Winter Term During the month of January, students pursue academic interests outside of regular course offerings by completing individual or group projects of their choice, on or off campus. at Oberlin, this means the student body decreases and the overall vibe on campus takes on a different rhythm. This gallery offers a peek inside of a typical winter term day at oberlin.

7:15 AM
7:56 AM
8:30 AM
Under the supervision of biology professor Keith Tarvin, third-year students Anah Soble, Wolf Pulsiano, Zoe Ciantra and Stephanie Gunter conduct playback experiments to determine whether squirrels attend to chickadee calls that signal the presence of large predators, while ignoring chickadee calls that signal the presence of small predators.
9:00 AM
In preparation for graduate school auditions, violist Matthew Weathers '17 practices the Bach Concerto No. 2 in one of the available classrooms in Bibbins Hall. "Having daytime access to these rooms to practice is one of my favorite things about winter term," says Weathers.
10:00 AM
10:20 AM
Students learn the art of bookbinding after spending a week crafting handmade paper.
Kate Hull '18 and neuroscience professor Pat Simen give their Lego robot a whirl. Once reprogrammed, the robot will be used as a teaching aid in the classroom.
11:00 AM
More than 30 conservatory musicians participate in the Winter Term Chamber Music Intensive. Participants study in small ensemble repertoire, engage in master classes and coachings with the Ariel Quartet and Oberlin faculty.
11:45 AM
Biochemistry majors Oluwadamilare Ogunjimi '19 (right), Alex Menninger '18, and Naviya Schuster-Little '17 perform bioanalytical chemistry research in the lab of Associate Professor Rebecca Whelan. Their research focuses on incorporating short pieces of synthetic DNA into non-invasive blood tests for early-stage ovarian cancer.
12:30 PM
12:40 PM
Cal Filson '20 (seated) and classmate Zach Lipkin discuss Oberlin basketball games played the previous day via Skype in preparation for their 30-minute sports podcast.
Biology major Maddie Prangley '17 maps the suture lines on the shell of an extinct organism. The sutures can be used in species identification. She hopes to digitize the process.
2:00 PM
2:30 PM
3:00 PM
3:30 PM
Avid bowler and Oberlin staffer Tom Reid offers pointers to Hank Sinn '17 during winter term.
4:20 PM
4:30 PM
Chris Flaherty, resident costume designer and associate professor of theater, prepares for a busy theater schedule.
5:00 PM
Rhetoric and Composition and math major Samuel Schaffer '19 works on his independent study project at the local coffee shop.
5:45 PM
6:00 PM
6:30 PM
7:20 PM
8:15 PM
8:30 PM
8:45 PM
Marina Schwadron '19 (top right) rehearses an emotional scene from "Denial" with professional actor George Roth. Director and Oberlin Professor of Theater Paul Moser and stage manager Ruby Berlin '20 look on.
9:45 PM
Conservatory students meet in Bibbins Hall lounge to discuss the next day's practice schedule.
10:00 PM
10:45 PM
10:50 PM
11:40 PM
12:15 AM
12:40 AM
1:45 AM
2:00 AM
3:00 AM
6:50 AM
7:00 AM
7:30 AM

7:15 AM Finney Chapel and downtown Oberlin. 7:56 AM Building Service workers are some of the first to arrive on campus. Painter Brad Hoffman (punching in) and carpenter/locksmith Mike Griffith (seated at computer) get the day started. 8:00AM Skilled Trades Manager Rick Genera delivers work orders submitted the previous day. 8:30 AM A student walks across Tappan Square. 9:00 AM biology and creative writing major Cameron Moss '19 prepares to use biochemical tools to determine the DNA sequences of plants growing in the Desert Southwest in order to understand their evolutionary history. 10:00 AM Students delicately carve pictures and words into chunks of soft wood in woodblock class. 10:20 AM Davis Tate '19, Helen Samuel '19, and Andrew Richardson '18 (left to right) get hands-on letterpress experience from Special Collections/Preservation Librarian Ed Vermue (right). 11:00 AM Ken Kitahata '20 takes pool training in Philips Gym in hopes of earning his scuba diving certification. The winter-term project ends with an optional trip to Cozumel, Mexico, where Kitahata can apply his newly acquired skills. 11:45 AM Conservatory professor Jody Kerchner instructs future music educators. 12:30 PM Dan West '17 works on his honors thesis in Azariah's Cafe. 12:40 PM Dascomb dining hall. 2:00 PM Third-year student Orion Sidoti takes a break from his computer science studies and practices the viola da gamba, an instrument he has always wanted to learn. 2:30 PM Allen Memorial Art Museum students discuss and answer questions on their favorite pieces of artwork. After enrollment in the Practicum in Museum Education class, students are equipped to lead guided tours of the museum. 3:00 PM Rayna Solbeck '19 carefully situates a tiny artifact before taking its picture for a digital catalogue. The ancient pot is one of 200 pieces from Oberlin's Herbert G. May teaching collection. 3:30 PM Peters Hall through the Memorial Arch in Tappan Square. 4:20 PM Scott Seiler '20 tidies up the food pantry at Oberlin Community Services. 4:30 PM "Did that transition from the song feel better," asks director Jenny Kneebone '17 of her student actors. Quentin Nguyen-duy '20, Han Taub '18 (pictured together) and Ronit Schorr '19 (far back) all nod in agreement. The troupe will perform their rendition of Twelfth Night to campus. 5:00 PM Classics major Olivia Fountain and politics major Jordan Ecker, both seniors, sip coffee at Slow Train while working on their independent study projects. 5:45 PM Dascomb dinning hall. 6:00 PM English major Margaret Saigh '17 uses her scholar studies room in Mudd library for independent study. 6:30 PM "Do you need to write an essay for your scholarship," a student in the Ninde Scholars program asks returning scholars who are serving as panelist this evening (far right). During winter term (and throughout the school year) Oberlin college students mentor scholars enrolled in grades 7-12 in the Oberlin City School District. 7:20 PM Julian Hirsch '20 (left) and Haley Jones '17 catalogue Oberlin's Herbert G. May teaching collection. The collection is from ancient Israel and the larger ancient Near East. 8:15 PM Students learn basic aikido techniques. 8:30 PM Study break at Oberlin College Lanes. 8:45 PM Gaming at the Cat in the Cream Coffeehouse. 9:45 PM Bibbins Hall, a section of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. 10:00 PM Cinema studies major Olivia DeToma '17 works in the editing room above the Apollo Theater. 10:45 PM Students in Harkness Co-op make tasty treats. During winter term students can test out co-op life before making a full commitment. 10:50 PM Advanced paper marbler Jones Pitsker '18 indulges in his passion while earning winter-term credit. 11:40 PM First-year student Maya Enstad practices cello in Bibbins Hall. 12:15 AM Talcott residence hall. 12:40 AM Senior Claire Stevens-Luneau, a studio art major, is in her element and that's good news for Meredith Levine. "I'm just taking this class for fun," says Levine, a senior geology and East Asian studies major as she presses a nose onto a freshly made eyeglass holder. "Claire is my mentor. She's taught me everything I know." 1:45 AM First-year student Sulan Wu studies in her residence hall room. 2:00 AM First-year student Nic Politi works on a musical composition. 3:00 AM Downtown Oberlin. 6:50 AM Downtown Oberlin. 7:00 AM Olivia Vasquez '20 works on a time lapse video for Oberlin's Environmental Dashboard project. 7:30 AM Dance major Kora Sikorski '17 starts the day with a morning shift at a local coffee shop before turning attentions to her winter-term project.

Photos taken from 7 AM to 3 PM by Yevhen Gulenko; 3:30 PM to 12 AM by Marissa Camino; 12:15 to 3 AM by William Bradford; and 6:30 to 8 AM by Dale Preston. Scuba photo by Jill Medina.

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