Olin Blackmore ’15 was determined to make the most of his last year at 鶹Ӱ.
“I want to be as involved with everything as I can be, because four years just flew by,” the chemistry major and dance minor said in 2014.
Blackmore first discovered Pacific on a bit of a whim. Originally from Anchorage, he visited at the urging of his uncle, who attended physical therapy school at the university.
“I didn’t schedule a tour or anything,” he said. “But they were so welcoming. It just felt like a very personable school.
“I am very much a family dude, and I’ll be honest, coming from such a great distance was hard, but the students made me know I could do it.”
Ultimately, though, Blackmore’s decision to attend Pacific centered on financial aid.
“I got an academic scholarship, and that’s when I realized Pacific was a solid contender,” he said. “My parents both work, and they work hard. I had a job in high school. I wanted an affordable college education.”
Blackmore also auditioned for and received scholarships for theatre and dance, and he received a M.J. Murdock Trust scholarship — all of which are closely tied to the experiences he’d had as a student.
He originally came to Pacific with dreams of becoming a doctor. He took several exercise science and biology classes, but found that he was more interested in chemistry. In his senior year, he conducted research with Professor Rick Whiteley, looking at nickel hydrogen batteries.
“Every day I wake up and think, ‘I’m going to do research with someone who worked at NASA!” Blackmore said.
"I got an academic scholarship, and that's when I realized Pacific was a solid contender."
Whiteley, in turn, called Blackmore a “star” in his classes.
“Simply put, Olin is a great kid, full of energy, ambition, curiosity, and he is smart, too!” Whitely said.
A dancer since second grade, Blackmore also has performed in both theatre and dance productions at Pacific.
“I considered not dancing at all, but then I met Jennifer Camp, and she rekindled my love of it,” he said. “I definitely thought I wouldn’t be dancing as much, but now I’m thinking of perhaps pursuing a career in it.”
Camp, the director of dance at Pacific, said Blackmore became an artist in his time at Pacific.
“He has utilized his time at Pacific to grow into an accomplished performer and a gifted choreographer through his complete dedication and discipline to dance,” she said. “Olin is a true inspiration to everyone around him.”
Meanwhile, Blackmore served as president of the Under鶹Ӱ Student Senate.
“At this school, you can see the changes you want. You get an immediate benefit,” he said, citing student leaderships' efforts to extend sustainability with a covered bike shelter, water stations around campus, and an elliptical machine in the gym that converts exercise into energy.
“I like to think we’re making a little impact on the school as students.”
Between semesters, Blackmore worked at a nuclear forensic summer school in Columbia, Mo., and he also did an intensive stint with a dance company in Seattle, which piqued his interest in further performing.
As a student, he said, “I would like to keep those two passions intermingling.” And so he has.
He has performed professionally with dance ensembles across the country. He and his husband live in New York, where Blackmore works in the tech field as a quality engineer.