Student Ombuds Program

We are proud to launch the second year of the Student Ombuds program at Wesleyan, which is an initiative inspired and informed by student voices.

The Student Ombuds are available to talk with students about their concerns related to experiences in the classroom, with your athletic team, or within other parts of your academic and campus life at Wesleyan.  Each Ombud serves as a resource focused on empowering students to successfully navigate the institution and advocate for themselves in moments of conflict, particularly when there are power dynamic considerations. 

Here’s just a few of the ways Student Ombuds can offer support:

  • Serve as a thought partner for students considering their options for resolving an issue, especially when the other party is in a position of power in relation to the student
  • Hold a safe and supportive conversational space, simply listening and serving as an impartial sounding board
  • Provide insight and tools on how to manage challenging conversations
  • Share information about campus resources
  • Communicate any patterns of concern to university leadership

The Student Ombuds partner with and are supported by Dr. April Ruiz, Dean for Academic Equity, Inclusion, & Success.

Learn more about the Student Ombuds by:

Our Student Ombuds stand ready to support you!

Accessibility Q&A

This event is for anyone who is curious about learning about a resource that can potentially help with your journey at Wesleyan! 

Curious about accessibility services? Want to learn about the accommodation process? Do you want to learn how to support your peers? 

Come learn about the accessibility and accommodation process with the Student Accessibility Interns on September 29th at 4:30-5:30 pm at Usdan 136. A peer advisor and peer technology specialist will be at the event if you have questions about accessibility that they can help with. This event is for the purpose of helping understand the accommodation process and is open to anyone who is interested in learning. Come learn for yourself, learn to support a friend or a classmate, learn to advocate for fair accommodations, or just meet us! There will be resources available at the event to grab. Feel free to come and go at any time! SNACKS PROVIDED!

Upcoming CAPS Workshops & Groups

Lots of opportunities to connect with the supportive team at Counseling & Psychological Services (CAPS)!

  • Making Connections: Thursdays (9/15, 9/22, 9/29); 12pm – 1:30pm; Resource Center
  • Attuned Eating: Tuesdays (starting 9/27 for 4 weeks); 4:15pm – 4:45pm; CAPS Solarium
  • Healing Connections: Wednesdays; 12-1pm; WesWell 2nd Floor
  • Rewrite Your Narrative: Mondays (10/3, 10/10, 10/17); 5:15pm – 6:30pm; Downey Room 100
  • Slow Stitch: Mondays (9/26 – 11/14); 12:15-pm; WesWell 2nd Floor
  • Sleep 101: Thursday 10/20; 4:15-5:00pm; Usdan 114
  • Understanding Self and Others for Gender Diverse Folx: Wednesdays at 5pm; CAPS Solarium
  • Understanding Self and Others for Women: Thursdays at 5:30pm; Downey House 100
  • Understanding Self and Others for Men: Thursdays at 4:30pm; Downey House 100

Want to Create a New Club?

We hope you are excited to explore your interests and find ways to get involved at Wes! If you check out WesNest, you will see all the active student groups on campus and can connect with people through similar interests.

If you’re interested in creating a new group, the New Group Registration Period is now open on WesNest as well. Navigate to “Organizations” and click on the button “Register an Organization” on your left-hand side. There will be a blue button on the bottom of the page to “Register a New Organization.” Follow the instructions on the form and be prepared to submit information about the mission of your group, why it is different than other groups on campus, and a roster of your members.

The NEW GROUP registration period is from September 5th, 2022 at 8:30am until October 28th, 2022 at 11:45pm.

For more information about registering a student group, check out our website. Contact involvement@wesleyan.edu with any questions.

Wes Speed Friending (9/7 at 6pm)

Think speed dating – but you’re finding friends! Finding it hard to meet new friends and make connections? Looking for ways to be more social this semester?

Check out Speed Friending for fun icebreakers, great conversation, new friends, and free pizza!

Image Description: Text reads “Wes Speed Friending September 7th @6:00PM North College Lobby. Come for the pizza, stay for the connection.”

August Reflection

Happy First Day of August, members of the Class of 2025!

My hope is that you are enjoying summer and getting excited to return to campus this fall. I’ve conversed recently with some of your peers about major declaration and career trajectory. If you are a student who knows exactly what you want to major in and what you want to do for a career when you graduate, that’s great! If you are a student who has no idea what you want to major in or what you want to do for a career, that’s great too! Wesleyan’s open-curriculum encourages you to explore courses in many disciplines; this course exploration can often lead students to their passion.

Reflection is an important part of any journey, so I share some questions below you may want to consider now before the hustle and bustle of the fall semester. These questions are intended to evoke personal reflection as you progress through Wesleyan. There are no right or wrong answers; however, take stock of your feelings as you navigate these questions.

Sophomore year can be both exciting and overwhelming as you approach major declaration. I encourage you to share your thoughts with those in available support networks – this may include me, your pre-major liberal arts advisor, a faculty mentor, one of our Academic Peer Advisors, your friends and/or your family.

  1. In what ways have you grown intellectually over the last 12 months?
  2. What are your academic strengths?
  3. Which classes have been most challenging, and how did you handle those challenges?
  4. Are you comfortable sharing your thoughts and ideas with peers in class?
  5. Have you taken advantage of opportunities to learn outside the classroom? What are some examples of this?
  6. Is there a topic on which you might like to do research? How did you become interested in this topic?
  7. What campus resources can you use to navigate the topics addressed in these reflection questions?

If you’d like to chat about these questions with me, I welcome it! Please schedule a zoom meeting with me here to chat more.

Sending you good vibes as we close out the summer – take care! Dean Dunn

Questions borrowed from NACADA, the global community for academic advising.

Resource Center Summer Hours

The Resource Center (RC) will host summer hours of operation from 12noon-6pm Monday-Friday for students to pick up products from the pantry, use the library, and print as necessary. Community members are encouraged to drop off unopened, unexpired, shelf-stable food items (ramen, pasta kits, etc.) in the RC living room any time that we are open.

Please contact Demetrius Colvin at dcolvin@wesleyan.edu if you have any questions, concerns, or ideas for community engagement on which you would like to collaborate. 

Final Weekly Roundup Email for the 2021-2022 Academic Year

Good morning, Class of 2025 –

I hope this weekly email finds you well. If you can believe it, there are only 6 more days until the last day of classes! For many of us, this year has been filled with lots of excitement and challenges. I am confident you will continue to experience this fluctuation as you progress through your Wesleyan career; however, my hope is that you are now more aware of resources that can help you during any part of your time here at Wesleyan.

Some upcoming dates and/or events that may be of interest to you:

  • Wellness Resources: End of the semester can cause stress as due dates quickly approach. Make yourself aware of both in and out-of-the-classroom resources to finish the semester strong. This includes but is not limited to meeting with your professors, talking with your course assistants, scheduling an appointment with an Academic Peer Advisor, reviewing resources offered through Student Academic Resources (SAR), meeting with me, visiting CAPS, WesWell and/or the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life. If you need assistance navigating resources, please do not hesitate to reach out to me.
  • Wes Day (5/5 from 12pm – 5pm): WesDay is a great opportunity to interact with the entire campus community. In addition to free carnival food, we’ll enjoy carnival rides, games, music, therapy dogs, wellness activities and novelties such as stuff-a-bear and pot your own succulent plant. Fried dough, popcorn, ice cream, and cotton candy provided at no charge to the first 1500 attendees. Food Trucks include Los Mariachi’s, Jackie’s Pizza the Pie, and Fryborg. Food truck tickets must be purchased at the Box Office in Usdan for $5 before the event and $10 on the day of the event. More info on Wes Day as well as other end of the year events can be found on WesNest on WesPortal.

You have what it takes to finish this semester strong. Pushing yourself to be successful academically does not have to happen alone. Take stock of the resources shared with you on this weekly email and think about what resources you used this year that worked to your advantage. If you didn’t use any resources, think about ways in which you can utilize resources in the future to get even more out of your courses.

You should be proud of how far you’ve come as you complete your first year of study at Wesleyan. I look forward to supporting you as you continue on this journey. If you’re up to it, feel free to send me an email sharing with me your favorite part about your first year at Wesleyan. I’d be delighted to celebrate with you all of your wins and successes this year.

Take care! Dean Dunn