Caroline York

Getting to Know my Dartmouth Greece Study Abroad Professors

My Greece Foreign Study Program (FSP) is led by two wonderful professors and one Director's Assistant, Jamie Tatum. Professor Paul Christesen '88 is a Dartmouth Professor of Ancient Greek History, and Professor Daphne Martin is a Visiting Assistant Professor for this term, bringing with her a wealth of knowledge! I sat down with all three of them to learn more about them!

Professor Christesen:

1. Can you start by telling me about your favorite Dartmouth undergraduate memory?  

I would say that the thing that most lingers with me is sitting in my mentor's office, Professor Rutter. He and I spent a lot of afternoons sitting in his office talking about Greek archaeology together. At the time, I didn't appreciate that he was a world-famous scholar who was taking hours out of his day to talk to me. At the time, I enjoyed it, and in retrospect, I realized what an extraordinary gift it was.  

2. What was your specific major, and did you ever get to teach alongside Rutter?  

I majored in both History and Classical Studies. We taught two or three courses together. That was great—it was a real treat for me.  

3. Can you talk about your favorite class that you teach?  

It's like asking which is my favorite child—I don't know! Honestly, I enjoy them all in different ways. I teach the big intro class (CLST 1: Antiquity Today) intermittently, which has 150 non-Classics students in it. I really like working with those students because they don't know anything about anything, and that's great. It's super interesting to introduce them to all this material. I teach the GIS course (CLST 12.04: Mapping Ancient Greece: Pausanias, Digital Humanities, and GIS) intermittently—I really like that, too, because it's all new for the students. Greek history is my bread and butter, so I love teaching that. I actually really enjoy teaching Greek and Latin. I find teaching Latin 1-3 really fun because it's just very straightforward—there's a textbook, and it's like: today we'll do chapter one, tomorrow chapter two. You can just go in and say, "Let's do chapter two today." I find the whole thing enormously fun.  

5. Can you briefly talk about your research?  

I've been working on this big project for the last decade: the Oxford History of the Archaic Greek World, which is a series of studies of individual communities in various parts of the Greek world between roughly 700 and 480 BCE. We're about three-quarters of the way done. It'll be 1.5 million words when it's done, so it's a very large-scale project. I got to meet many really interesting scholars through this project. As part of that, I'm co-authoring a book on Sparta. Most of my work these days is either editing that project or writing on Sparta. 

(A side note: our FSP traveled to Sparta, which was such a treat because Professor Christesen knew so much!)

6. What would you say to prospective students considering Dartmouth?  

You have to know what it is you want at the institution. Dartmouth was built in a rural area on purpose. That can be a plus or a minus, depending on who you are. That said, having taught at a number of different places, if you're an undergraduate who doesn't come in with a super clear idea of what you want to do, Dartmouth is one of the best places in the world to be. If you know you want to be an astrophysicist and want to start graduate-level coursework as a junior, Dartmouth might not be the place for you. But that describes maybe 2% of undergraduates.  The charm of Dartmouth is that there's a strong emphasis on teaching. I taught at another institution for a long time, and the people there care about their students and work hard. However, because they have graduate students, there are only so many hours in the day. Faculty spend their time primarily with the graduate students, so undergraduates see less of the actual faculty. At Dartmouth, there aren't many graduate students, so the faculty has more time for undergraduates. It goes back to Professor Rutter spending time chatting with me as a student. That opportunity is enormously valuable. It's also a very well-resourced place, and being in a small town has its charms. Everyone knows each other. Classes are small. There's a real sense of community that you don't get at bigger institutions. So if you can be happy in a small town, it's a great place to be.  

8. What is your overall favorite Dartmouth memory as a professor?  

I would say that one of my favorite parts of Dartmouth is seeing my former students, 10 or 15 years out, who've really come into themselves. They've become valuable members of their communities, found purpose, and grown so much. To see that full development is enormously gratifying. I had a former student from one of the FSPs who recently returned—she was teaching a design course at Dartmouth. She founded a company that helps people with gastrointestinal issues manage their diet and care long-term. Seeing someone build something meaningful like that—after having known them when they were figuring themselves out—is just incredibly rewarding.  

9. Any fun Classics facts that you want to share?  

The Greeks didn't call themselves Greeks. They called themselves Hellenes!

Professor Martin and Professor Christesen lecture students at Olympia.

Professor Martin

What initially drew you to teach at Dartmouth this term?

I didn't have anything like the FSP in my own undergraduate experience—I was extremely excited about the idea that Dartmouth students have the opportunity to live and learn in Greece as part of their studies and couldn't turn down the chance to contribute to this as an instructor. It's truly unique that essentially the entire group of students from a variety of backgrounds and two Dartmouth professors get to travel to these incredible sites. I was inspired by the opportunity to teach students on the ground at the major sites and museums of Greece and Italy.

1. In your mind, what makes Dartmouth stand apart from other schools?

Dartmouth's extensive array of FSPs means that students have the opportunity to explore and deepen their interests, not just in the classroom at Hanover but around the globe! What strikes me is how tight-knit and dynamic the Dartmouth community continues to be, both on campus and while abroad. This really makes Dartmouth stand out in my mind.

2. Can you talk about how your background and area of research have applied to this trip?

I have more than 8 years of experience excavating in Greece in Italy, have work experience at major museums in Greece, and I also founded and directed a cultural heritage initiative focused on providing free cultural walks in Sparta, Greece, my hometown, while I was an undergraduate myself. The Dartmouth FSP really allows me to bring in my archaeological experiences while we visit sites where I have worked (like Sparta and Selinunte) while also providing the opportunity to bring up themes relating to the politics of heritage in modern Greece and Italy, another area of scholarly interest for me. Speaking fluent modern Greek has been a huge help; I've hugely enjoyed watching the students improve their modern Greek as well during our time on the program and slowly feel more and more at home in the country!

3. How has it been working with Professor Christesen and Dartmouth students?

I have enjoyed every minute of co-teaching with Professor Christesen - who is a mentor for me, having done this program himself as a Dartmouth undergraduate and now teaching it for over two decades later. I have also loved getting to know the Dartmouth students. I appreciate, in particular, the intellectual curiosity with which my students approach each day - the questions they ask have gotten me thinking about familiar sites and objects in entirely new ways! I have found that this group, in particular, is adventurous in spirit and not afraid to try new things. To put it simply, it's been a delight.

4. What would you say to prospective students who are interested in Dartmouth's study abroad opportunities?

I think that any prospective student considering Dartmouth should take into account the fantastic opportunities offered by the FSPs. Dartmouth's D-Plan gives you the flexibility to craft your own schedule and actively encourages studying abroad to be part of that. Learning from Dartmouth professors alongside your peers while tracing the footsteps of history in person in the field is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience!

Jamie Tatum: 

I majored in Classical Archaeology at Dartmouth, graduating in 2023. Before this program, I applied for the James B. Reynolds Scholarship for Foreign Study, which I received based on my experience on my Classics FSP back in 2022. That experience gave me both the skills and confidence to pursue graduate study abroad, which I saw as an irreplaceable opportunity. The scholarship provided me with $25,000 toward my Master's in Cultural Heritage. 

Dartmouth also helped fund my archaeological dig at the Athens Agora through the Reid/Wenke Scholarship from the Classics Department.