Welcome to the 50th Reunion Class of 1976 website!

50th OBERLIN REUNION
MAY 22 - 25, 2026

Dear '76 Classmates,               

During our  time at Oberlin, we enjoyed a vibrant atmosphere of social change, intellectual and artistic growth, and the rewards of building strong relationships and community. For our 50th reunion we want to explore these collective experiences.  We plan to engage in stimulating, wide-ranging discussions, including the uniqueness of our shared past and Oberlin’s impact on us.  

Perhaps no one captured the uniqueness of our time at Oberlin more than the President when we arrived on campus, Robert W. Fuller.  Bobby was a 35-year old quantum physicist (about half the age most of us are today) who was the improbable and bold choice of the Board of Trustees to lead the college.  Although he would serve fewer than four years and depart before we graduated in 1976, we shouldn’t conclude that the relatively brief tenure of Fuller’s term was a failure.  During his short time on campus, he tripled the enrollment of minority students, expanded coed residence halls, hired the first feminist dean, and recruited the Olympic gold medal sprinter Tommie Smith to join our athletics department as a head coach.  He established an Education Commission, through which the innovative Inter-Arts Program was created and in spite of opposition, championed the construction of the Seeley G. Mudd Learning Center. 

That period was uniquely ours - marked by tumult, innovation, and enormous promise.  It undoubtedly helped shape how we became the people we are today.  

We invite you to join us at our 50th reunion from May 22 through May 25, 2026, to reflect upon and celebrate our past, reconnect in the present with old friends and classmates,  and have a fun and memorable experience.

During the next six months we will be in touch in various ways, including sharing recollections from our time at Oberlin and updates on reunion plans.  

Until then, our reunion site is up and running at www.Oberlin76Reunion.com.  Our reunion planning committee will pave the way by creating our profiles and adding photos. Please create your own profile and add your recollections, some of which we’ll happily share in regular updates leading up to May.

You can also learn more about planning and logistics on Oberlin’s reunion website. More information from the Office of Alumni Engagement will be forthcoming on what to expect at our reunion. 

We look forward to seeing you in May!  

Your Reunion Planning Committee,

Kathy Askew             askewkca@gmail.com
Bill Bradford              bbradford2201@yahoo.com
Sally Fessler             fesslersk@gmail.com
John Hickman           jwh54@rcn.com
Diana Lee                 lee.diana777@gmail.com
Nancy Olah               nancy@nancyolahlaw.com
Patty Powell              hummlaw@comcast.net
Balaram Puligandla   balaram.puligandla@gmail.com
Frank Shaw               fshaw314@gmail.com
Kathy Shipp               kathymshipp@gmail.com
Lindsey Thomas        lindseycthomasmd@gmail.com
Leanne Wagner         leannewagner@gmail.com