class of 1980

Photos from throughout the Reunion weekend can be found here. The Wesleyan University community gathered together May 19–22 for Reunion and Commencement Weekend 2022. As is Wesleyan’s tradition, the classes ending in 2 and 7 returned to campus to celebrate their reunions with a weekend of lectures, performances, dinners, and ceremonies. With generations of Wesleyans assembled together, the weekend was a celebration of the University’s past and its future. ** Alumni started returning to campus in earnest Friday morning, gathering under a tent outside Russell House for lunch and to look for familiar faces. David Lakein ’92, Juan Luque ’92,…

Melissa Stern ’80, an artist and journalist, is hosting a retrospective art show at the Lockwood Gallery in Woodstock, New York. Stern’s show is called “Stronger Than Dirt” and looks back at her past 20 years of work. A live opening took place from 5 to 7 p.m. June 12, and the exhibition will run until July 11. Over the past year, Stern has served as a visiting lecturer and guest critic through Zoom. She has virtually visited The Everson Museum of Art, Pratt Institute, NYU, The Pelham Art Center, and Indiana University, among others. In describing her art, Stern…

Alumni and staff who have met with success in the November 2020 elections include: Amy Bello, administrative assistant for the African American Studies Department, won her first term as a State House representative for Connecticut's 28th District. Bello, a Democrat, is serving on the Wethersfield Town Council and is the former mayor. Read more in this Nov. 5 Hartford Courant article or in this past Wesleyan Connection article. Michael Demicco ’80 won his second term serving as a State House representative for Connecticut's 21st District. Demicco, a Democrat, represents Farmington and Unionville, Conn. Read more here. Former two-term Democratic Colorado…

A number of Wesleyan alumni act in, write, direct, and produce popular TV programs. We've compiled a list of those alumni and their shows below, as part of our "Best of Wes" series. (Do you have a favorite that's not listed? Email your idea to newsletter@wesleyan.edu, and we'll add it in! You can also view previous "Best of Wes" pieces.) The alumni and their roles on various TV shows are listed below: Phillip Abraham '82, P'20 has directed, produced, or directed the photography of episodes of Most Dangerous Game, Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan, Glow, Orange Is the New Black, Daredevil, Ozark,…

In The Group: Seven Widowed Fathers Reimagine Life (Oxford University Press, 2018), Donald L. Rosenstein ’80, MD, and Justin M. Yopp, PhD, tell the stories of how seven men whose wives died from cancer came to terms with their grief and learned how to move forward into a meaningful future with their children. The book is based on the experiences of the men as members of a support group run by Rosenstein and Yopp at the Comprehensive Cancer Support Program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. All proceeds from the book will be donated to Rosenstein and Yopp's clinical and…

University Professor of Music Sumarsam and several PhD students and alumni recently presented papers at the 4th Symposium of the International Council for Traditional Music Study Group on the Performing Arts of Southeast Asia (ICTM PASEA). The symposium was hosted by Universiti Sains Malaysia in Penang, Malaysia, from July 31 to Aug. 6. Sumarsam presented a paper titled, "Religiosity in Javanese Wayang Puppet Play," and demonstrated puppet movements. (more…)

Wesleyan Community Comes Together To Celebrate Reunion and Commencement 2022

Stern ’80 Hosts Retrospective Art Show “Stronger Than Dirt”

Wesleyan Alumni, Staff Win Local, National Elections

Best of Wes: Alumni Act In, Produce Popular TV Shows

Helping Widowed Fathers Move Forward with Their Children: An Interview with Author Rosenstein ’80, MD

Sumarsam, PhD Students, Alumni Present at Symposium