Courtney Sherwood:: My name is Courtney Sherwood, I currently live in Portland, Oregon, and I’m a member of the Grinnell College Class of 2000.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Alright, great. So, first question is: Why did you come to Grinnell?
Courtney Sherwood:: I... My senior year of high school, I was... Basically my parents said: you can do anything, you can go to college, you don’t have to go to college, it’s up to you to explore. And so I got a book at the bookstore of like 300 best colleges in America, and 
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: I read that same book.
Courtney Sherwood:: Yeah. I think I had like 20 or 30 different colleges that I was interested in. And then I had various criteria, like co-ed, not huge, somewhere where it actually snowed, ’cause I like cold weather.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Where are you from?
Courtney Seltzer-Schultz:: I'm from the D.C area.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Okay. You might have mentioned that.
Courtney Sherwood:: My parents were living in Australia, although I was living in northern Virginia with my grandparents, and it was like, visiting them in Australia just sort of confirmed the fact that I didn’t want to be anywhere that was exclusively hot without cold. 
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Okay. Interesting.
Courtney Sherwood:: And then after I took the SAT (so it might have been even before my senior year), Grinnell started sending me stuff. And I mean, I was getting flyers from Macalester, which is north of Grinnell, and all of their pictures were of sunny days and people in shorts, and then I’m getting this stuff from Grinnell, and there were pictures of snow! And I was just like, yeah! Duh! This is like honesty!
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: That's so funny. Most people don't want to come here because of the weather.
Courtney Sherwood:: And then I visited. And I was such a weird high school kid. I went through this disco phase in high school, where I was wearing a lot of polyester and just being into disco. And so I visited, and I find out that there’s a party called Disco, and I find out there’s a party called Alice, and my best friend was going through her own weird Alice in Wonderland phase— and I’m like, oh my gosh! And I got to sit in on a Calculus class, and I was taking Calculus, and I was like, oh my gosh, I’m at this intellectual level, I can handle it. So it just seemed like it fit my size criteria, it fit the weather criteria, they wanted me, which was really nice.
Courtney Sherwood:: When I interviewed, the interviewer remembered my essay and asked me personal questions— which nobody else did.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Yeah. They actually make it personal, yeah. That's really cool.
Courtney Sherwood:: Yeah.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Do you remember your first memory of the campus or when you first arrived for NS-? You had NSO, right?
Courtney Sherwood:: Yeah, how do you know that? Oh, New Student Orientation! I was thinking of NSP, which is now GSP. I was in the New Science Project, actually. Yeah, so I don’t remember my very first moment. I know my dad came with me and we had a bunch of stuff. And like the first memory I have, but I’d already been there for a while, like at least half a day— it was getting late, and I go out in the hall and somebody had put candies- a string of candies down the hall that led to a door that said "Follow the candy to new friends", and I did!
Courtney Sherwood:: I followed the candy, I went in, and I’m still friends with a bunch of the people that had followed the candy. Some of them are here at this Reunion today.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Wow. That's so- that's funny.
Courtney Sherwood:: Yeah.
Erica Seltzer-Sherwood:: Was there a professor, student, or staff member—or a couple of them—who had particularly strong influence on you?
Courtney Sherwood:: Jo Calhoun, who doesn’t work here anymore, was in the administration—I think maybe academic advising—and I had a personal crisis where I ended up leaving midway through a semester because I wasn’t coping very well, and she was just amazing. My adviser wasn’t available, because of her own issues, to help me, and Jo did everything that an adviser does, and then everything a counselor does, and then everything a caring family member does. I mean, she was thinking of me, she knew I worked at the "S & B" and that it was a Thursday and that I would probably be there. 
Courtney Sherwood:: And I just remember her calling, and saying, “Hey how’s it going?” And I did have to leave, and then come back, but she made a huge difference at that moment in my life. 
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: This is kind of a big question, but what would you say were your best memories of your time at Grinnell?
Courtney Sherwood:: My best memories were probably working at the "S &amp B;", staying up way too late, obsessing over every little detail with other people who were equally crazy. And 50% of what we wanted was to get out the best possible paper, but 50% of what we wanted was to be just crazy, and have fun and do ridiculous things and not worry about anything else, so...
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Were you an editor too, or a writer?
Courtney Sherwood:: Yeah, I was a writer for two weeks my first year, and then I became news editor for two years- 
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Oh, wow.
Courtney Sherwood:: and then I was editor-in-chief for two years.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Oh my gosh. So, that's crazy. Wow.
Courtney Sherwood:: And I mean, it’s what I do for a living, I’m still a journalist.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Oh really. In Washington?
Courtney Sherwood:: In Portland.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Oh, Portland. Yeah, sorry.
Courtney Sherwood:: Right now I’m working at the Portland Business Journal, but I am hoping to go and start being an editor at a suburban daily newspaper outside the city pretty soon. 
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Oh, wow. That's really cool. What do you kind of remember most about the town of Grinnell?
Courtney Sherwood:: Summer after my freshman year I had a physics internship and I remember I lived in a house in town and I just remember the farmer’s market—discovering kettle corn, which you can buy in groceries stores now—but nobody knew what it was, nobody had ever heard of it and there was this couple that had a ginormous kettle. They cooked it and sold it and it was so good. I don’t know... I don’t like being extremely hot, but yet there’s something kind of fun about it at the same time—just being so hot that you can’t even sleep. You’re wearing nothing under a sheet with a fan blowing at you—in retrospect it’s a lot nicer than it is in the moment.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: How has Grinnell changed since you graduated?
Courtney Sherwood:: I’ve been thinking about that quite a lot, and I feel like there’s the really obvious stuff that everyone can harp on. There’s the new buildings. Oh gosh, kids have laptops instead of going to a lab or having desktop PCs. Oh, they have cell phones. But I mean, that’s just trappings—that’s external stuff. I think in a lot of ways the school is very much the same, and I don’t mean that in a bad way. I think the same learning is happening and the same conversation and there are still intellectually curious people coming here to figure out who they are, not always succeeding. And I think that’s a good thing.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: So, kind of along that line, do you feel like the students are pretty similar, or do you feel a difference at all in the student body?
Courtney Sherwood:: I’ve interacted with like five volunteers for the Alumni Weekend, but I think that there are a lot of similarities—the national and international issues that people are protesting are different, but I was here when Bill Clinton was reelected, and now this current group is here when Barack Obama was elected. The cultural surroundings are different: Bill Clinton had already been president for four years, he was like, considered this moderate, and it was like so disgusting in that he wasn’t liberal enough, versus Barack Obama,
Courtney Sherwood:: who in some ways, is probably politically fairly similar. But compared to Bush, to this campus, this hallelujah thing, I don’t even know if that’s really an answer to the question... But I think there’s still, you know, there’s students who are passionate about politics, there’s students who really don’t give a damn about the mechanics of politics but care deeply about the world and either want to make it better by helping individuals, or by changing institutions, and I don’t think that’s changed. And I think even though the circumstances of what they’re protesting are different, partly it’s ’cause they’ve made a difference. I mean, the sweatshop movement was huge when I was here. I’ve read that the national campus sweatshop movement
Courtney Sherwood:: has changed how clothes are manufactured around the world. That’s freaking awesome! So now I don’t know if it still even exists here. There’s other problems that students can focus on.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Did you like the, kind of, social and political culture at Grinnell when you were here?
Courtney Sherwood:: I would say that I was not personally engaged in it for the most part. I did do some volunteering, like through Alt Break. I was a witness to a lot of protests, more than a participant. But I really appreciated the fact that it was there. Sometimes, you know, I couldn’t get as passionate as the people who were leading an effort to make change, but I still really value the fact that they were doing that. And I think I value it even more now because I’m realizing it’s so hard to see if it’s going to matter, or if it’s going to make a difference,
Courtney Sherwood:: if just because someone says something rude or is willing to get arrested, but yeah, it does make a difference.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Do you have a favorite class or academic experience you remember from Grinnell? What was your major?
Courtney Sherwood:: I was an English major. I sort of was torn originally between English, Math, and Computer Science, and ultimately stuck with English because I wanted to graduate in four years and I lost a semester from my transcript by leaving in the middle of a term. So it was like, well, this is the one I have the most credits in. And, you know, I went into journalism so I don’t really think it matters what you major in, in journalism. But, favorite experience... I mean, I had a lot of fun talking about books in classrooms. I remember having to do a big project on Michael Ondaatje, the author of
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Do you have a favorite place on campus?
Courtney Sherwood:: I really like Bob’s Underground. I’m really eager to go back tonight and see how, if at all- I’m sure it’s different, but how. Younker Pit... I had friends living in Younker Pit every year that I was here. It was sort of a place- and I lived there for one year- it was always a place where I could go and have people I cared about and be comfortable, so that was nice.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: If you knew what you know now, what would you have done differently, if anything, in your time at Grinnell?
Courtney Sherwood:: I would have been more confident and less sad, depressed, but I mean that’s like, oh yeah magic wand! Gosh, yeah, exactly... I think I would have probably have talked to my professors more about my priorities. I always put the "S & B" first, and I was afraid to talk about it, and that meant that when I put it ahead of academics, I think there were times when I could’ve explained the situation and ended up rescheduling a due date, or you know... I think I probably... 
Courtney Sherwood:: I didn’t really care about grades when I was here, I knew then and I still know now that I don’t really have an interest in grad school, and I was here to learn and not to jump through hoops or impress anybody. But I think that maybe I would’ve jumped through a few more hoops. You know, actually try to actually care about grades a little bit. It does reflect how some people view how you do.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Yeah, I was on the paper in high school, and it was always like "The paper has to come first!" So, it's really hard.
Courtney Sherwood:: Yeah.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: This isn't a question, but just because you're so recent, what was your favorite all-campus party or event?
Courtney Sherwood:: All campus? Oh my gosh… Well, one year for Alice, a bunch of friends and I did acid and that was pretty crazy! That’s like, way awesome. I mean it was like, for 12 hours the world was a very magical place. I had the most incredible picnic blanket, and the lizard man was my friend. And I was having hallucinations but I didn’t totally lose touch. I mean I knew I’m on acid and that this isn’t real. I had that intellectual awareness but I was able to sort of let go of it and enjoy it at the same time and that’s not really something that I will probably ever have again and that’s okay, but it was an awesome day. 
Courtney Sherwood:: Oh yeah, and at the end of the day, like, as I’m still tripping—do they still have, like, the vampire people here? There’s these role-playing people who would dress as vampires and they had— they’d get points for sucking people’s blood, but you know, you can’t actually suck some stranger’s blood. So they’d go up to you and shake your hand, and that counts. So here I am, tripping, and we go outside and there’s like, ten people dressed up as vampires with capes walking around, talking silly, and “Can I shake your hand?” and that was just sort of like, “Okay, this is weird.” 
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: That's so funny because vampires are so big now because of Twilight.
Courtney Sherwood:: Yeah, yeah.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: If you were- This is kind a of a hard one. If you were writing a history of Grinnell College, what would you include from your years here? I mean some kind of event that you feel was...
Courtney Sherwood:: History of Grinnell College... I think it’s really... There was a huge movement that started in the ’90s before I was here, to increase the multicultural and especially African-American community, and also to create creative multicultural space, and I think it’s really interesting to see both how far the College has come and yet how far it still has to go. And I think that the time I was here was sort of a critical moment. Oh! Another thing was that I was here like the year the budget peaked, just as Russell K. Osgood was coming on board. And it was-
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: You guys had just, so much money.
Courtney Sherwood:: Oh my god! He was like- What did he..? He created some... fund for excellence. It was like, yeah, I mean it was like, "if you have any ideas for what we can do with the money, send us an application for the fund for excellence," and you could do anything!
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Yeah, I was just starting college when the economy crashed. I'm so jealous. You felt, really, like you could do- had a lot of opportunities.
Courtney Sherwood:: I mean, you had to like, write an essay and send it to the committee that would review it, but anyone- so, you know, they’re not just going to do stupid crap, but anyone who had any kind of reasonable idea, there was money for it. And that went for two years, and then they were like, "well, we still have a lot of money, but maybe we shouldn’t just..."
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: "Let's build new buidlings."
Courtney Sherwood:: Yes, exactly.Oh! Oh! And he, Russell K. Osgood, gave a speech. What is the weekly... What is that Thursday speech called? Do you know what I'm talking about? I assume they still do it.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Oh, the convocation.
Courtney Sherwood:: He gave a convocation speech about his plan for the future of Grinnell. There was no master plan, or plan for construction or anything. He was like, "we’re going to introduce this and one of our top priorities is going to be the destruction of Norris Hall!" And that has still not happened! And I’m like, it’s never going to happen! It was a big lie!
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: People like Norris so much. But I was talking to- I was talking to an alum today, an older alum, and he's like, "I don't get why you needed a new swimming pool. I swam in your swimming pool and it's amazing. And now you're tearing it down and building a new one." It's kind of funny. He's like, "It's like tearing down the Taj Mahal and buidling something better." 
Courtney Sherwood:: I would disagree with that, but- So, people like Norris these days?
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Oh, yeah. I mean, it's not the popular dorm to live in on campus, 
Courtney Sherwood:: Yeah.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: but a lot of people who end up living there their first year, just never leave. 
Courtney Sherwood:: I was there my first year and it was- officially, I hated it. I was- I wanted to be on South Campus, ’cause that just seemed the place to be. But yeah, you totally, because you’re isolated, you’re not connected to a loggia, you’re in this weird dorm, you really do bond with the people on your floor in a way. And because it seems there’s- it seems like disproportionately first-years, at least it was then... Nobody who had a good room draw number would go there. 
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Yeah. There's some upperclassmen that just stay on. They actually had shirts that were like, "Norris Forever" shirts this year. But, I mean, I'm in it now for reunion- that's where they put all of us- and we have air conditioning and the shelving, and what's in the rooms are really great. They all have mirrors. They all have really nice closets. So, it's interesting. You wouldn't think of it as nice, but I actually appreciate it.
Courtney Sherwood:: I remember one time, one of the things that my friends and I liked to do was deconstruct our rooms to see what might be hidden there. We dropped down ceilings in Norris, and I remember going into the ceiling and there was- someone had put a giant tree branch and we took apart our shelving unit, ‘cause it's like built-into-the-wall black stuff, and there’s areas where it's closed off, and there's a Pepsi can made out of tin, like from the ‘50s, inside of this shelving unit. And yeah, a friend in Gates Hall removed a panel and found these candles- dozens of candles that had been melted, and it was like a shrine to Elvis, in the panel in his room. Yeah, if you haven’t done this, you should look for weird crap!
Courtney Sherwood:: So I have a question, even though I’m not supposed to be asking questions. I’ve been wondering about- When I was here the, not at all true, but nonetheless stereotype, was: North Campus is jocks, South Campus is hippies, so what is East Campus? Has it found its stereotype? 
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: East campus is like- Well, stereotypically-
Courtney Sherwood:: I mean not for real-
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: It's the place where no one wants to live. Because, even though the dorms are beautiful- I don't know if you've ever been in there. The facilities are amazing- People really see it as not much community and the doors automatically close. You can't prop them open. So, people feel like it's really...
Courtney Sherwood:: You can't prop your dorm room door open?
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: No, they swing closed. I mean, you could probably prop it open- 
Courtney Sherwood:: But you have to go through an effort.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Some people really like it if they want really quiet, kind of nice space. But, otherwise, East is- It's kinda funny. It's not 'the place' to live at all. And yes, definitely, the stereotypes hold true about North and South campus and it's funny because my mom was here in the- She graduated in '81, and when she was- when I got my first year dorm in Younker, she- you know- she brought stuff up and I'm like, "Mom, you went to college forever ago," and then I ended up being on the first floor and would be witnessing basketball parties first semester, you know what I mean? You know, I kind of finally have- I ended up being in Smith this year because I'm an SA and 
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: I don't have a lot of options, but I'm moving to South Campus, and that's desfinitely where I will probably stay.
Courtney Sherwood:: I desperately tried to get on South Campus, but through the curse of, like, really horrible room draws, never got there. And I always felt like the fact that I never lived on South Campus represents some false thing about my true identity, like I’m a South Campus person at heart, how have I only lived on North Campus?! It’s wrong! 
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: People have big identity issues with that. I had a friend who just didn't get on South Campus, and all our friends were there, and she- It broke her heart.
Courtney Sherwood:: Yeah.
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Is there anything else you'd like to share, or...?
Courtney Sherwood:: I think I'm- I think I'm good, unless you want to- Yeah, I think. Let me browse the...
Erica Seltzer-Schultz:: Okay. Hey, you were great.
Courtney Sherwood:: Cool.
