R&C Weekend: WESeminars, Belichick, MoConathon, Commencement

More than 5,000 alumni, family and friends of the university are expected to attend Reunion & Commencement Weekend on campus. The traditional series of events begins Thursday, May 20 and culminates with Commencement on Sunday, May 23.

“We have several new and exciting events this year including a benefit concert by Santigold (Santi White ’97) on Friday under the Andrus tent, and a MoConathon concert on Saturday featuring three student bands, celebrating McConaughy Hall,” says Deana Hutson, director of events and R&C weekend. “We’ll have numerous WESeminars featuring alumni, parents, faculty and students on topics that appeal to anyone.”

The Class of 1960’s 50th Reunion gathering and the Senior Class Semiformal will kick-off R&C Weekend on May 20. Campus guests who haven’t resistered online, may do so in person at the Usdan University Center.

Events on May 21 include campus tours, senior projects in film studies, a welcome picnic, a WESU 88.1 FM Open House, champagne reception for graduating seniors and their families, a president’s reception honoring donor associates, alumni of color reception, a Ajua Campos, WesLAN and La Unidad Latina reunion, Shabbat Dinner, stargazing, a reunion party at Eclectic, the Santigold Concert in memory of Johanna Justin-Jinich ’10 and Chase Parr ’10, WESeminars and more than 10 class reunions. See all Friday events here.

Events on May 22 begin with a campus swim, Cardinal Loop Fun Run, a conversation with President Michael Roth, a Wesleyan Lawyers Association presentation, all-college picnic, academic programs and department open houses, reunion class photos, grandparents dessert reception, class reunion receptions and dinners, a traditional, All-College Sing, an all-campus party featuring DJ Smokey Fontaine ’93 and MoConathon, a festival held in honor of McConaughy Hall, with live music by Wordsmith and the Concert G’s, Mad Wow Disease, and Naia Kete. Chris Correa ’10 and longtime campus dining employee Wendy Norton will host the event. See all Saturday events here.

Friday and Saturday schedules also are chocked full of WesSeminars, covering topics such as healthcare reform, brains, building a school in Kenya, local brownstone, microbes, film and television screen writing, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, musical history of Wesleyan, climate change, successful conversations, coaching careers of New England Patriots Bill Belichick and Wesleyan’s new football coach Michael Whalen, liberal arts in prison and more.

“WESeminars are a main attraction for alumni, but even more so for parents – many of whom experience another son’s/daughter’s commencement at peer institutions and are astounded by the array of seminars and activities Wesleyan offers,” says Gemma Fontanella Ebstein, associate vice president for external relations.

Ebstein says she’s noticed an increased interest in WesSeminars, and class-specific events in the past few years.

“Over the 20 years I’ve been involved with reunions, I’ve seen this interest in class-specific events wax and wane,” she says. “I’m happy to see it increase because these events are where former classmates truly reunite and reconnect.”

Events on May 23 begin with an all-campus brunch. The 178th Commencement Ceremony begins at 11 a.m. Denver, Colo. Mayor and Colorado gubernatorial candidate John Hickenlooper ‘74 will deliver the commencement address. See all Sunday events here.

The 2010 R&C Weekend is going ‘greener’ than ever this year, with an opportunity to recycle at every event during the weekend.

Two years ago, Wesleyan did away with printing the preliminary brochures for most classes, resulting in a massive savings of not only paper, but printing and mailing costs. This year, the events brochure will be printed on 50 percent post-consumer paper, created by bio-gas energy and certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. The commencement program will be printed on 10 percent post-consumer, chlorine-paper certified by the Sustainable Forestry Initiative.

In addition, Wesleyan’s dining service, Bon Appetit, is committed to providing food that is fresh, seasonal and minimally processed and to purchasing up to 20 percent of the food used this weekend from local farmers and other artisans located within a 150 mile radius of the university. All of Bon Appetit’s kitchens are stocked with composting bins and all composting is done at Wesleyan’s Long Lane Farm. Bon Appetit will serve meals with eco-friendly and compostable utensils.

The All-College dinner, held Friday night, will have a red, black and green theme.

Children ages 4 months to 12 years may enjoy Camp Cardinal, a supervised program created to entertain children during the weekend.

Follow @wesleyan_u on Twitter or become a fan of Wesleyan on Facebook to get up-to-date announcements throughout the weekend.

For more information on R&C Weekend, visit http://www.wesleyan.edu/rc/2010/contact.html.