Wesleyan in the News

Wesleyan in the News

1. The Chronicle of Higher Education: “Beware the Doyens of Disruption”

In this op-ed, President Michael Roth ’78 responds to predictions that COVID-19 is going to “change everything” in higher education with a reminder that “the desire of bright young people from all over the world for an on-campus education remains strong.” He writes, “It’s because the connectivity among people and practices that takes place in person intensifies the learning experience.”

2. HxA Podcast: “Michael Roth, Safe Enough Spaces”

President Michael Roth ’78 is interviewed on the Heterodox Academy’s podcast about his book, Safe Enough Spaces: A Pragmatist’s Approach to Inclusion, Free Speech, and Political Correctness on College Campuses. Heterodox Academy recently chose Safe Enough Spaces as the subject of its first ever book club. Roth was also recently interviewed on “The Way We Live Now,” a podcast from Dani Shapiro P ’22.

3. The Wall Street Journal: “Noted: Class of 2020”

The Wall Street Journal featured remarks by Caroline Bhupathi ’20 delivered at Wesleyan’s virtual commencement ceremony on May 24.

4. TLS: “Respect New Haven”

Assistant Professor of English Hirsh Sawhney reflects on the past, present, and politics of New Haven as he takes long, rambling walks through his city with his dog Pinky, a tiny chihuahua-dachshund mix.

5. PIX11: “College Students Create Program Connecting Young People with Senior Citizens in COVID-19 Isolation”

Marysol Castro ’96 features “Support a Pal,” a program created by Walker Brandt ’22 and Lars Delin ’22 to form connections between college students and elderly people in order to combat social isolation during the pandemic.

5. NJ.com: “‘A Smile Never Left His Face’: Steve Pikiell’s Forgotten Season Leading a Division-3 Underdog, 20 Years Before Rutgers”

Wesleyan alumni recall Steve Pikiell’s brief but memorable time as head coach of Wesleyan’s basketball team, long before he became head coach of Rutgers’ men’s basketball team. “I needed a guy like that in my life when he came along,” said Josh Schaer ’96, one of the senior captains on the team. “He had this infectious energy about basketball. He made me love the game again. He was just able to give us a boost. He lived up to expectations. He was a breath of fresh air. A smile never left his face. He loved where he was and he loved what he was doing.”

Alumni in the News 

1. Stanford Graduate School of Business: “Oladoyin Oladapo MBA ’20″

Oladoyin Oladapo ’14 is featured by the Stanford Graduate School of Business, where she earned an MBA this year. The daughter of Nigerian immigrants, Oladapo grew up in New York City, where she volunteered teaching elementary school students during her summer breaks from Wesleyan. During this time, she observed a concerning gap in literature: There were more animals than children of color featured in the books she read. According to the article, she vowed to change that and founded Idunnu Studios, a company that creates multicultural children’s books to expose children, and especially girls, to a variety of cultures. Oladapo writes stories about extraordinary girls from across the globe, capturing the colorful language, foods, and traditions of their countries.

2. The New York Times Magazine: “The Voice of God. (And Knausgaard, Whitman, Machiavelli…)”

Edoardo Ballerini ’92 is profiled for his work as a beloved audio book narrator. “Ballerini could be considered the Vladimir Horowitz of his cohort, famous within his profession—among devout audiobook listeners and the ever-expanding industry itself—as a go-to voice for intelligent, subtle but gripping narrations of books. Some listeners will buy whatever he narrates, which might help explain why a collection of Albert Camus essays from the mid-20th century suddenly found itself on the audiobook best-seller list last year.”

3. The New York Times: “‘Hamilton’ Movie Will Stream on Disney Plus on July 3”

A filmed version of the hit Broadway musical created by Lin-Manuel Miranda ’02, Hon. ’15 and directed by Thomas Kail ’99, originally scheduled for release in October 2021, will drop early to coincide with Independence Day.

4. CommonWealth Magazine: “Telehealth is Available, but No One is Calling”

Dr. Bruce Weinraub ’75, a primary care physician in Northampton, Mass., speaks out about the financial crisis he and many other doctors are facing as patient calls and telehealth visits are substantially down since the pandemic started, threatening the existence of many small medical practices.

5. Financial Times: “Time for Healthcare to Make Better Use of Data”

In this opinion piece, Benjamin Fels ’06 argues, “The application of machine learning to the health of individuals should be the principal focus for technologists focused on the power of artificial intelligence.”

6. The Hill: “Max Rose Slams ‘Heartless’ WH Decision to End National Guard Deployments One Day Before They Can Claim Benefits”

Max Rose ’08, U.S. Congressman from New York and a captain in the National Guard, criticizes the Trump administration’s decision to stop deployments on June 24, the day before thousands of National Guard members would qualify for early retirement and education benefits under the Post-9/11 GI bill.

7. Crosscut: “Seattle Drive-in Dance Event is Part Scavenger Hunt, Part Performance”

Ari Kaufman ’16 is production manager of Cooped-Up: Drive-in Dances for Cooped Up People, a contemporary dance performance in Seattle put on by local dance company LanDforms, tailored to and inspired by COVID-19 restrictions. Audience members view the performance through their own car windows.

8. The New York Times: “‘I Will Make You Mine’ Review: Three Times a Lady”

I Will Make You Mine, actor Lynn Chen’s [’98] feature film writing and directing debut, is reviewed. It was also reviewed recently in The Los Angeles Times.

9. The Chronicle of Higher Education: “Bashing Administrators While the University Burns”

Gabriel Paquette ’99 responds to a recent essay by a scholar at Johns Hopkins University criticizing his university’s administration for cutting contributions to employee retirement plans. Though this essay made several important points, he writes, it is based on a common myth: “a false nostalgia for a purportedly lost Golden Age of faculty-led university governance, insulated from and impervious to market forces.” Paquette argues, “If universities are to survive the present crisis (and, sadly, many will not), a collective drive for self-preservation must replace the internecine jostling between the faculty and administration. Averting a mass-extinction event will necessitate a radical restructuring of the university, which can only succeed with an unprecedented degree of collaboration.”