Thank you so much, Cheryl [Bascomb], and good evening, everyone! Welcome home! It is wonderful to have everyone back on the Green; to welcome so many of our younger alumni for their reunion weekends; and of course, to celebrate what is an extraordinary milestone: forty years of DGALA! I especially want to thank Erik Ochsner [’93, DGALA President], Kevin Perry [’04, DGALA 40th Reunion Chair], and the many, many volunteers who came together to make this weekend happen. Can we give them a round of applause?
If there is one thing I have seen again and again in my first two years here … it is the tireless work that goes into building this tight-knit Dartmouth community. That does not just spring up overnight. It happens because class after class, generation after generation do the work: to welcome others in; to reach out across lines of difference; to make sure this is a place of inclusion and dignity for everyone who sets foot on our campus. And I can’t think of a more powerful
example than this DGALA community.
I don’t need to remind anyone that forty years ago, when DGALA first sought official recognition from the College … the idea was met with reluctance. And yet because of the dedication of those early pioneers like Ed Hermance, and Chuck Edwards, and Jim Gibb; because of Phil Hanlon and other leaders DGALA is honoring tonight; because of the ongoing work of so many of our students and alumni … we gather tonight at a very different moment.
A moment when DGALA is not just recognized as a part of this Dartmouth family — but is celebrated, welcomed, and valued as true partners in all we do. DGALA has been instrumental as we build the best Dartmouth we possibly can: regularly meeting with my senior leadership team; convening regional alumni gatherings; working with Triangle House to provide grants to students; and of course, collaborating with the Dartmouth College Fund for twenty-one years now, to provide scholarships to LGBTQIA+ students. In each of the past two fiscal years, DGALA members have generously funded five DGALA Scholars!
And even as we look at the remarkable work we’ve done together … we must also acknowledge this moment we’re in. We’re coming off a very eventful year, to say the least — not just for higher education, but for our country, our world. I know in LGBTQIA communities around the country, this is a moment of anxiety, even fear. I want to say very clearly to our Dartmouth family here tonight: We will always, always support our community members. We will not allow government overreach into our academic mission. And we will continue to protect and defend diversity in all forms on our campus — because we know a having a big tent and different perspectives makes ALL of us better.
That means continuing to be an inclusive campus and community — where everyone, no matter your gender identity or who you love, is valued and supported. That means continuing to provide comprehensive mental health support and gender-affirming care, as a core value — and we have an incredible team, led by our Chief Health and Wellness Officer, Dr. Estevan Garcia, who is here tonight … dedicated to doing exactly that.
And it means continuing to uphold our strict nondiscrimination policy — so that every student is provided with equal opportunities and support services.
Those values do not change no matter *who* is in office.
When we create that kind of inclusive community … it allows us to live up to our academic mission. It means we can bring exceptional young people to Hanover, from all different walks of life, so they can engage in civil discourse; teach them how to think, not what to think; and help shape them into the leaders that our world desperately needs right now. That is the mission we are doubling down on right now. That is what, together, we can achieve.
So let me offer a toast to 40 years of DGALA … to tonight’s honorees … and to our work continuing to build an inclusive community that makes us all better. Cheers!
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