Summer 2023 Issue, Wesleyan University Magazine

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Summer 2023 Issue

Wesleyan University Magazine dives into intercultural fluency and individuality within community with discussions of affirmative action and holistic admissions; ChatGPT in higher ed; spirituality and wellness on campus; ASL and Deaf Studies; and global explorations for faculty, students, and alumni.

Ghost in the Machine

ChatGPT signals a fraught new era for the written word. But instead of doomsaying over the potential impacts on higher ed, Wesleyan faculty and students are working toward a better understanding of writing in the age of robots.

Letters

From the President: Race & College Admissions

“Earlier this spring I was joined by Amin Abdul-Malik Gonzalez ’96, vice president and dean of admission and financial aid, to discuss the then still-pending ruling by the Supreme Court on Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) v. University of North Carolina and Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard University, two cases which are expected to have broad, adverse impact on the future of recruiting students from underrepresented communities.”

From the Editor: Learning from Difference

“No matter what role we inhabit in our Wesleyan community, the pull of connection is strong. . . . Often that means challenging ourselves to be a little uncomfortable. To bridge cultural and language divides, to reach outside of ourselves, and to find that spark of commonality in what used to seem foreign or different. In this issue, we look at some of the ways in which Wesleyans have leaned into that sense of intercultural learning, expanding our connections and continuing to grow from them.”

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Greater Good

As students struggle with the pressures of college life and the aftereffects of the pandemic, the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life and WesWell offer support, community, and time to reflect on some of life's big questions.

Class Notes

Reunion 2023: With 4 of 5 Wes grads in the family celebrating reunions in the same year, the Holder family has turned R&C Weekend into an extended family affair.

See more from R&C 2023 and other updates from classmates across the globe!

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Signs of the Times

A new full-time professor and an expanded ASL and Deaf Studies Program sets the stage for reframing deafness (and difference) as something to explore, not fix.

Short Takes

Game On!

Check out highlights from tennis, track & field, and crew as we wrap up another year of athletic achievement.

Merve Emre Named Director of Shapiro Center

Emre, a scholar, critic, and contributing writer for The New Yorker, envisions the new Center as a place to bring together different aspects of creative writing and literary study, as well as working across the arts.

Reunion & Commencement 2023

Calls to civic duty and fighting injustice echoed throughout R&C 2023.

From the Collections

Archaeology Collections Manager/Repatriation Coordinator Wendi Field Murray introduces items from the African collections.

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Views from Abroad

Internationalism and an expanded worldview have long been a part of Wesleyan’s mission. But beyond traditional higher ed models that limit opportunities to the student body, Wesleyan also looks to create international experiences for our faculty and alumni, facilitating meaningful cross-cultural knowledge-sharing, authentic communication, and fuller, more empathetic points of view among participants.

Visitors to the Ezra and Cecile Zilkha Gallery view the 2023 Art Studio Senior Thesis Exhibition.