Bill FisherIn this video, Sarah Croucher, assistant professor of anthropology, assistant professor of archaeology, discusses her community archaeology project in the "Beman Triangle" in Middletown, Conn. The houses built on this land from the 1840s were home to a community of African Americans living in Middletown, tied to the nearby A.M.E. Zion Church. Artifacts discovered in the area from 19th century trash pits shed new light on the lives of the community members, and the longstanding relationship between the church, Middletown and Wesleyan. Read more about Croucher's project in this past Wesleyan Connection article. #THISISWHY [youtube width="640" height="420"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ty_fiNkNdtg[/youtube]
Bill HolderFriday, 7 p.m. March 1. A tide of trustees, faculty, students and staff flowed into Beckham Hall for the Board of Trustees' dinner to a background refrain from the Black Eyed Peas – “Tonight's gonna be a good night.” And a good night it turned out to be, with stirring speeches and rousing dance moves. President Michael Roth officially launched the public phase of Wesleyan’s fundraising campaign by celebrating a number of recent gifts, including $3 million from John Shapiro ’74 and Shonni Silverberg ’76 in support of Wesleyan’s writing programs, building on their 2009 gift which established the Shapiro…
Lauren RubensteinAssociate Professor Jennifer Tucker has been selected for a Fulbright-U.S. Scholar Award, through which she will spend eight months at the University of York in England. Tucker is a historian of British science, technology and medicine, specializing in the study of the connections among British science, photography and the visual arts from 1850 to 1920. At the University of York, she will complete work on her second book, tentatively titled, Facing Facts: The Tichborne Cause Célèbre and the Rise of Modern Visual Evidence. She also plans to begin preliminary research toward her next book project, which will trace the social…
Gabe Rosenberg '16Five years ago, Terrance “Munch” Williams ’02 began coaching a group of 12-year-old boys, playing basketball in the gym of a New York City recreation center. Now, that same group of boys is ranked first in the country, champions of the 16u Invitational Division at the Las Vegas Fab 48 tournament. The boys are members of Team SCAN, an afterschool program devoted to developing student athletes academically, socially and athletically in the South Bronx and East Harlem areas. Under the management and coaching of Justin Weir ’02, Williams, Andre Charles ’06 and Jason Forde ’01 work with Team SCAN to…
In this video, Matthew Kurtz, associate professor of psychology, neuroscience and behavior, talks about his research on cognitive remediation - one of several newer psychological treatments for schizophrenia. He discusses the promising results he and his Wesleyan students have observed working with patients at the Institute of Living in Hartford, Conn. #THISISWHY [youtube width="640" height="420"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MP7j2_94Jno[/youtube]
In this video, Wesleyan President Michael Roth speaks with Judith Butler, the Maxine Elliot Professor in the Departments of Rhetoric and Comparative Literature, University of California, Berkeley, at the Center for Humanities on Feb. 13. Their conversation ranges from Butler's earliest philosophical influences to her pioneering book, Gender Trouble, and her current work on desire and recognition. Butler taught at Wesleyan in the 1980s. #THISISWHY [youtube width="640" height="420"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rf4px4KyqbY[/youtube]
Brian KattenNick Craven '13 signed an amateur try-out contract with the Binghamton Senators of the AHL (an affiliate of the Ottawa Senators of the NHL) March 6 and played in each of the Senators games on March 8-10 as they defeated the Connecticut Whale, 3-0; knocked off the Rochester Americans, 4-3; and beat the Hershey Bears, 3-2. Craven did not score but had four shots on goal over the three games. He also had no pluses or minuses while skating a consistent shift at right wing on the fourth line. He remains under contract at this time. Craven was a first-team…
For people suffering in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease, from head injuries or other conditions that impair memory, a special trip to the seashore or a visit with family may be just a blur by the end of the day. With assistance from a simple device known as a ViconRevue memory camera, Professor John Seamon and his students are studying whether it’s possible to help these patients remember more of their lives. While the studies are ongoing, early results are promising. They also suggest that our current understanding of how these patients’ brains are malfunctioning may be wrong, or…
Olivia DrakeQ&As with outstanding students are an occasional feature of The Wesleyan Connection. This issue we speak with Evan Okun from the Class of 2013. Q: Evan, you'll be graduating this spring. How would you sum up your Wesleyan experience so far? A: Wesleyan University encourages interdisciplinary inquiry while simultaneously supporting student efforts to put theory into practice. Earlier this semester the Sociology Department (along with other student and administrative groups) sponsored a panel discussion on the education system featuring the brilliant rap duo, Dead Prez. This served as the action component of my Senior Essay, which addressed exclusion in academia and incorporated…
In this video, Lori Gruen, professor of philosophy; professor of feminist, gender and sexuality studies; professor of environmental studies, talks about the ethics of caring for chimpanzees who have been subjected to invasive biomedical research. She discusses recent positive developments in the movement to retire to sanctuaries the last 1,000 federally-supported research chimpanzees in the United States. Professor Gruen maintains the website www.last1000chimps.com to track the movement of the remaining research chimps in the U.S. from labs to retirement. Find more information about Chimp Haven, the National Chimpanzee Sanctuary where many research chimps live in retirement, at www.chimphaven.org. #THISISWHY [youtube width="640" height="420"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3HEdXEc95s[/youtube]
Wesleyan alumni helped their communities by participating in the WEServe Week of Service, Jan. 20-26. Alumni all over the country worked side-by-side with fellow alumni, students, families and friends on special projects. WEServe follows the National Day of Service on Jan. 19, and honors Martin Luther King, Jr. Day on Jan. 21. "The concept was uniquely translatable to geographic areas of all sizes; unlike some of our events which require a critical mass to be successful, these community service projects could engage alumni, parents, and students in cities or towns with as few as one or two people from Wesleyan,"…
Three Wesleyan women's soccer players, two of whom are graduates of Newtown (Conn.) High School, took part in Soccer Night in Newtown Jan. 7 as Newtown continued to heal from the tragic incident at Sandy Hook Elementary School Dec. 14. Team quad-captain Jen Brewer '13 of Sandy Hook, Conn. and Madeline Keane '16 of Newtown, Conn. were joined by Kaylin Berger '13 of Farmington, Conn., at the Newtown Youth Academy Sports and Fitness Center for the festivities. Nearly 50 major professional soccer players, including Major League Soccer (MLS) stars Landon Donovan and Kenny Cooper, women's national team standouts Kristine Lilly,…