alumni – Page 25

Christopher Graves ’81 is the global chairman of Ogilvy Public Relations and formerly held senior positions with CNBC Asia and CNBC Europe. This summer the Rockefeller Foundation and ideas42 selected him for a prestigious Bellagio Residency, where he has continued his work to turn findings from cognitive neuroscience and behavioral economics into practical applications in communications. In this election season, Graves has co-authored several online posts for Harvard Business Review, analyzing communications from the Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump campaigns. Below are highlights with links to the full posts: The Art and Science Behind the Negative TV Ads of Trump and…

The National Endowment for the Humanities awarded the Prison University Project the National Humanities Medal for transforming the lives of incarcerated people through higher education. The Prison University Project is run by founder and executive director, Jody Lewen ’86. Lewen accepted the medal at a ceremony Sept. 22 at the White House, along with former students, Pat Mims and David Cowan. The medal honors individuals or groups whose work has deepened the nation's understanding of the humanities and broadened our citizens' engagement with history, literature, languages, philosophy and other humanities subjects. At Wesleyan, Lewen earned a BA in history. She…

Six Wesleyan alumni were nominated or received an Emmy Award on Sept. 18. Emmy Awards recognize excellence within various areas of television and emerging media. Game of Thrones executive producer D.B. Weiss '93 took home awards for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series and Outstanding Drama Series, carrying on last year's winning streak in these categories. With 38 wins since 2011, Game of Thrones has become the most decorated show in Emmy's history. Thomas Kail ’99 received an Emmy for Outstanding Directing of a Variety Special for Grease: Live! Also collecting an award for Grease: Live! was producer Adam Siegel ’00.…

The National Archives Foundation presented its 2016 Records of Achievement Awards to Wesleyan alumni, Tony and Emmy Award-winning film and theater director, Thomas Kail '99, and Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, lyricist, and performer, Lin-Manuel Miranda '02, at its annual Gala on Sept. 25. According to the National Archives Foundation, “The Records of Achievement Award is an annual award given to individuals whose work has cultivated a broader national awareness of the history and identity of the United States through the use of original records.” Kail and Miranda were honored for their collective work on the Tony, Grammy, and Pulitzer…

Richard Locke ’81, Brown University provost and professor of political science and international and public affairs, was recently awarded one of only five inaugural Progress Medals from the Society for Progress. The Society, a group of scholars and leaders both independent and academically diverse, selected an international cohort to receive the four medals in scholarship and one in leadership with the "hope and hypothesis...that these medals will help attract and accelerate intellectual and practical attention to the moral dilemmas emergent in our modern economy." Locke, a scholar and authority on international labor relations and worker rights, and comparative political economy, was recognized…

Two Wesleyan alumni are recipients of the 2016 MacArthur Foundation Fellowships, commonly known as the “genius grants." Vincent Fecteau '91 and Maggie Nelson '94 received a no-strings-attached $625,000 grant for their exceptional creativity and potential for future contributions to their fields. They're among 23 fellows in the country to receive the honor. “While our communities, our nation, and our world face both historic and emerging challenges, these 23 extraordinary individuals give us ample reason for hope” said MacArthur Foundation President Julia Stasch. “They are breaking new ground in areas of public concern, in the arts, and in the sciences, often in unexpected ways. Their creativity, dedication, and impact inspire us all.”

Jan Hasselman ’91, a staff attorney with Earthjustice’s Northwest office in Seattle, serves as counsel for the Standing Rock Sioux tribe in their efforts to stop the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline. An article in The Atlantic "The Legal Case for Blocking the Dakota Access Pipeline," asks "Did the U.S. government help destroy a major Sioux archeological site? The article is one of several in the media that highlight the work of the legal team and the questions they raise. At this time, the issue ongoing. Atlantic Associate Editor Robinson Meyer writes in his Sept. 9 article: "As part…

Dream On, the newest documentary by Roger Weisberg ’75, will air on PBS at 10 p.m. Friday, Oct. 7. (check local listing). The film is the 32nd documentary written, produced and directed by Weisberg, who heads Public Policy Productions. Dream On has already appeared in 19 international film festivals, garnering four top awards. Weisberg's earlier works have won more than 150 awards, including Emmy and Peabody awards, as well as two Academy Award nominations. Dream On asks the question: “Is the American Dream still alive and well?” Are we still optimistic that hard work will raise our standard of living—for…

Naomi Ekperigin ’05, a writer, comedian, and actress based in New York City, will make her first appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers on Sept. 29. Ekperigin, known for tackling race, politics, and religion in her routine, will perform her stand-up act ahead of her Comedy Central special, The Half Hour, which airs in October. Ekperigin, who studied English and film studies, started performing when she arrived at Wesleyan. “I always enjoyed acting and performing as a kid, but I didn’t have a lot of opportunities to do it. Once I got to Wesleyan, I did a lot of theater,…

Seth Lerer ’76, literary critic and Distinguished Professor of Literature at the University of California at San Diego, spoke to Slate.com on the complex history of children’s literature. “The earliest kids books…were largely designed to teach moral behavior,” he said. "They were about social decorum and a particular way of being a child, especially in relation to parents and teachers. Some children’s books—many of the early medieval romances, for instance—had an adventure quality to them, but always a moral and spiritual quality too.” He also observed the increasing focus on young women in today’s literature. “When you look at the…

A Connecticut dance event offered Associate Professor of Dance Katja Kolcio an additional way to explore her ongoing dance/movement project highlighting the effect of political forces at work in Ukraine. Last summer, Kolcio invited colleague and Associate Professor of Dance Nicole Stanton to join with two other dancers, both with ties to Ukraine, to create a dance. This event, Dance for Peace, was sponsored by Artists for World Peace, an organization founded and led by Wendy Black-Nasta P’07, with music director Robert Nasta MA ’98, P’07. Kolcio, who holds a doctorate in somatics, places the dance they created, “Steppe Land,”…

Recent works by Ben Charles Weiner ’03, a New York-based artist, are on display at Mark Moore Gallery in Los Angeles. Artdaily.org praised the works in this exhibition, Textures of You, as “lush yet uneasy,” noting that Weiner was inspired by synthetic body enhancement products and used a hyperrealistic technique to create the paintings. Read the full article here. In a recent conversation with The Wesleyan Connection, Weiner explained the workflow and artistic style he used for these paintings. “Formally, my approach to painting these subjects takes inspiration from the stock textures used in graphic design and CG rendered imagery.…

Graves ’81 Examines Campaign Communication through Behavioral Science

Lewen’s (’86) Prison University Project Receives National Humanities Medal

Weiss ’93, Kail ’99, Siegel ’00 Win Emmys

Kail ’99, Miranda ’02 Honored at the National Archives Foundation

Brown University Provost Locke ’81 Receives Society for Progress Medal

Fecteau ’91, Nelson ’94 Recipients of MacArthur Genius Grants

Attorney Hasselman ’91 Represents Standing Rock Sioux Against Dakota Access Pipeline

Award-winning Documentary ‘Dream On,’ by Roger Weisberg ’75 Airs on PBS, Oct. 7

Ekperigin ’05, Writer and Actress, to Perform Stand-Up on Late Night with Seth Meyers

Lerer ’76 Interviewed By Slate Magazine on the Evolution of Children’s Literature

Kolcio, Stanton Create, Perform “Steppe Lands” as Freedom Dance Ukraine

Solo Show by Weiner ’03 at Los Angeles Gallery