November 2016 – Page 2

For the third year in a row, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded Wesleyan with a Regional Food Recovery Achievement Certificate for its efforts reducing and diverting food waste. Wesleyan is among 26 organizations and institutions to receive the honor in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine. This also is the third year Wesleyan has participated in the EPA's New England Food Recovery Challenge. "These organizations are showing that protecting the environment, saving money and feeding the hungry can go hand in hand,” said Curt Spalding, regional administrator of EPA's New England office. “It’s true year-round, but especially important to keep…

On Nov. 2, Milk Like Sugar, a new play by Kirsten Greenidge ’96, premiered at the Mosaic Theater Company in Washington, D.C. Broadway World calls it a “rousing story about young women coming of age in a time when issues of acceptance, mentorship, and materialism challenge the dreams and ambitious of so many teens.” This production is a D.C. premiere, for both the play and for the playwright. Greenidge has had extensive production history around the country, but had yet to premiere a production in D.C. Greenidge, who majored in history at Wesleyan, was inspired to write the play "because…

Frank Wood ’83, the Tony Award-winning actor who is currently starring in The Babylon Line at the Lincoln Center Theater, discussed his family’s ties to the election in an interview with the Lincoln Center Theater Blog. In the interview, Wood noted he is the brother of Maggie Hassan, the current governor of New Hampshire and U.S. Senator-elect. His father, Robert Coldwell Wood, Wesleyan’s Andrus Professor of Government, Emeritus, had also taught at Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and had served as the first under secretary in the Department of Housing and Urban Development for the Johnson administration. Through…

Cheri Weiss ’83 was recently featured in an article titled “Cantor-in training brings the spirit to Jewish shut-in,” published in the San Diego Union Tribune. Highlighting her work within the Jewish community, the article follows Weiss’ journey to bring the prayers and songs sung during High Holy Days to sick and shut-ins not able to attend services. A project stemming from a tragedy in her own personal life, Weiss started this project as a gift to her father-in-law who, at the time, was in hospice care and not strong enough to attend High Holy Days services. His wish was to…

Ethnomusicology PhD candidate Maho Ishiguro MA ’12 was honored at the 2016 Society of Ethnomusicology Annual Meeting with the Nadia and Nicholas Nahumck Fellowship for her research titled "Seudati and the Social Contestation of Female Dance in Aceh, Indonesia.” The award is given to help support research on a dance-related subject and its subsequent publication, and consists of a $4,000 research fellowship and $1,000 award for publication. “This fellowship will allow me to continue doing my research on the topics of Acehnese dance and music forms, women's practice of performing arts, and changing socioreligious climate in the post-tsunami Aceh, from 2004…

The Wesleyan women's soccer team hosted a free kids' soccer clinic on Nov. 12 for ages 5-13 to benefit the Amazing Grace Food Pantry in Middletown. The event called Kicking4Hunger encouraged area children to donate a non-perishable food item in exchange for the free clinic. Around 25 kids from the Middletown area attended and were taught the basic skills of soccer — passing, dribbling, shooting — by members of the team. Senior captain Carly Swenson '17 spearheaded the second annual event, along with former player Tess Daggett-Edenholm. Swenson and Daggett-Edenholm started a program on campus called Athletes C.A.R.E (Creating Abundant…

This fall, Wesleyan students and staff took part in the Middletown Community Thanksgiving Project, an annual collaborative effort to provide Thanksgiving meals for families in need. Wesleyan was one of 70 community partners for the project, led by Fellowship Church in Middletown.

David Kuenzel, assistant professor of economics, is the author of a new paper published in the European Economic Review titled "WTO Dispute Determinants." In the paper, Kuenzel investigates what factors drive the decisions of World Trade Organization member countries to engage in trade disputes with each other. "Understanding the determinants of the dispute pattern is crucial, since the WTO can only function properly if its dispute settlement mechanism is equally accessible to all member countries," Kuenzel said. The paper presents a new theory and empirical evidence to show that trade policy flexibility, which is defined as the difference between the…

The Allbritton Center, Wesleyan's hub of civic engagement, is maintaining a calendar of campus and community events related to the recent presidential election and its aftermath. "In the wake of the historic 2016 presidential election, we believe that civic engagement — in its many forms — is more important than ever," said Civic Engagement Fellow Rebecca Jacobsen '16. The event listing is housed on the Allbritton Center's Engage blog. Inclusion of an event does not equal endorsement. To submit an event, email engage@wesleyan.edu. "We are committed to transparency, open discourse, and the safety and well-being of all our community members," Jacobsen…

From Nov. 9-12, two faculty members and five students from the physics and chemistry departments, attended the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students in Tampa, Fla. Candice Etson, assistant professor of physics, and Erika Taylor, associate professor of chemistry, were joined by McNair Scholars Luz Mendez ’17, Tatianna Pryce ’17, Stacy Uchendu ’17 and Hanna Morales ’17; and Wesleyan Mathematics and Science (WesMaSS) Scholar Helen Karimi ’19. Students observed other research being performed around the nation by students who are members of underrepresented groups in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). In addition, the Wesleyan students presented their own research and Morales and Karimi…

On Nov. 12, the Wesleyan community honored local veterans, as well as students, faculty, staff, alumni and parents who served in the military at "Salute to Service: Honoring Our Veterans." The event was held prior to Wesleyan's last football game vs. Trinity College for the “Battle of the Birds." Wesleyan treated the veterans, including Wesleyan's Posse Foundation Scholars, and their families to a brunch in Daniel Family Commons. Speakers included Wesleyan President Michael Roth; Antonio Farias, vice president for equity and inclusion; City of Middletown Mayor Daniel Drew; and veteran and Wesleyan alumnus Tim Day '59. Following the program, Wesleyan's…

On Nov. 24, dozens of low-income Middletown families will enjoy a Thanksgiving Day feast courtesy of a local food pantry and the Jewett Center for Community Partnerships at Wesleyan. From Oct. 31 to Nov. 18, four Wesleyan students, three alumni and JCCP staff are hosting Middletown Community Thanksgiving Basket Project registration at Amazing Grace Food Pantry in Middletown. Families who sign up will receive a baked turkey and traditional fixings on Thanksgiving Day. In addition, the JCCP is hosting a Stuffing and Gravy Drive (jars or cans) from now until Nov. 18. Boxes are placed in North College, Usdan, Olin, Freeman Athletic Center and Allbritton. Wesleyan volunteers…

EPA Recognizes Wesleyan for Reducing, Diverting Food Waste

Play by Greenidge ’96 Explores Pressures of Today’s Teens

Tony Award-Winning Actor Wood ’83 Discusses Ties to Election

Weiss ’83 Shares Her Faith With Sick and Shut-ins

Ishiguro Awarded Research Fellowship to Study Acehnese Dance

Women’s Soccer Hosts Clinic to Benefit Local Food Pantry

Wesleyan Students, Staff Participate in Middletown Community Thanksgiving Project

Kuenzel Published in European Economic Review

Allbritton Center Maintains Post-Election Calendar of Events

Chemistry, Physics Students Attend Biomedical Research Conference

Wesleyan Community Honors Military Veterans at “Salute to Service” Event (with photos and video)

Students Help Local Residents Prepare for a Thanksgiving Day Feast