Olivia DrakeThe Human Resources Advisory Group, formed in November 2017, is the voice between administrative staff and senior leadership. It is a consultative body in which members share ideas and provide input on issues of importance to staff. The members of the Human Resources Advisory Group discuss and provide feedback on institutional policies and practices and broader issues related to numerous work/life topics. The group solicits and expresses opinions, represents staff ideas, makes suggestions and recommendations for change. Members include: Luigi Solla, associate dean of admission; Michelle Jarvis, associate director of financial aid; Rachel Ludwig, deputy director of athletics; Joy Vodak,…
Sami JensenFresh off the digital presses! Check out the new Social Media website from University Communications. This site was created as a resource for social media usage tips + best practices, for guidelines and policies on using social media on behalf of Wesleyan University and as a place to find tools to help you manage and measure your social accounts. You can also request a new social media account, a strategy session or a social share from the main Wesleyan University channels.
The Wesleyan Institute for Lifelong Learning provides educational opportunities outside of formal degree-granting programs to members of the broader community. Wesleyan University has been devoted to liberal learning since its founding in 1831. This program is an extension of that mission—a dedication to the improvement of human well-being by means of education throughout the course of life. "Curiosity is ageless! This new year promises to be a fascinating one, with another intriguing round of WILL course offerings," says Richard Friswell, associate director of the Wesleyan Institute for Lifelong Learning. "Delve into the work of literary icons like Chekhov, Shakespeare and…
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During University Relations' Jammin' Holiday Party on Dec. 13, staff collected more than 1,000 items for Puerto Rico residents affected by Hurricane Maria. Items included: 128.5 lbs. of pet food 795 diapers and baby wipes 13 gallons of water 186 cans/boxes of food 41 towels 12 blankets/pillows 99 books/toys 4 solar lights 248 oz. of hand sanitizer 5 can openers 3 power strips 5 first aid kits 3 sunscreens 12 insect repellents
Cynthia RockwellYaniv Feller is the Jeremy Zwelling Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies and assistant professor of religion. Feller specializes in Jewish philosophy, Jewish-Christian relations, post-Holocaust theology, material culture and museum studies. His current book project is titled "Leo Baeck and the Tradition of Dialogical Apologetics.” Prior to Wesleyan, Feller worked as an exhibition curator for the new permanent exhibition project at the Jewish Museum Berlin. In this Q&A, Feller speaks about his time working at a renowned Jewish museum, the importance of incorporating the lives and histories of objects into his courses and woodworking. Q: You just joined the faculty at Wesleyan this year.…
Whether you live in Middletown or elsewhere in the region, commuting to work is often time-consuming, stressful and costly. Setting up a carpool—an arrangement between people to travel together in a single vehicle—is a great way to save money, connect with coworkers and cut your carbon footprint, explains Sustainability Director Jennifer Kleindienst. The Wesleyan Sustainability Office, in conjunction with CT Rides (a service of CT DOT), is hosting an Employee Commuter Event in February for Wesleyan faculty and staff. This will be a chance to meet other faculty and staff who live near you and potentially find a carpool buddy. CT…
An article by Barbara Juhasz, associate professor of psychology, associate professor of neuroscience and behavior, has been published in the January 2018 edition of the Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology. The study, titled "Experience with compound words influences their processing: An eye movement investigation with English compound words" appears in Issue 71, pages 103–12. Recording eye movements, Juhasz explains, provides information on the time-course of word recognition during reading. Eye movements also are informative for examining the processing of morphologically complex words such as compound words. In this study, Juhasz examined the time-course of lexical and semantic variables during morphological processing.…
Himeka CurielMelanie Khamis, assistant professor of economics and assistant professor of Latin American studies, has co-authored a new paper published in the December 2017 issue of Labour Economics. The paper, titled "Women make houses, women make homes," examines the effects of historical labor market institutions and policies on women’s labor market outcomes. To conduct the research, Khamis and her colleagues studied the “rubble women” of post–World War II Germany, who were subject to a 1946 Allied Control Council command that required women between the ages of 15 and 50 to register with a labor office and to participate in postwar cleanup and…
A new article by Visiting Assistant Professor in Computer Science Kelly Thayer and students in her Spring 2017 Scientific Computing class is challenging conventional metrics used in allosteric signaling—the regulation of an enzyme by a binding molecule at a site other than the enzyme's active site. “What’s special about allostery is that a molecule called an allosteric effector binds at one location, and the change happens somewhere else,” Thayer explained. “What we were trying to understand was: How does that signal get across?” (more…)
Wesleyan’s 2017–18 United Way Campaign capped off another successful year, posting the highest numbers—both in participation and in amount pledged—since 2012. According to Campus Coordinator Paul Turenne, more than 400 Wesleyan employees, retired faculty and authorized vendors (including 38 “Leadership Givers” pledging $1,000 or more) participated. Together they donated a total of $122,150 in support of United Way programs in Middlesex County and throughout the state. Contributing to this year’s increased giving was the implementation of lessons learned from previous years, including moving campaign dates earlier (Oct.1–31) in order to avoid competing with other fundraising initiatives and streamlining the donation…
Paula Paige, adjunct professor of romance languages and literatures, emerita, is the author of five short stories published in literary magazines in 2016-18. These include: “Flu Story” published in Newfound, Vol, 8, Issue 2, 2018. "Daddy," published in The Umbrella Factory, Issue 29, September 2017. "Roman Ruins: an Update on a Once Great Beauty," published in Artes Magazine, May 26, 2017. "The Baby Sitter," published by the Diverse Arts Project, August 2016. “Gluten and Other Abominations,” published by Sundress Publications, June 2016. Paula Paige taught at Wesleyan for 30 years. She is the recipient of the 2010 Our Stories Gordon Award for her flash…