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.
As you may know, the Dartmouth quarter system leaves students with a lot of room for personal choices. You can practically choose what seasons you would rather spend at home, and which ones you'd like to be on campus for. There are four quarters per year, and — in theory — you would take at least one of these as a break, or an "off-term" as we call it. Typically, during their off-terms, students will decide between an internship, doing research, or whatever else comes to your mind. Due to the flexibility, one of the biggest pros of the quarter system is the ability to apply for internships out of the most competitive season (the summer!).
Moreover, typically students will spend at least one summer term on campus: their Sophomore Summer. This is an opportunity for you to come together with your class, bond, and enjoy Hanover's warm weather. But, as an international student, I wasn't sure I would be staying on campus this summer. Due to some constraints on our student visas, non-American citizens might have to undergo some bureaucracy to be able to take classes during their sophomore summer. Many of my friends decided to stay, some enrolled in class, and some just doing research and living near campus.
However, personally, I didn't see a reason to be here. Considering I'll be spending next year's winter term in New Zealand — meaning, their summer — I decided to keep my bathing suit in the drawer for a while longer. Instead, this summer I'll be in Brazil, my home country. There, I'll develop my project "Indigenous Language Support for Krenak Youth" with the help of the Davis Projects for Peace and the Dartmouth Dickey Center for International Understanding. Moreover, nearing the end of the term, I'll join the Endangered Languages Project as an intern. Even though I'll be far from many of my friends, I am still excited for this time away. Being home is always good, but especially when there's so much to do!
Next fall I'll be back, and I hope to see you then :)
As a Digital Media Student Director for Dartmouth's First-Generation Office, it is my role on campus to amplify first-gen voices, foster community, and create meaningful connections through creative outreach.
