Class of 2021 – Page 4

The student-run Wesleyan Investment Group (WIG) is celebrating a first-place victory in a six-month-long collegiate investment contest that concluded April 9. Despite the COVID-19 epidemic's detrimental impact to the stock market, WIG managed to garner a 27.04% return in the 2019–20 Adirondack Cup, a stock-picking contest sponsored by the advisor to The Adirondack Small Cap Fund (ADKSX). Wesleyan competed against 22 other institutions in New England and New York. Each student team managed a hypothetical $1 million portfolio consisting of five small cap equities. Team members studied the performance of more than 100 businesses and predicted which ones would perform…

Astronomy and Physics major David Vizgan '21 has expanded his interest of astrophysics to the far corners of the universe. By using emissions of a "forbidden" line of ionized carbon [CII] in simulated galaxies, he's trying to measure mass and other physical properties of young galaxies over 12.7 billion light years away which populated the universe shortly after the universe's "dark ages". For his outstanding research poster presentation on the subject at the most recent American Astronomical Society meeting, David Vizgan '21 received a Chambliss Astronomy Achievement Student Award. Vizgan is one of 15 undergraduates students (out of 355 total…

Due to the coronavirus outbreak, Wesleyan canceled all spring semester events, and courses moved to an online format. Wesleyan's Piping Performance course, however, welcomed the Wesleyan community to "attend" their midterm performances on April 7 through the Zoom platform. "Our organ class is thriving in spite of our transition to online classes," said course instructor Alcee Chriss, artist-in-residence and university organist. "It is a particular challenge to teach organ when none of your students have access to one. Many of the students have opted to give their performances on piano for this semester." Six of the 13 students wrote original…

Katerina Ramos-Jordán '21 is the recipient of a Beinecke Scholarship, which will support her graduate career and her academic goal of becoming a cultural studies scholar. She's among 18 college undergraduates nationwide to receive the honor, and she's the first Wesleyan student to receive the award in 13 years. Ramos-Jordán will use her Beinecke Scholarship to explore the connection of nature, literature, art, and community in the Caribbean. "Today, in a moment of ecological, racial, and political crisis, I envision my artistic, scholarly, and community projects to cultivate understandings and be a part of Caribbean creolité ways of reading," she said.…

Wesleyan English major Katie Livingston '21 is one of 12 young writers around the world who will be honored at the 36th Annual L. Rob Hubbard Achievement Awards on April 3 in Hollywood, Calif. She's a finalist for the Writers of the Future Contest, which was initiated by Hubbard in 1983 to provide “a means for new and budding writers to have a chance for their creative efforts to be seen and acknowledged.” Based on its success, its sister contest, Illustrators of the Future, was created five years later to provide that same opportunity for aspiring artists. The grand prize…

Wesleyan's Chinese community (particularly students and parents) recently banded together to help their fellow citizens who are battling with the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19. From Feb. 2–15, the student-initiated group WesInAction raised more than $23,000, which was used to purchase medical equipment for hospitals affected in the epicenter of the outbreak, Hubei province, China. WesInAction members also provide the campus community with facts about the outbreak and its prevention, and work to promote awareness of racial discrimination on campus. WesInAction student volunteers have done extensive research on COVID-19 and created a brochure that highlights key facts and statistics about it,…

Wesleyan in the News Connecticut Public Radio: "The Struggle for Sleep: Why More School Districts Are Considering Later Starts" Speaking as both a scholar and a mother, Associate Professor of Psychology Anna Shusterman comments in this story on the movement to push schools in the state to start later. “People ask me, as a developmental psychologist, ‘Oh, we have this mental health crisis in the state, what are we going to do, what should we be funding, what kind of resources do we need to build in?’ And I just think it’s so silly when we have such a straightforward…

Two Wesleyan McNair Fellows recently participated in the largest multidisciplinary and multicultural STEM diversity event in the country. From Oct. 31–Nov. 2, Elizaveta "Liz" Atalig '21 and Ekram Towsif '21 joined more than 4,000 peers at the 2019 SACNAS (Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science) conference in Hawaii. For more than 45 years, SACNAS has served as an inclusive organization dedicated to fostering the success of Chicano/Hispanics & Native Americans, from college students to professionals, in attaining advanced degrees, careers, and positions of leadership within STEM. Attendees of the three-day conference are immersed in cutting-edge scientific…

A team from Wesleyan took first place in the 2019 CSAW Policy Competition, the most comprehensive security competition in the world. Hosted by the New York University Tandon School of Engineering and NYU School of Law Center for Cybersecurity on Nov. 6–8, the U.S.-Canada policy competition challenged contestants to think about the big picture of cybersecurity policy, economics, law, and governance. The purpose of the competition is to encourage students who are interested in the nexus of policy and emerging technology issues to think critically about major policy issues affecting society and to impact the cyber industry by presenting their…

By grounding oneself in the present moment, mindfulness can help create a free, calm, and content space without any judgment. Tyla Taylor '21, the mindfulness intern for Wesleyan's Office of Religious and Spiritual Life, is working to share the practice of mindfulness with the campus community and beyond. "Our minds are often going at full speed planning the next move, and the one after that," Taylor said. "For me, mindfulness is paying attention to whatever is happening in the present moment, with compassion and non-judgment. From my own practice, I've seen how it's made me a kinder friend, a more…

As the 2020 presidential election season heats up, the Wesleyan Media Project (WMP) is providing important analysis on campaign advertising for researchers and the media alike. Over the summer, Associate Professor of Government Erika Franklin Fowler, co-director of WMP, worked with undergraduate students and others to accelerate the analysis of digital political advertising, which has seen enormous growth this year over previous cycles. In the early summer, WMP hosted a mini-hackathon to begin the process of analyzing political ads on Facebook. They worked with summer students through the Quantitative Analysis Center (QAC), and with Assistant Professor of Computer Science Saray…

Eight Wesleyan undergraduates presented results of their summer research to the annual Undergraduate Research Symposium sponsored by the Keck Northeast Astronomy Consortium (KNAC) on Oct. 5. This year’s symposium was held at Vassar College and attended by 125 astronomy students and faculty, primarily from the consortium colleges (Bryn Mawr, Colgate, Haverford, Middlebury, Swarthmore, Vassar, Wellesley, Wesleyan, and Williams). Astronomy majors Mason Tea '21 and Rachel Marino '20 and sophomores Alex Henton '22 and Ava Nederlander '22 gave oral presentations of their projects conducted on campus this summer. In addition, astronomy majors Fallon Konow '20, Hunter Vannier '20, Gil Garcia '20,…

Wesleyan Investment Group Takes 1st Place in Adirondack Cup

Vizgan ’21 Honored with Chambliss Medal by American Astronomical Society

Pipe Organ Class Hosts Midterm Performances Online

Ramos-Jordán ’21 Named Beinecke Scholar

Livingston ’21 a Finalist in a Worldwide Writing Contest

Wesleyan’s Chinese Community Raises Funds, Purchases Medical Supplies for Hospitals Treating Coronavirus Patients

Recent Media Hits

McNair Fellows Present Research at Diversity in STEM Conference

Wesleyan Places 1st in National Cybersecurity Competition

Taylor ’21 Speaks to Choate Juniors on the Importance of Mindfulness

Wesleyan Media Project Students and Faculty Speak at Conference, Contribute to National Political Debate

8 Students Present Research at Northeast Astronomy Consortium