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Wesleyan President Michael Roth ’78 made the following remarks during the 186th commencement ceremony on May 27: Members of the Board of Trustees, members of the faculty and staff, distinguished guests, new recipients of graduate degrees, and the mighty Class of 2018, I am honored to present some brief remarks on the occasion of this commencement. Do you remember the summer before you began your first year at Wesleyan? Were you working a tough job, attending an interesting program, or volunteering at an engaging not-for-profit? Like many in the summer of 2014, you might have been complaining about inertia in…

Zenzele Price ’18 delivered the following remarks during Wesleyan’s 186th Commencement ceremony on May 27. Hi, my name is Zenzele Price, and I'm the 2018 Commencement speaker. I’m trying to be optimistic, but right now graduating from college feels like being told to jump out of a plane. Standing here, with the wind battering my face, staring out at the great, terrifying expanse of the future, it’s easy to want to step back. Back to the cocoon of Usdan and Red and Black, back to saying “points please,” back to a sea of familiar faces. But, in reality, there is no…

The award recipients are: Robert W. “Bob” Crispin ’68: Robert W. “Bob” Crispin had a long and distinguished career as a senior executive in the insurance and financial services area, which culminated when he served as chairman and chief executive officer of ING Investment Management Americas from 2001 until he retired in 2007. Brian E. Frosh ’68: Brian Frosh is the attorney general for the state of Maryland. Under his leadership, Maryland became the first state in the nation to issue guidance prohibiting discriminatory profiling by law enforcement, declaring definitively that race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, and…

On May 27, seven students graduated with a Master of Arts in Performance Curation through the Center for the Arts Institute for Curatorial Practice in Performance (ICPP). Since being introduced as a pilot initiative in 2011, ICPP has graduated 16 students from the ICPP Master's program (including this year's class). ICPP encourages emerging curators to enrich their understanding of intellectually rigorous, innovative, and artist-centered curatorial models. Through a low-residency model, ICPP asks its students to not only engage with ideas but also to simultaneously put those ideas into practice in their professional lives, developing responsive curatorial practices that address the interdisciplinary nature…

During Wesleyan’s 186th commencement ceremony on May 27, Wesleyan presented outstanding teachers with the Binswanger Prize for Excellence in Teaching. These prizes, made possible by gifts from the family of the late Frank G. Binswanger Sr., Hon. ’85, underscore Wesleyan’s commitment to its scholar-teachers, who are responsible for the University’s distinctive approach to liberal arts education. Recommendations are solicited from alumni of the last 10 graduating classes, as well as current juniors, seniors, and graduate students. Recipients are chosen by a selection committee of faculty and members of the Alumni Association Executive Committee. This year, Wesleyan honored the following faculty…

As the Class of 2018 accepted their diplomas this month, among them was a special group of students: Wesleyan’s first full cohort of Posse Veteran Scholars to graduate. In 2013, Wesleyan made a commitment to dramatically increase the number of veterans it enrolls by entering into a new partnership with The Posse Foundation, Inc. At that time, Wesleyan was only the second institution to join the Posse Veteran Scholars Program, which identifies talented veterans interested in pursuing bachelor’s degrees, and places them at top tier colleges and universities, where they receive four-year full scholarships. Each year, the veterans enter in “posses”…

Wesleyan’s 186th Commencement ceremony on May 27 will take place outside on Andrus Field, as planned. Our best advice is to come prepared for cool, wet weather conditions, and bring along an umbrella. A reminder that rain or shine the Commencement ceremony will be simulcast in the Memorial Chapel, Patricelli ’92 Theater, Ring Family Performing Arts Hall and Tishler Lecture Hall (150 Exley Science Center). The ceremony will also be available to view on the website wescast.wesleyan.edu. For additional information about Commencement, please see here.

Natacha Bielikoff ’18, Sara Eismont ’18, David Machado ’18, and Taisa Vasilkova ’18, delivered “Senior Voices” addresses on May 26, 2018, in Memorial Chapel. Assistant Professor Danielle Vogel of the Department of English offered the faculty reflection. Also, a student group (shown here at rehearsal) performed "Irish Wedding Wish." Below are the texts of the reflections: David Machado offered this reflection on “Home is Where You Are Accepted” With conditional acceptance from a homophobic father and a childhood spent in a low-income family who had to move constantly, oftentimes hardwood floors served…

Frantz Williams Jr. ’99 has been named the successor to Vice President for University Relations Barbara-Jan Wilson, who has announced her upcoming retirement at the end of December 2018. A government major as an undergraduate, Williams joined the University Relations team right after his graduation and has continued to serve the University, most recently as assistant vice president for development. “We’re fortunate that Frantz will lead University Relations,” said President Michael S. Roth ’78. “He is eminently well prepared to continue Barbara-Jan’s legacy of immensely successful fund-raising and friend-raising, and I am grateful that he will be at the helm…

The Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), which operates the Hubble Space Telescope, the James Webb Space Telescope, the U.S. National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO), and other major astronomical research facilities in the United States, has elected the Keck Northeast Astronomy Consortium (KNAC)—led by Wesleyan University—as a new member. This historic development represents the first time that liberal arts institutions have been invited to join the association and serves as an important recognition of the value of such programs, not just to education, but also to frontier research in astronomy. “This is a tremendous recognition of the important…

Ready to step outside your comfort zone? We recently spoke to Jonah Sachs ’97, who explores what empowers some people to respond to change with creative breakthroughs while the rest of us spend our lives clinging to the safety of “the way it’s always been done,” in his new book, Unsafe Thinking: How to Be Nimble & Bold When You Need It Most (Da Capo Press, 2018). Filled with ideas and tips on everything from embracing risk and inspiring unsafe thinking in conservative business cultures to bouncing back from failure, as well as a mix of brainteasers, experiments, and puzzles,…

Sydney Kim of Weston, Mass. has been selected as the recipient of the 2018 Wesleyan University Hamilton Prize for Creativity, a four-year, full-tuition scholarship to Wesleyan, worth as much as $200,000. Her submission, a short story titled, “The Driveway,” was selected by an all-star committee of Wesleyan alumni chaired by Hamilton writer/creator and former star Lin-Manuel Miranda ’02, Hon. ‘15 and director Thomas Kail ’99, from more than 550 entries. Kim attends Concord Academy, and will be a member of Wesleyan's Class of 2022. “This year’s submissions gave us insight into the minds of so many creative students,” said Miranda.…

President Roth Makes Remarks at 2018 Commencement

Price ’18 Delivers Senior Class Welcome

Alumni Honored for Distinguished Achievements, Service At Annual Meeting

7 Students Graduate with MA Degrees from Institute for Curatorial Practice in Performance

Dombrowski, Saaka, Taylor Receive Binswanger Prizes for Excellence in Teaching

First Cohort of Posse Veteran Scholars Graduates

Commencement to Take Place on Andrus Field as Planned

Bielikoff, Eismont, Machado, Vasilkova Deliver Senior Voices; Vogel Gives Faculty Reflection

Williams ’99 Tapped as Incoming VP, University Relations

Wesleyan-Led Astronomy Consortium Joins Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy

New Book by Sachs ’97 Inspires Readers to Push Thought Boundaries

Wesleyan University Awards 2018 Hamilton Prize for Creativity