Alumni

Director and Producer Stephen Talbot ’70 was an early adopter of the anti-Vietnam War movement. He first began to turn against the war as a member of the mandatory Junior ROTC at Harvard High School, now Harvard-Westlake, in California in the mid-1960s. Talbot and his fellow high school classmates were given required trainings about the war. One of their JROTC instructors was called into active duty overseas in Vietnam and was severely injured. The news shook Talbot and he slowly began to question the war. Now nearly 60 years later, Talbot has produced and directed a documentary on the anti-war…

When Taylor DeLoach ’13 was studying for her Master’s degree in education she went on a lot of school visits. “Alma del Mar Charter School felt different when I got there,” she recalls. From the all-staff huddles every morning to the parent focus groups, DeLoach says “there were great interpersonal relational dynamics between people.” You’ll hear the same sentiment from many of Alma del Mar’s teachers and staff. Since opening in 2011, Alma del Mar has become one of the highest-performing charter public schools in the region. Nearly a decade after her first year of teaching there, DeLoach has taken…

Wesleyan President Michael S. Roth ’78 wrote an op-ed on academic freedom for Times Higher Education after the restrictive laws passed recently in Florida, which control what content is appropriate to learn in schools. Roth wrote "DeSantis is a menace to American higher education. His call to 'reform' colleges and universities may be an effective political strategy for marshalling the forces of resentment, but his plan to shift the locus of decision-making about what is taught on campus to state legislators and governors would be a disaster. If he is successful, even the hiring of professors will be controlled by…

In this continuing series, we review alumni books and offer a selection for those in search of knowledge, insight, and inspiration. The volumes, sent to us by alumni, are forwarded to Olin Library as donations to the University’s collection and made available to the Wesleyan community. In honor of Women’s History Month, this edition of YJHTRT features stories that celebrate the lives and legacies of women in American history. Steve Golin ’60, Women Who Invented the Sixties: Ella Baker, Jane Jacobs, Rachel Carson, and Betty Friedan (University Press of Mississippi, 2022) While there were many protests in the 1950s—against racial…

Growing up in suburban Iowa, Andrea Weires ’19 said she could not recognize the people she lived next to for over a decade. Despite being there for less than two years, the community she serves in for the Peace Corps in northwestern Dominican Republic is vibrant and full of welcoming faces. “In my Peace Corps site, people know, care about, and take care of their families and neighbors—which is often the same people,” Weires said. “The solidarity and care for community here is really inspiring.” Weires said a fellow former Wesleyan student told her to always smile at everyone she…

For a trio of Wesleyan alumni working in film, news of their being nominated for an Oscar arrived like a triumphant Hollywood ending—a result of hard work, passion, and deep commitment to their craft. The Wesleyan community will be cheering them on as the 95th Academy Awards ceremony airs on March 12. Sara Dosa ’05 directed the Oscar-nominated documentary “Fire of Love,” the story of French volcanologists Katia and Maurice Kraft, who spent their lives chasing eruptions and documenting what they found. Ben Procter ’96 was one of the three people nominated for the production design of the blockbuster “Avatar:…

Every exhibition presented in the Ezra and Cecile Zilkha Gallery establishes an idea–or an argument–of what art is, how art is made, who makes art, and what art does. “With every presentation, we attempt not to narrow the answers to any of those big questions,” said Associate Director of Visual Arts and Adjunct Instructor in Art Benjamin Chaffee ’00. “We think critically about the art that is shown and also how we’re framing it.” The most recent exhibition at Zilkha has created an interesting opportunity for juxtaposition. "Liquid Gold" includes a video installation and a sculpture by Assistant Professor of…

In this continuing series, we review alumni books and offer a selection for those in search of knowledge, insight, and inspiration. The volumes, sent to us by alumni, are forwarded to Olin Library as donations to the University’s collection and made available to the Wesleyan community. In honor of Black History Month, this edition of YJHTRT highlights BIPOC authors and subjects. Shereem Herndon-Brown ’96 and Timothy L. Fields, The Black Family’s Guide to College Admissions: A Conversation about Education, Parenting, and Race (John Hopkins Press, 2022) This guidebook, co-written by two college admissions professionals and Black fathers, addresses questions and…

President Michael S. Roth ’78 has announced that Wesleyan University will recognize four inspiring leaders during the 191st Commencement on Sunday, May 28, 2023. The honorary degree recipients will be Annette Gordon-Reed, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and Carl M. Loeb University Professor at Harvard, who will also deliver the Commencement address; Jennifer Finney Boylan ’80, award-winning author, transgender activist, and professor at Barnard College; Larry McHugh, recently retired president of the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce and longstanding community leader; and Donna S. Morea ’76, P’06, an internationally recognized technology executive and Wesleyan University Board Chair Emerita. “At a time when…

(Updated March 1, 2023) Philosopher Kohei Saito ’09 spoke with The Guardian on his work in Marx in the Anthropocene which builds on Karl Marx’s writings on the economic and ecological crises to propose degrowth communism as a “new way of living.” Erika Franklin Fowler, Co-Director of the Wesleyan Media Project, spoke with Campaigns and Elections on the digital advertising spending of candidates in major state and federal races. Gary Yohe, Huffington Foundation Professor of Economics and Environmental Studies, Emeritus, was quoted in a story by The Poynter Institute's PolitiFact on an advertising campaign promoting natural gas’ role in transitioning…

Andrew Meier ’85 admits that an important part of his work as a journalist and writer is “chasing ghosts.” The Morgenthau family – counselors to presidents, participants in international diplomacy and important players in the criminal justice system – have given him plenty to chase. "They were a family that was kind of invisible to most Americans … they were really integral for a hundred years at the highest level of American political power. I don’t know any family that can really match that,” Meier said. In his newest book, Morgenthau: Power, Privilege, and the Rise of an American Dynasty,…

On stage at the 2023 Golden Globe Awards on Tuesday night, Mike White ’92 gently ribbed the A-listers in attendance who’d turned down parts on The White Lotus. “I know you all passed—you all passed on this show,” White said to a chuckling audience. “So, yes, it’s very gratifying to have this moment.” It was a banner evening for White and The White Lotus, the acclaimed HBO dark comedy-drama about dysfunctional leisure-seekers on rapidly unraveling luxury vacations that he created, wrote, and directed. Cast by Meredith Tucker ’92, the second installment of the series received four 2023 Golden Globe nominations…

Wesleyan Alumnus to Release PBS Documentary on Anti-War Protests

Wesleyan Alumni Chart Course for Student Success

Wesleyan in the News: March 2023

“You Just Have to Read This…” Books by Wesleyan Authors Golin ’60, Hall ’04, and Woodruff ’96

Alumni Share Peace Corps Experiences

Three Wesleyan Alumni Nominated for Academy Awards

Open-Ended Questions: New Exhibit at the Zilkha Gallery

“You Just Have to Read This…” Books by Wesleyan Authors Herndon-Brown ’96 and Saint John ’99

Wesleyan to Honor Annette Gordon-Reed, Jennifer Finney Boylan, Larry McHugh, and Donna S. Morea at 191st Commencement

Wesleyan in the News: February 2023

Q&A With Andrew Meier ’85, Author of “Morgenthau”

The White Lotus, Masterminded by Mike White ’92, Wins Two Golden Globe Awards