Education takes an offbeat path every January at Oberlin College. That’s when one of the college’s hallmarks, winter term projects, takes place. To graduate, each student must complete three projects, which basically are mini-internships.

This year, a number of students traveled abroad to do social service work, while others volunteered in Lorain County. Some worked on writing, drama or music projects, took part in political campaigns or assisted professionals in careers they might want to pursue.

Here are some of their projects:

Being green

Alexandra Eurich and Rachel Cotterman worked at an organic farm at Finca La Flor de Paraiso in Costa Rica, a country big on “green” energy and renewable resources such as hydroelectric power.

Some of the work was less than glamorous — working to compost animal dung, for example, so it could be used to fertilize crops such as corn, lettuce and pineapples. Luckily, earthworms did most of the tough work, they said.

While there, Eurich, 19, of Denver, and Cotterman, 19, of Chapel Hill, S.C., found time for some side trips.

“We were able to take weekend trips to the small towns and rural communities of the area, as well as hike in beautiful rain forest,” Cotterman said.

While at Tapanti National Park, Cotterman spotted a big leaf and decided to take a photo.

“I was so shocked by its size that I asked Alex to stand behind it for perspective,” she said. “The shot kind of created itself when I realized that she could be completely transformed into a leaf nymph with only her face peeping out.”

Eurich said the people in Costa Rica were incredibly friendly, and she brushed up on her Spanish. She said she hopes to be an elementary school teacher in Denver, which has a large Hispanic population.

Cotterman is majoring in Comparative American Studies, with a concentration on peace and violence in American identity.

“I am particularly interested in grassroots community organizations that explicitly and indirectly foster nonviolent culture across the Americas,” Cotterman said.

She found the farm on an Internet database for environmental volunteer opportunities. While they were there, they met volunteers from Germany, Great Britain, Canada and America.

Making their own dress code

It wasn’t Project Runway, but it came close.

A number of Oberlin students created garments, practically from start to finish.

Rebecca Cohen, 18, said her project, “From Yarn to Garment VII,” was an incredible experience because students created their own clothing using material they made on looms.

“Weaving is really amazing because you start with a bunch of yarn and do things with it, you create a pattern and watch it unfold before your eyes, and then suddenly you have a beautiful piece of cloth and make it into something,” she said.

“None of us had ever done it before,” she said.

The students used 11 looms at the Firelands Association for the Visual Arts — some owned by Oberlin College and others by members of local spinners’ and weavers’ guilds, she said.

The first-year Oberlin student from Chevy Chase, Md., said students chose patterns for the weaving along with the materials. Then they designed the garments they wanted to create.

“Originally, I had planned on just making a wool coat — purple and blue, in a log cabin pattern — but because I finished that in two weeks, I was able to pursue a second project, a green skirt with an undulating twill pattern,” the studio art major said.

“Learning how to weave was one of the most amazing experiences of my life,” said Cohen, who wears the clothing she created.

Surrounded by violence

When Juliana Scherer and two other Oberlin College students decided to go to Kenya for their winter project, they had no clue they were be headed for a country torn by election turmoil.

One of the students, Andrew Estep, had spent January 2007 in the villages of Tchundwa and Faza on Pate Island off the Kenyan coast.

But since then, the political situation had deteriorated. When Scherer, Estep and Christopher Pray arrived in Nairobi, it was clear that something was seriously wrong.

“There was lots of smoke, and police were lining the streets,” said Scherer, 21, of Spring Valley, N.Y.

Fortunately, the students arrived safely on Pate Island, where they served as teachers’ assistants and performed other tasks in the largely Muslim community.

While isolated from the violence on the mainland, “people definitely were concerned about what was going on,” Scherer said.

Without Internet access, friends and family back in the United States were worried about Scherer, Estep and Pray, but all turned out well.

School was delayed a week because of post-election violence, so the students helped spruce up the communities by cleaning trash and clearing brush. Eventually, Scherer helped teach youngsters in the seventh and eighth grades, and learned a little Swahili in the process.

The Oberlin students also spent quite a bit of time painting murals on the school walls — diagrams of the heart, skin and lungs.

While Scherer and Pray returned to Oberlin to resume classes, Estep, 23, graduated and moved on to a new adventure.

Estep, of Norwalk, traveled on to Shark Bay, Australia, where he is assisting marine biologists from Florida International University in a project to study tiger sharks, sea turtles and stingrays.

 

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