Olivia DrakePosted 08/17/05 A picture may be a worth a thousands words, but what is its value in the college classroom, especially if the picture is digital? This will be among the issues considered by a new digital image study spearheaded by Wesleyan University and the Center for Educational Technology. The six-month study will examine how digitized images of all sorts are used by faculty at 34 elite teaching and research institutions. The hope is that by assessing current practices in the classrooms, methods for more effective use of these images can be identified and implemented. "There is also an opportunity…
Michael Singer, assistant professor of biology, discovered that the wolly bear caterpillar, Grammia geneura, ingests medicinal plants when sick. Posted 08/17/05 When tiger moth caterpillars get a bug, they do what a lot of us do - ingest some medicine and hope it provides a cure. These findings by co-investigators Michael Singer, assistant professor of biology, and Elizabeth Bernays, regents professor emerita of entomology at the University of Arizona, appear in the July 27 issue of Nature. During a study of the caterpillars of two types of tiger moths, known as Grammia geneura and Estigmene acrea, Singer and Bernays…
THE CAGE, CAGED: An 8-foot chain link fence surrounds the old Alumni Athletic Building, also known as the 'Cage,' to mark the construction zone for the new Suzanne Lemberg Usdan University Center, which is expected to be completed in August 2007. Parts of the gym are being renovated and incorporated into the new facility. Only construction personnel are allowed into the fenced-off construction zone surrounding the old Alumni Athletic Building and Fayerweather Gymnasium. A new gravel access road will line this fence for foot traffic, handicap, emergency, service and construction vehicles only. South College is receiving an interior and belfry…
Dana Royer, assistant professor of earth and environmental sciences, studies fossilized plants and plant physiology. He started at Wesleyan July 1. Posted 07/13/05 Dana Royer has joined the Earth and Environmental Sciences Department as an assistant professor on July 1.His professional interests include global change; paleoclimatology, paleoecology, carbon cycles, paleobotany; plant physiology and stable isotope geochemistry. I study fossil plants in order to infer something about the paleoclimates in which they lived, as well as their paleoecologies, he says. I also study modern systems to learn more about the biological basis of these plant-environment relationships. After spending a semester studying…
Paul DiSanto, director of leadership gifts, builds strong programs for the 25th and 50th reunions. Posted 07/13/05 During his fifth-year reunion, 1981 Wesleyan alumnus Paul DiSanto realized the importance of pledging annual gifts to the university. I feel the type of education Wesleyan offers is important, and can only continue with support from future generations, he says. DiSanto has pledged an annual gift every year since. As Wesleyans director of leadership gifts, DiSanto has also encouraged several thousand other alumni to give to their alma mater. DiSanto works with a number of top donors and helps build strong programs…
Rosann Sillasen examines laminate flooring before installing it in the 200 Church Street house for students. Posted 07/13/05 Roseann Sillasen knows how to take care of a bowing floor or sagging ceiling. Shes also pretty good at helping treat pneumonia, intestinal bleeding and other major ailments. Sillasen, the associate director and project manager of Wesleyans Construction Services, is also a practicing registered nurse. The full-time project manager and part-time nurse says the two occupations are a perfect match. Both careers involve working with people and critical thinking, she says. They create a balance. Not that balance equals easy. Being…
Lex Leifheit, press and marketing coordinator for the Center for the Arts, stands inside the Zilka Gallery. Leifheit works to increase media coverage for the CFA. Posted 07/13/05 Q: Your position as press and marketing coordinator is fairly new. How long have you been at Wesleyan?A: I have been here a little over a year, since March 2004. I showed up on a Saturday during one of the CFAs annual season highlights, DanceMasters Weekend, and immediately started taking photographs. It was a great introduction to the constant activity of the CFA.Q: What were you doing before you came to…
Joan Adams, assistant to the dean of admission, stands outside the Office of Admission. Posted 07/13/05 Q: Joan, you are the assistant to the Dean of Admission. How long have you been in the Office of Admission?A: I started working in the office of admission in January of 2000.Q: And what were you doing before that? A: I was hired in August of 1999 and started my Wesleyan career in the registrars office.Q: What do you like most about working here after these five years?A: There are many things that I love about working at Wesleyan. First and foremost,…
Wesleyan has partnered with the Liz Lerman Dance Exchange for several fall events. Posted 07/13/05 For the past three years, the Center for the Arts and Wesleyan faculty have partnered with the Liz Lerman Dance Exchange to explore the ethical and social repercussions of genetic research. The Liz Lerman Dance Exchange, led by MacArthur Fellow Liz Lerman, has been creating dance works that are metaphorical and powerfully visceral about the issues of the time. The Wesleyan-Dance Exchange partnership has resulted in Wesleyan serving as a lead commissioner of Ferocious Beauty: Genome, which will premiere at the CFA on February…
Alex Dupuy, professor of sociology, is a native of Haiti and has traced the country's turmoil back to its revolution. Posted 07/13/05 It started out as one of the most inspiring stories in human history: slaves rebelled against their masters, fought a long, bloody revolution and took control of an oppressive nation. But since that auspicious beginning, the history of Haiti and its people has been fraught with turmoil and division. During the last few decades, Alex Dupuy, professor of sociology, has been searching for reasons why, and sharing his insight not just with his students but the world.…
Posted 07/13/05 When it comes to fund-raising, Wesleyan is right on the money. The Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) has awarded Wesleyan the CASE-Wealth ID Award for Educational Fund Raising: Overall Performance. Wesleyan competed in the Private Liberal Arts Institutions category. Wesleyan shared this distinction with eight other institutions, including Wellesley College and Williams College. Wesleyan is already ranked highly for academic excellence, but now it demonstrates exemplary support of private education through its fund-raising performance, says Mark Bailey, director of development communications. CASE, a nonprofit education association, supports educational institutions by enhancing the effectiveness of the…
Posted 07/12/05 Updated 07.25.05 Olympic Champion Otylia Jedrzejczak, who also holds the world record in the 200-meter butterfly (2:05.78), was one of 17 athletes on the Polish National Swimming Team who trained at Wesleyan July 15 through July 21. The Polish squad was preparing for the World Championships to be held in Montreal, Quebec from July 24-31. It is customary for international teams to do time-zone acclimation training, according to Brad Flood, head women's swimming coach at the University of Bridgeport. Flood has been working with the Polish National team for more than a dozen years and recruited a number…