Olivia DrakeStarting on Feb. 28, Wesleyan will bring together teams of artists and scientists to share approaches, skills and outcomes of their research at the intersection of art and science. The symposium, titled “Innovations: Intersection of Art and Science," is part of the Creative Campus Initiative at the Center for the Arts. "The goal of this experimental program is to elevate the arts as a means of teaching, learning and knowing through co-teaching opportunities for artists and non-artists, as well as commissioning new works by artists who are invited to work with faculty and students across disciplines in their creation process,"…
Lauren RubensteinFor alumni seeking to relive their days in the classroom, parents interested to see first-hand what their Wesleyan students are learning, and prospective students—or anyone else—curious about the Wesleyan experience, here’s your chance. Beginning Feb. 4, two Wesleyan professors—President Michael Roth and Associate Professor of Film Studies Scott Higgins—will open their virtual classrooms on Coursera. In September 2012, Wesleyan announced a new partnership with Coursera, a company offering the public access to free MOOCs (massive open online courses) taught by professors from top colleges and universities. Wesleyan is the first liberal arts institution focused on the undergraduate experience to offer…
As their “Money and Social Change” class drew to a close in mid-December, 15 Wesleyan students and their professor presented four local non-profit organizations with a surprise gift for the holidays: $10,000 in unsolicited grants. The funds were provided to the class by the Learning by Giving Foundation, established in 2011 by Doris Buffett, Warren Buffett's oldest sister. The foundation aims to promote the study of the nonprofit sector and philanthropy by undergraduate students, giving them first-hand experience in “the art, science and business of philanthropy.” This year for the first time, Wesleyan partnered with the foundation through the service learning…
On Jan. 11, a small explosion in Usdan University Center's mechanical room left several staff and students trapped inside with possible injuries. "We've got a situation," says Bill Nelligan, director of environmental health, safety and sustainability. "Please gather your gear and head to the basement." A group of six Wesleyan staff members, trained in light search and rescue techniques, quickly prepare for the task. They sport reflective vests, safety helmets, goggles and gloves, and carry a backpack equipped with flashlights, duct tape, first-aid kits, tools and blankets. Team leader Allen Alonzo, associate director of information technology auxiliary services, breaks the…
Bill HolderRuth Striegel, professor of psychology and the Walter A. Crowell University Professor of the Social Sciences, will assume the position of Wesleyan’s next provost and vice president for academic affairs. She will start in this position on July 1, succeeding Rob Rosenthal, who will be returning to the faculty as John E. Andrus Professor of Sociology. Striegel holds a doctoral degree in clinical psychology from the University of South Carolina. She is a distinguished scholar-teacher whose research has focused on understanding the causes and effects of eating and weight disorders, and particularly on using insights gained from large-scale studies to…
Kate CarlisleDynamic filmmaker and educator Shakti Butler will be the keynote speaker at Wesleyan’s Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration on Friday, Feb. 1. “Diversity University: From Theory to Practice,” is the theme of this year’s daylong commemoration. Butler, a prominent speaker on racial equity, is the producer of documentaries including The Way Home; Mirrors of Privilege: Making Whiteness Visible, and Light in the Shadows. She is frequently hired by companies seeking a catalyst for change and uses audience participation and often, clips from her films, in her public appearances. A multiracial African-American woman (African, Arawak Indian and Russian-Jewish), Butler has worked…
(Story contributed by Jim H. Smith) In this issue of The Wesleyan Connection, we ask “5 Questions” of Ashraf Rushdy, professor of English, professor of African American Studies and chair of the African American Studies Program. Rushdy is the author of American Lynching, a meticulously researched interpretive history of how lynching became a uniquely American phenomenon and how it has endured, evolved and changed over the course of three centuries. The book was published by Yale University Press in October 2012. Q: Scholars have been writing about lynching for more than a century now. There is a significant body of extant…
Wesleyan will honor three extraordinary alumni at the University’s 181st Commencement on May 26. Joss Whedon ’87, film and television director, writer and producer, will deliver the commencement address. Honorary degrees also will be presented to environmental and social justice leader Majora Carter ’88 and Jim Dresser ’63, whose many years of service to Wesleyan include having chaired the Board of Trustees. Joss Whedon ’87 is an award-winning writer, director and producer. He is the force behind such popular television shows as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, and the 2012 superhero blockbuster film, The Avengers. The son and grandson of successful television writers,…
All Wesleyan students, faculty, and staff now have access to lynda.com, an online subscription library that teaches the latest software tools and skills through high-quality instructional videos taught by recognized industry experts. Using your Wesleyan username and password, (see instructions for accessing Lynda.com) the campus community can access more than 1,400 training videos on a broad range of subjects, including photography, design, music and video, home computing, animation, and web design and development. Acquire comprehensive training in popular applications such as Microsoft Office for both PC and Mac and Adobe Acrobat Professional. New courses are added every week. Wesleyan students,…
“Climate Change, once considered an issue for a distant future, has moved firmly into the present.” This is the message in the draft version of the Third National Climate Assessment, which was released on Jan. 11. Gary Yohe, the Huffington Foundation Professor of Economics and Environmental Studies, is vice chair of the National Climate Assessment and Development Advisory Committee (NCADAC), a 60-member committee that includes representatives from academia, state and local governments, non-governmental organizations, business and industry, and others, and the committee that issued this draft. Since this is a “review draft,” Yohe encouraged the Wesleyan community and their friends (along…
The Wesleyan Board of Trustees recently awarded tenure to two faculty members. They are: Lois Brown, professor of African American studies, professor of English, came to Wesleyan last fall from Mount Holyoke College where she was Elizabeth Small Professor of English. At Mount Holyoke, where she began teaching in 1998, she was awarded the Distinguished Teaching Award in 2004, and was director of the Weissman Center for Leadership and the Liberal Arts for five years. A literary historian, she focuses on culture, identity, race and gender in 18th and 19th century African American writing. She is author of three books…
Wesleyan's Center for the Arts announces the creation of the Madhu Reddy Endowed Fund for Indian Music and Dance at Wesleyan University. Reddy, a real estate agent with William Raveis based in Glastonbury, Conn., established the fund with a pledge of $100,000. During a ceremony on Dec. 14, Reddy presented an initial check for $50,000 to Pamela Tatge, director of the Center for the Arts, and David Nelson, artist in residence. “For more than 50 years, Wesleyan’s Music and Dance Departments and the Center for the Arts have been presenting the music and dance of India to the campus and…