Jonathan Curley, Aya Kanai, and Adam Smith
			On the Road with Oberlin’s Watson Fellows By Marci Janas
			MAY 12, 2000--While all roads lead to Oberlin--an intellectually adventurous place--the roads leading out of Oberlin send graduates on some extraordinary scholarly adventures, too. This coming year, three seniors will experience the thoughtful life on the road as Watson fellows. The peripatetic scholars are Jonathan Curley, a double major in sociology and environmental studies; Adam Smith, an art-history major; and Aya Kanai, a double major in visual arts and religion with a minor in East Asian studies. "Sometimes the Watson Fellowship is described as whimsical or quirky," says Laurie McMillin, assistant professor of expository writing and religion, and Oberlin’s liaison to the Watson Foundation. "I think the foundation is looking for people who want to bring things together in unique ways, to let people explore things that sometimes fall between the boundaries of academic disciplines." Watson Fellowships allow scholars to pursue independent research projects while traveling for a year outside the U.S. after graduation. This year the Thomas J. Watson Foundation received more than 1000 applications from college seniors at 50 selective private liberal arts colleges and universities. The foundation awarded only 60 fellowships, three of which went to Oberlin seniors. Oberlin has had at least one Watson Fellow in its graduating class since 1969, when the Foundation began granting fellowships. McMillin has a theory for the phenomenon. "It seems to me that because Oberlin students are often imaginative, self-motivated, and ready to really explore things, they are perfectly matched to the Watson."
			Please send comments, questions, and suggestions about Oberlin Online news and feature articles to online.news@oberlin.edu.