wanted to make it clear that directorate spots were open to anyone who wanted to make a positive impact on campus, not just people who were already involved with the DOC.
“There isn’t a pipeline for getting into this,” Appleton said. “If you want Dartmouth to be a more welcoming and inclusive place and want to create positive change for incoming students and returning students, then this is a good role for you.”
Kreisler said that one of his priorities for the next year is to give directorate members more freedom to make changes to the program, as well as emphasizing inclusivity.
“It’s finding the balance between working through some of our organizational priorities, but also leaving space for people to make their own marks on Trips,” he said.
Trip leader trainer Daniel Westphal ’23 said that after being a part of “Hanover Croo” — the Trips support team based on campus — last year, he was excited to become more involved in the Trips program. As a trip leader trainer, he said his job is to select trip leaders as well as to teach them the communication, risk management and health and safety skills they need to “lead a trip of people into the wilderness.”
“I applied for a few positions on directorate, and as I started my application to be a trip leader trainer, I kind of realized, ‘this is where my skill set would really thrive,’” he explained.
According to “Sklodj Croo” captain Madi Duhnoski ’23, who will head the team based at the the Dartmouth Skiway lodge, the application process included writing a cover letter to the director and associate director of the program explaining what she could contribute to the program.
“It’s a really personalized process,” Duhnoski said. “You just talk about what Trips means to you.”
Duhnoski said that she was inspired to apply for a directorate position after having positive experiences as a member of “Sklodj Croo” this past fall. She added that beginning in the spring, she and her co-captains will be working several hours a week to prepare for Trips in the fall.
“I just really want to make sure that all of the freshmen who come through the Sklodj, and the trip leaders as well, have a great time and feel very welcomed,” she said. “I also want to be a good leader for my crew and ensure that they’re having fun as well, because that’s what it’s really all about.”
Duhnoski added in an emailed statement that there are four “Lodj captains” in total, two for the ski lodge and two for the Moosilauke Ravine lodge, and that all will work closely together.
During trips last fall, the traditional culmination of Trips at the Moosilauke Ravine Lodge split participants between the Moosilauke Ravine Lodge and the lodge at the Dartmouth Skiway.
Westphal said that after an “awesome” first meeting with the directorate, he is looking forward to working with them over the next few terms.
“Everyone there is genuinely committed towards making First-Year Trips as welcoming and inclusive to the ’26s as possible,” he said.
Kreisler added that he was impressed by the new members of the directorate and also excited to work with them.
“I think this process has reinvigorated my love and excitement for Trips,” he said. “The people coming in to work on directorate have such wonderful visions and are going to make trips this year such a valuable experience.”
Appleton said that in her years of involvement with the Trips program, she has seen it become increasingly open and friendly, and she is excited to see that trend continue with this year’s directorate.
“One of the cool opportunities about Trips is that it involves so many people from across campus,” Appleton said. “If we can provide meaningful experiences for the upper level students who are leading Trips, I think that can be a really positive influence on Dartmouth culture as a whole.”
