home > news_and_events >
Record Numbers Attend Scholar Luncheon
A record 196 attendees gathered in Alumni Hall for the 2008 Dartmouth Scholar Luncheon on October 17, an annual event that celebrates alumni's longstanding commitment to financial aid. For more than 235 years donors have funded scholarships at the College, making support for financial aid one of Dartmouth's most enduring traditions. A substantial portion of these gifts are made through the Dartmouth College Fund, which allotted nearly $12 million to financial aid in fiscal year 2008.
Among the luncheon speakers were President James Wright and Trevor Rees-Jones '73. President Wright and his wife, Susan, have annually endowed a DCF scholarship since 1999. Rees-Jones and his wife, Jan, recently made a $10 million gift to create scholarships for deserving students to attend Dartmouth. DCF scholar Eleni Stavrou '10, a neuroscience major from Washington Township, New Jersey, also spoke at the luncheon. Below is a transcript of her speech:
President and Mrs. Wright, Mr. Rees-Jones, alumni, and scholars,
At the commencement of this 2008 homecoming weekend, it is my privilege to welcome you home. Homecoming is an event that brings all of Dartmouth's children, both past and present, together in celebration of our college on the hill. At this scholarship luncheon, let us especially celebrate the people who made it possible for students like me to experience the tradition and perpetuate the legacy that is Dartmouth College.
There is something quite magical about Dartmouth: the multicolored leaves of fall, the calmness of Occom Pond, the abundant sparkling snow, the majesty of Baker Tower that looks down at our proud alma mater. We have all of these things in common by attending this incredible institution, yet the Dartmouth Experience has meant something different for every one of us. Through our unique experiences, Dartmouth has molded our lives, making us the individuals we are today. It is now my pleasure to share with you my Dartmouth experience.
On a cold November morning in 2005, I first met with my alumni interviewer, Mr. Harvey Weinberg. Throughout our conversation, Mr. Weinberg spoke with conviction and passion for his alma mater and shared with me his own Dartmouth experience. Hearing his story made me feel warmth in my heart that drastically contrasted with the coldness of the day—a phenomenon I still experience on even the chilliest days in Hanover. My dream of attending Dartmouth first became a reality as I walked out of Mr. Weinberg's home and envisioned myself stepping onto the Green of Dartmouth College. It was then that I knew I wanted to become a daughter of Dartmouth.
The anticipation of my first week at Dartmouth was shrouded with mystery as I learned I would be spending a week with complete strangers in the wilderness of the College Grant. To someone unfamiliar with Dartmouth, such a trip seems like anything but fun; yet for us, these DOC trips are the quintessence of a bonding experience. That is why this past spring break I embarked on yet another journey with eleven new strangers who quickly became my friends. With this Dartmouth group I volunteered for two weeks in New Orleans, aiding Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. I had not realized when I first volunteered that this trip would become one of the many life-changing experiences Dartmouth would offer me.
"I know that one day I will follow in your footsteps by contributing to a scholarship fund as an alumna, to provide students with the same extraordinary opportunities I was given."
In New Orleans, we helped with many facets of life affected by the hurricane. We picked oranges for a food bank, painted a new elementary school, and worked at an animal rescue shelter. The most disconcerting service project of the trip was when I served as the teacher's aid in a fourth-grade class. I remember tutoring a little girl named Demetrea. At the time I was wearing a Dartmouth sweatshirt. The young girl looked up at me and asked, "What is 'dart-mouth?'" I giggled and told her it was where my friends and I attend college. With a sparkle in her eye and spunk in her voice she replied, "I want to go to college; I want to go to Dartmouth." I left the school that day with a sense of helplessness. I had seen so many children like Demetrea who had such fervor for learning. But the inadequacy of their education system makes me fear for their futures. It is my heartfelt hope that my fellow classmates and I were able to instill a vision for learning in these young students, and that somehow they will attain the means to attend college. I know that one day I will follow in your footsteps by contributing to a scholarship fund as an alumna, to provide students with the same extraordinary opportunities I was given.
Over my sophomore summer I had the privilege of being trained as a Greek drill instructor by the exuberant and brilliant John Rassias. Snap, point, look! Who knew we could overcome language barriers with these three simple moves? I learned these highly efficient instructing methods, but more importantly I grasped onto the profound message of breaking cultural boundaries through the study of languages. I hope to break cultural and language barriers of my own this spring, when I embark on a three-month intellectual excursion to Morocco as part of the Foreign Study Program in Asian and Middle Eastern Studies. There I will learn colloquial Arabic and study the economic and government policies of Northern African nations. It fills me with excitement thinking about this experience; one that is only made possible by people like you who continuously support my intellectual growth. I look forward to representing our beloved Dartmouth overseas; an institution that opens our minds and broadens our horizons, ultimately making us more complete individuals.
I will leave you with an incident that stands out as a poignant marker of my Dartmouth experience. In October of 2007, Dean Pfister wrote to my parents, "I was once again reminded of how great a student [Eleni] is and how lucky Dartmouth is to have her here..." As I speak to you today, Dean Pfister's remark resonates with me, but in the reverse: How lucky I am to be at Dartmouth, how lucky I am to be sharing my experience with you, the alumni of our alma mater. Thank you for making the Dartmouth Experience possible for all of the scholars seated here with you today and those beyond these doors. We promise to continue the trailblazing achievements of the Dartmouth sons and daughters who went before us and leave a legacy for future classes to look up to. You have bestowed on us one of the greatest gifts of our lives. And for that, on behalf of the scholarship recipients and myself, I extend our eternal gratitude.
RSS Feed