Olivia Drake Cathy Crimmins-Lechowicz, director of Community Service and Volunteerism, stands outside a Northern Middlesex Habitat for Humanity house, where she places volunteer workers. Posted 03/31/05 Q: The Office of Community Service and Volunteerism (OCS) fosters community building within Wesleyan and with the communities of Middletown and Middlesex County. How are some ways the department goes about this? A: We, meaning my colleagues and I here at the Center for Community Partnerships, meet with community organizations and students regularly to hear about the needs, interests and possible connections that we can facilitate. We support current programs and encourage students and community…
Clare Rogan, curator of the Davison Art Center, looks over "Self-Portrait in Profile," sketched by German artist Kathe Kollwitz in 1927. The piece is included in "A Passion for Prints" on exhibit through May 22. Posted 03/31/.05 Q: You started here on February 14th. What attracted you to the university? A: I was attracted to the position of curator at the Davison Art Center because it is a wonderful combination of museum curatorial work and academia. I am very much looking forward to teaching in the fall. At the same time, I get to do the curatorial work I love. It is…
Maria Cruz-Saco will become dean of the college. Posted 03/31/05 Maria A. Cruz-Saco, interim dean of the college at Connecticut College, will become dean of the college at Wesleyan University on July 18. Wesleyan's dean of the college is responsible for the programs and services that support student learning and development. The office of the dean encompasses the class deans, the Office of Residential Life, student and behavioral health services, the Office of Student Activities, the Office of Community Service, the chaplains, and the new Usdan University Center. The dean serves as a member of the university's senior staff.…
Jeff Gilarde, director of Scientific Imaging, helps students and faculty members use Wesleyans newest confocal microscope inside the Advanced Instrumentation Center. Posted 03/31/05 Jeff Gilarde loves to scope out new research. But to explore his big ideas, he has to look small. As the Biology Departments director of Scientific Imaging, Gilarde spends his days looking through the labs five microscopes. He also assists faculty and students with their microscopic research inside the Advanced Instrumentation Center, located under the pathway between Hall-Atwater Laboratory and Shanklin. Look, these are liver cells, he says, pointing out a cells image, glowing through…
Rich DeCapua, assistant director of Residential Life, lounges in the newly-remodeled Clark Hall. Posted 03/31/05 Q: Were you hired in as assistant director of Residential Life in 2002? A: I was originally an area coordinator for Clark Hall and Foss Hill, and I was then promoted to assistant director at the end of my first year. This is my third year at Wesleyan, and Im enjoying every minute of it! Q: What attracted you to Wesleyan? A: Well, I was looking for a place where I knew I could be successful professionally, but would also be challenged. The…
Posted 03/31/05 The next time you grab a bite to eat or enjoy a drink at the Red & Black Café, youll also be helping students in need at Wesleyan. Ed Thorndike, Jr. '89 and Karen Kaffen-Polascik, owners of Wes Wings and Red & Black Cafe, will donate 1 percent of their gross sales from Red & Black Cafe to support financial aid through the Wesleyan Annual Fund (WAF). "This is something we've really been wanting to do," says Thorndike. "I contacted University Relations and we were able to set it up and make it work. It's really gratifying…
Astronomy Professor William Herbst studies the star, KH 15D. Pictured are images of KH 15D out of eclipse (left) and in eclipse (right) as taken from Wesleyan's observatory. Posted 03/31/05 It's 3 million years old and 2,400 light years away, but a distant star discovered by Wesleyan researchers has given insight into how our solar system may have formed. NASA wants to know more, and has given William Herbst almost a quarter of a million dollars to keep looking. This month NASA (the National Aeronautics and Space Administration) awarded Wesleyan Professor of Astronomy William Herbst a $216,000…
Assistant Professor of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry Manju Hingorani researches pathways that lead to carcinogenesis. Posted 03/31/05 Assistant Professor of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry Manju Hingorani recently earned an award totaling more than $571,700 from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for research on pathways leading to carcinogenesis, including the development of colon, rectal, stomach, and ovarian cancers. The five-year grant will specifically fund the research of Hingorani's laboratory focuses on the workings of proteins responsible for DNA mismatch repair with the long-term goal of understanding how defects in repair are linked to many forms of cancers. "I am…
Phil Cotharin, temperature controls mechanic/energy management specialist, examines a variable frequency drive that controls the neighboring air handling unit in the Exley Science Center. The system significantly reduces energy waste. Posted 03/31/05 Use less. Get more. Thats how Phil Cotharin, temperature controls mechanic/energy management specialist, is helping Wesleyan save thousands a year by slashing energy usage. In an agreement finalized February 17, Connecticut Light & Power Company has agreed to pay Wesleyan a $27,450 incentive for keeping energy usage down. When Wesleyan uses less energy, CLPC can produce less energy, and it wont have to build another power plant to…
TAPS: Tap virtuoso Dianne Walker teaches students how to tap dance during DanceMasters Weekend at Wesleyan March 5. DanceMasters Weekend allowed dance students to experience a wide range of contemporary dance techniques by taking classes with master teachers from premiere dance companies over an intensive two-day period. (Photo by Lex Leifheit) SWING BACK: Robert Battle, artistic director of Battleworks Dance Company, teaches students in the Bessie Schonberg Studio on March 6. (Photo by John Elmore) TUCK AND TWIST: Pascal Rioult, founding artistic director of the Pascal Rioult Dance Theatre, teachers a graduate student a dance maneuver during a…
Psychology Professor Karl Scheibe will retire from Wesleyan this spring after a 42-year career here. Posted 03/15/05 Fresh out of the Ph.D. program at the University of California at Berkeley, 26-year-old Karl Scheibe accepted a faculty position at Wesleyan University. Apparently, he liked his first job. It sure lasted a while, says Psychology Professor Scheibe, who has spent the more than four decades since teaching and doing research at Wesleyan. Ive considered going to other universities, but never did. And Ive never regretted staying here. Scheibe, a social psychologist known for his classes emphasizing relationships between psychology and theater,…
Laurie Zolty, assistant to the coordinator of University Lectures, poses with lecture advertisements inside the Horgan House. Posted 03/15/05 Q: When did you join the staff at Wesleyan and why? A: I joined the staff in the fall of 2000 looking for a career change. A very good friend was on staff here and spoke so highly about working at Wesleyan. I was searching for almost a year, looking for a position where each day would be different working a diverse schedule, meeting new people, taking on new tasks and challenges. This newly created position with University Lectures…