Editorial Staff

Five Wesleyan University faculty and students were announced as recipients of grants from the NASA Connecticut Space Grant Consortium. “I would say that these awards are a wonderful example of the broad range of research areas and activities that occur at Wesleyan. We are lucky to have such exciting research, active faculty, and motivated students, and Wesleyan always does very well. I am grateful that these NASA CT Space Grant funds enable wonderful activities here at Wesleyan,” said Seth Redfield, professor of astronomy. Candice Etson, assistant professor of molecular biology and biochemistry, received a Faculty STEM Education Research Grant for her…

Reinhold Blumel, Charlotte Augusta Ayres Professor of Physics, has recently published three papers in the journal Scientific Reports: "Effects of the coupling of dielectric spherical particles on signatures in infrared microspectroscopy;" "Space-resolved chemical information from infrared extinction spectra", and "Domes and Semi-Capsules as Model Systems for Infrared Microspectroscopy of Biological Cells." David Kuenzel, Associate Professor of Economics, published Non-tariff Measures: What's Tariffs Got to Do with It? in the February 2023 issue of the Canadian Journal of Economics. The paper systematically examines the empirical link between various tariff measures and the imposition of non-tariff barriers in WTO member countries. Matthew M. Kurtz, Professor of Psychology, published a piece…

The Wesleyan Board of Trustees voted to increase tuition by 4.7 percent for the upcoming 2023-24 academic year. Tuition will be $66,716. The Residential Comprehensive Fee (RCF) will be $19,034. There will also be a $300 student activities fee, bringing the total cost to $86,050. Wesleyan continues to recognize that any increase in student charges can create financial difficulties for families. The University remains committed to meeting all of a students’ demonstrated financial need. In academic year 2022-23, 39 percent of students received need-based grant awards totaling more than $75 million. “We are mindful of the cost of a Wesleyan education.,” said President Michael…

In a recent article in the journal Regional and Federal Studies James McGuire, Professor of Government, found that Trump's 2020 vote share was a strong and robust predictor of a lower COVID-19 vaccination rate across US states, US counties, and Connecticut towns alike, adjusting for wide range other factors thought to affect the vaccination rate. At each of the three subnational levels, McGuire showed, the Trump 2020 vote share was also correlated more closely than the Trump 2016 vote share or the Romney 2012 vote share with the COVID-19 vaccination rate. McGuire estimated the statistical impact of the Trump 2020…

By Maia Bronfman ’24 So many people were interested in Wesleyan’s Archaeology and Collections Open House earlier this month, Archaeology Collections Manager Wendi Field Murray didn’t stop talking for two-and-a-half hours. “I had so many great conversations with people of all ages. A young boy who brought a sketchbook to draw all the interesting things he was seeing; an individual who helped excavate the Beman Triangle site 10 years ago; a Wesleyan student who had never seen the collection; an older gentleman who collects historic glass insulators,” Murray said. There were over 150 attendees at the open house held in…

Professor of American Studies J. Kēhaulani Kauanui has been recognized with the American Indian History Lifetime Achievement Award, given by the Western History Association meeting, at the annual meeting held October 12-15, 2022, in San Antonio. For the last twenty years, the award has been given to the one individual every year who has served in the trenches on all fronts to advance Indigenous History. Past scholars who have been awarded include Philip J. Deloria, K. Tsianina Lomawaima, Frederick Hoxie, Jean M. O'Brien, Colin Calloway, Roger Nichols, Clifford Trafzer, and Jeffrey Ostler. Kauanui is one of the six cofounders of the…

In recognition of a year since the Russian attack on Ukraine, Wesleyan's Dance Department and WesWell co-hosted Ukrainian dance artist Mariia Bakalo, to teach a Contemporary Dance class and a workshop in Ukrainian Dance: Choreotherapy. The Choreotherapeutic approach focuses on the collective dynamic experience of moving together in rhythm and special configurations with other people. Bakalo taught a Bukhovynian dance from the southwestern region of Ukraine. Participants, including students, staff and faculty, children and Middletown community leaders from Community Health Center of Middletown and the Free Center, learned, laughed and sweat together. “The event was a testament to the resilience…

By Maia Bronfman ‘24 Diana Martinez, associate director of the Jewett Center for Community Partnerships, held around 100 one-on-one interviews to plan the Growing Power event on February 18 at Usdan University Center, a day devoted to community building and criminal justice reform. Residents from across Connecticut attended workshops on campus on gardening, Black herbalism, fishing, chicken-keeping, and leadership. “All it takes is one generation to disconnect, all it takes is one generation to get it back,” Martinez said about sustainable land-use and community practices. In a morning session, Kristianna Smith, Stacey Barka, and Erin Livensparger taught a Gardening 101…

Men's basketball Head Coach Joe Reilly schedules plenty of visits with prospective students interested in joining his team. But a scheduled visit with Leo Clibanoff '23 in the spring of 2017 wasn't shaping up to be an ordinary recruit visit, because Clibanoff wasn't interested in a roster spot; instead, he was looking to assist Reilly behind the scenes. Reilly remembers the visit well. "We had an instant connection," he says, recalling the conversation with Clibanoff and his dad, Andy, a Wesleyan grad '86 and member of the ice hockey team for two years. Initially, Clibanoff inquired about being a manager, but when Reilly learned…

(Updated March 1, 2023) Philosopher Kohei Saito ’09 spoke with The Guardian on his work in Marx in the Anthropocene which builds on Karl Marx’s writings on the economic and ecological crises to propose degrowth communism as a “new way of living.” Erika Franklin Fowler, Co-Director of the Wesleyan Media Project, spoke with Campaigns and Elections on the digital advertising spending of candidates in major state and federal races. Gary Yohe, Huffington Foundation Professor of Economics and Environmental Studies, Emeritus, was quoted in a story by The Poynter Institute's PolitiFact on an advertising campaign promoting natural gas’ role in transitioning…

As we begin a semester with aspiration and joy, we also want to take a moment to reflect on the waves of loss that have afflicted many in our community. Yesterday’s earthquake on Turkey and Syria is only the latest in a series of tragedies. From mass shootings to killings by those supposed to protect, from war and international conflict to the continued toll of the COVID-19 virus, every week brings news that can feel devastating. We are writing today to acknowledge the distress, anger, and grief felt by many in the Wesleyan community. These events take their toll; for…

For most people, microbes are something to be observed under a microscope, but for Raquel Bryant, Assistant Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences, they provide insight into the way that the world around us works. “Collective action is actually possible,” Bryant said, “This is something I learned from microbes.” Strength in numbers is something that Bryant, who studies deep time interactions between life, the ocean, and the climate, sees as an essential principle of both activism and science. Learn more about Bryant in Madeleine Dickman '23's profile, posted at the Inclusion in STEM blog.

Students and Faculty Receive NASA Connecticut Space Consortium Grants

Faculty Achievements: Spring 2023

Tuition to Increase For 2023-24 Academic Year

New Research Shows 2020 Vote for Trump a Strong Predictor of Lower Vaccination Rates

Local Artifacts on Display at Second Annual Archaeology Program Open House

Kauanui Given Lifetime Achievement Award

Dance Department Holds Ukrainian Dance Workshop

From Q-Tip Pollination to Strategy Caucuses: Jewett Center Hosts Workshops

Leo Clibanoff ’23: Head Coach Joe Reilly’s Right-Hand Man

Wesleyan in the News: February 2023

Dealing With Tragedy: Wesleyan Offers Support Services

Strength in Numbers and the Power of Microbes: Meet Raquel Bryant