Senior Salute - Ollie Bream

Our "Senior Salute" series continues with Ollie Bream from the swimming and diving team. Bream is a communication sciences and disorders major from Melbourne, Australia.

Q: Why did you choose to attend The College of Wooster?
A: Wooster represented the values of camaraderie and commitment that I was looking for. I wanted to be able to work hard in the classroom as well as in the pool. I found the best of both worlds without sacrificing either one of them. I think I made the best choice for me by committing to Wooster every day. 

Q: What does being a Fighting Scot student-athlete mean to you?
A: Being an athlete without losing other aspects of my identity. Being a Fighting Scot means that I can excel in the pool, in the classroom, in my friendships, and in other elements of my life without losing myself. I love pushing myself to be the best version of myself along with my peers who have similar goals.

Q: What are some of your favorite memories as a student at The College of Wooster?
A: The Wooster Invitational as a first-year when I won the 200 butterfly. The way the team cheered for me really made me feel welcomed and appreciated as a member of the team. I strive as a leadership council member and senior to make my teammates feel as loved as I did in that moment.

Q: What is the best part about being a student-athlete at The College of Wooster?
A:  The ability to combine all aspects of who I am while also having the ability to create a community of people that I truly enjoy getting to share my life with. My teammates and friends are people I want to have in my life forever. I am so grateful I was able to find people like that here.

Q: What else were you involved with on campus besides your sport?
A: I am a resident assistant in a first-year dorm. I am a member of the executive board for the campus chapter of the National Student Speech-Language Hearing Association. I am a leadership council member for the swimming and diving team and I am a lifeguard at Timken Natatorium. I am also a student clinician at the Freedlander Speech and Hearing Clinic on campus, which functions as an outpatient clinic to the Wooster community.

Q: Which College of Wooster faculty or staff member has made the greatest impact on you and why?
A: Coach Rob Harrington. Rob made a significant effort to communicate with me while I was abroad during high school and to let me know Wooster was a place where I could excel academically and athletically. He made every effort to connect me online with current members of the team and to make me feel at home. Once I got to campus, Rob was such a fun coach who is truly passionate about our sport. His experience at the College as well as his overall knowledge has brought me a new appreciation for the work Div. III coaches do. I am so grateful that his leadership has introduced me to assistant coaches who I still talk to almost every day.

Q: What other people or resources impacted your Wooster experience in a positive way and how did these people and resources set you up to be successful at Wooster?
A: Krista Martin, the assistant director of academic advising, experiential learning, and community engagement in APEX. I was a fully declared political science and communication studies major as a sophomore. My passion was not in those areas, so I was flailing to find something else. After a single meeting with Krista, I enrolled in phonetics and introduction to communication sciences and disorders. A week later, I was declared as a communication sciences and disorders major and have never looked back. I would never have found communication sciences and disorders without her. I am so grateful she saw my desire to make a positive change in other people's lives and helped me take action.

Q: Tell us a bit about your Independent Study project?
A: For my I.S., I am using an experimental design to explore the relationship between toy type and volubility in preverbal infants. More specifically, I am examining whether electronic toys that light up and make sounds on their own or traditional toys without batteries are associated with a greater number of prelinguistic vocalizations in infants between eight and 12 months old.

Q: Tell us a bit about something cool you did as a student at The College of Wooster?
A: I love that the swimming and diving team volunteers for two days at the Friends of Wooster Memorial Park. We are able to engage with the community in a way that benefits everyone who hikes at and visits the park! Spending time outdoors with my teammates making the community a cleaner and better place is such a fulfilling experience for me. I love visiting the park with my friends for a hike on Sundays in the warmer months! Visiting the park on a sunny day marks the beginning and end of each academic year, and I'm so grateful to have a place like that nearby!

Q: Reflecting back on your time at Wooster, what advice would you give your first-year self?
A: Do exactly what you did. Explore who you are, find your friends, work hard, and have fun. If you are not having fun, you are doing it all wrong. Lastly, go easy on yourself.

Interested in becoming a Fighting Scot?
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