Students – Page 33

Wesleyan's newest students and their families are welcomed to the Wesleyan community during a series of Summer Sendoffs June 20 to Aug. 25. Alumni and parents are hosting the events at various locations around the world. All members of the Wesleyan community are invited to attend the casual socials. Pictured below are photos from a few of the gatherings: (more…)

Scattered throughout campus are remnants of not only Wesleyan's history, but world history. After the closing of the Wesleyan Museum in 1957, thousands of specimens in many collections were displaced, often haphazardly, to nooks, crannies, tunnels, attics, storage rooms, and random cabinets at Exley Science Center, Judd Hall, and the Butterfield and Foss Hill residence complexes. Many of these specimens haven't been accessed in 60 years. "Sadly, few people are aware that Wesleyan has these unique resources," said Ellen Thomas, the University Professor in the College of Integrative Sciences and research professor of earth and environmental sciences. "The collections have not been…

Two Wesleyan students received top prizes in the Five College Korean Language Speech Contest held April 14 at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. This was Wesleyan's second year participating in the contest. The recipients include Madison McClain-Frederick '20, who took first prize for the beginning level with her speech titled "My Red Sneakers," and Bethlehem "Betty" Bekele '19, who took second place at the intermediate level with her speech titled "My Country Ethiopia and Korea." Bekele is supported through a Center for East Asian Studies language study grant to spend this summer studying language in Korea. The contest is sponsored by the Five College East…

The Boston Globe recently published a profile of Audrey Pratt, an incoming student in Wesleyan's Class of 2021 and the winner of the inaugural Wesleyan University Hamilton Prize for Creativity. Pratt, a graduate of Needham (Mass.) High School, won a four-year, full-tuition scholarship to Wesleyan for her short fiction submission, "Thorns, Black and White." Pratt, who was accepted early decision to Wesleyan, told the Globe that when she applied for the prize, she "didn't think in a million years I'd win," but she was excited for the chance to have Lin-Manuel Miranda '02 and Thomas Kail '99 read her work. Miranda, writer/creator and former star, and Kail, the director…

This spring, a research team from Wesleyan traveled to Death Valley National Park to explore the ways bacteria diversifies in extreme environments. Death Valley, located about 130 miles west of Las Vegas, is a below-sea-level basin known for being the hottest place on earth and driest place in North America. The average rainfall is less than 2 inches, annually. "National parks are ideal for research, in general, because the land is protected indefinitely from commercial development," said team leader Fred Cohan, professor of biology, professor of environmental studies. "Death Valley is a nice model system for exobiology because of its extreme…

This year, students in Associate Professor of History Jennifer Tucker’s class, Seeing a Bigger Picture: Integrating Visual Methods and Environmental History, had an opportunity to share what they learned in an unusual format. They produced an hour-long radio program, which debuted on WESU 88.1 FM on Memorial Day. It will air again on the station this summer, and can be heard on wesufm.org or on SoundCloud. The course introduces students to key landmarks in the visual history of environmentalism and environmental science, from the 18th century to the recent past. The class studies the power and the limits of visual…

On May 27, the Class of 2017 Freeman Asian Scholars were honored at a reception in Daniel Family Commons. Scholars, their families, friends, advisors and alumni attended the event. The Freeman Asian Scholarship Program provides expenses for a four-year course of study toward a bachelor’s degree for up to 11 exceptional students annually, one each from the People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. During the event, the nine graduating Class of 2017 scholars spoke briefly about their time at Wesleyan and post-graduation plans. Other speakers included Tracey Gardner…

For the third consecutive year, Eudice Chong '18 of the women's tennis team was named the Division III Honda Athlete of the Year nominee for tennis, as announced by Executive Director Chris Voelz of the Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA) presented by Honda. "This past season has been a crazy ride, with our team trying to make small steps each day to improve our chances of coming up on top every match," said Chong, the three-time NCAA Individual Singles Champion as well as the 2017 Individual Doubles Champion. "The camaraderie we have in our team is what keeps our team focused…

Lili Kadets '17, Haneah Kwon '17, Arnelle Williams '17, and Mika Reyes '17 delivered "Senior Voices" addresses on May 27 in Memorial Chapel. Anthony Hatch, assistant professor of science in society, assistant professor of sociology, assistant professor of African American studies, delivered the faculty reflection. Below are the text of their speeches: (more…)

On May 27, 77 members of the Class of 2017 were inducted into Wesleyan’s Gamma Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa Society, the oldest national scholastic honor society. They join 14 others who were initiated in fall. To be elected, a student must first have been nominated by the department of his or her major. He or she also must have demonstrated curricular breadth by having met the General Education Expectations, and must have achieved a GPA of 93 and above. The inductees and their majors include: Joie Akerson, neuroscience and behavior; Taiga Araki, biology, government; Eric Arsenault, chemistry, physics; Jeremy…

An all-star committee of Wesleyan University alumni, chaired by Hamilton writer/creator and former star Lin-Manuel Miranda ’02, Hon. ‘15 and director Thomas Kail ’99, has selected the recipient of the inaugural Wesleyan University Hamilton Prize for Creativity: Audrey Pratt of Needham, Mass. Pratt's submission, a short piece of fiction titled, "Thorns, Black and White," was selected from among more than 600 entries. Pratt will receive a four-year full-tuition scholarship to Wesleyan, worth as much as $200,000. “The selection committee was blown away by the range and quality of the submissions we reviewed,” Miranda said. “Audrey's story stood out as exceptional, but all of the…

Emma Porrazzo ’19 has received a U.S. Department of State Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) to study Chinese in Suzhou, China this summer. According to the CLS program website, the scholarship is part of a U.S. government effort to expand the number of Americans studying and mastering critical foreign languages. “CLS scholars gain critical language and cultural skills that enable them to contribute to U.S. economic competitiveness and national security.” Porrazzo is among approximately 550 American students at U.S. colleges and universities to receive the scholarship this year. “Critical languages” are defined as those that are less commonly taught in U.S.…

New Students Welcomed to Wesleyan at Summer Sendoffs

Students Catalog Wesleyan’s Lost Fossil Collections

McClain-Frederick ’20, Bekele ’19 Excel at Korean Language Speech Contest

Inaugural Hamilton Prize Winner Featured in Boston Globe

Biology Team Samples Drought-Tolerant Bacteria in Death Valley

Environmental History Class Produces Radio Program

Class of 2017 Freeman Asian Scholars Celebrated at Reception

Chong ’18 Repeats as DIII Honda Athlete of the Year Nominee for Tennis

Kadets, Kwon, Williams, Reyes Deliver Senior Voices, Hatch Gives Faculty Reflection

77 Seniors Inducted into Phi Beta Kappa

Wesleyan Awards Hamilton Prize for Creativity to Incoming First-Year Student

Porrazzo ’19 to Study in China as Critical Language Scholar