2017 – Page 33

This summer, Wesleyan’s Center for Global Studies will launch its new Squirrel Study Abroad and Exchange Program in three different countries. Fifteen Wesleyan squirrels have already registered for the program. With the exception of Australia, more than 200 species of squirrels live in trees or burrows worldwide. “Some of Wesleyan’s eastern gray squirrels and fox squirrels have never experienced life outside of Middletown, let alone the boundaries of campus,” said Emily Gorlewski, associate director of Wesleyan’s Office of Study Abroad. “We’d love to see our squirrels travel to other countries and participate in a meaningful cross-cultural experience.” In June, Wesleyan…

Happy April Fools Day! We do love our squirrels here at Wesleyan, but the cardinal is here to stay.

During the 2017 College of East Asian Studies Student Conference, held March 30 in Beckham Hall, four panelists discussed "Inside/Outside: The Changing Boundaries of Asia and Asian America in a Divided/Globalized World." Photos of the conference are below: (more…)

Participating in Kennesaw State University’s “Year of Russia” program, Assistant Professor of History Victoria Smoklin presented on the current state of US-Russia relations. KSU’s “Year of Russia” invites academics, artists and dignitaries “to promote a deeper appreciation for and understanding of Russia and its people.” During her presentation Smoklin discussed ideological struggle over national identity in contemporary Russia. She noted Russian President Vladimir Putin’s involvement in this struggle. His strategic engagement with his country’s history he has led to an unprecedented gain approval ratings. In particular, she cited Putin’s construction of a 54 foot tall statue of the 10th century…

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Ron Jenkins, professor of theater, is collaborating with a team of Indonesian artists on the creation of a new play: "Islands: The Treaty that changed the World." It will include original gamelan music by Wesleyan Artist-in-Residence I.M. Harjito and original choral music by John Spencer Camp Professor of Music Neely Bruce. The cast will Wesleyan students from India, Bangladesh, Indonesia and China who will be joined by Indonesian guest artists Novirela Minangsari, Dinny Aletheiani and Nyoman Catra. The play commemorates the 350th anniversary of the 1667 Treaty of Breda in which the Dutch ceded control of Manhattan to the English…

On April 12, the Hunger and Homelessness student group in the Office of Community Service will once again host the Wesleyan Hunger Banquet, an interactive simulation of global poverty rates. Attendees are placed into an income bracket at random and then provided a seating arrangement and meal indicative of that income level. The event will take place in Woodhead Lounge from 5-7 p.m. Anthony Hatch, assistant professor of sociology, assistant professor of science in society, assistant professor of African American studies, will serve as MC, and Ron Krom of St. Vincent de Paul will speak at the event. "The Wesleyan Hunger…

Chabad at Wesleyan hosted their sixth annual Wesleyan Matzah Bakery March 31 in Huss Courtyard. Matzah, also spelled matzo, is an unleavened bread made from flour and water and takes about 15 minutes to bake. It's traditionally eaten by Jews during the week-long Passover holiday. Chabad at Wesleyan, led by Rabbi Levi Schectman, is one of Wesleyan’s Jewish organizations, offers social, educational, recreational and religious programming for students and faculty. The Chabad student group hosted the event. (Photos by Matt Rentetzky '18) (more…)

Men in the U.S. today increasingly believe themselves to be victims of gender discrimination, and there are a record number of recent lawsuits claiming anti-male bias. In a study published in March in Psychology of Men and Masculinity, Assistant Professor of Psychology Clara Wilkins and her co-authors assess the consequences of these perceptions of anti-male bias. Are men who perceive discrimination more likely to discriminate against women? How do beliefs about societal order affect men's evaluations of men and women? The article is co-authored by former post-doctoral fellow Joseph Wellman, now an assistant professor at California State University–San Bernardino, Erika Flavin '14, and…

Wesleyan alumnus Abdul Latif '97 served as the choreographer for The Black History Museum According to the United States of America, which opened the weekend of March 24. Done in collaboration with HERE Arts Center’s Culturemart Festival 2017, the show examined “a number of struggles pertinent to the people of color community and the “modern millennial identity in response to incarceration and the #BlackLivesMatter movement.” Latif, along with the rest of the production team, attempts to explore and explain the relationship between black Americans and the criminal justice system drawing from sentiments expressed after the fatal shootings of Black Americans.…

During her fall semester First-Year Seminars intensive writing course, Gina Savoy '20 investigated the career of artist Vincent van Gogh and penned an essay titled “The Church: A Lifelong Obstacle for Vincent van Gogh." On March 28, Savoy's essay took top prize at the Endeavor Foundation First-Year Seminar Essay Contest. She and four other first-year students received cash awards ranging from $250 to $75 and a book, selected by their course instructor. With support from The Endeavor Foundation of New York, Wesleyan was able to offer the offer inaugural awards ceremony and celebrate the success of 43 FYS in the fall, and 10 this…

Antonio Gonzalez, professor of Spanish and director of the Center for Global Studies, is comfortably seated in front of a semicircle of 11 students. He holds an iPad Pro that controls two large screens on the wall behind him and enables him to move effortlessly, seamlessly from Google Maps, to video clips, to text he can annotate on the iPad. All the while he converses in Spanish with his students about a movie that tells the story of a Moroccan woman repatriating the body of her brother after he died crossing the Strait of Gibraltar in a small boat. In…

Accepting Applications for Squirrel Study Abroad and Exchange Program

Beyond April 1

College of East Asian Studies Hosts Conference on Changing Boundaries of Asia and Asian America

Smoklin Contributes to “Year of Russia” at KSU

Szegedy-Maszak’s Photography Collection Displayed at Davison Art Center

Play by Jenkins Commemorates 350th Anniversary of Treaty of Breda

Wesleyan Hunger Banquet to Be Held April 12

Students Learn about Jewish Culture at Outdoor Matzah Bakery

Wilkins, Alumni Author Paper on Consequences of Perceived Anti-Male Bias

Latif ’97 Showcases Work in 2017 Culturemart Festival

Frosh Honored for First-Year Seminar Essays

Wesleyan Receives Mellon Grant for Pedagogical Innovation