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The Olin Circle of Advocates invites those passionate about driving Olin’s strategic priorities.

The Olin Circle of Advocates (OCOA) isn't an average advisory board. The OCOA, led by Lauren Palmer ’09, Associate Director of Partnership Development, is a new initiative that will support issues of importance to Olin and help advance the College’s goals through hands-on projects and “strategic doing.” Bringing external community members, friends, industry experts, and supporters of the College together with students, staff, and faculty, the group will work on tangible projects to drive meaningful change.

The first charge to the OCOA is to support Olin College as a Living Lab (CaLL)

Olin College as a Living Lab (CaLL) positions Olin as an experimental testbed for reinvention and sustainability and for transformation within and outside Olin. It is an engine for innovation and change that enables the institution itself to be constantly evolving to meet the changing needs and demands of engineering education and the world today. The subcommittees of the OCOA are aligned with the current CaLL initiatives:

• Sustainability Changemakers

• The Next Wave of (Olin) Engineering Education

• Equity, Access, and Inclusion

The OCOA focuses on Action!

Each of the subcommittees of the OCOA commits to working on a project in support of Olin for roughly 6 months to 1 year. Our current efforts are focused on two initial projects.

• The Sustainability OCOA subcommittee has set out to create a sustainability-centered community and project space on Olin’s campus. Bringing together local organizations focused on climate justice and climate tech, as well as creating space for student sustainability-focused projects, the space will create an environment to facilitate mentorship, create innovative solutions, and wrestle with the complicated intersections between technology, climate change, a just transition, and systems of power.

• The Next Wave of Engineering Education OCOA subcommittee is focused on how AI is impacting industries across Engineering disciplines. The team aims to understand the impact of AI on entry-level roles as well as how to best prepare our faculty and students for the changes in the shifting market. 

We are also in the process of forming a third subcommittee to focus on a project related to Equity, Access, and Inclusion. 

Membership Commitment:

1. Attend bi-annual virtual or in-person OCOA meetings. At least one will be hosted in-person at Olin College each year (travel at your own expense). 

2. Be an active participant in a subcommittee project in service to the College, including 1-2 hours of work per month, a monthly virtual 30-minute check-in meeting, and other possible activities as needed to execute the project. 

3. Share your assets (such as skills, networks, physical assets, and capital) as appropriate in support of your subcommittee project. 

4. Serve as a strong advocate for the College by helping to raise funds and host activities, such as alumni, recruiting, student, and fundraising events, or serve as positive role models through interaction with students, such as mentoring individual students, speaking in classes or at student events, or hosting student interns or projects. 

5. Commit to participation in the OCOA for at least one year. 

6. Participate in special events, panels, or initiatives by invitation. 

7. Commit to helping us build the OCOA and establish norms for future OCOA participants. 

Note: The OCOA is an influential body serving the College but has no formal decision-making powers.