Alumni – Page 16

More than 50 students attended an alumni conversation on "Careers in Public Policy and Criminal Justice Reform" Nov. 13 at the Gordon Career Center. Each of the panelists: Sarah Cassel '13, James Jeter (who earned his degree in 2016 while incarcerated through Wesleyan's Center for Prison Education), Lexi Jones '17, Aaron Stagoff-Belfort '18, and Nina Stender '16 are working in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York, analyzing and impacting policies dealing with inhumane jail conditions, policing, housing inequality, and issues around incarceration. Stagoff-Belfort and Jim Kubat, associate director for job and internship development at the Gordon Career Center teamed up to…

In the sixth of this continuing series, Sara McCrea ’21, a College of Letters major from Boulder, Colo., reviews alumni books and offers 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. KK Ottesen ’94, Activist: Portraits of Courage (Chronicle Books, Oct. 8, 2019) Ranging in age from 12 to 94 years old, the activists photographed and recorded in Activist: Portraits of Courage will inspire you to “dissent, disrupt, and otherwise get in the…

Human rights advocate Christopher Swain '90 returned to Middletown last week, carrying an Olympic-style torch during what will be a nearly 5,000-mile journey to the spot where the US-Mexico border begins at the Gulf of Mexico, and then on through the border states to San Diego. Swain, a parent of two, is participating in a March for the Kids, honoring the memory of the six children known to have died in federal custody. He is hoping to bring awareness of the children who have been separated from their families and imprisoned and lost at the border; to advocate for all…

Claude Clayton "Bud" Smith '66, professor emeritus of English at Ohio Northern University, is an author who throughout his career has worked behind the scenes to bring Native Siberian creative writing to an English-speaking audience and to promote global indigenous literature. In that spirit, before Smith's story starts, he recommends we tune in to the PBS premiere of N. Scott Momaday: Words From a Bear, on Nov 18. Smith's connection with N. Scott Momaday is personal. In 2016, Smith co-edited and translated Meditations After the Bear Feast, a collection of poems exchanged between Momaday, a Kiowa writer and the defining…

Christopher F. Roellke ’87, PhD, has been named president of Stetson University, effective July 1, 2020. Currently dean of the college emeritus and professor of education at Vassar College, Roellke will be the 10th person to hold this position, succeeding Wendy B. Libby, PhD, who has served as Stetson's president since July 2009 and had announced her retirement last February. Roellke is also past president for the Association of Education Finance and Policy, a 2014 Fulbright Scholar, and the founder and fundraiser of Vassar College’s Urban Education Initiative. “The Board of Trustees has unanimously elected Dr. Roellke to lead Stetson…

Numerous students, alumni, and faculty from Wesleyan's Cognitive Development Labs recently presented their research at the 2019 Cognitive Development Society biennial meeting, held Oct. 17–19 in Louisville, Ky. The labs are led by Professor of Psychology Hilary Barth and Associate Professor of Psychology Anna Shusterman. Barth and Kerry Brew '18, MA '19 presented their poster, "Do Demand Characteristics Contribute to Minimal Ingroup Bias?" The work was done in collaboration with lab alumni Taylar Clark '19 and Jordan Feingold-Link '18. Sophie Charles '20, lab coordinator Katherine Williams, and former lab coordinator Alexandra Zax presented their poster, "The Role of Digit Identity…

This football season marked the 50th anniversary of Wesleyan’s undefeated football season of 1969. It was a year that garnered a number of individual and team honors. The team was named the UPI New England College Division Champions and they shared the Lambert Cup with the University of Delaware as the East’s top-achieving college division team. Individually, the late Dave Revenaugh ’72, MALS ’98 was ranked sixth in New England for scoring, and the late Peter Panciera ’71 was ranked ninth in New England for passing. The Athletics Department hosted a dinner to honor the team on the Friday evening of Homecoming…

In October, President Michael Roth and other Wesleyan faculty and staff traveled to Asia to meet with alumni, parents, prospective families, and others. The trip included visits to Seoul, Beijing, and Taipei. A highlight of the trip was Wesleyan’s second annual Liberal Arts + Sustainable Economic Development Forum, which took place in Beijing on Oct. 19. Last year, Wesleyan held the inaugural Liberal Arts + Forum in Shanghai, which highlighted film education and US-China collaborations. (Read the story here.) Over 100 people attended this year's forum, including prospective students and families, current parents, counselors, and alumni. The day started with…

In the fifth of this continuing series, Sara McCrea ’21, a College of Letters major from Boulder, Colo., reviews alumni books and offers 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. Jay Abramowitz ’76 and Tom Musca, Formerly Cool (Jerome Avenue Books, July 2019) Warren Brace may want to write funny television, but it seems that his reality could be a sitcom in itself, with all the jokes at his expense. In…

Russia has returned to the world stage in dramatic fashion in recent years with military interventions and interference in elections. What is driving this aggressive behavior? Will the current political system survive the scheduled departure of its architect, Vladimir Putin, in 2024? How should the United States deal with Russia? On Oct. 11–12, Wesleyan alumni and faculty panelists tackled these questions and more during the 2019 Shasha Seminar for Human Concerns. This year's theme was "Understanding Russia: A Dramatic Return to the World Stage," with Peter Rutland, the Colin and Nancy Campbell Professor in Global Issues and Democratic Thought, serving…

In this recurring feature in The Wesleyan Connection, we highlight some of the latest news stories about Wesleyan and our alumni. Wesleyan in the News 1. The Nation: "Edward Snowden Deserves to Be Tried by a Jury of His Peers, Just Like Everyone Else" In this op-ed, Associate Professor of Government Sonali Chakravarti argues against the Justice Department's decision to deny Edward Snowden's request for a jury trial. She contends that in Snowden's case, in which he is accused of leaking classified information from the National Security Administration in 2013, a jury trial "is not only a viable alternative to a hearing…

Alumni Speak with Students about Careers in Public Policy, Criminal Justice Reform

“You Just Have to Read This…” 3 Books By Wesleyan Authors: Otteson ’94, Stoberock ’92, Wickwire PhD ’83

Swain ’90 Passes through Middletown, Honoring Children who Died in Federal Custody

Smith ’66 on Translating and Promoting Global Indigenous Literature

Roellke ’87 Elected President of Stetson University

Psychology Faculty, Students, Alumni Present Research at CDS Meeting

King ’97, Perez ’98, Santana ’98 at 27th Dwight L. Greene Symposium

1960s Football Celebrated at Homecoming

Annual Liberal Arts + Forum Highlight of Recent Trip to Asia

“You Just Have to Read This…” 3 Books By Wesleyan Authors: Abramowitz ’76, Hill ’93, Rotella ’86

Alumni, Faculty Discuss Russia’s Return to the World Stage at Shasha Seminar

Wesleyan in the News