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Roth on Wesleyan

Anticipation and Planning with Cabinet Colleagues

June 24, 2015August 25, 2011 by Michael S. Roth '78

Yesterday I met with the Cabinet for a day-long retreat to discuss our goals for the year in the context of our strategic plan and the current state of the university within the wider culture and society. Our “retreat” wasn’t one of those junkets for bureaucrats at a fancy facility. We just met for the day in a different part of the campus than where we usually gather. And we didn’t deliver mini-lectures to one another on what we expected to achieve each semester. Instead, we held some group and individual exercises (“Imagine that your group has to tweet a billionaire to describe why he/she should support the university”) that spurred us to articulate our priorities and sense of mission.

I was interested to hear my colleagues discuss what they thought was distinctive about the Wesleyan experience, and how we could best support that. Words like “diversity,” “civic engagement,” and “creativity” came up often, and so did “boldness,” “scholar-teacher model,” and the idea that we must always make it possible for talented students to attend the university through a robust financial aid program. In the end, we were talking about how Wesleyan can become an even stronger supporter of a pragmatic liberal arts education that fosters creative and critical thinking and builds on the talent, independence of mind and generosity of spirit of our community.

This morning I spoke with the staff at our kick-off the semester event. Employees from all departments greeted old friends and met new ones. I met Ralph Connolly, who has been working in physical plant at Wes since 1979 (I just missed him when I was here as a student), and he told me about the variety of jobs and training he’s had on campus. In my remarks to the group, I emphasized the difficulties of navigating through this very challenging economic environment. But I also stressed that we are finding ways to  invest in our people — not just in the endowment.

I frequently use trustee Geoff Duyk’s memorable phrase “intellectual cross-training” to describe the educational experience at Wesleyan. Whatever we call it, I can hardly wait for it to begin anew when the semester gets underway!

Here’s an alphabetical update on who is in the Cabinet:

Secretary of the University and Special Assistant to the President for Board and Campus Relations: Marianne Calnen

Marianne has worked at Wesleyan since 1998 and has long been deeply involved with projects concerning the Board of Trustees. She also helps with internal communications and a range of campus issues that build community.

Vice President for Institutional Partnerships and Chief-Diversity-Officer: Sonia Manjon

Sonia is beginning her fourth year at Wesleyan. We worked together at the California College of the Arts in Oakland/San Francisco on programs that linked the school and the city. Sonia leads our efforts in affirmative action, and she partners with faculty, staff and off-campus organizations to promote civic engagement.

Vice President for Finance and Administration: John Meerts

John has been at Wesleyan for 15 years, and before becoming the Treasurer he was in charge of our technology needs (which he once again is doing on a temporary basis). Most of the administrative departments report to John, including Public Safety and Physical Plant.

Dean of Admission and Financial Aid: Nancy Meislahn

Nancy has been head of our Admissions and Financial Aid offices since 2000. Our selectivity and the application pool’s diversity have improved markedly in the last few years.

Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost: Rob Rosenthal

Rob has been at Wesleyan since 1987. He is John E. Andrus Professor of Sociology and has been at the forefront of our service learning and community partnership work. Rob is the leader of our academic programs.

Director of Strategic Initiatives: Charles Salas

Charles came to Wesleyan three years ago from the Getty Research Institute, where he was Head of Research and Education.  An intellectual historian of Modern Europe, Charles has helped plan programs like the College of the Environment and the Summer Session, and also is responsible for University Communications.

Chief-of-Staff: Andy Tanaka

Andy is a Wesleyan grad and former Freeman scholar. He works on almost everything that comes through the president’s office, from communications to physical plant, from student issues to alumni relations. When we need to get something done, Andy makes it happen.

Vice President for Student Affairs: Mike Whaley

Mike has spent 14 years at Wesleyan, always focused on the student experience. Mike is responsible for our co-curricular efforts and our residential life programs. From orientation to senior week, Dean Mike works on behalf of Wes students.

Vice President for University Relations: Barbara-Jan Wilson

Barbara-Jan may not have been born at Wesleyan, but she has certainly spent the bulk of her career here leading efforts in Career Planning, Admissions and now University Relations. Having spearheaded the most successful fundraising campaign in Wesleyan history, today she continues to work closely with alumni and staff to support all that we do at the university.

The Cabinet meets as a group each week, and Joan Adams, Executive Assistant to the President, always facilitates our efforts. I feel very fortunate to work with such dedicated and talented people.

Categories UncategorizedTags cabinet, Civic Engagement, diversity, Liberal Education
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Broadening Your Aural Experience at Wesleyan
Welcome to Wesleyan!
Michael S. Roth

Michael S. Roth became Wesleyan University's 16th president on July 1, 2007.

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Wesleyan SACLC 4 hours ago

Student-Athlete of Color Leadership Council: The Battle Is Worth It. 💯 Retweeted by Michael S Roth

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Michael S Roth 4 hours ago

Another new #CivicEngagement class @coursera from @wesleyan_u coursera.org/learn/take-act… @Wes_engage

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Michael S Roth 5 hours ago

Sun is coming up, really...

test Twitter Media - Sun is coming up, really... https://t.co/CBinLa18We
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Michael S Roth 6 hours ago

RIP Mary Catherine Bateson 'Love Across Difference' - and life as a "desperate improvisation in which I was constantly trying to make something coherent from conflicting elements to fit rapidly changing settings" nytimes.com/2021/01/14/boo…

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Michael S Roth 6 hours ago

New @coursera class offered by @wesleyan_u coursera.org/learn/designin…

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Michael S Roth 6 hours ago

How Big is Your ‘Big Lie’? 1. Saying you won an election you lost? 2. Starting a war on a false pretext? 3. Claiming a pandemic is a hoax? What’s the standard of measurement?

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Michael S Roth 7 hours ago

Noble lie? twitter.com/DAMendelsohnNY…

However scary it may be, this is *such* a good Plato teaching moment. https://t.co/63nLdSoW4O

— Daniel Mendelsohn (@DAMendelsohnNYC) January 15, 2021
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Keeanga-Yamahtta T. 2 days ago

The real coup twitter.com/AriBerman/stat… Retweeted by Michael S Roth

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Michael S Roth 1 day ago

Read ⁦@parul_sehgal⁩ on judgment, Saunders &Chekhov: “Saunders writes that the story seems to ask us to sit in judgment of the character, to ask, “Is this trait of hers good or bad?” Chekhov, he tells us, answers: “Yes.” via ⁦@nytimesbooks⁩ nytimes.com/2021/01/12/boo…

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Michael S Roth 1 day ago

Read ⁦@jenszalai⁩ on use & abuse of Orwell ‘s “1984” “the novel itself isn’t so much a treatise on free speech absolutism as it is a warning about the degradation of language and the potency of lethal propaganda.” ⁦@nytimesbooks⁩ nytimes.com/2021/01/13/boo…

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Michael S Roth 2 days ago

So pleased to see this @wesleyan_u students getting their work out! twitter.com/wesleyan_u/sta…

As a result of an assignment from Professor Fred Cohan's course, Global Change and Infectious Disease, more than 25 students have had their work published in newspapers across the US – many citing the University’s COVID-19 safety protocols.https://t.co/Msxzk3XkA2

— Wesleyan University (@wesleyan_u) January 13, 2021
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Michael S Roth 2 days ago

Dayenu twitter.com/aedwardslevy/s…

in most other presidencies we do not impeach even once

why, in this presidency, do we impeach twice

— Ariel Edwards-Levy (@aedwardslevy) January 13, 2021
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Daniel Steinmetz-Jenkins 2 days ago

Extremist movements in 20th century Europe are often viewed in ideological terms. In the US they have been associated with religious extremism. Fascism as a category of analysis in the US might be debatable, but cultish, millenarian, religious sects are as American as apple pie. twitter.com/dbessner/statu… Retweeted by Michael S Roth

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Eddie S. Glaude Jr. 2 days ago

Where is the bottom? Retweeted by Michael S Roth

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Michael S Roth 2 days ago

Read insightful ⁦@AdamSerwer⁩ “The belief that only impoverished people engage in political violence—particularly right-wing political violence—is a misconception often cultivated by the very elites who benefit from that violence.” @theatlantic theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/…

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Michael S Roth 3 days ago

Re-posting from the early summer: "Higher Education Needs Antifascism Now" #IntellectualDiversity does not = total neutrality insidehighered.com/views/2020/06/…

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Michael S Roth 3 days ago

Read ⁦@risenc⁩ on “the modern American experience, from immigration &the promise of postwar abundance, through the tumult of the 1960s, to the search for meaning in a secular society —&finally, in the early 21st century, to the ravages of a pandemic” nytimes.com/2021/01/11/obi…

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Michael S Roth 4 days ago

Read @samuelmoyn "Cruz & Hawley have been making..outrageous moves..not because they learned them at Harvard &Yale, but because Harvard &Yale put them in a position to ascend to the heights of U.S. politics as it shifted so disturbingly over recent years" chronicle.com/article/the-fa…

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Wesleyan University 4 days ago

Wesleyan University Press authors Hafizah Geter, Rae Armantrout, and Honorée Fanonne Jeffers were recently longlisted for awards from PEN America. fal.cn/3cFkT Retweeted by Michael S Roth

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Michael S Roth 4 days ago

@jasonintrator @Notorious_RSG @dbessner Same claim the Communists made about the socialists in the 1930s Germany. SPD more dangerous than NSDAP

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