Kolcio, Weiner, Winston to Serve as New Directors

In July, three faculty will begin new appointments at Wesleyan.

Katja Kolcio will succeed Peter Rutland as director of the Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life; Stephanie Weiner will succeed Sean McCann as director of the Shapiro Center for Writing; and Krishna Winston will succeed David Beveridge and Alex Dupuy as director of the Wasch Center for Retired Faculty.

Katja Kolcio, associate professor of dance, received certificates from Free Ukrainian University and from Kyiv Institute of Art and Culture; and her PhD from The Ohio State University. Her work specializes in the role of creative physical engagement in education, research, and social change. She has received choreographic fellowships from the New England Dance Fund and New York State Council of the Arts. Recent projects include collaborating on Facing Disasters: A Provocation/Invitation, and This Side of the Curtain: Ukrainian Resistance in Uncertain Times, a panel and performance designed around the topic of social action in an uncertain political context. She presented her research in Washington, D.C., at an event hosted by the Congressional and Senate Ukraine Caucuses in March 2020.

Stephanie Weiner, professor of English, received her BA from the University of Minnesota and her PhD from Stanford University. She has published two books, Clare’s Lyric: John Clare and Three Modern Poets (Oxford University Press, 2014) and Republican Politics and English Poetry, 1789-1874 (Palgrave Macmillan, 2005), and many articles in publications including The Review of English Studies, Studies in English Literature, Victorian Studies, and Studies in Romanticism. She has served as the chair of the English Department and of the Compensation and Benefits Committee, and as vice-chair of the Review and Appeals Board, and is currently Vice President of the John Clare Society of North America. She is a 2010 recipient of the Binswanger Prize for Excellence in Teaching.

Krishna Winston, Marcus L. Taft Professor of German Language and Literature, Emerita, received her BA from Smith College and her MPhil and PhD from Yale University. She specializes in literary translation and has translated over 35 works of fiction and nonfiction from German to English. In 2017 she received the Bundesverdienstkreuz am Bande (Order of Merit) from the Federal Republic of Germany for her contributions to the understanding and dissemination of German culture, and in 2019 she was made an Honorary Fellow of the American Association of Teachers of German. She has a distinguished record of service at Wesleyan, including many years as the chair of the German Department, a year as acting dean of the college, four years as dean of the Arts and Humanities Division, and membership on numerous standing and ad hoc committees. Winston also is professor, College of the Environment, emerita.