Hello there! My name is Joanna Jou, a '26 from El Paso, TX. I love Hanover sunsets, relaxing out on The Green, and Still North Matcha w/ honey + almond milk. I'm beyond stoked to have y'all follow along as I create my own version of Dartmouth!
Academic Program
Major in History; Double Minor in Government and Religion
A discussion-based class co-taught by two notable professors in the Russian and German translation/scholar community. We read a series of poems and short stories written by poets who lived under totalitarian regimes (specifically in Germany and the Soviet Union) while examining the role poetry played in communicating trauma and the living of life.
Coming in with no economics background, ECON 1 is an introductory class that explores how individuals and firms make independent choices, how it is reflected in the market place while analyzing it through consumer and producer perspectives, and exploring the theories involved in resource allocation and output determination. Taught by the amazing Dr. Ha Yan Lee, her dedication to the class and her students made me excited to come to her lectures, office hours, and to continue taking classes in the economics department.
As a freshman, we are required to complete a seminar course as part of our first-year writing sequence. With a variety of departments to choose from, I elected a course on the Green New Deal with the history department since I wanted to explore the department a little more. As a discussion-based class, the way Professor Link structured his course and how he led discussions undoubtedly became the highlight of my spring term; not only did I learn some history and improved my writing along the way, but it also encouraged me to pursue the history major (and more classes with him).
SummerEl Paso, TX
Back home for the summer in Texas as I spend time with my family, focus on my mental and physical well-being, and start a new role with the Admissions Office as an Admissions Communications Intern!
Initially taking this course to fulfill my distributive requirement, I ended up really enjoying ANTH 50.49. Although I am a self-proclaimed museum enthusiast, I didn't think to inquire about the development or evolution of museums, which is why I thought this course would also be interesting to take. Nevertheless, Professor Meredith Ferguson '08 did a lovely job in shedding light on various angles in the museum world such as its natural history, curating/conserving, "heritage", repatriation and restitution, and public trust. In addition, we wrapped up the course by finally thinking about the future of museums, and their representation in society today.
I initially took this course purely out of interest as I didn't have any prior experience with the government department. Nevertheless, Politics of the World is the reason why I've decided to pursue a government minor. Taught through a comparative lens, I quickly realized that much of my academics interests lie at the intersection between comparative politics and international relations; thus, this course served as an intellectually stimulating and enriching experience, which made it a highlight of my winter term.
Read up on my interview with Bill, a member of the Dartmouth Cords!
Tell me a quick introduction of yourself.
Bill: Hello, my name is Bill Zheng. I'm a '26 planning on studying Quantitative Social Science and Computer Science with a focus [potentially] in Environmental Studies; I'm a member of the a cappella group Dartmouth Cords.
Why did you decide to audition for a cappella, and what caught your attention for the Cords?
Bill: My brother is Brian Zheng; he's a '24, and he's on the Dartmouth Cords. When he first got into a cappella, I was very surprised. Both of us in high school did not have any singing experience; we just liked singing for fun and we have decent voices, but being part of a cappella was always one of his highlights of Dartmouth. I ended up choosing the Cords not solely because of my brother, but he was able to introduce me to a lot of the Cords throughout his past two years [and also right when I got on campus before auditions] so I knew a lot of the members even before auditions finished—I just felt a lot more familiar with them and seemed like a much more chill, fun, and relaxed environment while still having the musical background and [musical] talent that the Cords offered me. That family aspect is definitely an aspect to why I chose the Cords and along with being with my brother, which was a lot more comfortable for me. I do not regret my decision at all.
Can you tell me about your voice part in acapella and what that entails?
Bill: For most male a cappella groups, you have the lowest voice as bass part, then baritone, then tenor two, and tenor one [the highest voice part]. I primarily sing tenor two, sometimes tenor one, sometimes baritone, and never bass. In general, my vocal range is a bit higher than some of the other guys in the group.
How do you manage your time commitments with balancing a cappella, school work, and other time commitments?
Bill: A cappella rehearses three times a week for two hours each time, so six hours total. I go to all the rehearsals because I don't have time commitments during those slots, which I'm very grateful for. In order to balance all this, the time spent outside of rehearsal is more individual [learning your parts individually]; a lot of the time, you would spend a couple of hours [maybe one or two hours] a week learning your parts in a practice room with a piano. In terms of balancing it, I don't do too many other things [especially last term I was only in powerlifting] so I took it more chill in the fall, but now I'm ramping it up with more stuff like CS10 TAing (teaching assistant). Since everything is just starting, I don't know how my balancing will work out later as the term progresses. So, in order to stay on top of my things, I'm going to pay a lot more attention in rehearsal and make sure I get my voice parts down [in rehearsal] so I don't have to spend as much time outside practicing alone in the practice room.
This past winterim, the Cords went on tour. How was that experience?
Bill: The Cords and a lot of the other a cappella groups go on tour during winterim because we have a really long winterim anyways; and we get out of school before other schools get out, so we (the Cords) had a lot of socials with other colleges. For this 22 Winterim tour, the Cords went to the South, so we all met in North Carolina [Raleigh/Durham area] and drove down to Jacksonville, Florida and throughout the trip. The start of the tour was a lot more of socials with other a cappella groups. For example, we were at UNC [Chapel Hill] and Duke in North Carolina, and had socials with a few groups within those colleges. We didn't sing that much, but we did have one performance at Duke [very chill] kind of like a Christmas pop-up show, and then we would hang out with groups afterwards, so it was a very chill scene. Later down the tour [as we went down to Jacksonville], a lot of groups do paid shows to fund your tour and other expenses, so a lot of places will pay money to have you sing at their locations; we sang like 45 minute sets at those locations since we had a lot of songs prepared, and the locations were a lot more formal and very fun. We also stayed in our members' houses along the way since we have tour managers who both had houses near the area of the South, which was why that was our path, and to also hang out with the Cords and have fun on the trip.
What is your favorite part of being part of the Cords?
Bill: Learning new arrangements is actually pretty fun since I get to test my own skills, and putting it all together is always fun; but in general, I just think having a group you can go to [three times a week if not more] and having fun with them [I do not find rehearsals as a chore]. It's always very lively, energetic, and relaxing for me, and I love being able to go there, meet a group of guys, and make connections beyond just my grade level [a ton of the upperclassman Cords are my close friends]. The people and the community are definitely my favorite part, as well as performances—very fun, high energy [the Cords known for their high energy; we love all that]. Regardless of if you're soloing or not, you get the sense of the atmosphere and you put your soul into the songs, so I enjoy those aspects of the Cords.
What is one word you would use to describe the Cords?
I have written about being a student worker plenty of times in the past, but I have yet to talk about one of my favorite jobs ever: ticket selling at the Hopkins Center for the Arts.
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!
