All News – Page 84

In this continuing series, we explore a selection of the latest books by Wesleyan alumni. The volumes, sent to us by the alumni authors themselves, are forwarded to Olin Library as donations to the University’s collection and made available to the Wesleyan community. Amy Meyerson ’04, The Imperfects (HarperCollins/Park Row Books, 2020) Generations of secrets loom large in this novel about the dysfunctional Miller family. When the eccentric family matriarch, Helen, passes away, the items she leaves behind—including a 137-carat diamond hidden in her bedroom—stir up old resentments, new tensions, and plenty of questions among her daughter and grandchildren. As…

Every spring, Wesleyan recognizes outstanding faculty with three Binswanger Prizes for Excellence in Teaching. This year's recipients include Gloster Aaron, associate professor of biology, Robyn Autry, associate professor and chair of sociology, and Keiji Shinohara, artist-in-residence. Made possible by gifts from the family of the late Frank G. Binswanger Sr., Hon. ’85, these prizes underscore Wesleyan’s commitment to its scholar-teachers, who are responsible for the University’s distinctive approach to liberal arts education. (more…)

At the University’s 188th Commencement on May 24, Wesleyan will present the Baldwin Medal, the highest award of the Alumni Association, to Rob Rosenthal, John Andrus Professor of Sociology, Emeritus. The Baldwin Medal pays tribute to the late Judge Raymond E. Baldwin ’16, the only man to have held the offices of Connecticut governor, U.S. senator, and chief justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court. First awarded Sept. 20, 1981, during the opening convocation of Wesleyan's Sesquicentennial, the Baldwin Medal is the highest honor Wesleyan's alumni body presents for extraordinary service to Wesleyan or for careers and other activities that have…

A clothing brand that promotes education and discussion of mental health and wellness is the winner of the Wesleyan COLLISION Spring 2020 pitch competition sponsored by the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship. Created by Blake Northrop '22, Be Better consists of the clothing brand itself—which highly values customer participation and artist collaboration—as well as an online community forum for followers and members to connect, discuss, and share their stories about mental health. On May 5, Northrop and more than dozen other aspiring student entrepreneurs pitched their social benefit business ideas. Watch a recording of the Pitch Night online here. (more…)

In preparation for National Vote By Mail Day on May 23, two Wesleyan alumni are pushing for a nonpartisan movement to make it possible for everyone in the United States to safely vote by mail in November. To date, only Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, Utah, and Washington offer vote-by-mail systems, while another 29 states and Washington, D.C., provide mail-in ballots at a voter’s request. "Americans shouldn't have to risk their health to vote," said Avi Stopper '01, founder and lead organizer of the web-based project Vote 2020 By Mail. Through Vote 2020 By Mail, Stopper is building a movement to persuade…

Wesleyan's 188th Commencement Ceremony, honoring the graduating Class of 2020, will be held through a virtual setting at noon on May 24. (View the Commencement website here.) The commencement address, honorary degree recipients, and the senior class address will be pre-recorded and offered for viewing on Commencement Sunday. The conferral of degrees and remarks made by Wesleyan President Michael Roth '78 will be presented live. The Binswanger Awards for Teaching will be presented on a future occasion. The Class of 2020 will be invited back to campus next year for an in-person ceremony. "We will miss the marching, the music,…

The timing of the release of The Rumi Prescription: How an Ancient Mystic Poet Changed My Modern Manic Life (Penguin Random House, 2020) was far from ideal. Officially out March 3, the new book by Melody Moezzi ’01 was barely in readers’ hands before social distancing restrictions were imposed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Moezzi was able to participate in a handful of events near her home in Wilmington, N.C. . . . and then the remainder were canceled or rescheduled in virtual form. However, The Rumi Prescription is the sort of book that people with extra free time on…

In late March, as New York City's coronavirus infection rate skyrocketed to five times higher than the rest of the country, members of Wesleyan's Traveler's Lab explored a movement-focused approach to the rapid spread of the disease. Rather than focusing on political borders, lab members depicted major freeways, highways, and commuter rail lines out of New York City, and examined counties within a 2.5-hour drive from the City. "While New York City may be the center, it is the travel region immediately surrounding the city that provides the true context of how COVID-19 has spread and is spreading to, and…

At the University’s 188th Commencement on May 24, Wesleyan will present honorary degrees to three recipients whose work exemplifies inclusive engagement. Jacqueline Woodson, an award-winning and best-selling author, is this year’s speaker. Actor and political activist Bradley Whitford ’81 and William Joseph Barber II, a social justice advocate and pastor of Greenleaf Christian Church, will also be honored. The recipients were chosen on the basis of their significant contributions to civic life in the United States, including the example they set in bringing new voices into the public sphere and spurring others to productive dialogue and action. “I am honored…

Brooke Rich, a former employee of Wesleyan’s food service provider Bon Appétit Management Co., was honored posthumously with Wesleyan's 2020 Morgenstern-Clarren Social Justice Employee Prize. The award was created in 2009 in memory of Peter Morgenstern-Clarren ‘03, who pursued social justice while a student at Wesleyan. Morgenstern-Clarren’s activism included securing benefits for Wesleyan custodial staff, participating in the United Student and Labor Action Committee, and contributing his leadership to the campus chapter of Amnesty International. (more…)

Sumarsam, Winslow-Kaplan Professor of Music at Wesleyan and a Fellow at Yale Institute of Sacred Music, is an expert on the history, theory, and practice of Indonesian music and theater, and a performer of Javanese gamelan and puppetry. Sumarsam's presentation was part of ISM's "Reflections from Quarantine" series. He was interviewed live through the Zoom platform by ISM Fellows Program Director Eben Graves. Sumarsam explained that his current research focuses on how “people—commoners—use performing art, and life of passage rituals for practicing their religion in their everyday lives.” From that angle, he looks at the early existence of performing arts…

Last March, Johan (Joop) C. Varekamp, Harold T. Stearns Professor of Earth Science, intended to teach an ore deposit and formation class in Italy; however, the COVID-19 pandemic caused him to stay near campus. Nevertheless, Varekamp kept a keen watch on Italy. With a fascination with the pandemic's wildfire spread, Varekamp began plotting coronavirus data from both the United States and Italy to see how their growth curves compared. "Infectious diseases follow initially exponential growth patterns until measures are taken to limit transmission or a vaccine becomes available," Varekamp said. "I wanted to know how disease propagation compares to population…

“You Just Have to Read This…” Books by Wesleyan Authors: Meyerson ’04, Card ’04, and Fink ’77

Aaron, Autry, Shinohara Honored with the Binswanger Prize for Excellence in Teaching

Rosenthal to Receive Baldwin Medal

Students Pitch Social Benefit Business Ideas

Alumni Encourage States to Offer Vote-by-Mail Options

Wesleyan to Hold Virtual Commencement Ceremony on May 24

Moezzi ’01 Shares Reflections, Advice on Applying Rumi’s Wisdom to Modern Life

Traveler’s Lab Creates Map of COVID-19 Cases in the NYC Commuting Region

Wesleyan Announces 2020 Honorary Degree Recipients

Rich Honored Posthumously with the 2020 Morgenstern-Clarren Social Justice Employee Prize

Sumarsam Participates in “Reflections from Quarantine” Conversation

Varekamp Plots Pandemic, Measures Growth Curves in US, Italy