Michael Roth – Page 5

Wesleyan University’s Board of Trustees announces the extension of President Michael Roth’s contract through the summer of 2026. “Michael has been an extraordinary steward of this university. His leadership has guided Wesleyan through the perils of an international economic crisis and a global pandemic; he has encouraged innovation while keeping the principles of a pragmatic liberal education in the forefront of everything we do,” said John B. Frank, Chair of the Board of Trustees. Building on discussions with faculty, staff, and students, President Roth has developed a vision for Wesleyan that builds on its rich tradition of academic exploration, and…

Wesleyan President Michael Roth '78 participated in a Newsweek podcast debate titled "Is Higher Education Broken?" "I think the idea that only rich people should be able to experience the benefits of learning—whether that's about math and science, or whether it's about literature and philosophy—that's a huge mistake. (Aug. 31) President Roth also wrote a book review of Allan V. Horowitz's A History of Psychiatry's Bible for The Washington Post. "In this history ... Horwitz emphasizes the social construction of scientific concepts. This account underscores the economic incentives in play as psychiatrists tried to reach consensus on how to describe…

From an excitement-filled Arrival Day to the unpredictable final three semesters of campus life that unfolded during the COVID-19 pandemic, "so much has changed in your lives since you were first introduced to Wesleyan," President Michael Roth '78 said in his remarks to the graduating Class of 2021, who sat in front of him on Andrus Field in a socially distanced 189th Commencement. Besides the obvious impacts of the pandemic, Roth was referring to social and political divisiveness in the country, which has increased in recent years, "exacerbated by" irresponsible media platforms. "Attacks on those considered 'outsiders' are a sick…

Associate Professor of Dance Katja Kolcio and Wesleyan President Michael Roth ’78 recently participated in an international virtual roundtable discussion hosted by the United Nations Recovery and Peacebuilding Programme. The roundtable, titled "Implementing a Somatic Methodology in the Ukrainian Rehabilitation System: Developing Stress Resistance in Ex-combatants, IDPs, and Residents of Eastern Ukraine" was held virtually on April 28. The purpose of the roundtable was to develop a resolution of joint coordination between the various ministries in Ukraine responsible for the psychological health of veterans. Kolcio and Roth spoke about the importance of the Vitality Project Donbas, a collaboration between Wesleyan…

Wesleyan President Michael Roth '78 will be the featured speaker during the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce's annual Business and Education Partnership and Hal Kaplan Middletown Mentor Program Recognition Luncheon. President Roth will speak from noon to 1 p.m. on Tuesday, April 27 via Zoom. The talk, which will focus on Wesleyan's pandemic response, is open to the public. To join the meeting, log into: https://zoom.us/j/99052690757 (Webinar ID: 990 5269 0757)

On April 9, Wesleyan hosted its 41st Annual Philip B. Brown ’44 Memorial Lecture. President Michael Roth ’78 led a conversation with featured speakers Colorado Senators Michael Bennet ’87 and John Hickenlooper ’74, MA ’80, Hon. ’10. Maria Santana-Guadalupe ’98, anchor and correspondent for CNN en Español, provided the introduction and moderated an audience Q&A. The speakers discussed leadership, civic engagement, immigration, gun safety, the COVID-19 pandemic, equity and anti-racism, coalition building, filibusters, and the paths both the senators have traveled from Wesleyan to Washington, D.C. (Watch the entire program online here.) (more…)

Several Wesleyan faculty and alumni have been featured in national media outlets recently. They include: The New York Times—Christina Crosby, 67, Dies; Feminist Scholar Wrote of Becoming Disabled NBC News—Biden Picks Jessica Rosenworcel [’93] as Acting FCC Chief NBC Think—Trump’s ‘1776 Commission’ Tried to Rewrite U.S. History. Biden Had Other Ideas.; by Robyn Autry Inside Higher Ed—Everything Won’t Be Different; by Michael Roth ’78 NPR’s Short Wave—Let’s Go Back to Venus!; features Martha Gilmore MyRecordJournal.com—WRESTLING: Paint It, Black! Wesleyan Coach Drew Black of Cheshire Tabbed for National Hall of Fame The New York Times Magazine—Poem: Variation on a Theme by Elizabeth Bishop; poem by John…

Wesleyan's 2021 spring semester is scheduled to begin Tuesday, Feb. 9, with university housing opening Friday, Feb. 5. All incoming students will be required to quarantine for two weeks upon arrival and be tested for COVID-19 on campus. Classes will take place online only for the first two weeks. "Starting a few weeks later than usual, combined with careful testing and quarantine protocols around arrival, should allow us to start off on the right foot, despite the high positivity rates around the country," wrote Wesleyan President Michael Roth '78 in a Jan. 20 post. "Of course, we will have to…

Wesleyan University recently joined with 58 of our peer colleges and universities in filing an amicus brief to halt the implementation of the July 6 directive by the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) regarding international student enrollment for the fall of 2020. The brief is in support of the petition filed by Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology last week that seeks to enjoin DHS/ICE from implementing a rule that would deny visas and deport international students whose campuses are unable to resume in-person courses in the fall due…

Following a March move to remote learning because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Wesleyan has released a detailed set of plans and launched a new Reactivating Campus website, which will serve as a key information hub for the campus community, as the University prepares to reopen to in-person instruction for the 2020 fall semester. Wesleyan announced in mid-June that it intended to resume in-person classes on Aug. 31, pending the ongoing recommendations of University, state, and federal health and safety experts. With a promising current public health trajectory in Connecticut and in Middletown, the University’s pandemic planning group is continuing to…

President Michael S. Roth and Vice President for Equity & Inclusion Alison Williams sent the following messages to the campus community on June 24, 2020: To the Wesleyan community: The virulent and deeply entrenched racism in American society is antithetical to the mission of Wesleyan University, and we pledge to redouble our efforts to combat that racism – on campus and beyond. In thinking about how best to do this, we recently conducted a public conversation that included a panel of distinguished alumni with important experience in this area. The panel challenged the University to examine the barriers that prevent…

Wesleyan President Michael Roth '78 announced in an all-campus message on Monday, June 15, that the University plans to resume in-person classes in the fall, pending the ongoing recommendations of University, state, and federal health and safety experts. "Given the current public health trajectory for Connecticut, we are hoping to welcome most students, faculty, and staff back to Middletown in safe conditions in late August," President Roth wrote. "One thing we are certain about: it will be good to be together again—safely—on campus." Roth noted that the coming semester will look different than those of the past because of the…

Board of Trustees to Extend President Roth’s Contract Through 2026

Wesleyan in the News

In Commencement Address, President Roth Expresses Pride in “Courageous” Class of 2021

President Roth, Kolcio Speak at International U.N. Ukraine Roundtable

Roth to Speak During Middlesex Chamber of Commerce Luncheon

Senators Bennet ’87, Hickenlooper ’74 Discuss Leadership during Brown Memorial Lecture

Wesleyan in the News

President Roth on the New Year, New Semester

Wesleyan Joins Amicus Brief in Support of International Students with F-1 Visas

Wesleyan Releases Detailed Plans for Campus Reactivation

Building an Antiracist Community

Wesleyan Announces Initial Plans to Reactivate Campus in the Fall