Maddie McNamara '22
I came here, and I just realized that it was home. It just felt right, and that’s a weird feeling, because I didn’t feel that way anywhere else.
Maddie McNamara was determined not to follow in the footsteps of her mother and two older siblings, all of whom chose to attend Ohio University. In fact, she resisted visiting OHIO at all until after she had made the rounds to several other universities in and out of Ohio looking for the perfect fit. But she never found it.
Late in her high school career she scheduled a visit to OHIO. She had been to the campus before, of course, but something felt different this time after having seen several other options.
“I came here, and I just realized that it was home,” Maddie said. “It just felt right, and that’s a weird feeling, because I didn’t feel that way anywhere else.”
At the time, she couldn’t put her finger on what made OHIO the right fit, but a year later she credits it primarily to two things: the strong sense of community on the campus in Athens, which was recently named America’s Best College Small Town in a top-10 list produced by USA Today; and the University’s connection to the outdoors.
Maddie, who didn’t know anyone coming to Ohio University when she enrolled for fall 2019, said she quickly made connections with peers in her learning community for undecided engineering majors. With plans to minor in theater, she also soon found opportunities to join performing groups.
That said, she credits her early connections with her decision to join a freshman summer backpacking trip through Campus Recreation’s Outdoor Pursuits program.
“That kind of set the stage for my entire first year here,” Maddie said. “I met a lot of great people, and I really challenged myself. It was harder than I ever thought it would be, but at the same time I loved it.”
Maddie now works for Outdoor Pursuits, which runs a climbing wall, a challenge course, an equipment rental service, and plans outdoor excursion trips for students. She said Ohio University’s location in southeast Ohio, situated a short drive from multiple parks and lakes, biking trails, snow skiing and more, makes it the best campus in the state for outdoor enthusiasts.
Working for OP has further fueled her interest in environmental issues and led her to pursue a major in industrial engineering with a sustainability focus.
“I really wanted to go into something meaningful,” Maddie said. Sustainability was something I’ve always been big on. It’s constantly becoming a bigger and bigger issue. I want to learn how I can help, and I’m excited that I can do that as part of my major.”
Maddie’s older brother is also an engineering major and her sister recently graduated with a degree in biology and is headed to dental school. Her mother, an OHIO alumna with a degree in communication sciences and disorders, is a speech pathologist. She has one younger sister, who Maddie imagines might end up at Ohio University in a few years as well.
“We’re just an OHIO family I guess,” she said. “We all love it here.”