Students – Page 31

This month, Wesleyan students, many affiliated with athletic teams, are raising awareness and raising funds for men’s health through the Movember Foundation. According to its website, the Foundation is the only charity tackling men’s health on a global level, with a focus on addressing prostate cancer, testicular cancer, mental health and suicide prevention. It has funded over 1,200 men’s health projects in 21 countries. Wesleyan has had an official Campus Representative with the Foundation for the past four years. This year Luke Forsthoefel ’20, a member of Men’s Crew team, is the Campus Representative for all of Wesleyan. “The issue…

Dreams are coming true for AJ Wilson ’18, founder of the non-profit organization Dream Chasers. During the 10th annual Clinton Global Initiative University (CGI U) Conference in Boston Oct. 13-15, Dream Chasers won a Crowdrise fundraising competition and set the record for most money raised ($18,025) by any single group. For his efforts, Wilson was congratulated by Chelsea Clinton, Congressman Joe Kennedy III and former president Bill Clinton. Wilson, who grew up in Kennesaw, Georgia, created Dream Chasers to close the academic and opportunity gaps in the South and Midwest through a collection of different programs and initiatives. In five years, the team has impacted the…

On Oct. 19, students, staff and faculty learned about design thinking and creative problem solving through a Wes Design Tank. During this two hour workshop, participants learned the methodology and solved a problem experienced in their own life. Their mission? To reimagine a personal behavior. The event was organized by Posse Scholar and Patricelli Center Fellow Lance Williams ’20 and facilitated by Brent Taylor '07, a design thinking practitioner and coach at Stoke.d in Nashville, Tenn. Coaches at Stoke.d help individuals and teams get back in touch with their inherent creative abilities. Participants worked with a partner and created experiences through…

The College of the Environment hosted its 13th Annual Pumpkin Festival Oct. 14 at Wesleyan's Long Lane Farm to celebrate the fall harvest. The Pumpkin Festival provides an opportunity for the Wesleyan and local communities to learn about local organic farming and the politics of food. The event included farm tours, a farmer's market, a bake sale, live music, face and pumpkin painting, free veggie burgers, arts and crafts, bulb planting, and more. Pumpkin Fest was held in conjunction with Campus Sustainability Week. Photos of the event are below: (Photos by Caroline Kravitz '19 and Will Barr '18) (more…)

Douglas Kiman, a first-year PhD student in ethnomusicology, recently received a scholarship to attend the 2017 Yiddish New York festival held Dec. 23-28. Kiman's research focuses on contemporary klezmer music in Western Europe. Yiddish New York celebrates and engages with East European Jewish (and other Jewish and co-territorial) traditions to foster new creativity. Drawing inspiration from the historic cultural riches of Manhattan’s Lower East Side, Yiddish New York is an intergenerational gathering featuring daily workshops and a broad spectrum of performances and programming. Yiddish New York evenings feature concerts, dance parties, and jam sessions at clubs. Kiman, a native of France, spent two years in New York as…

Wesleyan has partnered with the State of Connecticut’s Alternative Route to Certification (ARC) program in a new initiative that will benefit both Wesleyan undergraduates seeking teaching certification and ARC participants seeking a master’s degree. The ARC program, in existence since 1986, is of particular interest to working professionals making a career change into becoming an educator since it offers a one-year, part-time path to obtaining teaching certification in Connecticut. Jennifer Curran, director of Continuing Studies and Graduate Liberal Studies, says Wesleyan proposed a partnership to ARC officials – one that would be mutually beneficial. Current ARC students and ARC alumni…

Wesleyan's Molecular Biophysics Program hosted its 18th annual retreat Sept. 28 at Wadsworth Mansion in Middletown. Wesleyan affiliated speakers included: Colin Smith, assistant professor of chemistry, on "An Atomistic View of Protein Dynamics and Allostery;" Meng-Ju Renee Sher, assistant professor of physics, on "Tracking Electron Motions Using Terahertz Spectroscopy;" Kelly Knee, PhD '07, principle scientist for Pfizer's Rare Disease Research Unit, on "Protein Folding Chaperones: Molecular Machines for Tricky Problems;" and Francis Starr, professor of physics, director of the College of Integrative Sciences, on "DNA Four-Way Junction Dynamics and Thermodynamics: Lessons from Combining Simulations and Experiments." Arthur Palmer, the Robert…

This summer, three students from Wesleyan’s Muslim Students’ Association (MSA) attended the International Young Leaders Assembly (IYLA) Global Leadership Summit as partners of the conference. (more…)

Trailing by 14 with just over 10 minutes remaining in regulation, quarterback Mark Piccirillo '19 helped orchestrate an incredible comeback as the Wesleyan University football team defeated Tufts University Sept. 23 in overtime, 24-17. The Saturday game was the second night game in school history, as the Cardinals picked up its first win of 2017.This is DiCenzo's eighth season coaching, and third season as head coach in 2017. Piccirillo found captain Eric Meyreles '18 in the corner of the end zone for a 24-yard score with :06 on the clock, and minutes later connected with senior Mike Breuler for a 14-yard…

During the 13th annual Eat Local Challenge on Sept. 26, Wesleyan students, faculty and staff dined on a midday meal made entirely from local ingredients. The event challenged Bon Appétit Management Company staff to create a meal from products and ingredients harvested within a 150-mile radius of the campus. The meal included produce, meat, dessert and drinks from local farmers, ranchers, food crafters and fishermen. Food included house-smoked pork-belly bacon from Lucki 7 Livestock Co. in Rodman, N.Y.; Bloomsday cheese from Cato Corner in Colchester, Conn.; lobster, little-neck clams and mussels from Damariscotta, Maine; apple cider-glazed chicken and baked corn from…

For her ongoing research in developing electromagnetic filters that block high power radiation, physics PhD candidate Eleana Makri recently received a Constantine and Patricia Mavroyannis scholarship from the Greek America Foundation. The $5,000 award will support her doctoral research during the 2017-18 academic year. At Wesleyan, Makri works with Professor Tsampikos Kottos in the development of the reflective limiter concepts that block high power radiation from damaging sensitive sensors, like the eye, while they allow low power radiation to reach the sensor for further processing. Kottos is professor of physics, professor of mathematics and professor of integrative sciences. The Mavroyannis scholarship…

On Sept. 22, the Wesleyan Student Assembly hosted its 27th annual Student Groups Fair on Andrus Field. The event provides an opportunity for students to meet with representatives of both new and established groups and network with university departments who provide annual programs. Wesleyan is home to more than 250 student organizations under the categories of activism, identity, sports, publications, visual arts, independent projects, the Office of Community Service and more. Groups include Wesleyan's pro-Israel political activism group, Cardinals for Israel; the Wesleyan Boxing Club; PINOY, the Filipino Student Association; the Basal Gang, a club for people interested in neuroscience…

Student-Athletes Raise Awareness, Funds for Men’s Health in Movember

Wilson ’18 Wins Fundraising Competition at Clinton Global Initiative University Conference

Taylor ’07 Teaches Design Thinking Workshop at Wesleyan

Fall Harvest Celebrated at Pumpkin Festival

Graduate Student Kiman Awarded Scholarship to Attend Yiddish Festival

Graduate Liberal Studies Partners with ARC Program for Teaching Certification

Speakers, Poster Sessions at Annual Molecular Biophysics Program Retreat

Muslim Students’ Association Attends Global Leadership Summit

Wesleyan Defeats Tufts During Night Football Game

Lobster, Clam Bake Highlight of Eat Local Challenge

Makri Awarded Graduate Scholarship from Greek America Foundation

Student Groups Fair Showcases Wesleyan’s Broad Range of Organizations