On exploring new things
Hannah Fuson ’11
“I saw an outing club poster on a bulletin board. Though skeptical, I signed up for the trip, and spent a day hiking around the Appalachian foothills... [and] I never looked back.”
![Kayakers on a lake](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/content/story/image/hannah_fuson_11.jpg)
I came to Oberlin with big dreams; I wanted to become a scientist and continue my studies as a musician. For my first year, I spent hours pouring over my problem sets, studying in the library, and working on a faculty research project. Though I am a student in the college, I auditioned for cello lessons with a faculty member, studied alongside the conservatory students in her studio, and played chamber music. However, something was missing. I could spend all day in the Science Center and practice room, but somehow I hadn’t quite found my community at Oberlin.
The winter term of my sophomore year, I decided to take a month-long course with the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS). I spent the month kayaking, hiking, and diving in Baja, Mexico, and rediscovered my childhood love for the outdoors. Coming back to Oberlin afterward was daunting: where was I going to find the mountains, waves, and wilderness with which I had spent the last month reacquainting myself?
Not long after winter term, I saw an outing club poster on a bulletin board. “What on earth are they going to do in Ohio?” I wondered. Though skeptical, I signed up for the trip, and spent a day hiking around the Appalachian foothills. After meeting other Oberlin students that were excited about the outdoors, I never looked back.
Now I lead and go on numerous trips a year, spending each break climbing, hiking, and paddling in conjunction with the outing club and climbing corps. I took the rock climbing ExCo and am now a supervisor at the climbing wall. I led a trip to Hocking Hills State Park in southern Ohio, where I was able to share a place I used to go as a child with other Obies. Last semester, I took SCUBA classes in Carr Pool to become a certified diver.
My advice? Find what you’re passionate about, both in and out of the classroom. I still love my academics, and my chemistry studies are the reason I’m at Oberlin. I am a researcher, tutor, and TA in the department, and I enjoy working on these demanding endeavors, and I love talking about all of these activities. However, at the end of the day, you’ll find me teaching at the rock wall, rolling a kayak in the pool, or planning my next adventure. While these may not necessarily further my academic résumé, they have been an essential part of my Oberlin experience.
Tags:
You may also like
![A dozen people pose by an indoor brick wall](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/ben_newhouse_04.jpg?itok=rS574f2-)
On the lessons learned working for the Oberlin Review
“[I’ve taken] with me the grinding productivity, invention of necessity, and constant grace under constant pressure that I acquired down in Burton basement.”
Ben Newhouse ’04
![Maya reads sheet music while practicing on steel drums.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/maya_zeemont_16.jpg?itok=fmbHO7BT)
On finding a musical community
“The music, the dancing, the performers--all components of the show emanated pure joy. I hadn’t overlooked, however, that OSteel was quite advanced musically, so it never even crossed my mind that I...
Maya Zeemont ’16
![A man takes loaves out of a large oven](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/connor_lee_09.jpg?itok=4FP6Yi9L)
On learning to bake bread in a co-op
“Once I got over the fact that I could fit a few Hansels and Gretels inside the oven, it was just like any other kitchen, just larger and more awesome.”
Connor Lee ’09