Olivia DrakeFor 12 weeks last summer, Lauren Valentino ’10 taught underprivileged rising 9th graders how to speak French and read Hamlet – all while most of her students were still learning English as a second language. Valentino was in Denver, Colo., working with residents who had recently moved to the U.S. from Ethiopia, Afghanistan, Eritrea, Kenya, Mexico and Columbia, to name a few. "One student was a refugee from the Ivory Coast and had no formal schooling until three years ago," says Valentino, a sociology and French major. "He was one of my brightest kids." As a student-teacher working at the…
Wesleyan has launched its new online look with a completely redesigned homepage. The new, image-rich homepage, http://www.wesleyan.edu/, offers rotating photographs of campus life, university factoids and departmental highlights that change when the page is reloaded. The most noticeable change to the new homepage is the open layout that emphasizes information, facilitates navigation, and refocuses content for Wesleyan's primary target audiences, including prospective students, their parents and external users. Under the images are recent headlines, upcoming events and title selections from a new, open access Community Blog. All members of the Wesleyan community can author a post, and anyone can comment…
David PesciAs the College of Letters (COL) celebrates its 50th anniversary, we asked Ethan Kleinberg, associate professor of history and letters, director of the COL, about his life in two departments, his views on interdisciplinary teaching, how this impacts his own scholarship, and the future of the COL. Q. How did you end up with a joint appointment in the College of Letters and History Department? EK: As an undergraduate at U.C. Berkeley I created my own curriculum combining philosophy, history and religion as a “Humanities Field Major.” In graduate school at UCLA I combined work in History and Comparative Literature…
Corrina KerrFrom its beginnings in 1959, Wesleyan’s College of Social Studies (CSS) has grown into a well-respected program and is celebrating its 50th year in 2009. The multidisciplinary program allows students to explore the subjects of government, history, economics and philosophy concurrently. Many attended lectures and celebrations for CSS during Homecoming/Family Weekend last weekend. The first event of the weekend was a CSS Public Lecture by John Goldberg (CSS 1983, professor of Law, Harvard Law School) on Friday, Nov. 6. His talk was titled “John Locke on Tort Reform (Really!): A CSS Parable.” John Goldberg was introduced by Brian Fay, the…
Majora Carter ’88 delivered the keynote address titled "Green the Ghetto and How Much It Won’t Cost Us" during the 17th Annual Dwight L. Greene Symposium Nov. 7 in Memorial Chapel. Carter is the founder of Sustainable South Bronx and River Heroes, host of Eco-Heroes on Sundance Channel and The Promised Land on National Public Radio. Carter founded and led Sustainable South Bronx from 2001 to 2008, and is currently president of her own economic development consulting group. The well-received presentation was preceded by Wesleyan President Michael Roth's announcement of the College of the Environment. The symposium, held in honor of…
Four weeks before the nations meet in Copenhagen to try to avert the catastrophes that global warming may bring, ABC News Correspondent William Blakemore ’65 will identify many surprising psychological factors at play as people in all walks of life deal with the latest "hard news" on climate. Blakemore will speak on "The Many Psychologies of Global Warming," during a talk at 8 p.m. Nov. 3 in Memorial Chapel. He'll explore new definitions of sanity that may pertain, and give examples displaying different "psychologies, as well as manmade global warming's place in "the long history of narcissistic insults to humanity…
During the last 50 years, humans have degraded rivers and lakes through excessive water abstraction, pollution and by over-harvesting aquatic organisms. River flow has been impeded by dams, and floodplains have been converted for agriculture and urban areas. The human population has doubled to nearly 7 billion and, per capita water availability has declined on all continents. During the past 50 years, global climate change has further impacted water resources. On Nov. 7, three climate experts will speak on "Global Environmental Change And Freshwater Resources: Hope For The Best Or Change To Prepare For The Worst?" during the annual Where…
The candidate for issue’s "5 Questions with..." is Mary Alice Haddad, assistant professor of government, assistant professor of East Asian studies. She provides some insight into the recent, dramatic change in the Japanese government. Q: What are your primary areas of study and research? MAH: My primary area of research has been on civil society and democracy with a focus on Japan. I am beginning a new research project on environmental politics in East Asia. I am particularly interested in the ways that local politics around environmental issues can lead toward greater citizen participation in democratic as well as nondemocratic…
Under beaming spotlights and surrounded by video cameras and an audience holding their breath in anticipation, Max Nussenbaum ’12 pondered a single question: "What is the one-word title of the 2009 book whose subtitle is "A History of the Propitious Esculent"? A. Nitrogen, B. Penicillin, C. Potato or D. Gold. "Obviously I have no idea … I feel like it would be something kind of funny, like a potato. That would be a clever title to a book," said Nussenbaum during a recent episode of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? After using two "lifelines" on the popular television quiz…
A film directed by Ákos Östör, professor of anthropology, emeritus, and edited by film major Joe Sousa ’03, explores the life of a painter, composer and singer living in West Bengal, India. The 35-minute film, Songs of a Sorrowful Man, was screened Oct. 29 in the Powell Family Cinema inside the Center for Film Studies. The "sorrowful man," Dukhushyam Chitrakar is a charismatic figure who encourages women to take up the traditional craft of scroll painting and musical composition pursued almost exclusively by men before. In a series of edited sequences, the film chronicles Dukhushyam's vision of the decline and rebirth…
Brian KattenWesleyan men’s soccer has accomplished two feats never before witnessed by Cardinal faithful: they have yet to lose after 15 games, and have set a school record for shutouts in a season. Now they are looking for a NESCAC title, something that has only been done once before (in 2005) by Wesleyan Men’s Soccer. Their campaign has in no way been easy. They opened the year on Sept. 12 facing perennial power and Little Three rival Williams College on the road. In that match the Cardinals came back after being down 1-0 to forge a 1-1 tie. Over the eight…
Wesleyan employees can help strengthen lives and improve community conditions in the 15 towns in Middlesex County by participating in the 2009-10 Middlesex United Way Campaign. Wesleyan has set at a goal of raising $130,000 through its annual workplace campaign, which supports the building blocks of life - education, income, health and housing. Through the agencies it funds, United Way hopes to increase children's readiness to learn by school entry; increase economic self-sufficiency of individuals and families; reduce the rate of risky behaviors among youth and adults; and increase the ability of individuals and families to attain affordable housing. The…