Ei! My name is Antônio Jorge Medeiros Batista Silva (yes—four last names!) and I'm a '25 from Governador Valadares, Brazil. My journey to Dartmouth has crossed two continents, three countries, and over 10 schools—and I'm a strong believer that everyone's path to the Big Green was unique in a way. At Dartmouth, I study Linguistics, Native American & Indigenous Studies, and Spanish. I am passionate about social justice, language-learning, and the oxford comma!
This class is an introduction to the Spanish minor and major courses and, although I did not expect to particularly like it, it not only turned out to be my favourite but it made me start considering a degree in the department!
In this class, we analysed different productions of Latinx American theatre. Prof. Analola Santana was probably the best person I met this year at Dartmouth. Being her student was a very important experience as I try to navigate my potential majors and minors.
In this class, I was able to carve time out of my busy Dartmouth schedule to study and learn my Indigenous language: Krenak. With the help of Prof. Gokke, all students were encouraged to develop a final project that spoke to their community's needs for language learning and revitalisation. It was an extremely important class for me, not only academically, but also for my personal healing process.
I had the honour of spending my sophomore fall in Madrid, taking part in the Spanish FSP. There, Prof. Martín was not only a great professor, responsible for my favourite lecture of the program, but also an incredible company throughout our classes and in-country trips. Great way to wrap up my Spanish minor, honestly!
This was my second class in the NAIS department, and thus it took me one step closer to wrapping up my major. Nonetheless, it was Prof. Powell's genuine charisma and caring personality that made it my favourite of the term!
This course was definitely life changing! Prof. Pochedley, a visiting post-doc of the Potawatomi nation did a great job at keeping the students engaged while teaching us to see the land we inhabit as a source of knowledge and spirituality. In a majority Indigenous classroom, we got to develop individual projects related to our traditional homelands, learning to navigate the world through Native world lenses.
Prof. Gómez is one of those profs I've always wanted to take a class with. His work with the Horror genre in Modern Spanish literatures amazes me, and it was an honour to guide in-class discussions and develop my own research on the themes of science, testimony, and fear.
LING54 is an umbrella course: the actual content of the course may vary each year, but it is the common letter-number code to refer to the course taught abroad by your accompanying Dartmouth Linguistics professor. In this year's Linguistics Foreign Study Program (FSP), LING54 was a 'Language Documentation' class, wonderfully taught by Prof. David Peterson.
Before this class, I had no idea what visual and cultural studies actually encompassed. Every chat with Prof. Broner opened my eyes to a different analysis or method for interpreting literature, and for that, I feel truly lucky! We got to discuss films made by Indigenous women from all over Latin America, exposing the class to distinct ways of interacting with and stewarding the environment.
Hello from Hanover, NH! As you might know, between March 14th and 27th, Dartmouth students were sent away for Spring Break — also known as "springterim" around here, the interim time between Winter and Spring terms. However, not all of us actually left campus for this period. While many of my friends were posting pictures around the world — Miami, Punta Cana, Tulum, or just from home — I was here, in my dorm room. But no, this was not a problem at all!
Staying on campus has been a lot of fun, honestly. I chose to stay so my boyfriend and I could enjoy the beauty of the Dartmouth campus when empty. Since both of us had just returned from study abroad programs last Fall term, it is fair to say that we missed the Upper Valley. Although our original plan was to travel around New England, visit friends in Boston and New York, I'm happy we ended up just hanging out around Hanover.
Since I am still working on a research project, it was good to have the time and energy to focus on my work. I am honestly amazed to see how I managed to both chill and relax in preparation for the new term, but also grind on what I needed and be productive.
An unexpected visit from my aunt and cousin!
Some other highlights of my time here this break have also been just walking around campus! It's crazy to see how different Dartmouth can look when there is no one else around. Even though it's been a year and a half since I moved up here, I am still caught in awe of the amazing sights and views.
And, not only is our campus beautiful, but it is connected to the "real world" as well. Whenever I felt the need for a fresh breeze of city vibes, I took the public transportation to West Lebanon or White River Junction — the two closest cities to Hanover. There, I could go shopping, visit museums, and take a break from the bucolic sight of campus :)
In addition to blogging, I work as a Fellow for the Tucker Center, which focuses on promoting spiritual and ethical life on campus. As part of this role, I'm leading the Interfaith Alternative Spring Break Trip. Read on to learn more about my work!
Homecoming—a time when current students and alumni gather to relive cherished memories and exhibit large amounts of school spirit. Find out how I spent my second Homecoming Weekend at Dartmouth!
