Meet Grant Thesing, a Kinesiology major with a Pre-Med option. He is also the co-founder and President of OSU’s Improv Club, as well as a member of the Recreational Sports team. You’ve probably seen him around Dixon once or twice checking members in.

When asked about his favorite hobby, Grant couldn’t decide on just one, but did narrow it down to a few: “all things comedy, physical activity, work, and sleep related,” he humorously explained.

Physical activity has always meant to world to Grant, but when he developed severe shin splints his senior year of high school, making it impossible to run Varsity cross county, he was devastated. “With all my hard work amounting to nothing, I fell into depression. I stopped working out, and I started eating fast food everyday.” Eventually, Grant got into lifting. “My shin splints went away, and I grew stronger and more confidant. This experience showed me first hand the positive effects of physical activity.  I believe bringing this knowledge to the medical field will help improve people’s lives like it did mine.”

In between classes, lifting, and Improv Club, Grant works at Dixon Rec Center. “My main goal is to create a safe and inviting atmosphere for those coming to use our facilities,” he says. “Greeting each person I see with a smile and a ‘how’s it going?’ goes a long way in improving a person’s day.” Grant sees the Rec Sports as a place where people can go to get away from the stress of college. “The least I can do as an employee is to make that one break as relaxing and fun as possible.” 

 

Grant co-founded the improv club with one goal in mind: to foster a community based on comedy at Oregon State University. Today, he is the President of the club. “My goal is to ensure that everyone leaves our meetings feeling a sense of belonging in a group. If they learn something about Improv, that’s a bonus.” To Grant, “Improv is a rush like no other. When everyone on stage ‘clicks’ with each other, the scene moves forward at a natural pace, and nothing feels forced,” he says. “But when everyone is miscommunicating, the scene goes nowhere, everything is forced, and the audience is dead quiet.  Failing in this way can be common in improv, but Grant sees it as a natural process.  “The great thing about failing,” he says, “is that you get to improve at improv...there might be something there.”  

Grant grew up in Lake Oswego, Oregon.  In addition to cross country, he enjoys playing soccer, lacrosse, and basketball.