Isabel Gourley ’19 has already left her mark on Dickinson by founding the rock climbing team. As a competitive rock climber, Isabel wanted to get more people involved in the sport she loves. Her Campus reached out to Isabel to learn more about her and about the rock climbing team.
Name: Isabel Gourley
Class year: 2019
Major: Math
Minor: French
Hometown: Wayne, PA
HC: What are you involved with on campus?
IG: The outing club and climbing team
HC: What are you involved with off of campus?
IG: Rock climbing team back home
HC: Why did you want to start a rock climbing team at Dickinson?
IG: I wanted to get people into climbing who were interested, in a safe and instructional way. Lots of people are intimated by climbing so I wanted to make it fun, and let people explore the sport
HC: How do you think Dickinson could better support and promote climbing?
IG: A big part of climbing is the wall itself, and the wall at Dickinson isn’t very well maintained. The best thing the school could do is build a new wall. Because climbing as a sport is getting more and more popular, I think this would be a good investment for the Dickinson.
HC: What is your favorite part about outing club?
IG: I love that it brings people away from the ordinary life on campus. The trips we go on are great for learning leadership and making connections with our peers. I think the club really allows people to break out of their shells while exploring nature.
HC: How do you balance your extracurriculars with your studies?
IG: It can be hard sometimes but I know that it’s important to do things other than study. I try to plan my day out so I know how much time I have at the end of the day for work, and I try to never miss any outing club or climbing team meetings if I can help it.
HC: Why did you pick Dickinson?
IG: I really liked the small campus and the small classes, and their commitment to sustainability. The school also has a great study abroad program, which I was very interested in.
HC: What is your favorite and least favorite thing about Dickinson?
IG: My favorite thing is that even though it’s a small campus there’s still so much going on and such a variety of things you could get into. My least favorite thing might be that’s it’s difficult to get some things to happen (such as a new rock wall) because there is a lot of red tape.
HC: Where is the best place to climb near Dickinson?
IG: There are a lot of cool outdoor locations, such as Mt. Gretna. There’s also a really fun climbing gym down the road called Climbnasium.