Bill Holder
Antonio Gonzalez, professor of Spanish and director of the Center for Global Studies, is comfortably seated in front of a semicircle of 11 students. He holds an iPad Pro that controls two large screens on the wall behind him and enables him to move effortlessly, seamlessly from Google Maps, to video clips, to text he can annotate on the iPad. All the while he converses in Spanish with his students about a movie that tells the story of a Moroccan woman repatriating the body of her brother after he died crossing the Strait of Gibraltar in a small boat. In…
At its meeting March 4, the Board of Trustees voted to increase tuition and residential comprehensive fees by 3.7 percent for the 2017-18 year. Tuition and fees for the 2017–18 year will be $52,474. The residential comprehensive fee for first-year and sophomore students will be $14,466, for juniors and seniors, $16,446. As always, Wesleyan will meet the full demonstrated financial need of all admitted students. Recent initiatives have eliminated loans for our neediest students and lowered overall student debt to levels far below the national average. Over the next four years, Wesleyan will phase in additional changes to financial aid…
Donna Morea ’76, P’06, chair of Wesleyan’s Board of Trustees, sent the following message to the campus community on Saturday, March 4: I’m pleased to announce that today, the University recognized the extraordinary leadership of President Michael S. Roth and offered him an extension of his contract. I’m delighted to report that he has committed to lead Wesleyan through 2023. This is truly an exciting time for Wesleyan. With the support of our community and Michael’s outstanding leadership, our reputation for being at the forefront of pragmatic liberal education continues to grow. Michael led our highly successful THIS IS WHY…
On Feb. 23, Peter Shumlin ’79, who served as Governor of Vermont from 2011-2017, spoke to members of the Wesleyan community about climate change. Shumlin has been a pioneer in developing state-level policies to combat climate change, including the 2011 Comprehensive Energy Plan with a goal of achieving 90 percent renewable energy in Vermont by 2050. Under his watch, 15,000 jobs were created in clean energy, solar panels increased by 1000 percent while the cost of solar fell 60 percent, and wind generation increased 400 percent. During his talk in Shanklin Laboratory, Shumlin said Vermont is far better prepared for the next major storm,…
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Wesleyan received 742 applications for early decision this fall, an increase of 16.6 percent over last year. The increase of more than 100 applications provided Wesleyan with its biggest pool ever in early decision, according to Nancy Hargrave Meislahn, dean of admission and financial aid. Additionally, Wesleyan received the most ever applications from international students, up 75 percent. Other diversity measures were also strong, with a 44 percent increase from students of color in the United States and a 56 percent increase from African American students. “These results are most gratifying,” Meislahn said. “Potential applicants hold Wesleyan in high regard…
In May 2010, the Board of Trustees adopted Wesleyan 2020 as a tool for strategic decision making at Wesleyan. Reflecting the input of faculty, trustees, staff, alumni and students, and designed to be flexible, this framework for planning has assisted the University in making decisions about the allocation of resources since that time. Wesleyan President Michael S. Roth has provided an update, Beyond 2020: Strategies for Wesleyan, organized under the rubric of Wesleyan’s three overarching goals: to energize Wesleyan’s distinctive educational experience; to enhance recognition of Wesleyan as an extraordinary institution; and to work within a sustainable economic model while…
On Sept. 14-15, Jennifer Tucker, associate professor of history, organized a conference titled “Firearms and the Common Law Tradition," which was held at The Aspen Institute in Washington, D.C. In this Q&A, Tucker discusses the significance of the conference: Q: What was distinctive about the Firearms and the Common Law Conference? A: As far as we are aware, it was the first time that most of the historians and legal scholars involved in the debate over the Second Amendment and common law traditions relating to firearms have been in the same room and exchanged their views face to face and in pre-circulated papers.…
Christopher Graves ’81 is the global chairman of Ogilvy Public Relations and formerly held senior positions with CNBC Asia and CNBC Europe. This summer the Rockefeller Foundation and ideas42 selected him for a prestigious Bellagio Residency, where he has continued his work to turn findings from cognitive neuroscience and behavioral economics into practical applications in communications. In this election season, Graves has co-authored several online posts for Harvard Business Review, analyzing communications from the Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump campaigns. Below are highlights with links to the full posts: The Art and Science Behind the Negative TV Ads of Trump and…
The following is the text of an email sent to campus today by Michael Whaley, vice president for student affairs. Dear faculty, staff, and students, I’m writing to update you on a personnel matter. In June, we were contacted by a reporter from The Boston Globe, who informed us that an investigation had revealed that former Associate Dean of Students Scott Backer had been terminated from his previous job at Vermont Academy for inappropriate conduct that had not been previously disclosed to us. We immediately investigated the allegations, and he was terminated within 24 hours for having concealed the matter.…
The following employees received Cardinal Achievement Awards in April, May and June for their efforts in demonstrating extraordinary initiative in performing a specific task associated with their work at Wesleyan University. This special honor comes with a $250 award and reflects the university’s gratitude for their extra efforts: Liliana Carrasquillo-Vasquez, area coordinator, Residential Life Olivia Drake, editor and campus photographer, University Communications Terry Emmons, accounting specialist, Chemistry Department James Huerta, senior assistant dean, Admission Office Elizabeth Mainella, serials administrator, Olin Library Jeffrey McDonald, assistant football coach, Physical Education Emily Pagano, area coordinator, Residential Life Paul Turenne, senior associate registrar, Registrar's…