Olivia DrakeSeptember 2, 20109min
Nathan Repasz ’14 of Erie, Pa. arrived on Wesleyan’s campus Sept. 1 in a Jeep loaded with the all the necessities for the year. “He brought all 40 of his t-shirts … and a trillion socks. He probably just doesn’t want to do any laundry,” jokes Nathan’s mother, Lenore Skomal. “It’s a good thing that he only brought a third of his instruments. Just three drums, a pan flute and harmonica. He left behind the guitar and Egyptian oud.” Nathan, an aspiring music and environmental science major, joined more than 750 new and transfer students who moved into their campus residencies on…

Olivia DrakeSeptember 2, 20102min
[youtube width="640" height="420"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9Rf3ZM8KGY&feature=channel[/youtube] Seventy international students, including 11 Freeman Scholars, arrived on campus during the last week of August for International Student Orientation (ISO) for the Class of 2014. A combination of information sessions, introductions and celebrations, ISO was held from Aug. 29-31, and allowed international students the opportunity to get acclimated with Wesleyan and its surroundings before they joined their fellow members of the Class of 2014 for New Student Orientation on Sept. 1. The program is designed provide a comprehensive introduction to Wesleyan and help international students begin to build a foundation for their academic and co-curricular success.…

Olivia DrakeSeptember 2, 20101min
The Class of 2014 moved in on Arrival Day 2010 Sept. 1. Below are videos and photos of the event: Wesleyan University Arrival Day highlights: [youtube width="640" height="420"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ea8EY8H5dc&feature=player_embedded[/youtube] Rebecca Koppel '14: [youtube width="640" height="420"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6QKflwVdqIY&feature=channel[/youtube] Nathan Repasz '14: [youtube width="640" height="420"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtJAz_MytfA&feature=channel[/youtube] Catherine Morita '14: [youtube width="640" height="420"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_exwnOSp2lQ&feature=channel[/youtube] Isabelle Rode '14: [youtube width="640" height="420"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GgfgAFPNKY&feature=channel[/youtube] An excerpt from the "Address to Families" by Wesleyan President Michael Roth is online here. (Photos by Olivia Drake and Cora Lautze '11) Read a Wesleyan Connection story about Arrival Day here. Check out photos and video of International Student Orientation here.

Olivia DrakeAugust 3, 20102min
The student-run group, Wesleyan Clinic Escorts, is the recipient of the annual Catherine Roraback Award, given by NARAL Pro-Choice Connecticut. The Catherine Roraback Awards is presented to individuals or organizations that have demonstrated leadership, courage and activism in the struggle to protect privacy rights, the legal right to obtain an abortion and access to reproductive health for all women. Students involved in the clinic escort travel to the Summit Women’s Center in Bridgeport, Conn. on Tuesday and Friday mornings during the academic year. The center performs abortions on these days. According to the Wesleyan Clinic Escorts Facebook site, the group…

Olivia DrakeJune 28, 20101min
Join members of the Class of 2014, new transfer students, and their families for a casual summer social as they prepare to head to campus. “The Summer Sendoffs are an opportunity to meet others new to Wesleyan, as well as some current students and their families, alumni and friends of Wesleyan,” says Dana Coffin, assistant director of parent programs. All Sendoffs are hosted by Wesleyan alumni or parents. Sendoffs begin June 27. They will be held in New York, N.Y., Atlanta, Ga., Boulder, Colo., Cary, N.C., Chappaqua, N.Y., Chicago, Ill., East Hampton, N.Y., Houston, Texas, Los Angeles, Calif., Memphis, Tenn., Newton, Mass., Philadelphia, Pa.,…

David PesciJune 28, 20101min
Ahmed Ismail ’12 is featured in a profile by The Wall Street Journal of St. Benedict’s Preparatory School, a unique all-boys school in Newark, N.J., that focuses on achievement, self-discipline, and an honor code that in part states: “whatever hurts my brother hurts me.” Located in one of the most impoverished neighborhoods in Newark, the school is known for its code of ethics, minority enrollment, outstanding academic programs, and excellence in sports. More than 95 percent of the school’s graduates go on to college.

Olivia DrakeJune 7, 20102min
The Greek Titan Metis was considered the goddess of wisdom and deep thought. Her name in Greek also means “wisdom combined with cunning,” a highly desirable personality trait to the ancient Athenians. This year, a group of Wesleyan students with a knowledge and interest in Classical studies, released their own collection of “cunning wisdom” in a publication titled Wesleyan Metis. The Metis editorial board draws on the abilities and creativity of Wesleyan students to showcase their best examples of undergraduate Classics writing. “Classical studies go far beyond ancient languages and, as evidenced by the essays in the journal, include studies…

David PesciJune 7, 20102min
In a June 2 OpEd for The Hartford Courant, Lauren Valentino '10 outlines how the new rules for student internships issued by the Federal Department of Labor have made internships cost-exclusive for students at liberal arts institutions. Valentino says that one unintended consequence of requiring unpaid internships to be “for-credit” will require liberal arts students to work for free and pay steep fees to attain academic credit. The result is a double financial hit that only the most affluent students will be able to afford. She writes: "A system that already disproportionately benefited those able to work without pay will…

David PesciJune 7, 20102min
The Kibera School for Girls and The Johanna Justin Jinich Memorial Clinic of Kibera were featured on Channel 3 News. The story discusses the facilities created by a small group of Wesleyan students their organization Shining Hope for Communities. The school was built last year and the clinic will go up this summer. Shining Hope for Communities has received more than $100,000 in grants and awards this year alone. Shining Hope for Communities and the Kibera School for Girls were founded and created by Kennedy Odede '12 and Jessica Posner '09; they were joined by Leah Lucid '10 and Arielle…

Olivia DrakeMay 12, 20103min
Ten years from now, Daniela Ivanova ’10 envisions herself working as an advisor to a European commissioner or member of the Bulgarian government. Her next step in the quest will take place at the University of Oxford, in England. Ivanova is a recipient of a Weidenfeld Scholarship and Leadership Programme for 2010-11. Awarded by the London-based Institute for Strategic, the scholarship will allow Bulgaria native Ivanova to pursue her career goal by supporting her studies on European politics and society at Oxford. “Daniela came straight to Wesleyan from a high school in a remote Bulgarian provincial town,” says Peter Rutland,…