Traditions & Customs | Dartmouth Folklore Archive

General Information about Item:

Informant Data:

Sean is a class of 2025 Dartmouth student. He was born and raised in Seattle, Washington. While not spending time in the classroom, Sean plays football for the Big Green. While at home in Seattle, Sean likes to spend time outside with his friends. Only being here for one term, Sean does not know what he wants to do after college.

Contextual Data:

Cultural Context: The first-year freshman trips are outdoor orientations programs led by returning students. They happen every fall – with exception to last year because of the pandemic. Sean was concerned coming into Dartmouth as he moved across the country to a school where he didn’t know anybody. Therefore, he decided it was best for him to gain friends through this program.
Social Context: Coming into Dartmouth, students do not know much about the school and its surrounding nature. To expose it to them, returning students take the freshman on trips so that they can build relationships for their four years as undergrads. Sean did not know what to expect going into it, but he was happy that he experienced the trip.

Item:

The Dartmouth Outing Club, or DOC for short, hosts several outings for incoming undergraduate students. Prior to coming to the school, Sean received a survey asking for his trip preferences. “There were many options… hiking, climbing, and mountain biking to horse riding, farming, and cabin-camping” he said while describing the process. Sean considered himself as outdoorsy throughout high school; so, he picked hiking as his first choice. Attached below is a picture that Sean took at the top of his Mount Moosilauke summit. He had this to say about the hike – “this was the most rewarding hike out of the few that we did because it was the hardest. We navigated to the top with no electronics and navigation… it was quite cool.”

Associated file:

Transcript:

“My freshman trip was fantastic – I strongly recommend that everyone should experience it. I was fortunate enough that the school brought them back this year after not having them last year because of Covid. I really enjoyed my hiking choice, but I also heard that mountain biking was super fun and thrilling. If I were to do it again, I would probably choose something more out of my comfort zone.”

Informant’s Comments:

Sean really enjoyed the trips and suggests that all incoming students go on them. It was a perfect transition from home to school.

Collector’s Comments:

I was unable to go on a trip due to conflicts with football. However, the team made changes since I was a freshman, and the players can now attend these trips. I wish I would have attended a trip because Sean really enjoyed it.

Collector’s Name: Ben Keeter

General Information about Item:

Informant Data:

Contextual Data:

Social Context: Many first-year students are often nervous about meeting their peers and upperclassmen trip leaders. There is often still an atmosphere of forced friendliness after the initial dinner on the green and journey to Leverone.
Cultural Context: First-year trips is a tradition-rich practice that is conducted every year for incoming freshman students. The program is run primarily by upperclass students (both trip leaders and Croo members), who utilize lore in the form of traditional songs, dances, and customs to welcome new students to campus and create a sense of community.

Item:

On the first night of trips, all first-year students from a single trip section camp together in Leverone Fieldhouse with their trip leaders. They depart early the following morning for their trip-specific destinations.

Transcript of Associated File:

“By the time you get to Leverone with your trip, it’s not quite as awkward anymore, because you’ve already done the icebreakers on the green. So now people are more familiar with the other kids on their trip and with their trip leaders, and a lot of times you’ll see them making friends with kids on other trips at Leverone when the entire section is together. My freshman year, we also got read a story by Dr. Suess, which I remember thinking was childish at the time, but now as a trip leader, it kind of makes me reflect on the importance of the traditions that we do on trips and how that’s similar to the way that Dartmouth in general holds its traditions so near and dear, even if some of them are kind of silly.”

Informant’s Comments:

The informant mentioned camping in Leverone as an important tradition that the trips program has continued for several years. According to him, the shared group bonding activities conducted at and directly before heading to Leverone – along with the uncertainty shared by first years about what the following day will look like – help create a shared bond among tripees and between trip leaders and their trippees.

Collector’s Comments:

The first night at Leverone is a way for first year students to meet other first years and trip leaders in their section that are not on their trip, and as such, is an important part of most students’ initial impression of life at Dartmouth.

Collector’s Name: Abhishek Bhargava

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