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Wesleyan announced Wednesday that a design submitted by Gabriel Drozdov ’19 has been selected by popular vote as the University’s next monogram. Drozdov’s submission garnered more than 50 percent of the 6,200 votes cast by Wesleyan community members. "For the monogram, I personally wanted to reintroduce some of Wesleyan’s old spirit back into a new design," Drozdov said. In September of 2018, Wesleyan launched an updated website, featuring new messaging and visual elements. One of those elements was a new monogram that many community members felt did not cohesively represent the University. Wesleyan's administration responded by rolling back the mark,…

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) honored Eric Dachs ’98, the founder and CEO of PIX System, with a Technical Achievement Award at its Oscars 2019 Scientific and Technical Awards Presentation on Feb. 9, 2019. Since its creation in 2003, PIX System has become the entertainment industry gold standard in providing secure communication and content management capabilities. Dachs, a theater major while at Wesleyan, designed and coded the initial software early in his career when he was an assistant to sound designer Ren Klyce for Panic Room. It was then that he saw the need for an easy, safe…

Wesleyan's Board of Trustees conferred tenure to eight faculty members, effective July 1. They include: · David Constantine, associate professor of mathematics · Megan Glick, associate professor of American studies · Kerwin Kaye, associate professor of sociology · Jeffers Lennox, associate professor of history · Maria Ospina, associate professor of Spanish · Justine Quijada, associate professor of religion · Lily Saint, associate professor of English In addition, one faculty member was promoted to full professor: · Nicole Stanton, professor of dance Brief descriptions of their areas of research and teaching appear below: David Constantine's research examines the relationship between dynamics and…

On March 4, not three, but four student-run ventures received $5,000 seed grants from the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship (PCSE). The unrestricted funding is accompanied with training, advising, mentoring, incubator workspace, and other resources from the Patricelli Center. On March 1, six finalists pitched for a panel of judges in Allbritton 311. "As always, the competition was steep, and the judges had a tough time selecting grantees," said Makaela Kingsley ’98, director of the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship. "In fact, this year they decided to make a special donation to the Patricelli Center so we could offer four grants instead…

In this recurring feature in The Wesleyan Connection, we highlight some of the latest news stories about Wesleyan and our alumni. Recent Wesleyan News Forbes: "Three Questions to Ask Yourself at the Beginning of Your Career" Sharon Belden Castonguay, director of the Gordon Career Center, offers career advice for young people just starting out. 2. The Times Literary Supplement: "Multiple Lives" Hirsh Sawhney, assistant professor of English, coordinator of South Asian studies, explores the "complicated existence" of Mahatma Gandhi. 3. The Washington Post: "The Delight of Being Inconspicuous in a World That's Always Watching Us" President Michael Roth reviews a new book, How to Disappear:…

When Opium Moon won the Grammy Award for the Best New Age Album this year, “Thank you, Julie Yannatta…” were the first words from singer/violinist Lili Haydn's lips once she reached the stage. Yannatta ’91 is founder and owner of Be Why Music, the label that released the self-titled debut album by the eclectic band—Lili Haydn on violin/voice, Hamid Saeidi on santoor (Persian hammered dulcimer) and voice, M.B. Gordy on ancient percussion, and Itai Disraeli on fretless bass. Their haunting music draws from each member's cultural traditions: Iran, Israel, Canada, and the United States. Yannatta, with a career path as eclectic as…

Natural disasters are becoming more common all over the world. While the focus is often on restoring physical damage, these disasters also impact residents of the affected region psychologically in ways that are less well understood. In a paper published in the journal Traumatology on Feb. 7, Assistant Professor of Psychology Royette Tavernier, along with five student coauthors, examined the psychological impact of tropical storm Erika, which hit the Caribbean island of Dominica in August 2015. The data analyzed was based on a sample of 174 college-aged individuals who completed survey-based assessments of several psychosocial variables six months after the storm.…

An invited perspective article written by Michelle Personick, assistant professor of chemistry, and Danny Robertson ’18 is featured on the cover of the Feb. 26, 2019, issue 4 of Chemistry of Materials. Personick was invited to contribute the perspective article as part of Chemistry of Materials’ “Up-and-Coming” series of Perspectives. The series provides a place for emerging, early career scientists to discuss and provide insights into new areas of materials science, and to showcase their research accomplishments. The perspective, titled "Growing Nanoscale Model Surfaces to Enable Correlation of Catalytic Behavior Across Dissimilar Reaction Environments," highlights recent advances and potential future directions in the…

This spring, nine student ventures received grants from the Jewett Center for Community Partnerships (JCCP) Student Innovation Fund. These student efforts are representative of the JCCP’s commitment to cocreate mutually respectful partnerships in pursuit of a just, equitable, and sustainable future for communities beyond the campus—nearby and around the world. The Student Innovation Fund provides up to $750 for spring or summer projects that prioritize: Collaboration between student groups, faculty/staff, and/or community partners. Investigation of the impact of our civic engagement efforts. Sharing of ideas and learnings in civic engagement on campus and beyond. The recipients are: Jessica Brandon ’20 and Rebecca Goldfarb Terry…

Wesleyan's student group, Cardinal Kids, led a six-part series of events throughout the month of February at the Wesleyan R.J. Julia Bookstore. Cardinal Kids is a teaching collective run by Wesleyan students, each adapting their on-campus work into fun, interactive lessons for children in grades 1–5. Throughout the month, Cardinal Kids provided a comic book–making workshop, two introductions to world art, a lesson on protecting the environment, a class on journalism and newspapers, and a DNA-extracting workshop. All lessons were taught alongside an accompanying book. On Feb. 21, Cardinal Kids' Meera Joshi '20 led "Get That DNA!" using the book Have a Nice…

Wesleyan University was named the No. 1 "Impact School" for 2019 by The Princeton Review. Wesleyan and the other 24 schools that made the list "were selected based on student ratings and responses to survey questions covering community service opportunities at their school, student government, sustainability efforts, and on-campus student engagement." The Princeton Review also took into account PayScale.com’s percentage of alumni from each school that reported having high job meaning. Since the Princeton Review created this category in 2015, Wesleyan has remained at the top of the list. "According to our Civic Action Plan, we wish to be an…

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Drozdov ’19 Wins Wesleyan Monogram Design Competition

Dachs ’98 Receives Sci-Tech Oscar for PIX System

Wesleyan Confers Tenure to 8 Faculty, 1 Promoted

Student-Led Ventures Win $5,000 Entrepreneurship Seed Grants

Wesleyan in the News

Yannatta ’91: Opium Moon Wins Grammy on Her Be Why Music Label

Tavernier, Students Coauthor Paper on Psychological Trauma of Natural Disasters

Article by Personick, Robertson ’18 Featured on the Cover of Chemistry of Materials Journal

Students Receive Innovation Fund Grants from the Jewett Center for Community Partnerships

Cardinal Kids Teaching Collective Hosts Interactive Lessons for Area Children

Princeton Review Ranks Wesleyan as Its No. 1 Impact School

Students Practice Personal Pitches with Alumni Mentors at Connect@Wes