Wesleyan is raising awareness and support for the Middlesex United Way. Posted 11/17/06 Each fall, Wesleyan employees have an opportunity to demonstrate an enduring connection with the greater Middletown community by simply making a donation to the Middlesex United Way. By giving to the Middlesex United Way, Wesleyan employees are insuring that the local community has greater access to essential health and human services. Contributions to United Way have translated into disaster relief, support services for the homebound and disabled, emergency food and shelter and after school programs. Middlesex United Way is working to fight the root causes of chronic…

Residential Life student-staff members for the Butterfields and 156 High Street and 200 Church Street are among those trained by Residential Life's award-winning Social Justice Training Program. Posted 11/17/06 A program developed by Wesleyan’s Residential Life received the Program of the Year Award from the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA), based in Washington DC. The Social Justice Training Program, spearheaded by Residential Life’s area coordinators, teaches and trains about 100 student-staff members on the topics of social justice, the cycle of socialization, dominant and subordinate group dynamics, privilege and power and the action continuum. It also stresses liberation…

The Goldsmith Family Cinema was formally dedicated and celebrated Nov. 17 with the family. Posted 11/17/06. Revised 11.20.06 When he was student at Wesleyan University, John Goldsmith envisioned his college having premier facilities for the burgeoning film studies major. On Nov. 17, Goldsmith returned to Wesleyan with his family to dedicate the Goldsmith Family Cinema, which is housed in the new, award-winning film studies building on Wesleyan's campus."This is just the latest addition to a long-standing labor of love in honor of Jeanine Basinger and the film studies program," says Goldsmith, the CEO of Metropolis, a Los Angeles-based talent firm…

From left, Stephen Angle, associate professor of philosophy; Ronald Jenkins, professor of theater; and Jeff Rider, professor of romance languages and literature, received Fulbright grants for the 2006-07 year. Posted 11/17/06 Three members of the Wesleyan faculty have been awarded Fulbright Scholar grants for the 2006-2007 academic year: Stephen Angle, associate professor of philosophy; Ronald Jenkins, professor of theater; and Jeff Rider, professor of romance languages and literature. They join approximately 800 other U.S. faculty and professional who will travel abroad through the Fulbright Scholar program, which is sponsored by the U.S. department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural…

Posted 11/01/06 When it comes to global warming, where on earth are we going? That is the question scholars hope to answer during the 3rd Annual Robert Schumann Environmental Studies Symposium titled: “Where on Earth Are We Going? Global Climate Change and Vulnerabilities: A Perspective for the Future.” The event is open to the public and takes place from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Nov. 11 at Exley Science Center Room 150. “Given the trend of global warming, we need to think about these issues and prepare for them and adapt,” says Barry Chernoff, the Robert Schumann Professor of Environmental…

Wesleyan Fulbright Program Advisor Krishna Winston helps students apply for the Fulbright grants. Six students received the award this fall. Posted 11/01/06 For the second year in a row, the Chronicle of Higher Education named Wesleyan as one of the “Top Producers of Fulbright Awards for U.S. Students.” The report was published in the Oct. 20 edition. Under the “Bachelor’s Institutions” category, Wesleyan tied for 9th place with St. Olaf College of Northfield, Minn. and Wheaton College in Norton, Mass. In 2006-07, Wesleyan had 23 Fulbright applicants, with six students receiving awards. The students who were awarded Fulbrights are: Cara…

Dana Royer, assistant professor of earth and environmental science, presented his research on leaf economics at the Geological Society of America in October. Posted 1./1./6/font> Many scientists have long believed a major clue to rapid global warming is locked in leaf fossils that are millions of years old. Dana Royer, assistant professor of earth and environmental science, has just found a key. Royer and colleagues have generated a reliable method to ascertain from fossils from the Eocene period, 34 million to 56 million years ago, the leaf mass per unit of leaf area, an important trait that is related to…

Posted 11/01/06 Walter Grockowski, a former Wesleyan trainer and trainer for the 1972 Winter Olympics, has died at the age of 86. Grockowski died Oct. 25 at High View Health Care Center in Middletown. He began his 39-year tenure in the Athletic Department in 1947. He became the school's head athletic trainer in 1973, a position he held until retirement in 1986. His involvement in athletics went beyond the university. For many years, Grockowski helped with athletic events around Middletown, where he made his home, especially events organized by the city parks department and the American Legion. A native of…

Gil Skillman, professor of economics and Joyce Jacobsen, the Andrews Professor of Economics are the co-editors of the Eastern Economics Journal. Posted 11/01/06 Two Wesleyan professors are devoted to making one of the country’s leading economic journals even better. Joyce Jacobsen, the Andrews Professor of Economics and Gil Skillman, professor of economics, are the co-editors of the Eastern Economics Journal. Jacobsen and Skillman volunteered to assume editorship of thee publication in July 2005. They will complete their term in 2010. “This is a rewarding opportunity as well as an important service to the profession,” Skillman says. “Helping authors turn a…