kmdunn

August Reflection

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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.

Summer Session II Classes Begin 6/27

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Summer Session II begins Monday, June 27. It is still possible to register if you submit your registration form, advisor approval and payment by noon on Wed 6/15.

Here is the link to the summer registration form – or you can use the personalized version in your Portal.

The following courses have seats available as of 6/13 at 4pm.

·       MUSC103Z Materials and Design | Instructor: Michael Weinstein-Reiman | Schedule: Tuesday through Friday, 8:30-10:35am

·       WRCT228Z/ENGL259Z The Art of the Personal Essay |  Instructor: Lauren Silber |  Schedule: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, 1:10-3:15pm

·       IDEA185Z/CIS185Z Digital Media and Design I | Instructor: Chris Chenier | Schedule: Monday through Friday, 9:00-10:40am

·       WRCT201Z/EDST201Z/CGST201Z Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) | Instructor: Elizabeth Hepford | Schedule: Monday through Thursday, 3:30-5:35pm

For more information visit the Summer Session Courses page.

Waste Not! Want Not Job Opportunity

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Are you interested in sorting STUFF? Love thrifting or garage sales? Want to be part of a great team and help carry on one of Wesleyan’s greatest traditions? Then apply to volunteer for Waste Not! Waste Not is Wesleyan’s student-run fall tag sale.  Join the volunteer team to help reduce waste, avoid capitalistic consumption, and provide affordable goods to other students.

Perks include:

– free housing from Tuesday 8/30 – Sunday 9/4

– free food

– first dibs on free stuff from Waste Not and discounts on big items

– opportunity to be PAID to help with move-in cardboard collection on 8/31 (optional)

You’ll move in on Tuesday, August 30 and volunteer about 28 hours between Wednesday, August 31 and Sunday, September 4.  When you sign up for Waste Not, you’ll be required to work at all volunteer shifts and will sign an agreement noting that you’ll be charged if you do not show up on the Saturday or Sunday of the sale.  If you’re interested, fill out this form by Saturday, June 25 at 11:59 PM: https://forms.gle/7giYnxhwfAkN6GQC7. Email wesustainability@gmail.com with any questions.

Resource Center Summer Hours

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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. 

Summer Session at Wes

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Summer session registration is underway for Summer Session I and II. Summer Session I will run Wednesday May 25 – Tuesday June 21, 2022 (exams June 22-23). Summer Session II will run Monday June 27 – Monday July 25, 2022 (exams July 26-27).

There are still seats available in certain classes including classes that often have waitlists during the academic year. Some examples include:

PSYC105Z Foundations of Psychology

QAC201Z Applied Data Analysis

FILM458Z Screenwriting: Short Film

IDEA185Z Digital Media and Design I

The full course list is on WesMaps and the Summer Session website. Register via WesPortal – the Summer form is in the Courses section. Email summer@wesleyan.edu for more information.

Final Weekly Roundup Email for the 2021-2022 Academic Year

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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

48-Hour Film Festival

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Cardinal Pictures is hosting a 48-hour Film Festival. No equipment is necessary. First-time filmmakers are heavily encouraged to participate. All participants must apply individually, but mutual partner requests will be honored when forming teams. Teams will have 48 hours to conceptualize, shoot, and edit a 3-minute film.

Participants will receive the festival theme at the kickoff meeting at 3 PM, Friday, April 29, 2022 in Exley Science Center 150. Films will be due at 5 PM, Sunday, May 1, 2022, and screened for the Wesleyan community at 7 PM that night.

Audiences will vote on awards in various categories, and winning teams will receive prizes. Whether you’ve never been on set or you’re a post-thesis senior, spend next weekend making a movie. For the sake of equitable teams, sign-up is mandatory. The form is linked here.

Please reach out to sliu01@wesleyan.edu or vgorbaty@wesleyan.edu with any questions!

Alumni Panel with Wesleyan Waston Fellows

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The Watson Fellowship provides $36,000 plus support toward health coverage and student loan payments for fellows to undertake an independent project during a full year spent outside the US.

Join us Thursday 4/28 at 1:30pm on Zoom to hear about the Watson Fellowships from Wesleyan graduates who’ve completed their Watson year. Hear about their travels, get inspired about what you might do, and ask questions! Register here (bit.ly/390znZ2)

Wesleyan students are only eligible to apply for the Watson Fellowship in the fall of their senior year, so if you’re in the Class of 2023, now is the time to learn about the Watson Fellowship (If you’re in 2024 or 2025, you’re welcome to come hear about this opportunity and think ahead).

Questions can be directed to fellowships@wesleyan.edu.

Spring Waste Not

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Are you interested in collecting stuff? And sorting and storing said stuff? Want to be part of a great team and help carry on one of Wesleyan’s greatest traditions? Then apply to work for Waste Not! Waste Not is Wesleyan’s student-run spring “stuff” collection and fall tag sale.  Join the volunteer team to help reduce waste, avoid capitalistic consumption, and provide affordable goods to other students in the fall.

In the spring, you’ll be helping collect donations from students moving out, then sorting and storing it for the summer so that the sale can go on without a hitch in the fall. If you’re interested, fill out this form by Thursday, April 28 at 11:59 PM! Volunteers must work on Saturday, May 14 (8 hours) and Monday, May 23 (9 hours), as well as about 8 hours additional time between those dates. 

Perks include:

– free housing

– a $60 food stipend 

– free food on move-out days

– first dibs on free stuff from Waste Not

TEDxWesleyanU

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Don’t miss the TEDxWesleyanU 2022 conference on Saturday 4/23 at 1pm in Beckham Hall! Tickets are on sale now for $15 for students and $20 for non-students and can be purchased at TEDxWesleyanU.com. A ticket purchase includes a free sweet treat, free event merch, access to our photo booth, exclusive student group performances and more!