Oliver Ogden ’06 is a Renaissance Man. He has managed to combine his interests in photography, history, anthropology, film, literature, Spanish and drama into two majors – English and theatre

Mileham, Mardi

English

Oliver Ogden ’06 is a Renaissance Man. He has managed to combine his interests in photography, history, anthropology, film, literature, Spanish and drama into two majors – English and theatre

DigitalCommons@Linfield

Linfield Magazine Volume 2 Number 3 Winter 2006 Article 2 Winter 2006 Curiosity Has Been His Inspiration Mardi Mileham Linfield College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/linfield_magazine Recommended Citation Mileham, Mardi (2006) "Curiosity Has Been His Inspiration," Linfield Magazine: Vol. 2 : No. 3 , Article 2. Available at: https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/linfield_magazine/vol2/iss3/2 This article is brought to you for free via open access, courtesy of DigitalCommons@Linfield. For more information, please contact digitalcommons@linfield.edu. LINFIELD MAGAZINEEditorMardi Milehammmileham@linfield.edu503-883-2498Assistant EditorLaura DavisGraphic DesignCandido Salinas IIIPhotographyTom BallardKelly BirdLana Crandall ’07Laura DavisGenny Hall ’08Daniel HurstRyan Gardner ’97Laura Graham ’07Mardi MilehamTheresa SchmidtR.J. StudioContributorsKelly BirdMarvin HenbergLisa Garvey ’86Laura Graham ’07Beth Rogers ThompsonAdvisory BoardEd GansKerry (Van Wyngarden) Hinrichs ’96Dick Hughes ’75R. Gregory NokesSherri (Dunmyer)Partridge ’86Interim PresidentMarvin Henberg Vice President forCollege RelationsBruce WyattDirector of AlumniRelationsDebbie (Hansen) Harmon ’90Winter 2006 Vol. 2, No. 3Linfield Magazine is pub-lished three times annually byLinfield College,McMinnville, OregonSend address changes to:College RelationsLinfield College900 SE Baker St.McMinnville, OR 97128-6894linfieldmagazine@linfield.eduTable of ContentsInside Linfield MagazineLinfield College will move into a new era whenDr. Thomas L. Hellie begins his tenure as president inApril. In this issue, we offer a profile of him thatincludes some insight from people who have knownhim for many years. We also take a look at back atsome of the presidents who preceded him. TenLinfield students have received Fulbrights in the lastsix years. We asked four of them how those awardshave changed their lives. Nursing students on thePortland Campus are getting realistic experiencesthanks to “Mr. Sim Man,” a mannequin who can sim-ulate a patient, and the new Simulation Lab on thePortland Campus. A collaborative research projectexplores the success of some century farms inYamhill County and helps students gain a betterunderstanding of local history. And off the field,Linfield athletes are also winning awards for aca-demic achievements. We look forward to helping youget to know Dr. Hellie and his wife, Julie Olds, in thecoming months and to continue sharing more storiesabout the people of Linfield College.– Mardi MilehamOn the Covers:Front: Thomas L. Hellie (Tom Ballard photo)Back: Scenes from January Term 2006, clockwisefrom top left, Austrialia, India and London (photos byRandy Grant, Ginny Hall ??, Laura Graham ’07)Departments4 A View from Melrose6 Linfield Digest22 ‘Cat Tracks25 Alumni News26 Class NotesFeatures5 Finding balance in her lifeHow one student balances triple majors with work and home commitments8 Passionate about the liberal artsAn introduction to Dr. Thomas L. Hellie, Linfield College’s 19th president14 Bringing reality into the labA Simulation Lab on the Portland Campus provides students with realistic health care experiences18 Fulbrights lead to self-discoveryFour Fulbright winners share how the awards changed their lives19 Century farms carry on traditionA collaborative research project explores the success of century farmsW I N T E R  2 0 0 6 -   32   -   L I N F I E L D  M A G A Z I N EOliver Ogden ’06 is a Renaissance Man.He has managed to combine his interests in photog-raphy, history, anthropology, film, literature, Spanish anddrama into two majors – English and theatre.  “What makes Linfield unique is that it offers studentsan enormous amount of opportunity to explore whatthey are interested in,” Ogden said.He has worked for the Linfield Review, has acted,directed and worked in every aspect of theatre, and hastraveled abroad. He is fascinated with the greatAmerican troubadour, exemplified by people such asWalt Whitman and Jack Kerouac who made a livingtraveling and writing about their experiences. He isworking on a research project on how life on the roadhas evolved and changed, and he would like to somedayproduce a documentary film on the topic.He chose Linfield partly because of a family con-nection – his father and uncle attended and his grand-mother worked in the library for many years. “I saw alot of opportunity here, a lot of interesting things Icould do and learn,” he said.In his freshman year, Ogden’s skill and interest inphotography earned him the position of photo editor ofthe Review just two months after he enrolled. By hissophomore year, he was cast in Waiting for Godot, the finalproduction in the Pioneer Theatre.“Theatre seemed like it might be a good path for mewith my interest in film,” he said.Since then, he has acted in four productions andassisted with nearly every other play. This fall he directedWoyzeck, a dark 19th century German play that servesas a commentary on the aftermath of war and its effecton its soldiers.Although Woyzeck was the first full-length productionthat Ogden directed, he had directed one-act Icebreakerplays and served as assistant director of Scapino under thetutelage of Janet Gupton, assistant professor of theatre arts.In addition, each of the four plays in which he performedfeatured a different director, which provided insight intohow different people approach that role. “Directing Woyzeck was rewarding because it is areflection of everything I have done and accomplished atLinfield,” Ogden said. Ogden was attracted to theatre in part for the visualaspects, and scenic and costume design. He enjoys per-forming, but also finds directing interesting because thedirector is the inspiration for all aspects of the production.“A lot of art is very individualistic,” he said. “In the-atre, it is ultimately collaborative and it goes beyond theartists involved. It’s about communicating with an audi-ence and communicating with each other.” Ogden is curious about all aspects of theatre and iscreative and talented, said Gupton. “He raises intelligent questions and engages in thematerials well beyond the average student,” she said.“He loves the collaborative nature of theatre and seesthe potential theatre has to raise issues and generatediscussion.”Although he has had many great professors, Ogdensaid Gupton has been his greatest inspiration.“She has such passion for the theatre and it’s easy forher to get excited about what her students are doing,”Ogden said. “She is very patient, encouraging anddedicated and has been a profound teacher for me. Shecontinues to push the envelope in her own art and it’sfun to be involved.”Ogden had planned to graduate with a theatre artsdegree in December. But after learning he was just a fewcredits shy of an English major, he opted to stay one moresemester.“I have a fascination with history, and both theatreand English allowed me to explore history and the wordsof people who were seeing the world at a different time,”he said. He’s unsure of his plans after graduation, but isconsidering work in the theatre or film industry. – Mardi MilehamOliver Ogden ‘06, left, gives direction to Matthew (Matt) Hall ‘07, center, andKeegan Basset ‘09 for a scene in Woyzeck, a play Ogden directed in the fall. Curiosity has been his inspirationStudent Profile

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