Students walking across Wilder Bowl.
Photo credit: Mike Crupi

Strengthening Oberlin: Today and Tomorrow

Launched in 2018, One Oberlin was a bold vision designed to build upon the institution’s powerful legacy and ensure its reach and relevance for a third century and beyond. The plan focused on enhancing student learning outcomes and supporting academic and artistic excellence, while providing a roadmap to financial resiliency.

Accomplishments

As One Oberlin comes to a close, we celebrate its many accomplishments:

Record Admissions Trends

Applications to Oberlin College and Conservatory have increased by nearly 52 percent, improving our selectivity rate and increasing the size of our newest class by 11 percent. High school GPAs and student academic ratings continue to rise.

Enhanced Curricular Offerings

Oberlin has introduced 11 integrative concentrations and five interdivisional minors that invite students to explore interests across multiple disciplines. These new opportunities include business, data science, global health, and arts administration and leadership. In the conservatory, we’ve redesigned the curriculum to support DEI work and added a minor in African American music.

Improvements to Infrastructure

Oberlin’s $175 million Sustainable Infrastructure Program, through which we are converting our century-old fossil-fuel-based heating system to eco-friendly geothermal technology, moves campus toward our goal of carbon neutrality by 2025. We’ve also redesigned and expanded academic and co-curricular spaces, most notably our new Center for Engaged Liberal Arts. CELA connects nine experiential learning areas—such as Career Development, Entrepreneurship, and Undergraduate Research—into an innovative central hub in Mudd Center. We also broke ground on a new residence hall for 400 students, scheduled to open in fall 2025.

Cultivating Change

Oberlin was awarded a $1 million grant by the Mellon Foundation to help launch a food studies program in collaboration with Lorain County Community College. Another new initiative is the Oberlin Screenwriters Intensive, which invites aspiring Oberlin screenwriters to learn from seasoned Hollywood creatives. Oberlin was again recognized as a top producer of Fulbright students—for the 14th consecutive year—and we’re about to launch a Center for Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.

Investing in Experiential Learning

Oberlin’s new our Internship+ program guarantees each new student up to $5,000 to support internships and performance-based experiences in the summer after their junior year. We’ve expanded on-campus Winter Term opportunities; more than 900 students take part in individual or group projects in Oberlin, backdropped by winter-themed social events, performances, and local trips.

Financial Resiliency

Tuition revenue at Oberlin has increased, and we’ve secured $17.3 million in annual savings. Oberlin’s endowment has grown to more than $1 billion, thanks to a lower payout rate and growth, and we award more than $87 million in financial aid and scholarships each year.

Strong Alumni Support

Over the last four years, Oberlin has raised more than $160 million from a strong community of donors. All in for Oberlin, our annual day-of-giving campaign, has raised $1 million over each of the last three years, and a $1.6 million gift to the conservatory supports an endowed fellowship in jazz history.

What’s Next?

We launched One Oberlin with the belief that additional measures would be needed to help Oberlin innovate and thrive in the years ahead. Here are some of the approaches we’re considering:

  • Amplify our impact by fostering partnerships with institutions that share our values

  • Explore ways to broaden our liberal arts and conservatory programming

  • Expand our community to include graduate students and additional international students

  • Embrace new ways of delivering education through low-residency and online

Related News

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Oberlin to Launch Integrative Concentration in Global Health

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Oberlin Gives Students in the Arts and Sciences a New Path to Musical Education

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Oberlin to Launch Liberal Arts-Centered Integrative Concentration in Business

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Webinar: One Oberlin FAQ

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Oberlin to Launch Integrative Concentration in Journalism

Rare approach builds upon the college’s long history of preparing some of the world’s leading journalists.

College and Conservatory Establish Five New Collaborative Programs

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One Oberlin Update

President Ambar updates the community on progress in implementing One Oberlin.

Updates to Winter Term 2020 Build a Robust On-Campus Experience

New group projects and student support services enhance the on-campus experience.

Q&A with Dana Hamdan

As executive director of the Career Development Center, Hamdan manages the ongoing advancement and implementation of programming and outreach initiatives for students.