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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On her first home volleyball game at Oberlin
Elizabeth Wong ’12
“It had been my dream to play college volleyball since I can remember and as I stood star struck looking up at the flag, I could not help but smile and realize that I had done it. I was living the...
On being a part of the Oberlin swimming and diving team
Simone Christen ’15
“[It] means becoming absorbed into a large family of people who are committed to exploring their lives athletically and academically in various ways.”
On the last field hockey game of the season
Emily Whitaker ’12
“All at once, the reality of my situation hit me hard. In one hundred and eighty seconds my first varsity field hockey season would be over, and I found myself unprepared...I had never felt more part...
On overcoming physical injuries with community support
Gabe Brown ’16
“Being on the cross-country team has been the glue that has held my Oberlin experience together.”
On teammates becoming family
Galen Brennan ’17
“In our most important game of the year, I stepped on the field for only the second time that year, a moment that made me realize how important the team had become for me. ”
On his roommate, Mike Loll, during their first pre-season
Greg Mangan ’09
“He knew all the plays. He knew where to be at all times. He moved effortlessly through the logjam of the field. He was a natural.”
On training
John Shaw ’07
“With the curtain obscuring most of the fieldhouse from view, the track became a tunnel that my distance mates and I would fly around countless times at every imaginable speed and level of (dis)...
On progress toward gender equality
Leanne Wagner ’76
“Watching my daughter ... study with many more than one woman professor in the sciences, and not be constrained in her choices of what was to come after Oberlin, I realize that the Oberlin tradition...
On being part of a team
Luke Herrine ’10
“I heard a knock on my door. I opened it to find every single Horsecow who had come out to practice that day staring back at me. The Flying Horsecows [make] everybody love to play Ultimate, even when...
On finding friends on the field hockey team
Aditi Banerjee ’17
“A camaraderie developed—probably born out of undergoing the rigors of preseason together—which blossomed into close friendships over the course of the season.”
On her first day of practice with the women’s rugby team
Marne Litfin ’07
“These were, I realized while I stood apart from them, the strongest and craziest women I had ever met. I had to be one of them. I didn’t know if I had it in me, but I couldn’t leave without trying.”
On being a part of the Oberlin College men’s soccer team
Alen Cisija ’12
“We call it OC Love. We don’t play for ourselves, we play for each other. I am honored to stand side by side with every one of those guys.”