Arielle Bloom

What’s your favorite class? Why?

I enjoyed Principles of Economics with Assistant Professor Aine McCarthy because the class incorporated lots of interesting real-world applications to general concepts that made learning the basics much more fun and useful. We looked at real, relevant data for topics such as our future salaries.

What made you want to come to Lewis & Clark?

I wanted a small community that offered a supportive environment that was not cutthroat. I also wanted to be able to do an intense major while playing tennis.

What do you like or find most interesting about your major?

Being at a small college has allowed me to be with a lot of the same people in my biology courses, so I feel like work is very collaborative and fun. Knowing the people in my major well has been so nice as I go into classes knowing I will have driven friends in my class. I feel more comfortable in upper-level courses as I have support and contacts in all of my classes.

What do you like or find most interesting about your minor?

I find my health studies minor to be very well-rounded as it focuses on different perspectives in health care such as medicine, spirituality, and patient narratives.

Tell us about your support systems and social outlets on campus: people, activities, clubs, res halls, etc.

The tennis team and coaches are a huge support network for me as I see them all almost everyday! Our team consists of a few biology majors so we often give advice to each other on what classes to take and study together. It’s super helpful to have a decent size group of people that have collectively taken most courses and can answer a variety of questions that come up for people on our team. The tennis team is like an instant group of friends who you can eat and hangout with before you get close with other people as we automatically spend so much time together.

What advice do you have for incoming students?

I encourage incoming students to take a variety of classes even if they do not fulfill a requirement. If something sounds interesting to you, take it! It is likely that you will have plenty of time to meet your requirements so you might as well take a fun class while you are paying to take courses. After fulfilling my language requirement with French, I decided to start Spanish as a complete beginner and love the introduction courses I have taken so far. The classes are a nice, fun break between my science classes and introduce me to a variety of people outside of my major. Plus, I plan to use these skills for traveling and love that a class forces me to practice almost daily, because I would not have the self-motivation outside to study everything myself. If you take a class that you are super interested in, the workload will not feel as difficult or task-like.

How do you describe the liberal arts?

The liberal arts brings a lot of different students together who are studying different topics. I believe this diversity enhances every type of class, because students have a wide range of interests and specialties that liberal arts education allows them to pursue.

Which residence halls have you lived in? How would you describe the hall’s personality? What is/was the best thing about living on campus?

The best thing about living on campus is being able to walk around such a peaceful campus. Other colleges tend to have lots of buildings and traffic, and ours has so much nature and is rather isolated. When the weather is nice, I love to walk around campus and listen to music to relax while getting some exercise.

What’s one of the best spots on campus?

The Dovecote is a fun coffee shop to study in on campus. Whenever I study there, I always run into friends I haven’t seen for a bit and we catch up over coffee. It is a nice place to take a break in between classes to socialize.

What’s your favorite thing about living in Portland?

Portland has a lot of fun thrift stores and restaurants. There is practically every cuisine and for vegans, like me, there are endless cute restaurants and dessert places that I am always bringing friends to. I feel like Portland is a city in the sense that it offers a variety of shops and areas but does not feel so big that you can not get to know your way around.

What’s one of your best Lewis & Clark memories so far?

One of my favorite memories is sitting on the Graduate School lawn with my tennis teammates. It was one of the first sunny days in the spring and we all just sat in the sun appreciating it while opening up to each other as a whole team.

How has Lewis & Clark changed you?

Lewis & Clark has introduced me to lots of international students who have broadened my perspectives a lot. I ended up traveling with some of them and appreciate all the international perspectives the student body can offer.

How would you describe sustainability at Lewis & Clark? What’s your involvement with any sustainability initiatives on campus?

I would say Lewis & Clark students are very conscious about sustainability. My friends and I love to go thrift shopping and go to local markets and restaurants. I appreciate that the general culture here does not encourage mass consumption as larger schools do with trends or constant themed parties. I feel like everyone here appreciates individual styles and there is no pressure to buy certain things just to fit in.

Why do you love playing tennis at L&C? How do you balance athletics and academics?

I love playing tennis while studying at school because it offers a mental break from hard academics. Playing a sport also forces me to manage my time which has really allowed me to thrive in tennis and school. Having teammates ranging from first years to seniors has allowed me to have mentors and later become a mentor as I navigated Lewis & Clark.

Biology Health Studies