Welcome to the woods! My name is Matt Catrambone and I'm super excited to be joining the People, Places, Pines team as a new blogger. As of now, I am majoring in biology and quantitative social science (QSS), but who knows where I will end up! I will be sharing my journey as I try out classes, activities and research opportunities in various departments. Outside of the classroom, I like to listen to music, hike, ski and explore the surrounding area with my friends. Nice to meet you all!
Coming in with very little programming experience, I was pleasantly surprised by the beginner-friendly nature of this course. Although a very fast-paced course, CS1 gave me the academic confidence I needed my freshman fall. I was able to code games, maps and drawings all in 10 weeks, always surrounded by help from Vasanta (our lovely professor) and over 20 teaching assistants. I also made some close friends through the course, so I would highly, highly recommend it to anyone.
This has been my favorite class at Dartmouth thus far. Co-taught by a married couple, the introductory course fostered a challenging, yet welcoming environment for mainly first-year students. After learning about basics in epidemiology, immunology, microbiology and statistics, we dedicated entire lectures to specifically learn about over ten infectious diseases. I particularly enjoyed understanding treatment methods (vaccine, drug discovery, prevention) from both the scientific and epidemiological points-of-view, and the connections we made to current events. Now, I can confidently contribute to conversations about topics I used to be intimidated of.
A field that is often dominated by buzzwords and fear-mongering headlines, global health is a fascinating field that I was initially hesitant to engage with. And I'm so happy I did. Anne Sosin as a lovely professor who prioritized engagement and curiosity. Through weekly discussion posts, diverse sets of readings, three papers and a case study, we were able to explore four large areas of global health in conjunction with our interests. I focused on how rural health inequities connect to structural violence, colonialism, and biomedicine/technology advances. I was definitely one of the younger, less experienced students in the course, but the support was so accessible that I recommend this course to anyone interested!
After reading through my older blog posts, I realized I never highlighted one of my favorite involvements on campus – Dartmouth Model UN. As someone who has participated in similar debate conferences (Model Congress) in high school, DartMUN was something I identified in the first few weeks that I wanted to participate in. We've been working since October to provide a United Nations simulation for over 10 committees with representatives from about 30 different high schools!
I was a co-chair for the World Health Organization alongside another '26 and friend, Emi. Before the conference, we participated in weekly meetings where we selected our topics, (antimicrobial resistance and rural health disparities) practiced parliamentary procedure, drafted background guides that synthesized research for the delegates, and helped with conference logistics. It was very interesting to learn how these conferences work from the back end and see first-hand how much logistical organization is necessary. Not only am I much more appreciative of the chairs/administrators of conferences I've previously attended, but I am also amazed by how motivated Dartmouth students are to give back to organizations that have benefitted them. Many of us have engaged in MUN or a similar extracurricular in high school, so we all worked very hard to inspire and ignite growth in students who represent younger versions of ourselves.
The conference lasted from Friday night to Sunday afternoon with five committee sessions, a few staff meetings, a student panel, and a delegate dance. After the delegates offered their country's positions on the issues in the structured debate, they then worked together to form "blocs" and write resolutions to tackle these global health issues. They identified short-term solutions like mobile health units and improving retention of healthcare workers while also focusing on the long-term by combining country-specific education and research initiatives. We then tasked them with combining their five 'blocs' into two strong directives, encouraging the delegates to identify the most efficient and meaningful solutions to the problem. As someone who has learned about drug resistance in the classroom and participates in rural health research, I was able to broaden my scope on the issues with a newfound global perspective thanks to these inspiring, passionate high school students.
My co-chair, Emi, and I while delegates were writing their resolution papers!
In addition, chairing offered an opportunity to develop as a leader. As an admittedly non-confrontational person, I was tested to set boundaries with the delegates as to what was appropriate and what wasn't. On the other hand, I knew I had to manage expectations and ensure that the environment was welcoming for beginners and engaging for experienced delegates. I learned how to manage the group I was responsible for while responding to feedback from my co-chair and other administrative members of the club.
Overall, I enjoyed my experience as a chair much more than I expected, leaving the conference with fun memories and moments of personal growth. I hope to continue with the club next year, taking on new positions and responsibilities. I recommend it to anyone looking to expand their horizons on global issues and leadership abilities.
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!
