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\f0\fs24 \cf0 Steven Olikara: I had actually decided to go to a different school and it wasn\'92t until the very last
minute\'97the deadline on May 1\super st\nosupersub , or whenever that deadline was. The night
before I had the most\'85 I can\'92t even describe the feeling that something really
special would happen at Madison and it would be a mistake not to come here. \
\ \
I love, uh, I\'92m a big fan of Conan and Jimmy Fallon. I love watching the Late Night
shows. I think, just, humor is a big part of my life. I love to laugh and I think both
Conan and Jimmy Fallon are pretty hilarious. So I\'92ll watch them every so often\'97Daily
Show, Colbert Report. \ \
A lot of world music. Artists you probably never have heard of. Um, a lot of alternative
rock, hip-hop, The Roots (probably my favorite band out there). Just, I love the fusion between
hip-hop, soul, funk, jazz. I just tend to like groups that are pushing traditional\'85
you know, really pushing the envelope with their music and bringing together musicians
of different stylistic backgrounds that aren\'92t typically collaborating. I\'92m a big fan
of Rage Against the Machine. Their guitarist recently came to Madison. So, I love everything
out there. I listen to a lot of jazz. I\'92m a big fan of Lady Gaga. She, she, ah\'85 yeah,
I\'92m just going to leave it there. \ \
I had an older brother on campus here. He graduated last year and I wouldn\'92t be where
I am without his support, even though he was in a different department. He majored in electrical
engineering and is now working with GM in Detroit. He helped me out with courses, finding
out about resources, and there\'92s no doubt it helped me get on the ground running more
quickly because of the support and advice I received from him. \
\ I can remember in high school my interests
started to evolve a little bit. I was involved, I was an active musician playing with a lot
of different groups\'97jazz groups, funk, rock. I can remember a really fun Eastern
European folk band. And through that I started meeting a lot of different people from different
backgrounds. And I think that sparked my curiosity in different cultures and different perspectives.
And I was involved with a lot of service initiatives in Milwaukee and I could see first hand the
impact that a small group of people, passionate about their community, could have in improving
other people\'92s lives. I could see how the notion of\'85 I could see how service and
volunteerism had this amazing ability to bring people together across races, classes, religions.
And it was one of the few things that can bring those people together. I was really
inspired by that and inspired by, you know, the ability to have an impact in the community
and I felt like service and volunteerism was what added a sense of purpose and meaning
to my life. And it was also around that time that Barack Obama announced his improbably
campaign for President. I was just really inspired to go out and do things that people
didn\'92t think I\'92d do or do things that my family had not traditionally done. And
I was inspired by public service and knew that that was the\'85 that was the career
that would give my life its most meaning and I don\'92t\'85 I\'92ve never look back since
then. }