Arroyo

We challenge you to use life in Arroyo as part of a lifelong quest to:

• Be curious amid opportunity & diversity

• Be of service to the world

• Be true to yourself (even as you question old ways and evolve)

More About Arroyo

Our primary goals for the house are that it be a place of respect, curiosity, and good communication, and that it function as a home and a community for all its residents. Dormwide activities are planned by the residents, student staff, and resident fellows to reflect the passions and interests of the community members. Among our traditions are an annual trip to San Francisco for a citywide Scavenger Hunt; weekend overnight trips to the Sierra Nevada (Yosemite or Tahoe); day trips to Santa Cruz or Monterey; and many events on campus, including special dinners, Screw Your Roo, and Final Feast. There will also be opportunities to engage with alumni and faculty over dinners in the resident fellow cottage, News Salons for discussing current events, astronomy nights with the dorm telescope, and cappuccino & cookie nights, to name a few. We hope you'll dive into daily life with your neighbors through meals at Wilbur Dining, kudos-sharing at House Meetings, and anything else you dream up, together.

Resident Fellows

Ben and Jill Patton, Resident Fellows in Arroyo, started as frosh at Stanford in 1999. They previously served as RFs in Potter (2021-24) and Otero (2017-2021). Jill earned her bachelor’s degree in Latin American Studies in 2003 and a coterminal master’s degree in Media Studies in 2004. Highlights during her time on the Farm include two summers as Sierra Camp staph, serving as a student instructor for the Outdoor Education Program, running the climbing gym as president of the Stanford Climbing Wall Club, and co-founding SOOP, the Outdoor Outreach Program. She lived in Larkin, Kairos, Potter and, again, Kairos (as the kitchen manager), in addition to quarters in Santiago, Chile, and Stanford in Washington. She hails from various states in the Midwest and from Raleigh, North Carolina. Jill is currently senior editor for STANFORD magazine, the quarterly publication serving Stanford’s 240,000 living alumni. She returned to the Farm in 2014 after nearly a decade in daily journalism.

A native of Seattle, Ben is Vice President of Finance for Idemitsu Renewables’ U.S. solar project development team. Ben has a B.S. in Symbolic Systems and a minor in East Asian Studies. He started out his Stanford days in SLE and ended up on the Row; along the way, he led Outdoor Education Program trips, raced with the cycling team, and studied abroad in Kyoto. He also took a year off to complete a ceramics apprenticeship in Karatsu, Japan, with Takashi Nakazato, a nominated Living National Treasure. These days, you’ll find him wing foiling at Coyote Point, surfing in Santa Cruz, or messing around with the neighborhood telescope while preparing the perfect S'more.

Joining Ben and Jill in Potter are Wyatt, 10, and Cora, 8, who enjoy soccer & video games (Wyatt), gymnastics & art (Cora), and learning (some things) about the lives of college students. Stand by for news about a pet this fall.