Tag Archive for Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life

Wesleyan in the News

by Cynthia Rockwell • September 17, 2018

In this recurring feature in The Wesleyan Connection, we highlight some of the latest news stories about Wesleyan and our alumni.

Recent Wesleyan News

The Washington Post: “Have Parents Made Their Kids Too Fragile for the Rough-and-Tumble Life?”

President Michael Roth reviews The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure. While the authors make some important points, Roth is skeptical of their argument, writing, “Are students today disempowered because they’ve been convinced they are fragile, or do they feel vulnerable because they are facing problems like climate change and massive, nasty inequality?”

2. WNYC’s “The Takeaway”: “Will Trump’s Take on the Economy Resonate with Voters?”

by Lauren Rubenstein • June 13, 2017

This year, students in Associate Professor of History Jennifer Tucker’s class, Seeing a Bigger Picture: Integrating Visual Methods and Environmental History, had an opportunity to share what they learned in an unusual format. They produced an hour-long radio program, which debuted on WESU 88.1 FM on Memorial Day. It will air again on the station this summer, and can be heard on wesufm.org or on SoundCloud.

Rosie Dawson, a producer at the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), teaches Phie Towle ’20 and Alea Laidlaw ’20 about radio program development.

The course introduces students to key landmarks in the visual history of environmentalism and environmental science, from the 18th century to the recent past. The class studies the power and the limits of visual representations, addressing how images of nature have changed as well as how the nature of images has been transformed in the past 250 years, according to Tucker, who is also associate professor of environmental studies, associate professor of science in society, and associate professor of feminist, gender and sexuality studies. The students received training in radio storytelling from Rosie Dawson, a producer at the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).

Tucker and Dawson first met two years ago, when Tucker contributed an essay to a BBC series that Dawson was producing

by Olivia Drake • February 26, 2016

On Feb. 17, the Allbritton Center hosted a panel discussion on “The Refugee Experience,” the second in a three-part series titled, “The Refugee Crisis: The Development of the Crisis and the Response in Europe.” Moderated by Victoria Smolkin-Rothrock, assistant professor of history, assistant professor of Russian, Eastern European and Eurasian Studies, it featured discussion between Steve Poellot, legal director at the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP); Mohammed Kadalah of the University of Connecticut Department of Literature, Cultures and Languages, who was recently granted asylum after fleeing Syria in 2011; and Baselieus Zeno, a PhD candidate in political science at the University of Massachusetts–Amherst and a Syrian refugee. Read more about the full series here. (Photos by Rebecca Goldfarb Terry ’19)

From left, Victoria Smolkin-Rothrock, Mohammed Kadalah, Baselieus Zeno, Steve Poellot.

Victoria Smolkin-Rothrock.

Steve Poellot.

From left, Mohammed Kadalah, Baselieus Zeno, and Steve Poellot.

Baselieus Zeno.

Mohammed Kadalah.

Allbritton Center to Host Series of Panels on the Refugee Crisis

by Lauren Rubenstein • January 28, 2016

The Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life will host a series of three panels in February and March on the refugee crisis. All events will take place in PAC 001.

The first panel, The Development of the Crisis and the Response in Europe, will be held at 7 p.m. Feb. 3. Moderated by Professor of Economics Richard Grossman, the panel is comprised of Bruce Masters, the John E. Andrus Professor of History; Robert Ford, former U.S. ambassador to Syria; and Marcie Patton, professor of politics at Fairfield University.

The second panel, The Refugee Experience, will be held at 7 p.m. Feb. 17. Moderated by Victoria Smolkin-Rothrock, assistant professor of history, assistant professor of Russian, Eastern European and Eurasian Studies, it will feature discussion between Steve Poellot, legal director at the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP); Mohammed Kadalah, of the University of Connecticut Department of Literature, Cultures and Languages, who was recently granted asylum after fleeing Syria in 2011; and Baselieus Zeno, a PhD candidate in political science at the University of Massachusetts–Amherst and a Syrian refugee.

The final panel, The U.S. Response, Locally and Nationally, will be held at 7:30 p.m. March 31. Moderated by Assistant Professor of Government Ioana Emy Matesan, the panel will include Christina Pope of Welcoming America; Chris George, director of Integrated Refugee and Immigrant Services; and Jen Smyers, director of policy and advocacy at Church World Service. It will also feature a video message from U.S. Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut.

For more information, contact Rob Rosenthal, director of the Allbritton Center, at rrosenthal@wesleyan.edu.

Changemakers Convene at Wesleyan Social Impact Summit

by Cynthia Rockwell • November 16, 2015

Wesleyan students, staff, faculty, alumni and guests participated in several workshops during the Social Impact Summit Nov. 13-14 on campus.

More than 100 alumni and other members of the Wesleyan community attended the Social Impact Summit, Nov. 13-14, on campus. The summit was sponsored by the Shasha Seminar for Human Concerns. Endowed by James Shasha ’50, P’82, the seminar supports lifelong learning and encourages participants to expand their knowledge and perspectives on significant issues. The event included keynote speakers with TED-style talks on the theme “The Change I Want to See,” panel discussions, and workshops, as well as networking opportunities.

“Social impact and entrepreneurship are deeply embedded in Wesleyan culture, and our students and alumni are known for creating significant change in the world,” said Makaela Kingsley ’98, director of the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship. Rob Rosenthal, director of the Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life; and Cathy Lechowicz, director of the Center for Community Partnerships also provided welcoming remarks.

Kirk Adams ’73 P’13, International Executive Vice President of Service Employees International Union, talked about the transition to online voting as the change he wants to see because our society is evolving into an increasingly technological one, and doing so would be a surefire way to include the youth in the vote.

Keynote speakers offering TED-style remarks in Memorial Chapel, which were open to the public. They included Kirk Adams ’73 P’13, international executive vice president of the Service Employees International Union, who leads the work of SEIU Healthcare; Irma Gonzalez, the principal of Zoen, specializing in change and transition management in support of social justice advocacy; Jessica Posner Odede ’09 chief operating officer and co-founder of Shining Hope for Communities; and Kennedy Odede ’12, the CEO and co-founder of Shining Hope for Communities (SHOFCO).

In their talks, Adams spoke on making voting “accessible, universal, and familiar,” calling for the effort to “push this country to be what it should be.” Gonzalez highlighted the qualities of an equitable society—one where our success would not be predetermined by birth and skin color. “How do we harness technology in the service of social justice?” she asked.

by Olivia Drake • November 3, 2015

Faculty Jay Hoggard, Lois Brown, Nicole Stanton, and L’Merchie Frazier are teaching the new Collaborative Cluster Initiative Research Seminar. The cluster enables faculty to develop a shared research project with a unifying theme. (Photos by Olivia Drake)

#THISISWHY
This year, four Wesleyan faculty are coordinating a year-long interdisciplinary project that enables students from an array of majors and academic disciplines to collaborate, create and work together as a learning community under the theme “Renaissance Projects: Reclaiming Memory, Movement and Migration.”

The Collaborative Clusters Initiative of the Allbritton Center enables faculty from a variety of departments and programs to develop a shared research project with a unifying theme. Cluster courses in 2015-16 provide perspectives from dance, music, English, and African American studies on the ways performance practices have engaged the past and present in the face of great migrations. The collaborative project is rooted in a multi-faceted conception of renaissance, and explores states of past and present, of vitality and decay, and of presence and absence.

Students, in collaboration with peers, faculty and visiting artist/scholars, develop original research in writing, performance or visual art around the cluster theme.

This year, faculty members Nicole Stanton, Jay Hoggard, Lois Brown, and L’Merchie Frazier are teaching courses in the Collaborative Cluster Initiative Research Seminar.

Bria Grant ’17, an African American studies and dance double major, was ecstatic to take classes in the new cluster because it addressed both her interest in the arts and black people in America in one initiative. She’s enrolled in Stanton’s and Hoggard’s class this fall.

“The discussions we have each week, coupled with the nurturing aspect of breaking bread and eating dinner together, create a familial and intellectual space that both comforts and stimulates my mind simultaneously,” Grant said. “Furthermore, the research seminar itself gives me the space to immerse myself within the subject matter in a way I personally see fit, and explore specific aspects without the heavy burden of a strict curriculum.”

by Olivia Drake • October 19, 2015

Former Japanese Ambassador Ichiro Fujisaki visited Wesleyan on Oct. 13.

The Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life and Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted a visit of former Japanese Ambassador Ichiro Fujisaki on Oct. 13 in the Mansfield Center for East Asian Studies. Several Wesleyan faculty, students and visitors attended the program, “Walk in the U.S., Talk on Japan.”

Fujisaki served as the Ambassador from 2008-12. While at Wesleyan, Fujisaki met with various business and academic groups to talk about a number of issues facing Japan and its relationship with the U.S. His team made presentations on topics ranging from Abenomics to military policy, followed by a question-and-answer session.

Photos of the program are below: (Photos by Will Barr ’18)

by Olivia Drake • September 9, 2015

Pictured, from top, left to right: Bree Newsome, Clemmie Harris, Bishop John Selders and Tedra James ’18. (Click to enlarge poster)

Three experts and a Wesleyan student will lead a panel discussion on “After Charleston: Next Steps for the Movement for Social Justice” at 8 p.m. Sept. 17 in Memorial Chapel. The event is sponsored by the Allbritton Center for Public Life.

The talk will feature Clemmie Harris, visiting assistant professor of African American studies; Tedra James ’18; activist and filmmaker Bree Newsome and Connecticut Bishop John Selders.

“The idea is to spur conversation with the audience about the killings in Charleston, reactions to killings, debate over the Confederate flag, and protests in Ferguson,” said Rob Rosenthal, director of the Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life, John E. Andrus Professor of Sociology. “The question that each speaker will address is, ‘What now? Where are we in this long, long, long struggle for social justice—that is, equal rights, equal opportunities for everyone in the country—and what needs to happen next?’ Each panelist will speak for about 10 minutes, and can respond to anything the other speakers said. Then it will be up to the audience to state their own opinion, and ask questions of the audience.”

Clemmie Harris earned a PhD in history from the University of Pennsylvania. He holds graduate certificates in urban studies and Africana studies and has received fellowships for research in areas such as democracy, citizenship, and constitutionalism and Africana studies. His research interests include the long African American freedom struggle with an emphasis on electoral and protest politics, race and social inequality in the 20th century industrialized urban north; African American political leadership, and black urban political economy.

He is currently working on two book projects: We Will Be Heard: The Struggle For Political Recognition and Civil Rights in Philadelphia, which examines the African American quest for electoral power and community control from 1911 to 1984.

by Laurie Kenney • June 15, 2015

Wesleyan Writers Conference participants took time to write and reflect, in addition to attending seminars, workshops, readings, panel discussions and manuscript consultations. (Photos by Laurie Kenney)

The Wesleyan Writers Conference celebrated its 59th year by welcoming more than 60 new and seasoned writers and others interested in the writer’s craft to the Wesleyan campus June 10-14.

The Wesleyan Writers Conference has been useful to writers at different stages of their careers.

Headed by Wesleyan Writers Conference Director Anne Greene, adjunct professor of English and director of Writing Programs, the conference featured seminars, workshops, readings, panel discussions and manuscript consultations led by Wesleyan faculty and other nationally known writers, editors and agents.

Conference topics included the novel, short story, poetry, nonfiction, memoir, biography, journalism, writing for film and TV, new media, writing about food and travel, writing about science and medicine, preparing your work for publication, and how to sell your work.

by Laurie Kenney • May 5, 2015

On May 2, The Female Voice in Politics Conference brought notable and accomplished female politicians and leaders together at Daniel Family Commons in Usdan University Center to discuss the underrepresentation of women in U.S. politics and other issues facing women in the political arena today. Speakers included Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut; Connecticut State Sen. Toni Boucher; Dominique Thornton, former mayor of Middletown; Susan Bysiewicz, former Connecticut Secretary of State; Sidney Powell, attorney and author of Licensed to Lie; and Sarah Wiliarty, director of the Public Affairs Center, associate professor of government, tutor in the College of Social Sciences. The event was organized by Darcie Binder ’15 and Kevin Winnie ’16 and supported by the Government Department, Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life, Public Affairs Center, American Studies Department, History Department, and Feminism, Gender and Sexuality Studies. (Photos by Hannah Norman ’16.)

Rosa DeLauro, U.S. Representative of Connecticut’s 3rd Congressional District, speaks to attendees at The Female Voice in Politics Conference.

by Laurie Kenney • April 19, 2015

#THISISWHY

On April 15, faculty and staff met to share their service- and project-based learning stories during an Academic (Technology) Roundtable lunch at the Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life. A(T)R lunches are designed to promote conversation, cooperation and the sharing of information, ideas and resources among faculty members, librarians, graduate students and staff.

Barbara Juhasz, director of service-learning, associate professor of psychology, associate professor of neuroscience and behavior, led the session, providing an overview of service-learning at Wesleyan as well as the variety of ways that service can be used as a pedagogical tool. Other speakers included Rob Rosenthal, director of the Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life, John E. Andrus Professor of Sociology; Peggy Carey-Best, Health Professions Partnership Initiative advisor; Cathy Lechowicz, director of the Center for Community Partnerships; Sara MacSorley, director of the Green Street Teaching and Learning Center; Janet Burge, associate professor of computer science; Jim Donady, professor of biology, director of Health Professions Partnership Initiative; Anna Shusterman, associate professor of psychology; and Katja Kolcio, associate professor of dance.

Jim Donady discusses his ongoing service-learning work at Connecticut Valley Hospital. Left to right: Donady; Sara MacSorley, who shared how service-learning courses can interface with programs at Green Street; Janet Burge, who spoke about how project-based activities are incorporated into her service-learning course, Software Engineering; and Director of Service Learning Barbara Juhasz.

Seager to Deliver Sturm Memorial Lecture April 29 on “Search for Earth 2.0”

by Lauren Rubenstein • April 15, 2015

Sara Seager of MIT will address the age old question: “Are we alone?” when she delivers the annual Sturm Memorial Lecture April 29.

Sara Seager, Class of 1941 Professor of Planetary Science and Physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, will deliver the Sturm Memorial Lecture at 8 p.m. on April 29. She will speak in CFA Hall on “The Search for Earth 2.0.”

Seager is a pioneer in the field of exoplanets, specifically in characterizing the atmospheres and searching for life on those distant worlds. Her talk will address the age-old question: “Are we alone?”