Wesleyan Students Hospitalized

It is Feb. 24, 10:20 a.m., and Mike Whaley, vice president for student affairs, steps out of a meeting in the President’s Office to take a phone call. He returns two minutes later, takes his seat, and in an emotion-laden voice tells the group that a student whose life was endangered by poisoning from a variant of the drug Molly (MDMA) was improving. It was a moment so many had been waiting for. As of Tuesday evening, eight of the 10 Wesleyan students hospitalized Sunday had been discharged. Two, however, remained hospitalized. There was more news Tuesday night: four Wesleyan students…

Since the announcement last September that residential fraternities must become fully co-educational over the next three years, Greek life on campus has changed in several significant ways. The decision to mandate coeducation of residential fraternities came after several months of deliberations among students, faculty, staff, alumni and the Board of Trustees. While the three all-male residential fraternities were given three years in which to become fully co-educational, the deadline to present an initial co-education plan was the end of fall semester. (more…)

Stray dogs are everywhere in Santiago, Chile. They lie on sidewalks, wander the parks, and even cross busy streets unaided. No one seems to mind; they’re just part of the culture. For Kari Weil, University Professor of Letters, they also were a striking reminder of the purpose of her recent trip to Santiago. At the invitation of the U.S. Embassy there, she visited the Pontificia Catholic University of Chile Jan. 6-9 to discuss current trends in American animal studies. Although academics have studied animals from various perspectives for a long time, animal studies as a cross-disciplinary field has come into its own…

Wesleyan will honor three remarkable leaders in their fields with honorary degrees at the university’s 183rd Commencement on May 24, 2015. Lin-Manuel Miranda ’02, an award-winning composer, lyricist, writer and actor, will present the Commencement Address. Wesleyan also will award honorary degrees to Beverly Daniel Tatum ’75, president of Spelman College and an expert in race relations and higher education, and Michael Price, the longtime executive director of Goodspeed Musicals. Lin-Manuel Miranda ’02 Lin-Manuel Miranda is the Tony and Grammy-winning composer-lyricist of Broadway's In the Heights, which received four 2008 Tony Awards, with Miranda receiving a Tony Award for Best…

Wesleyan President Michael S. Roth and Vice President for Student Affairs Michael Whaley distributed the following announcement to the campus community today: To the Wesleyan Community: In the beginning of this semester, Wesleyan announced a series of changes aimed to make residential Greek organizations safer and more inclusive. Public Safety now has full access to the houses, and many fraternity members, like other students, are now participating in bystander intervention training and other programs to curb gender-based violence. In addition to these safety measures, in order to become more inclusive all Greek residential organizations are required to present a plan…

Ruth Striegel Weissman, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs, and Dr. Thomas McLarney, medical director of the Health Services Department, have issued an Ebola Travel Advisory. It reads: The devastating outbreak of the Ebola virus in West Africa has caused pain and suffering on an almost unimaginable scale. It also has raised concerns about safe travel to and from that region. Even though this topic has receded from the headlines, Ebola remains a serious concern for travelers, and we would like you to be aware of the following update to Wesleyan policy. We are asking members of the Wesleyan community…

The broad contextual education that Wesleyan and peer institutions offer is frequently critiqued, sometimes excoriated, by those who accuse it of not preparing graduates for success in today’s world. But that accusation, says President Michael S. Roth in his sixth and latest book, Beyond the University: Why Liberal Education Matters (Yale University Press, 2014), is as old as liberal education itself – and never less convincing than now. A historian whose previous scholarship has focused on making sense of the past, Roth charts the development of pragmatic liberal education through a succession of important American thinkers. Liberal education has deep…

April was Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and its observance at Wesleyan has coincided with a spirited discussion about campus climate, including a particular focus on the future of single-sex, residential fraternities. On April 20, the Wesleyan Student Assembly passed a resolution calling on residential fraternities to accept full co-education – “with a clear and swift plan of action” to become coeducational in membership and residence, and an initial co-educated pledge class in spring 2015. The purely advisory 14-12 vote, however, underscored a difference of opinion. (more…)

Wesleyan’s Homecoming/Family Weekend, which traditionally has been a combined event, will split to separate weekends next fall because homecoming is scheduled to occur during fall break. “We have two great weekends planned, one oriented toward Wesleyan families and the other intended to build on the success of Middletown Day last year,” said Barbara-Jan Wilson, vice president for university relations. “Each will offer our community lots of athletic contests plus plenty of opportunity for intellectual stimulation and fun.” During Family Weekend, scheduled for Sept. 26–28, Wesleyan will hold WESeminars, all-college meals, student performances, a Career Center open house, the 22nd annual…

Theodore M. Shaw ’76, one of the nation’s leading proponents of civil rights, will present Wesleyan’s Commencement address on May 25, the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King’s address here. Wesleyan also will award honorary degrees to Helena Chmura Kraemer, whose work in biostatistics has had a transformative impact on medicine and psychiatry, and to Hayden White, a distinguished theorist of history. Theodore Shaw ’76 For decades Ted Shaw has been one of the nation’s strongest advocates for equity and inclusion in our society. In courts throughout the nation, including the U.S. Supreme Court, he has argued cases involving voting…

At its meeting on March 1, Wesleyan’s Board of Trustees voted to increase tuition and residential comprehensive fees by 2.2 percent for the 2014–15 year, reflecting the second year of a new policy to link tuition increases to inflation. The increase is based on the three-year national CPI average of June 30, 2013, the latest full fiscal year available. The Board adopted a three-year average in order to reduce year-to-year fluctuations in tuition increases. “We’re committed to keeping Wesleyan affordable for all our students,” said President Michael Roth. “We’re holding down our tuition increases, ensuring that our students graduate not burdened…

The Office of Human Resources reported the following new hires, advancements and transitions and departures for January 2014. New hires Hrissi Haldezos joined the Student Accounts Office as an associate director on Jan. 2. Brian Lee '13 joined University Relations as an assistant director of the Wesleyan Fund on Jan. 6. Beatriz Pazmino Betancourt joined the Physics Department as a research assistant on Jan. 16. Advancements and transitions Sarah Benson became director of research and prospect management on Jan. 1. Frantz Williams became the director of alumni and parent development on Jan. 1. Kathleen Roberts became the assistant director of…

Wesleyan Students Hospitalized

Update on Greek Life at Wesleyan

Weil Leads Workshops in Chile on Trends in American Animal Studies

Miranda ’02, Tatum ’75, Price to be Honorary Degree Recipients at Wesleyan’s 183rd Commencement

Psi U Suspended from All Social Activities

Wesleyan Issues Ebola Travel Advisory

President Roth Charts the Development of Pragmatic Liberal Education in His New Book

Future of Fraternities Discussed During Sexual Assault Awareness Month

Separate Homecoming and Family Weekend Celebrations in 2014

Civil Rights Proponent Shaw ’76 to Deliver 2014 Commencement Address; Kraemer, White to Receive Honorary Degrees

2.2 Percent Tuition Increase Pegged to Inflation

Staff on the Move