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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![A grade school class learns about a sculpture at a museum](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/dessane_cassell_14.jpg?itok=mbwDbSnD)
On a change in perspective
“The distinction between my vantage point and that of the students had yielded entirely different interpretations of the work without us even realizing it.”
Dessane Cassell ’14
![Two women handle a spool](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/alia_kate_08.jpg?itok=ZMoXBXm0)
On her new rug-importing venture, Kantara Crafts
“I have just returned from Morocco with my first batch of rugs and the excitement is palpable; what started with my desire to make a difference on a local level two years ago has now turned into a...
Alia Kate ’08
![Five people, arms around one another](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/alice_ollstein_10.jpg?itok=L8HU1Arb)
On what a student co-op in Oberlin has in common with Nicaragua’s strongest union
“As we sat in my host mom Jacinta’s kitchen, I felt like a true partner, fighting alongside the UNAG because we want the same things for the same people.”
Alice Ollstein ’10
![Reid Gershbein](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/reid_gershbein_93.jpg?itok=zq2d1QdF)
On working at Pixar and Dreamworks Animation
“None of these events would have happened to me if it hadn’t been for Oberlin’s amazingly nurturing environment, fantastic camaraderie, and the best mentor a student could have.”
Reid Gershbein ’93
![Group of runners in OC uniforms after a race](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/leo_harrington_16.jpg?itok=WXEV64TH)
On support networks
“The people here have copious and astoundingly diverse passions of their own but will also go to incredible lengths to help you pursue yours, in all likelihood because someone did the same for them.”
Leo Harrington ’16
![Handing out pamphlets on a city street](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/evelyn_wagaman_17.jpg?itok=2jAv0nuv)
On deciding to go vegan
“It’s this passion that I’ll transplant into my academic work this fall, as I begin writing an Honors thesis in philosophy on animal ethics.”
Evelyn Wagaman ’17
![Anna works on the cover of a book at a wood table](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/anna_arays_10.jpg?itok=_-UAgAWa)
On passion
“I spent my junior year working in Special Collections: looking at rare books, taking them apart, putting them back together, petting, and loving them. The job was fantastic: this is what I’d always...
Anna Arays ’10
![Three friends lay in the grass on a hillside.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/samantha_bass_11.jpg?itok=UOJfs_rM)
On building a sustainable coalition
“It amazes me that one year after proposing the Compost Work Group, composting is on its way to becoming a permanent reality at Oberlin.”
Samantha Bass ’11
![Mathilda receives hugs and smiles from young children in an elementary school classroom.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/mathilda_mcgee-tubb_07.jpg?itok=hMRPPCua)
On education at Oberlin
“If allowing oneself to get to this point of utter submission to the universe of knowledge isn’t fearless, then I don’t know what is.”
Mathilda McGee-Tubb ’07
![A group of friends on a warm spring day](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/hillary_swiss_11.jpg?itok=F3Pt_Tx4)
On her 4-6 a.m. show on WOBC, the student-run college radio station
“Walking to and from Wilder in the middle of the night was extremely surreal, and I remember vividly how excited I was to share music with whoever was awake during my “rite-of-passage” first-year...
Hillary Swiss ’11
![Ben on stage wearing a cape](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/ben_ferber_11.jpg?itok=oSp7wgiI)
On there being too much to do at Oberlin
“I always thought I was good at time management, but handling five classes, three plays, two student organizations, an RA job, a radio show, and a social life as an Oberlin sophomore is a little like...
Ben Ferber ’11
![Sierra holds up a kitten, which paws at her glasses.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/sierra_zuber_11.jpg?itok=oPgRbuYz)
On combining love and science
“When I was starting work on my honors biology research with crayfish...I realized how many questions had been right in front of me at Ginko [Gallery] all the time.”
Sierra Zuber ’11