The College is investigating two students following the alleged racial harassment of a group of Indigenous community members during an Indigenous Peoples’ Day event last fall. One of the students under investigation is Cooper Black ’26, a member of the Big Green men’s hockey team.
Black’s identity was verified by multiple eyewitnesses and independently verified by The Dartmouth. Despite confirmation that two students are under investigation, The Dartmouth could not confirm the identity of the second student. According to Felix Hedberg ’27, a Maya student who was present at the ceremony, Black was the “main instigator,” while the second, unidentified student participated in the alleged harassment to a lesser extent.
The two students have been the subjects of a more than six-month long Nondiscrimination and Anti-Harassment Policy investigation by the College’s Equal Opportunity, Accessibility and Title IX Office. The inquiry began after campus officials received reports that the pair allegedly made mock war cries and racially charged remarks during an Oct. 9 Midnight Drum Circle ceremony.
“I have been fully cooperative with the school-led investigation and I reserve any further comment until the completion of that investigation,” Black wrote in an email statement to The Dartmouth.
The NDAP investigation is currently “ongoing” but will be “wrapping up soon,” according to College President Sian Leah Beilock, who said in an April 3 interview with The Dartmouth that she has not been significantly involved in the process.
The duration of the College’s investigation has been “really upsetting” for some Indigenous community members, Hedberg said.
Earlier this month, Black signed an entry-level contract with the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League. The Dartmouth Sports and Dartmouth men’s hockey Instagram accounts congratulated Black on April 2.
Beilock said a student’s position on campus would not affect the College’s disciplinary process.
“Someone’s position in the institution should have no bearing on an investigation and an outcome, and I think that’s really important,” Beilock said.
Dartmouth Athletics director Mike Harrity did not respond to multiple requests for comment by time of publication.
An NHL representative wrote in an email statement that they “encourage anyone who believes they have experienced harassment to report it to the relevant authority.” The Florida Panthers did not respond to multiple requests for comment by time of publication.
The alleged disruption occurred at approximately 12 a.m. on Oct. 9 during the Midnight Drum Circle, a decades-old Indigenous Peoples’ Day event in which community members play drums and shout war cries, according to participants.
The noise serves a purpose, according to Hedberg.
“We make a lot of noise … to kind of symbolize the disruption that colonialism, and the harm that comes with that, have had on our communities,” she said.
Dartmouth’s relationship to the Indigenous community dates back to its founding in 1769, with its charter declaring the College “for the education and instruction of youth of the Indian tribes.” After graduating fewer than 20 Native American students in its first two centuries, Dartmouth rededicated itself to its founding mission in 1970 and established one of the country’s first Native American studies programs in 1972, according to the Dartmouth Admissions website.
According to Hedberg, approximately 100 community members attended the Drum Circle, including students, College staff and prospective Indigenous high school seniors visiting campus through the College’s annual Indigenous Fly-In Program — an admissions program through which Native American and Indigenous high school students can visit Dartmouth before applying.
Hedberg said the procession marched from the Native American House, through Baker-Berry Library and onto the Green. It was there, after crossing Wentworth Street onto the center of campus, that the group encountered Black and the unidentified student, she explained.
Walking toward the gathering from the opposite side of the Green, the pair began making “callings from across the yard,” according to a member of the Class of 2024 who attended the ceremony and requested anonymity to speak candidly about their experience.
“And then as we got closer, the yelling just didn’t stop, but I was able to hear more of what they said,” the student said. “And at first, it was like a mimic of … war hoops and war cries.”
According to the member of the Class of 2024, the alleged students then said, “‘Wow, there’s so many of you,’” and “‘Y’all are still here?’” Those comments led several members at the front of the Drum Circle procession — most of whom were upperclassmen — to yell in response for respect and quiet, they added.
The pair left the gathering soon thereafter, with the unidentified student escorting Black toward North Main Street in the direction of the Class of 1953 Commons, Hedberg said.
Students in attendance reported to The Dartmouth that they felt unsafe during and after the disruption. Hedberg characterized Black — who is listed on the Dartmouth hockey website as 6 feet 8 inches tall and 240 pounds — as a “big dude” whose stature would be imposing if the situation turned physical.
“I remember my eyes falling all over the Green because it’s like, ‘Is he going to come back?’” Hedberg said. “It’s like, ‘What else is going to happen?’”
The disruption caused several community members to feel “frustrated and upset and just on edge,” the member of the Class of 2024 said.
“I personally felt like I was in danger afterwards,” they said.
Koii Johnson-Jennings ’27, a member of the Quapaw, Choctaw and Sac and Fox tribes who was present at the ceremony, said people were “extremely upset” during and after the disruption.
“I would consider this a form of hate crime, especially in front of high school students who are considering Dartmouth as their option, and in front of an elder who was performing the drum,” Johnson-Jennings said.
According to the Department of Justice, a hate crime at the federal level is “a crime motivated by bias against race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or disability.”
Hedberg said that it was a “heavy burden” to know that the incident was the first impression many Indigenous high schoolers would have of the College.
Once the Drum Circle concluded, Hedberg said community members returned to the Native American House, where some discussed the incident with each other. Community members also conducted a smudging ceremony — a ritual that involves the burning of herbs such as sage and sweetgrass — to “cleanse … negative energy,” Johnson-Jennings added.
That same day, senior vice president and senior diversity officer Shontay Delalue and Dean of the College Scott Brown wrote in a campus-wide email that the incident was “being investigated under Dartmouth policy.”
“We have been in touch with student, staff, faculty and alumni leadership of Dartmouth’s Native American community organizations to express our grave concern over what happened and to provide support,” Delalue and Scott wrote.
EOATIX vice president Sarah Harebo wrote in an email statement to The Dartmouth that her office “handle[s] investigations involving accusations of discrimination.”
“All EOATIX investigations follow strict, thorough protocols to ensure the integrity, accuracy and fairness of the process,” Harebo wrote. “The number of complainants or respondents involved can impact the length of the investigative and resolution process.”
If students are found responsible by an NDAP investigation, they can then appeal that ruling back to EOATIX. If that measure fails, students can then plead their case to the Committee on Standards, an administrative arm of the Office of Community Standards and Accountability that handles “egregious behavior whose sanctions may include terms of suspension or separation,” according to its website.
Johnson-Jennings said he was frustrated by the College’s timeline, considering the number of people who were present during the incident.
“It just feels so strange that it’s taken so long for something so many people have witnessed,” he said.
Hedberg — who characterized the incident as racist — said she was “really disappointed” that the community had to witness a disruption of an event that was considered “sacred” to them.
“It was kind of disheartening to see this happen at a school that I was so excited to attend,” Hedberg said. “This is the beginning of my freshman year. This is my first Indigenous Peoples’ Day as a Dartmouth student.”
