Olivia DrakePosted 09/15/06 David Titus, Professor Emeritus of Government, died on June 13, 2006. Professor Titus taught at Wesleyan from 1966 until his retirement in 2004, serving as chair of the Government Department, the College of Social Studies and the East Asian Studies Program. He played a crucial role in establishing East Asian Studies at Wesleyan; he served as Resident Director of the Kyoto Program three times, and was a member and frequent chair of its Executive Board. His masterwork was his Palace and Politics in Prewar Japan, which established his reputation as a leading scholar of Japanese politics; it was…
Harriett Epstein, desktop support specialist, troubleshoots problems Wesleyan employees may encounter with their computers. Posted 09/15/06 Q: When did you come to Wesleyan and for what department?A: I came to Wesleyan in July 1998 as a desktop configuration specialist for the PeopleSoft Team in Information Technology Services. Q: Explain what a desktop support specialist does. A: It is the responsibility of a desktop support specialist to perform trouble-shooting and remediation of software and hardware problems on computers and peripherals and install and configure new desktop computers and peripherals. We also provide support/coordination for special projects requiring technical expertise within…
Pat Melley, director of Employee Benefits, is preparing for Open Enrollment for 2007 in November. She hopes to meet several Wesleyan employees during this time. Posted 09/15/06 Being Wesleyans director of Employee Benefits is a huge benefit on its own. Pat Melley, who was hired into this role in August, says she enjoys this opportunity to problem solve, mentor and collaborate. I think of Wesleyan employees as my customers, and I strive to serve them the best that I can, Melley says from the Office of Human Resources. I love the challenge of answering questions from faculty…
Cameron Shelton, assistant professor of economics, is an expert on public economics, political economy and macroeconomics. His office is based in the Public Affairs Center. Posted 09/15/06 Cameron Shelton has joined the Economics Department as an assistant professor. Sheltons research is based on the political economy of fiscal policy. By using panel datasets that cover multiple years and countries, I investigate how a countrys political institutions, economic institutions, and demographic factors combine to affect patterns of public expenditure and, ultimately, macroeconomic performance, Shelton explains. Shelton has written three papers based on tests of theories, which are under review for…
Posted 09/15/06 Wesleyan celebrated the 10th anniversary of Constitution Day. According to Federal law, Wesleyan and other federally-funded institutions are required to offer programs commemorating the Constitution. We want to take something that is required by law, and turn it into something meaningful for the Wesleyan community, says the Caleb T. Winchester University Librarian Barbara Jones. Jones, whose primary professional interests include intellectual freedom, presented a talk titled Libraries and the Constitution After 9/11 in recognition of Constitution Day 2006 Sept. 19 in the Smith Reading Room in Olin Library. R Jones has served one term as chair of the…
Ron Jenkins, professor of theater, reads a Sanskrit prayer during a Sept. 11 Memorial Service in the Memorial Chapel while Jason Harris '09, left, listens. Posted 09/15/06 On Sept. 11, 2001, Marc Arena 07 was in class when his high school principal announced over the P.A. that the World Trade Center towers were struck by two planes. He and his classmates at Pelham Memorial High School in Pelham, N.Y. gathered around a radio, listening in awe. With an ear on the broadcast, and a pencil at hand, Arena wrote a poem. Bodies leaping from 61 floors. Like roaches in the…
Frank Hauser, head football coach, has been preparing Wesleyan Cardinals for competition Sept. 23. Hauser, who graduated from Wesleyan in 1979, has been coaching at Wesleyan 20 years. Posted 09/15/06 Q: Frank, the football season kicks off Sept. 23. Is it difficult to prepare the team for competition in such a short period?A: Practice began August 30 which gives us over three weeks to prepare for the opener against Middlebury College That is plenty of time.Q: The Cardinals had seven consecutive non-losing seasons from 1997 to 2003. What are your goals this year to get…
UP, UP AND AWAY: Wesleyan's Davison Art Center received a new fiberglass cupola atop its building Aug. 9. The new addition replaces a deteriorated wood cupola, which was removed in July. The new cupola is a replica of the former cupola. The 1,500-pound white, decorative cupola was hoisted by crane to the DAC's rooftop. Contractors lower the cupola to a copper-rimmed base. The new cupola brings beauty to the DAC second and third-story views, as well as the DAC's courtyard below. Macri Roofing provided the labor. (Photos by Olivia Bartlett)
Wesleyan tennis coach Ken Alrutz, right, teaches his son, Graham, a few techniques on the Wesleyan tennis courts Aug. 24. Posted 08/24/06 Q: Ken, you will be entering your third year as the mens and womens head tennis coach. What attracted you to Wesleyan?A: When my wife and I contemplated a move, I decided I wanted to coach both women and men, to work at an academically distinguished school, and to finish my career at a small institution similar to the place where I began my professional life. Q: What months does the tennis season span? When do you…
Mary-Jane Rubenstein, assistant professor of religion, will teach Modern Christian Thought and the Problem of Evil during the fall semester. Posted 08/24/06 Mary-Jane Rubenstein has joined the Department of Religion as an assistant professor. Her primary research interests are continental philosophy and Christian theology. She also focuses on post-colonial Christianities; literary and critical theory; and race, gender and sexuality studies. Rubenstein comes to Wesleyan from the Department of Religion at Columbia University in New York. There, she taught Contemporary Civilization and co-taught the courses, Religions in the Modern World and Religion and Its Critics. She was awarded the Core…
Posted 08/24/06 Wesleyans Music Department will sponsor a memorial service for David McAllester, professor of music and anthropology, emeritus, at 2 p.m. in the Memorial Chapel Sept. 24. McAllester, a founder of the Society for Ethnomusicology, died April 29, 2006, after suffering a stroke. He was 89. David had a huge impact on generations of Wesleyan students, many of them not music majors or grad students, says Mark Slobin, professor of music, who worked with McAllester for 15 years. When I was hired at Wesleyan in 1971 and looked at a college guide, the only course singled out was McAllesters…
Artist Mary Lum works on her painting, which is part of the exhibit "Up Against the Wall" opening in the Ezra and Cecile Zilkha Gallery on Sept. 8. Posted 08/24/06 Up Against the Wall, an exhibit featuring art that relies exclusively on the interior surfaces of architecture for inspiration and material support, will open at the Ezra and Cecile Zilkha Gallery on Sept. 8. Organized by Nina Felshin, curator of Zilkha Gallery, the exhibition includes work by William McCarthy, gallery supervisor of Zilkha Gallery and Davison Art Center gallery supervisor, as well as artists Shoshana Dentz, Elana Herzog, Mary Lum…