Today marks the start of Homecoming + Family Weekend, and it should be a lovely few days. The Advancement team has planned a spectacular array of programs, from a conversation with artist Glenn Ligon ’82, Hon. ’12 this afternoon to seminars, lectures, and, of course, plenty of athletic events. We have a constellation of special events for our Latine families and alumni, and we are grateful for all the work of our volunteers and staff who put this together.
Our athletes are pumped! Not only is the football team playing for the Little Three Championship (and more) at Corwin Stadium on Saturday afternoon, but the women’s soccer team looks to continue its unbeaten streak when they meet Conn College on Jackson Field at noon. Field Hockey, too, will be showing off its new field as it hosts the beginning of the NESCAC Championship for the first time since 2005.
Theater, music, art, and so much more awaits you on campus. Welcome home!!
This morning the following message went out to the campus community. Written a few days ago, it arrives in boxes amidst more tragic news from Gaza and intense uncertainty here at home. What can we do in such times? We can commit to education — to learning from one another, from traditions that inform our lives and through modes of inquiry that will shape our futures. I am so happy that tomorrow we will begin classes, and I am thrilled to be meeting my new Virtue and Vice students for the first time. Across this beautiful campus and beyond, we will learn together.
Dear friends,
To the Class of 2028 and our newest transfer students—welcome! I hope by now you have settled into your dorms, begun to make connections, and are feeling ready for the journey ahead. To our returning students, faculty, and staff—including those who have worked tirelessly this summer to prepare for the fall semester—welcome back!
We are starting the 2024-25 academic year at a time that feels immensely consequential. With America in the throes of a heated presidential election and global conflict at dangerous levels, there is much to be concerned about—and much to attend to. At Wesleyan, we believe that our work should be committed to both the good of the individual and the good of the world. Here we seek to empower individuals through a pragmatic liberal education that also cultivates our ability to attend to one another, understand broadly diverse perspectives, and engage with the issues in positive ways. To do this, we foster an environment that supports free inquiry and expression and that is “safe enough,” encouraging passionate debate free of intimidation or harassment.
We are excited by the arrival of Khalilah L. Brown-Dean as the Rob Rosenthal Professor of Civic Engagement and the Executive Director of the Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life. Dr. Brown-Dean has already developed some stirring initiatives to encourage students to take action at this important moment for American democracy, which you can read more about in a recent post. I hope you will find meaningful ways to engage with Dr. Brown-Dean and her team’s work in the months ahead as well as our broader programming through the Democracy 2024 initiative. Remember that National Voter Registration Day is Sept 17!
At the Center for the Arts, we can look forward to inspiring programming from this year’s CFA Artist-in-Residence Anna Deavere Smith and a new music theater work by Sunny Jain that looks to performance’s power to assemble community across diaspora. The new Pruzan Art Center will soon feature an exhibit from the Davison Art Collection featuring works by Glenn Ligon ’82, Hon. ’12 and Jasper Johns. At the Shapiro Center for Creative Writing and Criticism, Merve Emre’s speaker series, “The Art of Editing,” will welcome to campus the likes of Emily Greenhouse ’08 (New York Review of Books), Radhika Jones (Vanity Fair), and Kaitlyn Greenidge (Harper’s Bazaar), among other important figures.
And make sure to catch some athletics action this season—perhaps a field hockey game on our brand new blue AstroTurf field. You may have seen a similar one this summer at the Paris Olympics. Or catch the night game that opens our home football season on September 21. Our athletes do us proud!
Given the times, this will likely turn out to be a political semester as Wesleyans engage with important local, national, and global issues. We will not protect individuals from opinions they don’t like, but we will protect each and every person from harassment and intimidation. There will surely be protests, but we will not allow these to disrupt the educational mission of the University. That mission includes cultivating attentiveness and care for one another across our many differences. We shouldn’t just expect agreement, but at Wesleyan we trust that disagreement can lead to learning.
Yesterday I shared the following message with the Wesleyan community.
Dear Friends,
I am saddened to report the death of President Emeritus Colin G. Campbell, MA ’71, Hon. ’89 on Friday at the age of 88.
Colin guided Wesleyan through an exceedingly challenging time with great skill and fortitude. When he became president in 1970 at the age of 34, Wesleyan was adapting to profound social changes at the very moment when financial instability threatened to jeopardize the University’s future. He had the unenviable task of managing retrenchment in order to align Wesleyan’s high aspirations with constrained resources, all the while keeping vocal constituencies in productive dialogue. His ability to manage this daunting task while eliciting universal respect was nothing short of remarkable.
Colin believed deeply that the only way to reach a sound decision was through a sound process in which all parties had an opportunity to participate and be heard. He exuded civility and mostly, though not always, received it. His patience for process, for digging down to the nugget of a hard problem, was legendary. He dealt with campus controversies, such as divestment from U.S. firms in South Africa, by insisting that students immerse themselves in issues and learn from them. He rarely showed impatience, and if he needed relief from the demands of a turbulent campus, he found it on the water at his beloved Black Point home on the Connecticut shore.
A full list of Colin’s accomplishments during the 18 years of his presidency would be lengthy indeed. He oversaw Wesleyan’s transition to a fully co-educational campus while the University also sought to be more open and welcoming to students of color, a task that began a decades-long effort to address the persistence of racism in higher education. He worked with the faculty to bring more coherence to the curriculum, led Wesleyan’s first successful capital campaign, and oversaw numerous improvements to the physical campus, ranging from the opening of the Center for the Arts to the expansion of Olin Library.
He had a prodigious memory for the names of people, their children, and their concerns. His personal warmth, his rapport with students, and his devotion to Wesleyan were evident in all he did. He and his gracious wife, Nancy, were a welcoming presence at innumerable campus and alumni events. Wesleyan honored them with the Colin Goetze Campbell and Nancy Nash Campbell Reference Center overlooking Andrus Field and the Colin and Nancy Campbell Chair for Global Issues and Democratic Thought. The couple was instrumental in preserving Wesleyan’s history even as they steered the University into the future.
Colin was my Wesleyan president. I shook his hand when I crossed Denison Terrace in 1978, and he was among the first to call me with congratulations when I was appointed president in 2007. For his many contributions to Wesleyan’s growth as a leading liberal arts institution, we acknowledge his passing with gratitude, admiration, and deep respect. May his memory be a blessing.
He is survived by Nancy, chair emerita of the National Trust for Historic Preservation; four children, Betsy Campbell, Jennifer Celata, Colin M. Campbell, and Blair Campbell; as well as son- and daughters-in-law Robert Celata and Liz Campbell; and eight grandchildren.
A service will be held at Bruton Parish Church in Williamsburg, Virginia, at 2 p.m. on Monday, July 8, 2024. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut, and Hospice of the Lowcountry in Bluffton, South Carolina.
This afternoon (May 18th) I sent the following message to the Wesleyan community. Over the weeks and months to come, I look forward to working with students, faculty, alumni and staff to help our university continue to be a force for positive contributions to the public sphere. THE WORLD NEEDS MORE WESLEYAN!
But now, we will be preparing for Reunion and to celebrate the class of 2024 at Commencement!
Dear friends,
Over the course of the past three weeks, the Administration has been in meaningful engagement with the group of pro-Palestinian protesters on campus. Our conversations have been rooted in a shared affection for Wesleyan and a desire that the institution be aligned as fully as possible with its community’s values. Provost Nicole Stanton and Dean Mike Whaley have now successfully concluded their discussions with representatives of the group of protesting students and their faculty monitors.
In these meetings, the University explained that as of December 31, 2023, 1.7% of Wesleyan’s endowment was invested in companies categorized as Aerospace and Defense businesses. None are directly involved in the manufacturing of weapons. As of the same date, 0.4% of the endowment is invested in companies in Israel, all of which are software companies. The protesters did not ask for information about investments in any other countries, but we can say that Wesleyan’s endowment is not invested in any companies listed by the protesters.
Later this month representatives from the pro-Palestinian protest will meet members of the Investment Committee. In the fall, the Committee for Investor Responsibility (CIR)—a standing representative body of students, faculty, alumni, and staff—will be able to propose changes to the Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) framework for investment/divestment for consideration by the Board at its fall meeting.
The protesters have agreed to clear their camp by Monday morning. No students will face disciplinary sanctions for being in the encampment, but after the camp is cleared normal university regulations will be enforced. The protesters agreed not to disrupt Reunion and Commencement events. Individuals who refuse to comply will be suspended and face legal action.
It is always important that we maintain a safe enough environment on campus for people who disagree with one another and who embrace opportunities to learn from people with various points of view. Yes, protests are demanding for all constituencies of a university. At their best, they help turn our attention to issues that really matter. I am hopeful that soon we can re-direct our collective efforts to urging our lawmakers, both here in Connecticut and in Washington DC, to do everything in their power to create a resolution in Israel and Gaza that will result in the return of the hostages, an end to the fighting, and a commitment to a process that will recognize the rights of all parties. More generally, I have hopes that the political energies recently displayed by our students will play a positive role in addressing the momentous questions before this country in the coming elections.
Yesterday, I sent the following message to the Wesleyan community about protests on campus. I reproduce it here:
Dear friends,
This morning you can find pro-Palestinian protesters camped out behind North College. The students there know that they are in violation of university rules and seem willing to accept the consequences. The protest has been non-violent and has not disrupted normal campus operations. As long as it continues in this way, the University will not attempt to clear the encampment. The University will not tolerate intimidation or harassment of students, staff, or faculty. Protesters assure us that they have no intention of engaging in these kinds of actions. We will continue to monitor the situation to keep everyone safe and will send updates as necessary.
There will be many on campus who cheer on the protesters, and many who are offended or even frightened by their rallies and messages. But as long as we all reject violence, we have opportunities to listen and to learn from one another. This may not happen during the chanting and drumming, but it can happen during some of the planned discussion sessions and deep conversations that will take place throughout the week.
This is a challenging time in world affairs and in the lives of many—including college students—concerned about their own relation to the brutal war in the Middle East. May we at Wesleyan find ways to learn from this difficult moment—determining what it is we can do to serve the goal of a sustainable peace—even as we finish out this academic year.
Yesterday I sent the following message to the campus community:
Dear friends,
As we prepare for Thanksgiving, we remind ourselves of all the things for which we are grateful. This is a time of year for connection, gratitude, and compassion—all much needed in these days of brutal conflict.
I believe more than ever that it is through openness to learning that we can find common ground. On many campuses, instead of searching for connection, people seem to be honing hate and gleeful intimidation. This will not happen at Wesleyan. Instead, we will learn together, acknowledging our differences. Whether this be through the study of a classic text, current events, or historical context, we will expand, not narrow, our understanding and our sympathies. Our faculty and staff are stepping up to offer guidance. We strive to find ways to comfort one another, to learn with one another, to generate hope for peace in a time of brutal war. I can’t think of a better place to be right now than here at Wesleyan.
I wish you all a peaceful holiday with family or friends. And I look forward to seeing you back on campus as we prepare to end the semester with boldness, rigor, and practical idealism.
As I write my annual Independence Day blog message, I am still reeling from the recent Supreme Court decisions and from the rhythm of mass shootings that now punctuates all our seasons. Despite the current malaise, when I think back to last year at this time I am very grateful — grateful that COVID has receded and that over the last 12 months we at Wesleyan have managed to learn together while supporting others beyond the campus. Last summer at this time I was struggling with my own COVID infection and about to resume working with colleagues on building a ‘safe-enough’ educational environment. What a difference a year makes! Now, I eagerly anticipate the coming semesters, ones that will be filled with creativity, inquiry and exuberance!
But there is time for that. Today we celebrate the signing of the Declaration of Independence, a document of aspiration often used to remind citizens of our promise but also of our failure to live up to our professed values. These are values worth remembering and celebrating! As an anonymous writer (identified only as a “Black Whig”) said just a few years after the document was signed, “And now my virtuous fellow citizens, let me entreat you, that, after you have rid yourselves of the British yoke, that you will also emancipate those who have been all their life time subject to bondage.” I take this quote from columnist Jamelle Bouie, who wrote “The story of the changing meaning of the Declaration should be a reminder…that we had more than one founding — and far more than just one set of founders.” Perhaps each generation needs a new set of founders!
Those of mechanics, each one singing his as it should be blithe and strong,
The carpenter singing his as he measures his plank or beam,
The mason singing his as he makes ready for work, or leaves off work,
The boatman singing what belongs to him in his boat, the deckhand singing on the steamboat deck,
The shoemaker singing as he sits on his bench, the hatter singing as he stands,
The wood-cutter’s song, the ploughboy’s on his way in the morning, or at noon intermission or at sundown,
The delicious singing of the mother, or of the young wife at work, or of the girl sewing or washing,
Each singing what belongs to him or her and to none else,
The day what belongs to the day—at night the party of young fellows, robust, friendly,
Singing with open mouths their strong melodious songs.
Let’s try to hear that singing even as we await a time when we live our values, a time of re-founding. And with the great poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti, we can say “I am perpetually awaiting a rebirth of wonder.” So many good things begin in wonder, don’t they!
The following message was sent to Wesleyan students, faculty and staff.
Commencement is over, and mortar boards, it seemed to me, flew even higher than usual. It was such a beautiful day with strong speakers and a celebratory crowd. The graduating seniors seemed especially joyous. They had every reason to be proud of how they had stayed focused through the disruptions caused by the pandemic. Their achievements were not theirs alone, however, and their enthusiastic applause for faculty and staff showed how grateful they were. I hope all our faculty, staff, and students can take a moment to recognize their individual and collective accomplishments of this past year.
Our commencement speakers stressed the importance of how we develop civic engagement on campus, and they urged our graduates to carry those lessons forward—as citizens. At a time when jarring voices across the country question the benefits of higher education, we can be confident that those who receive a Wesleyan education will showcase its benefits to the world.
Here on campus, we must continue to pursue our mission with passion and purpose. That mission does not change, but we pursue it in light of changes in the world. By fall semester, there will likely be a Supreme Court decision on affirmative action. Regardless, we will redouble our efforts to build a diverse community in which all—students, faculty, and staff—can thrive. Work is already underway on the three organizational priorities identified through the WesThrives Campus Survey—diversity, inclusion, and belonging; performance management; and communications—which we will more deeply focus on when our entire community is together again in the fall.
Summer approaches, and I hope these next months bring you the balance of rest, enjoyment, and productivity that you seek.
Throughout the spring, high school seniors with the acceptance letters in hand are once again visiting campuses as they try to decide where to attend college. They are trying to envision the school at which they will be most likely to thrive. Where will I learn the most, be happiest, and form friendships that will last a lifetime? How to choose? As I do each spring, I thought it might be useful to re-post my thoughts on choosing a college. We have been hosting many campus visitors, and today we begin WesFest. I invite you to visit our Admitted Students website to learn more about Wesleyan.
In the wake of the pandemic, many students today are wondering what campus life will be like in the fall. At Wesleyan we are planning for a normal university year. Sure, we expect to continue to take health precautions, including ensuring that all students are vaccinated and boosted before they begin the semester. Of course, we will monitor the pandemic’s course should things take a turn for the worse.
For many, the decision about where to attend college will be made on an economic basis. Which school has given the most generous financial aid package? Wesleyan is one of a small number of schools that meets the full financial need of all admitted students according to a formula developed over several years. Wesleyan has made a commitment to keep loan levels low, and we have replaced them with grants for high need families. We also offer a three-year program that allows families to save about 20 percent of their total expenses, while still earning the same number of credits.
After answering the question of which schools one can afford, how else does one decide where best to spend one’s college years? Of course, size matters. Some students are looking for a large university in an urban setting where the city itself plays an important role in one’s education. New York and Boston, for example, are popular college destinations, but not, I suspect, for the classroom experience. If one seeks small classes and strong, personal relationships with faculty, then liberal arts schools, which pride themselves on providing rich cultural and social experiences on a residential campus, are especially compelling. You can be on a campus with a human scale and still have plenty of things to do. Wesleyan is somewhat larger than most liberal arts colleges but much smaller than the urban or land grant universities. We feel that this gives our students the opportunity to choose a broad curriculum and a variety of cultural activities on campus, while still being small enough to encourage regular, sustained relationships among faculty and students.
All the selective small liberal arts schools boast of having a faculty of scholar-teachers, of a commitment to research and interdisciplinarity, and of encouraging community and service. So what sets us apart from one another after taking into account size, location, and financial aid packages? What are students trying to see when they visit Amherst and Wesleyan, or Tufts and Pomona?
As students scan the Wesleyan website, go to chatrooms and listen to current students talk about their experiences, I hope they feel the brave exuberance and ambition of our students, the intelligence and care of our faculty, the playful yet demanding qualities of our community. I would like prospective students to get a sense of our commitment to creating a diversity in which difference is embraced and not just tolerated, and to public service that is part of one’s education and approach to life. Our students have the courage to find new combinations of subjects to study, of people to meet, of challenges to face.
Whatever college or university students choose, I hope they get three things out of their education: discovering what they love to do; getting better at it; learning to share it with others. I explain a little bit more about that in this talk to admitted students a few years ago:
We all know that Wesleyan is hard to get into, but even in the group of highly selective schools, Wes is not for everybody. We aspire to be a community committed to boldness as well as to rigor, to idealism as well as to effectiveness. Whether in the sciences, arts, humanities or social sciences, our faculty and students are dedicated to explorations that invite originality as well as collaboration. The scholar-teacher model is at the heart of our curriculum. Our faculty are committed to teaching and to shaping their disciplines. At Wesleyan, we know how to work hard, but we also know how to enjoy the work we choose to do. That’s been magically appealing to me for almost 50 years. I’ll bet the magic will appeal to many of those who are still in the process of getting to know our extraordinary university.
As we gather in the wake of spring break, it’s good to remember that many Wesleyans have been busy these past two weeks preparing for the last half of the semester. I know that many seniors working on theses, performances and art projects didn’t get away and have been making progress on substantial pieces of work. Whether they are studying federal regulations in the government department or working to understand personal dis-regulation in psychology, they are combing through data and honing their arguments. Biologists at Wes are closer to their fruit flies than one might think possible, while physicists work with computer scientists and mathematicians on the properties of sensors. These are quite different, thank goodness, from the properties of censors, which very few of our artists have to worry about (I trust). They are making films and dance performances, writing novels and analyzing philosophical texts for ideas that might change the way we look at the world.
All of this is to say that many of us have not been on much of a break at all. Spring sports teams have been busy competing, staff here in Middletown have been preparing the campus for the new season of activities. Writers are writing, readers are reading … You get the picture.
Speaking of pictures, here’s one of Lola on the first day of spring:
