Students – Page 7

Yellow and blue balloons were fastened to each of the pillars of Zelnick Hall, but Friday’s gathering of students and faculty acknowledging that it had been one-year since Russia invaded Ukraine was not a celebration. It was a marking of one year of strife and tragedy. For Associate Professor of Dance Katja Kolcio it’s been a year of wondering if her relatives who live in Ukraine are still alive. She has not heard from some relatives since this past January. Kolcio said that February 24 “marks a year of Ukrainian bravery, steadfastness, and strength.” “I'm just continuously reminded that, sadly,…

Through a series of fun masterclasses and performances, members of The Second City integrated the company’s tenets of improvisation into the curriculum of four Wesleyan performance courses. Since its premiere in 1959, The Second City has revolutionized improv as an art form and launched the careers of iconic performers ranging from John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, and Gilda Radner to Mike Myers, Amy Poehler, Tina Fey, and Keegan-Michael Key. When Dean of the Arts and Humanities Roger Mathew Grant learned that The Second City would be available to come to Wesleyan, he thought about how improvisation is a foundational…

When Frances Ostensen ’24 set sail aboard the SSV Robert C. Seamans this fall, she knew she was in for an adventure. Ostensen, a biology and Science in Society Program double major who spent the semester abroad with the Sea Education Association (SEA), learned more about the environment, human civilizations, and their endless connections than she ever expected. Her chosen program, called Sustainability in Pacific Island Communities and Ecosystems, began in Woods Hole, Mass. in October. After flying to the South Pacific in November, Ostensen set sail in a loop around Polynesia alongside seven other students, professors, and crew members…

As we begin a semester with aspiration and joy, we also want to take a moment to reflect on the waves of loss that have afflicted many in our community. Yesterday’s earthquake on Turkey and Syria is only the latest in a series of tragedies. From mass shootings to killings by those supposed to protect, from war and international conflict to the continued toll of the COVID-19 virus, every week brings news that can feel devastating. We are writing today to acknowledge the distress, anger, and grief felt by many in the Wesleyan community. These events take their toll; for…

Wesleyan University’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. commemoration, held February 3, was a moment for hard truths about racial justice in the United States and inspiration for where we might go as a nation. The annual commemoration concluded Equity and Inclusion Week and launched a series of events to recognize Black History Month. The MLK Commemoration, hosted by Demetrius Colvin, director of The Resource Center, featured a recollection of King’s special relationship with Wesleyan. The civil rights leader visited campus four times and was an honorary degree recipient in 1964. In addition, Black Raspberry, an all-Black student musical group, offered…

Both Shaykh Jamir Meah and Rev. Tracy Mehr-Muska have taken unusual personal journeys to get to their roles as Wesleyan University’s newest chaplains – experiences make them uniquely poised to serve the campus community. Rabbi David Leipziger Teva, director of the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life, said Meah and Mehr-Muska’s recent additions to the team will allow the department to offer more and a wider variety of programming, including opportunities to improve inter-faith literacy on campus and help with students’ mental health and well-being. “We want to make sure that there is a support system for students’ religious and…

In a time when the wounds of racial injustice continue to be raw in America, Wesleyan University’s Black History Month programming hopes to represent the complexity, struggles and joys of the African American experience. “We explicitly want to highlight the importance of the Black joy we are living,” said Demetrius Colvin, director of The Resource Center. “There is so much death, sadness, and trauma. We have to honor that. But an important aspect to the joy and sorrow is how people are surviving, resisting, and thriving.” The University will celebrate the month with gallery exhibits, film screenings, performances, and celebrations.…

The past year began in uncertainty due to the global pandemic and the ongoing strife happening in our country and throughout the world. However, the Wesleyan University community persevered and thrived. Faculty explored new and innovative ideas, and students grew in ways that they couldn’t have anticipated. Throughout the year the Wesleyan Connection was there to document the life of a place that is always creative, always pushing for a better and more just world. Here’s a small sampling of the stories that mattered this past year: January The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation funded the Carceral Connecticut Project, a multidisciplinary…

Without using words, movement can tell stories and communicate complex emotions. Wesleyan students across different class years presented new group works focusing on a diversity of techniques, methods, and aesthetic approaches in the Winter Dance Concert “11 Short Stories” on December 9 and 10 in the Center for the Arts Theater. Dance makers from the class DANC 250 “Dance Composition: Choreography Workshop,” taught by Assistant Professor of the Practice in Dance Joya Powell, focused this past fall on the process of making a dance in a theatrical setting. Similar to a collection of short stories by different authors, the resulting…

With pride in their accomplishments and hopes for a bright future, fifteen students celebrated their initiation into the Connecticut Gamma Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa at a ceremony held on December 7 in the McKelvey Room at the Office of Admission. In order to be inducted into the nation’s oldest scholastic honor society, students must be nominated by the department of their major, have completed their general education expectations, and must have a grade point average of 93 or above. “For students elected in the fall, it is an especially exacting selection process because admittance is based on a student’s…

International Education Week (IEW) was held from November 10th through the 18th to celebrate the benefits of international education and exchange worldwide. Wesleyan has participated in IEW since 2017-2018 through the Fries Center for Global Studies (FCGS). This year, the IEW Planning Committee included representatives from the Office of International Student Affairs (OISA), the Gordon Career Center, the Resource Center, ResLife, and the Shapiro Writing Center. The U.S. Departments of State and Education launched the initiative in 2000 to promote programs that prepare Americans for a global environment. Associate Director for Intercultural Learning Anita Deeg-Carlin said, "It's exciting for me…

By Maia Bronfman ‘24 As the male love interest in Olivia Snow’s ’25 neo-Shakespearean drama, Lena Weiman ’25 said she had to learn to be a rake, and then to be a dead rake. Having never before in her life been a rake or dead, Weiman said she relied on the dialogues with her co-actors to inhabit the character of Claudio de’Bossi. Masquerade, the five act play which premiered in the 92 Theatre on November 11, was first imagined by Snow in her freshman year of high school. She read King Lear, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Hamlet and other Shakespeare…

Wesleyan Recognizes One Year Mark of the War in Ukraine

The Second City Teaches Improvisation to Wesleyan students

Exploring Sustainability, Building Community, and Fostering Connections: Frances Ostensen ’24 and Her SEA Semester

Dealing With Tragedy: Wesleyan Offers Support Services

Wesleyan Honors the Life and Work of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

New University Chaplains Join Campus Community

Wesleyan Honors Black History Month

Year in Review: 2022

Students Share Personal Experiences Through Dance

New Phi Beta Kappa Inductees Named

International Education Week

Olivia Snow’s ’25 neo-Shakespearean drama premieres in the 92 Theatre