The Four Horsemen of the Dartmouth Apocalypse

To the dismay of many bright-eyed sophomores looking forward to a summer of complete inebriation while also escaping the realities of life that loom ahead of them during their junior year, the exciting and highly-anticipated sophomore summer has been moved online. For those expecting a swift return to the typical Dartmouth experience, this was the first horseman of the coronavirus apocalypse, signaling that it may be longer than expected before things carry on as usual.

Sophomore summer may not be the only cherished milestone of the Dartmouth experience at risk of cancellation. On April 21, 2020, the DOC First-Year Trips directorate sent out an email to potential Trips volunteers, informing them that application reviews will be delayed due to the current situation surrounding coronavirus. No volunteer selections have been made thus far, and the entirety of a traditionally-run Trips for the incoming ‘24s seems to be in jeopardy due to the coronavirus quarantine. 

The cancellation of Trips would be a huge blow to both incoming ‘24s and the many volunteers who devote countless hours to the endeavor, as serving on the trips directorate is no small feat. Traditionally, the senior directors will take the entirety of the spring term off in order to plan for Trips the coming summer. Trips directors live, breathe, and sleep Trips during the latter half of their senior year.

Serving as a Trips volunteer is no small feat, either. Volunteer applications are taken very seriously, and serving as a Trips leader is a heavily sought after position as a Dartmouth undergraduate student. Once selected, volunteers go through roughly sixteen hours of training, including first aid and CPR certification, mental health training, and general Trips training. This laborious effort culminates when Trip leaders lead a group of “Trippees” on one of the numerous activities in the Dartmouth wilderness. The fun, three-day excursion filled with dancing, digging holes for defecation, and Cabot cheese serves as a memorable welcome for incoming students, a chance to bond with future peers, and an avenue to learn more about the Dartmouth experience. 

Given that the summer term—which runs from June to August—has already been moved to a remote format, it seems unlikely that Trips will proceed as scheduled in late August and early September.

Although the directors have yet to receive an official verdict from the College on the state of Trips, they are currently in the process of “adapting to the most likely circumstances [and] evaluating options for welcoming the ’24s.” The Trips directors are clearly very competent people, and are handling the situation with significant foresight, as they see that the cancellation of in-person classes during the summer does not bode well for Trips to run as planned. 

The writing is on the wall, and the second horseman of the apocalypse is right around the corner: the beloved First-Year Trips may be cancelled, or at least mutilated beyond recognition after serious adaptation to accommodate the spread of coronavirus. 

What tragedies may befall us next? The third and fourth horsemen seem sure to follow. I would not be surprised if all foreign study programs during the fall, or even the entirety of fall term itself may be cancelled or moved online. Brace yourselves for a turbulent return to Dartmouth normalcy.