In some ways the summertime on campus is calm. After the recent rains, Andrus Field is a lovely green, and you have to look hard to find the traces of the “This is Why” sign that was written onto Foss Hill for Reunion Weekend.
But there actually is lots of work going on once you look around. There are the Summer Session courses, including Writing Creative Nonfiction, Legal Thinking, Introduction to Programming, and Developmental Psychology. Our Biology Institute allows students to complete a full year of biology in less than 2 months in very small classes. The Wesleyan Writers Conference earlier this summer finished four days of powerful, professional workshops and readings. And there are a few hundred students doing research on campus in many different fields and through special programs like Mellon Mays and McNair.
Maintenance and construction is going on all over campus. This includes replacement of the steam pipe between the power plant and campus (you couldn’t miss the trench under High Street); roof replacement on Exley Science Center; new classroom furnishings, finishes and lighting; sidewalk repairs and replacements campus wide; patio installation at the Center for the Humanities; roof repair on Usdan University Center, etc.
Lots of creative events are happening — from poetry readings to a film series focused on Jimmy Stewart. The Center for Creative Youth hosts hundreds of middle and high school age kids who live in dorms and make art on campus. The ICPP (Institute for Curatorial Practice in Performance) is going strong, providing a professional education for curators working with performers of all kinds.
The Wesleyan Math and Science Scholars Program (WesMaSS) will take place the last week in July for pre-frosh who come from historically underrepresented groups in the sciences. At the end of that week Wes is hosting a large math and science symposium. Wesleyan’s Green Street Teaching and Learning Center is holding its Girls in Science Camp, August 3-7.
I started off this post noting the calm on campus. Clearly, there is a lot happening just beneath the surface!