Greetings from the woods! My name is Gavin Fry, and I'm a student blogger with the People, Places, and Pines team. I'm a proud first-generation college student, carrying with me the full support of my crazy family. I plan to be involved with undergraduate research, outdoor activities, and club golf here at Dartmouth! You can find me geeking out about the weather, reading novels, and always drinking coffee (at any time of the day). So nice to meet you!
Academic Program
Prospective Environmental Earth Science Major with a Minor in Public Policy
Favorite Thing Right Now
My idea of starting a chapter of the American Meteorological Society (AMS) here at Dartmouth!
Oh. My. Goodness. What a fun class this was! As a certified weather and climate geek, I was totally entrenched in everything we done in this course. From the labs and weather presentations to the "flipped" classroom experience, I thoroughly enjoyed this class. Dr. Osterberg's excitement for the course material made it that much more enjoyable! It was truly an extraordinary first-year course to take.
I’ve loved this class from beginning to end. For one, I enjoyed it because of the people in it, but I also loved it because of the content. Through frequent class discussion, I learned about the health of our democracy and the ways it is compromised. Very enlightening class!
Religion 5 was a quintessential liberal arts course that deepened my knowledge in a subject I thought I had all figured out. As a STEM-oriented student, this class offered the perfect balance to my spring term schedule. As a result of this class, I became more introspective of how I was raised, and I'm more grateful in my ability to be a free-thinker.
SummerOff Campus Internship - Princeton, New Jersey
This summer, I explored my future career plans by participating in a research internship with the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory at Princeton University. I learned a lot about what I want (and what I don't want) in a future career, and I made so many awesome lifelong connections!
A course rooted in both philosophical theory and real, practical methods of becoming a better public speaker was the highlight of the term. Our class of 16 students grew to be a sort of "mini-family," and I'm so grateful for the connections I made. I completely changed the way I view public speaking and homed in on my own skills as a public speaker!
Once again, a course outside my major found its way into my favorite class list. This sociology course helped me better understand how children are viewed in society, the way sociologists study youth, and the major differences in norms around childhood around the world. Who knew there was so much to learn about youth culture!
There's always been a part of me that has been fascinated by snow and winter weather. Now, I'm from the south. Specifically, I'm from an area of the south that doesn't experience a whole lot of dynamic weather during the winter months. In fact, our "winter," if you could even call it one, is a mix of cold, wet rain and mud everywhere you look. There were many things I was looking forward to when I came back to Dartmouth's campus for winter term, but that child in me was still head-over-heels for the upcoming powder.
Of course, I've established on this blog that I'm a weather nerd. I had been looking at the forecasts for this snow event for quite some time leading up to it. Once I knew that snow was definitely going to find it's way onto campus, I knew I wanted to take advantage of such a gorgeous time of the year in Hanover. The thing about Dartmouth that I have yet to convey to you all is how encouraging it is to explore not only your academic niches, but specific hobbies as well!
I made the decision to rent one of Jones Media Center's high quality cameras to do some nature and snow photography the morning of the snow. My word did this bring me joy! I know you always hear about Dartmouth's beauty and whatnot, but this was on a different level. Not only was I able to take advantage of Dartmouth's resources, but I found myself genuinely happy that the staff supported and encouraged a novice photographer like myself to go out and have an adventure! So, I did.
This day was quite possibly my favorite of all time at Dartmouth. I started off by waking up fairly early in the morning to photograph the first snowflakes that fell. Afterwards, I went to my morning class and couldn't help but get distracted at the gorgeous scene right outside the window. Nevertheless, it put me in positive spirits, and I cranked right through my government class! Then, I went ALL across campus. From Occom Pond and the Dartmouth Green to the cemetery and beyond, I was captivated by what I was able to see. Don't take my word for it, have a look for yourself!
Hanover Graveyard coated with a blanket of snow!
The Dartmouth DOC house and some beautiful snowflakes
Blissful snowfall on Observatory Road!
Dartmouth is even more beautiful when blanketed by snow!
I just can't express to you how happy this day made me. I was able to be enveloped by something that I loved dearly and develop my hobby in such a beautiful atmosphere. Not to mention, at the end of the night, at midnight to be exact, Dartmouth held a "formal" snowball fight on the Green. It was absolutely amazing to witness and be a part of. I just don't think I could ever have an experience at another college like this night. It was beautiful: the nature, the people, the snow… all of it!
On Monday, April 8, 2024, a phenomenal total solar eclipse occurred — and we happened to be within the path of totality. As a result, Dartmouth hosted a variety of eclipse-related events on- and off-campus. Find out how I spent the eclipse!
