Lauren Rubenstein

In her latest essay on The Huffington Post, Professor of Anthropology Gina Athena Ulysse takes on the matter of U.S. foreign food aid policy vis-a-vis Haiti, which she writes is undermining farmers in the Caribbean nation. She focuses on mamba, the Kreyòl word for peanut butter, which she fondly recalls being made by locals when she was growing up in Haiti. "To me, mamba is as quintessentially Haitian as basketball is (North) American. Now, it faces risks as another charitable gift of food aid undermines Haitian autonomy by threatening to bench local farmers’ peanuts production, our cultural practices, and even our tastes," she writes. "This is not…

Lin-Manuel Miranda '02 has won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize in Drama for his hit musical, Hamilton, directed by Thomas Kail '99. According to Playbill, Hamilton "joins an exclusive club of just eight other musicals that have won the prestigious award since it was founded nearly a century ago." The awards were announced April 18 The Pulitzer is awarded to "a distinguished play by an American author, preferably original in its source and dealing with American life." It includes a $10,000 cash prize.

Lisa Dierker, professor of psychology, director of pilot programs for the Center for Pedagogical Innovation, and Ishita Mukerji, the Fisk Professor of Natural Science, professor of molecular biology and biochemistry, professor of integrative sciences, were both honored at the 12th annual Women of Innovation Awards. Presented by the Connecticut Technology Council, the awards celebrate the energy, creativity and success of women and students from Connecticut's science and technology community. Both professors were honored in the category of Academic Innovation and Leadership. The celebration was held April 6 in Plantsville, Conn. Dierker was honored for her work developing a curriculum to introduce students to…

The 74th annual Midwest Political Science Association (MPSA) conference in Chicago April 7-10 was attended by several Wesleyan faculty members, students and recent alumni. The conference, held every April, is one of the largest political science conferences with more than 5,000 presenters from throughout the United States and around the world. It is traditionally held in Chicago's historic Palmer House Hilton. Assistant Professor of Government Erika Franklin Fowler, Assistant Professor of Government Logan Dancey, and Assistant Professor of Government Yamil Velez all presented research at the conference. They were accompanied by Joli Holmes '17, John Murchison '16, Grace Wong '18,…

Four Wesleyan students recently participated in the Five College Korean Speech Contest, and three went home with prizes. The contest was held April 1 at the University of Massachusetts–Amherst and included students from Amherst, Mount Holyoke, Smith and Hampshire colleges, and the University of Massachusetts–Amherst. The contest is sponsored by the Five College East Asian Language Program. Students in the Five College Consortium, and others in the New England area who are currently enrolled in Korean language classes, are eligible to participate, except for native Korean speakers or heritage learners. Participating students must write their own short speeches in Korean. Visiting…

Katja Kolcio, associate professor of dance, associate professor of environmental studies, and a group of students attended the Ukraine in Washington forum at the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., on March 30, where Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko delivered the keynote address. Poroshenko was in Washington for President Barack Obama's Nuclear Summit. The trip was funded by the Dean of Social Sciences and the Dean of Arts and Humanities. According to Kolcio, the highlight of the trip occurred when Poroshenko responded to a question posed by Misha Iakovenko '18 about the president's efforts to deal with corruption, and a recent article that appeared in the Kyiv Post by gas company…

The Gordon Career Center (GCC) recently began a new collaboration with HBX—Harvard Business School's CORe (Credential of Readiness Program), an online business fundamentals primer developed and taught by Harvard Business School faculty. Wesleyan students looking to gain basic business fundamentals can complete the program over the summer—in some cases, on the side with a summer job or internship. According to Rachel Munafo, the GCC's assistant director of public relations and communications, several alumni who have completed the program raved about its usefulness. The curriculum is appropriate for students across all majors, and is open to underclassmen, graduating seniors and recent graduates. (more…)

Author, professor and LGBT activist Jennifer Finney Boylan '80 will speak at Wesleyan from 4:15–6 p.m. on April 21. The event will be held in Beckham Hall. The talk will open with a short reading from Boylan’s bestselling memoir, She’s Not There: A Life in Two Genders, as well as the anthology It Gets Better, and then open up into a discussion of gender and society. The talk touches upon Transgender 101 (a brief overview of the wide range of gender expression), and then moves outward to address the embracing of diversity in its many forms. The event concludes with an audience Q&A. (more…)

In May 2009, Bill Rodgers ’70 – a decorated cross-country, and track and field athlete at Wesleyan – was featured in an article in Runner’s World magazine by Steve Rushin. Following graduation, Rodgers became one of the best-known and most popular American marathon runners ever. The feature takes a look at Rodgers’ life and his successes, which include four wins in the Boston Marathon, four consecutive wins in the New York Marathon, and twice qualifying for the U.S. Olympic team. In all, Rodgers won more than 20 marathon events in a span of 11 years (1973-1983). In addition to his athletic success,…

The Atlantic education writer Alia Wong turned to President Michael S. Roth for his perspective in a three-part series on "Where the College Admissions Process Went Wrong." One critical problem is that the intense focus on the college application process means that rather than preparing themselves for college or for life, students are preparing simply for the "moment of admission." “What we want is to have students who want to come and work hard because they can leverage their experience at the university and do something after they leave,” said Roth. “One of my predecessors used to say to students, ‘If these turn…

This fall, Wesleyan will welcome to campus its third cohort of Posse Veteran Scholars in the Class of 2020—a group of three women and seven men who have served in all branches of the U.S. Armed Forces. They come from all over the United States and have served in places such as Afghanistan, Uganda and Iraq. Their interests range from visual art and filmmaking to teaching and mathematics. One student, Marisella Andrews, is the great-granddaughter of a Wesleyan alumnus, Matias Perez, from the Class of 1917. The group's faculty mentor will be Jill Morawski, the Wilbur Fisk Osborne Professor of Psychology, professor and…

Assistant Professor of Economics Karl Boulware recently presented research at the 24th Symposium of the Society of Nonlinear Dynamics and Econometrics, held March 10-11 at the University of Alabama. Boulware presented a paper titled, "Monetary Policy Surprises and the Shadow Bank Lending Channel: Evidence from the Fed Funds Futures Market" during a session on Monetary and Government Policy. The project is a refinement of research started by Kota Uno '16 during a QAC Summer Apprenticeship with Boulware.

Ulysse’s Essay Says U.S. Foreign Food Aid Policy Undermines Farmers in Haiti

Miranda ’02 Wins Pulitzer Prize for Hamilton

Dierker, Mukerji Honored as Women of Innovation

Faculty, Students, Alumni Attend Political Science Conference

Wesleyan Students Win at Korean Speech Contest

Kolcio, Students Attend Ukraine in Washington Forum

Gordon Career Center Begins New Collaboration with Harvard Business School

Author, LGBT Activist Boylan ’80 to Speak at Wesleyan April 21

Star Runner Bill Rodgers ’70 Featured in Runner’s World

President Roth Comments in The Atlantic on College Admissions Process

Wesleyan Welcomes Posse Veteran Scholars to the Class of 2020

Boulware Presents Research at Symposium of the Society of Nonlinear Dynamics and Econometrics