I'm Kalina, a '27 from Sofia, Bulgaria. I love books (I love reading and writing them), and I particularly love fantasy (i.e., I'm an expert on Middle Earth and Hogwarts studies). I'm equally fascinated by the human brain and storytelling, and I often think about the importance of stories when trying to understand the human mind. I also love hiking, bird-watching, climbing, and em dashes.
Instead of taking a normal Writing 5 course, I decided to fulfill my first-year writing requirement by taking HUM 1. This course helped me strengthen my relationship to literature and writing. It changed the way in which I thought about classics, both books and movies (we saw Wall-E, by the way). And it also changed the way I thought about academic writing and literary criticism. A third of the course was made up of lectures by professors from different departments, while the other two thirds were discussions with a single professor and a small group of 15 students.
Intro to Neuroscience was the first course I was truly excited about. It wasn't an easy course; we had a weekly quiz of ten to thirteen questions covering the lectures from the past few days, but it was very interesting and also very funny (Professor Winter's humor is legendary). We learned about the human brain at the level of individual cells. We also studied it at the level of different systems, from the olfactory system to the parasympathetic nervous system. And last, we learned about cognition: learning, attention, language. We saw a real human brain with formaldehyde dripping from it. We saw a real sheep's brain. And a rat's brain. And we pocked each other with paper clips to determine the sensitivity of our touch receptors.
Journalism with Professor Alexis Jetter was an enjoyable class, sometimes challenging but very satisfying. We covered a lot of US history through the lens of the media, and we started every class with a discussion of the current news and events (thanks to these discussions, I feel like a real adult now—not so lost when the conversation turns toward politics). Several guest lecturers—from former students of Professor Jetter who're now journalists to a New York Times war correspondent—brought us real stories from the field. In the middle of the term, each of us had to find someone over 30 years old in the Upper Valley, spend a day with them, and write a profile.
SummerSofia, Bulgaria
I'm spending my first summer back home, helping my family care for my newborn sister. In my free time (changing diapers takes a lot of time!), I'm doing research for the cognitive neuroscience lab FINN Lab, preparing for my classes in the fall, and working on a new book.
Computational Neuroscience with Professor Richard Granger is a multidisciplinary course taught by a multidisciplinary professor and designed for multidisciplinary thinkers. The class covered brain anatomy and physiology and the biology of learning; it covered linear algebra and the architectures and characteristics of several neural networks. Last, we had a module on "brain engineering"—how some brain circuits function and how we can get inspired by them as engineers.
The first focus of Discrete Math for Computer Science was learning to think like a mathematician: how do we use logic to find proofs to problems and our solutions? Next, we learned how to apply this thinking in computer science contexts — how do you prove that a recursive program works? How do you prove what its run-time is going to be? These were the kind of skills we were building in preparation for the next course in the theoretical computer science sequence: Algorithms. Before we can build algorithms, we need to know how to think about the steps we need to take to solve problems with the rigor of mathematical logic.
This term I decided to venture out of my comfort zone and fill out of my distributive requirements with a government class. Taught by Professor Steven Simon, America and the Middle East was one of the most interesting classes I've taken at Dartmouth. The class covered the evolution of US foreign policy toward the Middle East from the early days of the Republic to modern times. The books and papers we were assigned to read for each class were complemented by Professor Simon's lectures (his storytelling style made his class one of the few classes with 2-hour-long lectures that keep my attention till the very end), and he shared fascinating anecdotes from his work and trips.
SummerHanover, NH
I am spending my sophomore summer on campus, doing full-time research at the FINN Lab (Functional Imaging and Naturalistic Neuroscience Lab). This summer I get to do a little bit of programming, stimuli writing, and data analysis and run a pilot study that will pave the way for a bigger neuro-imaging experiment. I am also serving as the house manager of Alpha Theta Gender Inclusive Greek House. I'm still deciding which is more challenging: navigating academia or the intricacies of taking care of an actual house. ;)
Molecular Neuroscience with Professor Michael Hoppa is one of my favorite classes in the Neuroscience major. Professor Hoppa wrapped every dense lecture on myriads of proteins, enzymes, synapses—you name it—in stories; he wanted to teach us who the scientists behind the discoveries were, how they approached their work, and what impactful science looks like.
Perspectives in Native American and Indigenous Studies with Professor Matt Hooley was a fantastic class. It focused on student creativity and authenticity, and the readings featured excellent contemporary authors who visited campus to talk to us. The writers Abigail Chabitnoy and Julian Brave NoiseCat, and the architect Christian Nakarado presented their work and answered our questions at the ReStoried Archives event at Dartmouth.
Resource Extraction and Indigenous Led Solutions with Professor Lydia Jennings was a continuation of my dive into the NAIS department. The curriculum covered a myriad of topics, from water and fishing rights to oil extraction. After studying each challenge, we learned about the solutions indigenous communities are working toward, often directly through guest speakers. Athlete-advocate Jordan Marie Daniel, Dartmouth alumna Abagail Burgess, and author Joseph Lee all shared their fascinating journeys with the class.
The behind-the-scenes of running a Greek house is sometimes a mystery even to the members of said house. I have been a member of Alpha Theta Gender Inclusive Greek House since my sophomore fall (first-year students are not allowed to rush houses), and for the next three terms (spring and fall of 2026 and winter of 2027), I will serve as the president of Alpha Theta. While I still do not know all the ins and outs of how all of the House's positions operate, I can tell you a bit about what it takes to keep a Greek house like ours running.
Before we dive in, if you're curious, you can read about my room in Alpha Theta (as a member, I can opt out of living at a dorm and live at my house, which is still considered on-campus housing)here. You can also read about my adventures as Alpha Theta's house manager (a position that requires you to fix broken things and focus on the cleanliness of the house) and about my meeting with some of Alpha Theta's recent alums last summerhere.
This is our house cat, Kurt, caught investigating the contents of a tea mug.
Dartmouth is home to many fraternities (all-male houses), sororities (all-female houses), and a couple of gender-inclusive houses, like Alpha Theta. Each house has different traditions and sometimes a different vernacular when it comes to house culture and politics, and while there might be similarities, my account is accurate only about Alpha Theta. Alpha Theta has been co-ed since the time when Dartmouth first started admitting women, and we try to be one of the alternative spaces on campus that welcomes everyone, regardless of their identity or nationality.
My house has five big executive positions—the president, the vice president, the house manager, the social (or risk) chair, and the treasurer. The most straightforward description of these roles (definitely not their full description) is that the president supports their executives and is the main touch point of communication between the college and the house. The vice president supports the president, deals with interpersonal issues within the house, and organizes housing (that is, who is going to live in the house). The house manager "keeps the house together physically, not emotionally"—this is a joke our house manager likes to tell. If something is broken, it's the house manager's job to fix it.
Our house manager's first challenge this term was to glue together a door that leads to members' bedrooms. Their second challenge was to fix our brand new washing machine that broke down yet again… It's fun to be a house manager.
The social chair deals with events at the house and makes sure that our open-to-campus events are properly registered with the college, and any risks that might be involved are mitigated. The treasurer has one of the most important positions because they need to keep track of the budget—"Do you treasure the house?" we jokingly ask newly elected treasurers.
Apart from these big five positions, Alpha Theta has numerous other positions that fulfill other needs of the house—there's a secretary, someone responsible for academic awesomeness (that's the term we use), for wellness, and for non-academic events (e.g., movie nights). As Alpha Theta's new president, I recently held a retreat for all of the executives to share their goals for the next year and learn how they can be supported and how they can better support everyone else on our executive team.
These are some of the excellent house members and house leaders I get to work with and live with this year. They are the main reason I love being an Alpha Thetian so much and decided to take on a leadership role.
Welcome back to Open Doors—your inside look at life in the Woods! This week, Isabelle Sullivan '26, an environmental studies and geography major, showed me around her room, where we discussed Dartmouth residence halls, classes, and campus life.
There was never a single "aha!" moment of clarity when I knew that Dartmouth was right for me, yet now, it is impossible for me to imagine having chosen anywhere else.
From a tight-knit study abroad cohort to intimate classroom moments and inspiring literary talks, French has grown far beyond a minor — becoming a thread that runs through the most meaningful parts of her Dartmouth life.
Green Key weekend at Dartmouth was filled with concerts, free food, live music, reunions, and spontaneous moments with friends. Read on to hear why this weekend reminded me what makes spring term at Dartmouth feel so special.
Amid the whirlwind of a ten-week term, the quietest moments — studying in the sun, cooking with a friend, running through Pine Park — turn out to be the ones worth savoring most.
