Cynthia RockwellIn a video interview with central Florida's WESH to celebrate the opening of the newest location of Sprinkles Cupcakes at Disney Springs, the store's founder Candace Nelson ’96 offered a brief frosting tutorial. "All of our cupcakes at Sprinkles are hand-frosted," she noted. "You can actually come to our store at Disney Springs and see those cupcakes being frosted in our frosting theater. All of our frosters are in a cute little window so you can see them do their magic at Sprinkles." Additionally, she said that cupcakes ATMs are open until 2 a.m. for those on the late-night prowl: "It's technology and pleasure coming…
Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War, the new book by Mary Roach (W.W. Norton & Company; June 2016), was excerpted in the New York Times' Science section on May 30. Describing her visit to the Aberdeen Proving Ground (“a spread of high-security acreage set aside for testing weapons and the vehicles meant to withstand them"), Roach's first-person account offers her characteristic lively narrative and wry humor. She allows her guide, Mark Roman, to be ours as well. “'By and large, an army shows up to a war with the gear it has on hand from the last one.…
On his website, Sebastian Junger ’84 writes that his latest book, Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging (Twelve, May 24, 2016), is "about why tribal sentiment is such a rare and precious thing in modern society, and how the lack of it has affected us all. It’s about what we can learn from tribal societies about loyalty and belonging and the eternal human quest for meaning. ... Humans don’t mind duress, in fact they thrive on it. What they mind is not feeling necessary." On May 21, Scott Simon, host of NPR's Weekend Edition Saturday, invited Junger to discuss the origin and…
The Community Foundation of Middlesex County (CFMC) invited Wesleyan coaches for “A Slice and A Celebration” in the Warren Street Lobby of Freeman on May. Over pizza and a beverage, the coaches were celebrated for their community involvement, as well as offered the opportunity to learn more about the Community Foundation and how it can be a resource to the nonprofits and our broader community. Foundation leaders in attendance were Cynthia Clegg, president and CEO; Thayer Talbott, senior director of programs and operations; and Wallace Jones, CFMC board chairman. (more…)
At the Wesleyan Assembly and Annual Meeting of the Alumni Association held during Reunion, alumni celebrate members of the community with a number of awards. This year, six were named Distinguished Alumni in recognition of their achievement in their professions; two alumni received the McConaughy Award for writing that conveyed "unusual insights and understanding of current and past events," and two alumni were celebrated for Outstanding Service. Chair of the Alumni Association Daphne Kwok ’84 presented the awards at a ceremony in Memorial Chapel, which featured newly proclaimed Distinguished Alumnus Luke Wood ’91, president of Beats By Dr. Dre, offering…
Patti Smith received an honorary degree at Wesleyan's 184th Commencement ceremony. Her remarks are below: Hello, everybody. Congratulations to all, and to the graduates, of course. You are asked to embrace the joy of this moment. I would like you also to embrace the worst possible moment that you experienced to achieve this moment. That worst moment, the most difficult thing that you went through, is your source of inner strength. When you go out into the world and you have a tough time, you know that you have the power to surmount it. Don’t forget that. I salute you all…
New York, N.Y. resident David Davenport ’88 visited campus with his wife, Monica. David is serving on the Board of Trustees through 2018. “It’s great to be back on campus. I’m so proud of all the honorees at the Annual Meeting of the Alumni Association. Luke Wood’s talk was a great story about the marriage of old culture—records—to the current music media—digital. My wife was saying that this might apply to our son. He’s 13, and into Magic, a unique kind of counterculture. Luke’s story of how you can study the counterculture through different educational disciplines—and actually enjoy it—is inspiring." Monica…
Jeremy Arnold ’91, author, film historian and longtime contributor to Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is the author of The Essentials: 52 Must-See Movies and Why They Matter, recently published in collaboration with Running Press and Turner Classic Movies. A graduate of the Film Studies Department at Wesleyan, Arnold credits Professor Jeanine Basinger as instrumental in his work, both researching and writing the book. “I took five courses with Professor Basinger and she was the best teacher I ever had. She remains a close friend to this day,” he said. The book serves as a companion to TCM's weekly on-air “Essentials” series, hosted by…
On May 5, the Daniel Family Common was the site for the 2016 induction into the Baseball Wall of Fame. Seven alumni, ranging in class years from 1959 to 2000 were there with family and friends to reminisce about their outstanding Wesleyan baseball careers, as well as celebrate the program for what it is accomplishing currently. Both Ken Janik ’85, who played baseball for Wesleyan, and Wesleyan Baseball Coach Mark Woodworth ’94 offered introductory remarks. Athletic Director Michael Whalen ’83 noted the significance of these awards. “The Wesleyan baseball program has a tradition of excellence dating back to the 1950's. The…
On April 29, Sasha Chanoff ’94, founder and executive director of RefugePoint, joined other experts in refugee affairs, and leaders from the private sector in a symposium by the UN Foundation. Chanoff participated in two panel discussions led by Raj Kumar, the founding president and editor-in-chief of Devex, the media platform for the global development community. In “Changing the Paradigm: New Solutions for The Global Refugee Crisis,” Chanoff's discussion with Ruma Bose, who leads Tent.org, he shared his excitement for "venture philanthropy"—a private-sector role in funding pilot projects—thus stimulating the growth of start-up organizations and alternative solutions. "Venture Philanthropy...can be a key…
(By Margaret Curtis '16) Philadelphia-based Caitlin Quigley ’08 was selected as a winner of the Knight Cities Challenge for her project “20 Book Clubs, 20 Cooperative Businesses.” The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation awarded 37 winners out of a pool of more than 4,500 applicants with a share of $5 million to support one of the 26 communities in which the foundation invests. Quigley and her organization, the Philadelphia Area Cooperative Alliance (PACA), were awarded $146,000 to implement her project, which will support neighborhood businesses. Quigley's project will form 20 community-based book clubs of six to 12…
On the weekend of April 15-16, the CFA theater was home to the spring faculty dance concert, Storied Places. In addition to the dance, which was choreographed and directed by Chair and Associate Professor of Dance, Associate Professor of African American Studies, and Environmental Studies Nicole Stanton, the performance also featured original compositions and musical direction by Adjunct Professor of Music and African American Studies Jay Hoggard ’76. Adding a further layer of texture was narrative text, written and performed by Chair and Class of 1958 Distinguished Professor of African American Studies, Professor of English and Feminist, Gender and Sexuality Studies, and…