Olivia DrakeNoreen Baris, administrative assistant for the Womens Studies Program, stands outside her office on High Street. Baris serves as a liaison between the programs chair, faculty and students. Posted 01/31/05 Q: When did you become the administrative assistant in the Women's Studies Program? Were you working at Wesleyan before then? A: Yes. I first came to Wesleyan in November 1986 and worked in the Romance Languages and Literatures Department until 1992. I've been at Women's Studies since then. Q: How would you describe a typical day? Are you mostly working at your desk, talking on the phone or meeting with people?…
Ganesan Ravi Ravishanker, director of Technology Support Services and adjunct associate professor of chemistry, explains where his home countries were struck by the December 26 tsunami. Posted 01/31/05 Millions of Americans watched as the Dec. 26 tsunami obliterated south Asia's coastal belts. But for Ganesan "Ravi" Ravishanker, the event was far more personal. Ravishanker, director of Technology Support Services and adjunct associate professor of chemistry, is a Sri Lanka native and attended college in southern India where the tidal waves battered both shorelines for a half-mile inland. Those are both places where I have spent a lot of my…
Erhard Konerding, documents librarian, works inside the Olin Memorial Library, which was built in 1928. Posted 01/31/05 When Wesleyan's Olin Memorial Library opened in 1928, the classically symmetrical structure fronted with six marble columns stood out as a bold yet elegant structure. Nearly 80 years later, the building is still turning heads. On January 13, The Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) of Greater Hartford awarded the library with The Office Building of the Year (TOBY) award in the historic building category. The TOBY award recognizes excellence in building management, operational efficiency, tenant retention, emergency planning and community impact.…
Posted 01/31/05 A ribbon cutting on Jan. 5 marked the formal opening of the Green Street Arts Center (GSAC) L. to R. are: Middletown Mayor Domenique Thornton, GSAC Director Ricardo Morris, North End Action Team President Peggy Busari, GSAC Assistant Director Manny Rivera, Wesleyan University President Doug Bennet. The center is housed at the former St. Sebastian School at 51 Green Street in Middletown's North End. More than 250 people attended the grand opening. (Photo by Lex Leifheit) Children draw in one of the two visual art centers at GSAS. The facility also has a dance studio and a…
Chimemaster Peter Frenzel, professor emeritus of German studies, plays the keys of the bells, located at the top of South College. In August, the university will acquire eight additional bells. The new bells, Frenzel said, will enable him to play more complicated songs. (Photo by Bill Burkhart) Posted 01/31/05 Wesleyan has signed a contract with the Verdin Bell Company of Cincinnati, Ohio, for the casting and installation in the South College belfry of eight additional bells. This new addition will upgrade the Wesleyan bells from the status of a chime (10-22 bells) to that of a carillon (23 or more).…
Eric Williams, systems and facilities manager of the Astronomy Department and Van Vleck Observatory, stands outside the observatory's 24-inch Perkin research reflector, where he often hosts weekly open houses and star gazings. "What's beautiful about astronomy is that there are always unanswered questions, and when you answer one, that will open up five more questions," said Eric Williams, the systems and facility manager for the Astronomy Department and Van Vleck Observatory. "I'm always curious." An interest in astronomy, physics and computers led Williams to Wesleyan in 1996. "I've always wanted a job like this," Williams said, "I get to experiment…
NOW YOU SEE IT, NOW YOU DON'T: Fred Ellis, professor of physics, pours liquid nitrogen onto a stool during a lab demonstration January 13 in the Physics Department. About 90 students visiting from the Thomas Edison Middle School in Meriden attended six demonstrations, led by Wesleyan physics faculty and graduate students. (Photo by Olivia Bartlett) LASER LIGHT: Graduate student Paula Matei teaches seventh grade students from Thomas Edison Middle School about lasers inside the Physics Department's Molecular Collision Laboratory. Matei works under the supervision of Associate Professor of Physics Brian Stewart and studies the different kinds of few-body dynamics that…