Oberlin Blogs

I absolutely love this city. Everywhere you go here, there is a mountain in the backdrop. It is an unbelievably scenic place.

Oberlin is famous as a stop on the Underground Railroad, and was well-known for the Oberlin-Wellington Rescue. And despite Oberlin's reputation for godless liberalism (joking!), there are several vibrant communities on campus for students of faith. There's also a great multifaith service event coming up on Sunday.

The Day of Service is a great opportunity to get off campus and into Lorain County, spend a good few hours working hard and making a difference, and meeting other students committing their morning to the good of the community.

This is the true story... of seven Obies... picked to stay in a hostel...work together and have their lives photographed... to find out what happens... when Obies leave the Oberlin bubble... and venture to the Big Easy...IYS: New Orleans!

I spent last Saturday afternoon planting trees. 'Planting trees' sounds like a euphemism for something dirty. But it's not. I actually spent the afternoon planting trees.

There are many opportunities at Oberlin for students interested in education. The Spanish in the Elementary Schools program, for example, has given me the opportunity to stand face-to-face with 20 real-life fourth graders.

Last year Oberlin students did more than 60,000 hours of community service - that we know of. None of it was required.

Today I'd like to take a moment to think about the natural disaster that struck China one year ago and reflect on the many Chinese people who devoted days and weeks of their lives to trying to make a difference in the aftermath.

The experience served to strengthen my conviction as an omnivore and made me truly realize the importance of the hunter-gatherer culture that had been passed down by our forebears. It didn't hurt that the chicken was also some of the best I had ever eaten.

If someone told me six months ago that for spring break of my senior year I would be living on a farm in rural Kentucky for nine days with scarcely any internet or phone and sharing a room with eleven people I had never met before, I would have laughed in their face. All I can say is what a difference a week makes.

The Storytelling Exco has been the pillar of my college experience -- performance on the outside and therapy on the inside.

Tuesday, September 23, 2008, 6:16 am United World College of the Adriatic, Duino, Italy