Oberlin Stories Project
We have collected hundreds of personal narratives from students, alumni, faculty, and staff that explain the merits and strengths of Oberlin through the eyes of those who have experienced it firsthand.
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![Zoe strikes an acrobatic pose on the trapeze.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/zoe_beach_17.jpg?itok=cgyG3xbH)
On keeping a dream alive
“While I chose Oberlin for the strength and opportunities of its science programs, I was overjoyed to find that Oberlin not only had a circus, but it had the facilities and equipment for aerial work.”
Zoe Beach ’17
![YouTube screenshot with title Copacabana (Bathroom Concert Series Entry), showing 4 people in a bathroom](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/amanda_nichols_12.jpg?itok=OQHWqTuY)
On making a video for an Ellen DeGeneres Show contest
“I had only known these people for a couple of months, and I was not only asking them to dance and sing in a public place, but I was also potentially asking them to do it on national television (if...
Amanda Nichols ’12
![Rebecca with a group of people in a city setting.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/rebecca_klein_18.jpg?itok=c6EgZAso)
On reawakening an interest in accessibility
“As a Student Accessibility Advocate, my world at Oberlin expanded. I met new people just as interested in conversations about disability as I was, people whom I now consider some of my closest...
Rebecca Klein ’18
![Lena stands under a rainbow](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/lena_glickman_15.jpg?itok=yVpcz7I4)
On finding the lull in the storm
“I have learned the value of quiet... that taking a break from thinking so hard to just feel for a moment is what makes me happiest at Oberlin.”
Lena Glickman ’15
![Georgia feeds animals, possibly alpacas, through a fence](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/georgia_horn_12.jpg?itok=Vs6fZG7H)
On being an art history major
“Thirteen years later, as a freshman in college, I found the perfect outlet for my misguided artistic endeavors: art history.”
Georgia Horn ’12
![2 jugglers practicing](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/aries_indenbaum_09.jpg?itok=L8VCOkeW)
On Oberlin’s student-run circus
“Circus stood for the things I valued: inclusion, family, daring, theatre without drama, strength, flexibility, clumsiness, music, love. If anyone asked me what I cared about, circus would be one of...
Aries Indenbaum ’09
![Sam swings a racquet.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/sam_towne_12.jpg?itok=7zfkdFHm)
On being a member of the men’s tennis team
“When I look to the court next to me and see a teammate fighting hard, I am motivated to give it that extra ounce of effort. We are all striving to reach the same goal.”
Sam Towne ’12
![A mangled jeep and other debris by a beach.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/martha_tenney_83.jpg?itok=0CQYsQLX)
On the lasting effects of her time at Oberlin
“Years later I have a career in public health and the things I love are the things I loved that helped create the squiggly route to NOW. ”
Martha J. Tenney ’83
![Group of people line dancing](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/jackie_mostow_12.jpg?itok=bnd2sPUo)
On starting the One Song Dance Parties in Mudd
“It answered the rarely asked question: why shouldn’t stress reduction and (albeit short) physical activity be fun, promoted, and in an academic space?”
Jackie Mostow ’12
![Brendab holding a bat](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/brendan_veeneman_07.jpg?itok=d6hLuaUV)
On learning beyond one’s major
“I think it is a uniquely Oberlin phenomenon that introductory courses are every bit as interesting and rigorous as upper level courses, and it was this strength that encouraged me to diversify my...
Brendan Veeneman ’07
![A group of people having a meal together.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/sien_rivera_13.jpg?itok=X31tf3_i)
On the Multicultural Resource Center
“The MRC serves as my springboard; as a timid first-year, it gave me the strength to go out into the frightening unfamiliarity of campus and thrive, because I knew I had a home to go back to.”
Sien Rivera ’13
![Michael, with city lights and a blurred taxi in the background.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/michael_vito_04.jpg?itok=DXCUTaRu)
On skills learned in the Conservatory
“In [performance], we must take all of the experience and ability we have attained through our own development and integrate it with that of others... an exercise in fluid, nonhierarchical leadership...
Michael Vito ’04