Policy out of controversy

This past Wednesday, the Fountain Avenue Commission e-mailed every student on campus a long list of proposed reforms to the University’s security policy.

ITS hopes to connect WebMail to Gmail

Next semester, Information Technology Services (ITS) will give students the option of transferring from their current University-run WebMail account to a Gmail account run by Google Apps for Education.

Holt apologizes

A few hours after my column ran this Tuesday (“Mytheology: Wesleyan Viewed from the Right: It’s a Brand New Day,” Nov. 11, 2008, Volume CXLIV, Number 19) I received an angry e-mail from a friend about my usage of the slogan “Arbeit Macht Frei.”

WSA approves Fountain recs

After two months of meetings, proposals, and finalizations, the Wesleyan Student Assembly (WSA) announced on Wednesday that it has completed a list of specific recommendations in response to last spring's incident on Fountain Avenue. The compilation of proposals incorporated concerns about multiple issues, ranging from student awareness of their rights to University camera policy to Public Safety (PSafe) and Middletown Police Department (MPD) protocol.

Univ. raises Guest Policy awareness

The Office of Student Affairs and Residential Life (ResLife) have begun a campaign to increase student awareness and use of the University overnight guest policy, citing the large number of students and their unregistered guests who have been documented for violating the code of Non-Academic Conduct. A link to the policy, which requires all overnight guests to fill out a contact and medical form, has been permanently placed under the “Student Life at Wesleyan” section of the E-Portfolio after rotating through the alert box.

Benjamin’s paper trail of bigotry

In seeking to summon up a coherent response to the Wespeak by Martin Benjamin ’57 featured in the Nov. 7 Argus (“Open letter to President Roth,” Volume CXLIV, Number 18), I decided to do a Google search for the terms “Martin Benjamin” and “Wesleyan University.”

Adopt a puffin!

Dear Wesleyan community, We’d like to enlist your help to adopt a puffin.

Former Duke Day thrives as Loud Spirits Day

WestCo held its annual fall celebration this past Saturday with a new name and several other additions to its standard music festival formula. WestCo voted to rename the event “Loud Spirits Day” after complaints from Residential Life (ResLife) last year about the drug connotations of the festival’s traditional title, “Duke Day” (named for a character in Gary Trudeau’s Doonesbury comics).

Lesser ’10 wins Conn. State House seat

After years of organizing for Democrats such as John Kerry and Barack Obama, Matt Lesser ’10, who is currently on leave from the University, will serve as Democratic Representative for the 100th district of Connecticut. Lesser won a tightly contested race against three-term incumbent Representative Raymond Kalinowski (R), in which Lesser received 6,154 votes—51 percent of votes cast—while Kalinowski received 5,833.

Wesleying fundraiser succeeds

Change has come to Wesleying, the student-run blog read by thousands of students and alumni. The site, unaffiliated with the University’s administration, recently began soliciting donations to keep the blog running for the next two years, and surpassed its goal of $200 in only three days.

Dear Obama supporters: have you read the Constitution?

In my mind, Ron Paul represents more genuine and American CHANGE than Obama ever will.

U.S. military must act to end genocide in Darfur

At least 300,000 dead; 2.5 million displaced; rape, pillaging and destruction of villages; ethnic cleansing; genocide of innocent civilians, including women and children. I am, of course, talking about the ongoing situation in Darfur, Sudan.

Students invest Univ. funds with success

With the ongoing financial crisis, even the most experienced investors are uncertain about the economy’s future. For several students, however, a little bit of research and time goes a long way—in the month of October, the student-run Wesleyan Investment Group (WIG) made returns of nearly 50 percent on its stocks and options, drastically outpacing the national market.

Dancers dazzle in senior thesis show

The '92 Theater just wasn't big enough to hold the audience that waited in the Zilkha Pavilion to see the Fall Senior Thesis Dance Concert, "Signs for Life," that took place last weekend.

Lim mixes teaching, scholarship

In his first year at the University, Assistant Professor of Government Elvin Lim has become one of the most prominent new professors on campus. Besides being frequently featured on the front page of the University website for his quotations in newspapers across the country, he was also a featured speaker at the Wesleyan Student Assembly’s (WSA) Election Night party and appears on numerous panel lectures on American politics. Despite all of these commitments, students say that Lim still manages to conduct lively class discussions.

The Cine-Files

This week on the Film Series we will deliver on our promise to screen a movie that was in heavy demand.

Contra dance community forms at Wes

“Contra Dance? It’s awesome,” said Morgan Hamill ’11. “It’s like the only tradition New England has left—that and town meetings”

Cutting Green

Just off of Main Street stands a tall brick building, piped with bright blue and green railings. Inside, the air is thick with the smell of paint, pencils and after-school snacks as Middletown youth jostle excitedly, waiting for their afternoon of production and creativity to begin.

Latino Awareness Month highlights ‘Many Faces’

When Luz Burgos ’09, one of the six members of the Ajua Campos Board, finished finals last spring, she still had school-related tasks to complete—she began planning November’s 19th annual Latino Awareness Month as early as July.

Movie Review: “The Haunting of Molly Hartley”

“Molly Hartley” is a fragmented, confusingly subjective psycho-narrative in the guise of a slick teen movie; it draws on images, ideas, and questions that have always obsessed the horror genre and puts them in a blender.

Event Pick: Terp!

The Terpsichore Dance Troupe has their fall concert this weekend in the World Music Hall.

Reading group learns outside of classroom

While most reading groups usually meet to discuss written works, it is not unusual for the University’s “Underground” Reading Group to spend two hours watching and discussing a movie about a pet cemetery.

Expresiones celebrates Latino culture

Expresiones, a showcase of student dance, music and spoken word, is an annual event organized by Ajà°a Campos, a student group dedicated to celebrating Latino culture.

Bon Appetit, student groups work to reduce food waste

In the category of catering to liberal campus interests, Bon Appetit is having a monster year. Not only is it in the final round of PETA2’s vegetarian contest, but the dining organization is now working with the student environmental groups Environmental Organizers Network (EON) and the Food Salvage Program in an effort to go green.

Album Review: "The Renaissance" by Q-Tip

It often takes a few listens of a new CD to appreciate its sound, but Q-Tip's "The Renaissance," released on Nov. 4, is overwhelmingly infectious from the start.

Men’s Ice Hockey: Dallas Bossort ’09

With winter comes men’s ice hockey, and with men’s ice hockey comes Dallas Bossort ’09. Bossort is a four-year starting defenseman for the Cardinals and a captain on the 2008-2009 squad.

‘Somewhere’considers internal difference

"Somewhere in the Middle” chronicled the story of George William Gordon (1820-1865), a genuine hero, less from a historical standpoint—though the play contained few references to the history of the time (most notably, Gordon referenced the absent character of Paul Bogle various times)—than a psychological one.

Ali Fourney ’09: Women’s Basketball

In 2007-08, the women’s basketball team completed its eighth straight winning season with a 17-9 record, which included back-to-back double-digit wins over Williams, the second coming in the quarterfinals of last year’s NESCAC Championship. The Cardinals are looking to build on last season’s success this season, and much of their fortunes are resting on the shoulders of the ninth-leading scorer in Wesleyan women’s basketball history, Ali Fourney ’09.

Dan Bloom ’10: Wrestling

There are many reasons why the wrestling team is looking forward to this season with great anticipation, after an 8-8 campaign last year and a preseason ranking of sixth among New England Wrestling Association (NEWA) teams. One of them is 125-pounder Dan Bloom ’10, who last season had a 16-9 overall record and placed fourth in his weight class in the NEWA Championships.

Book Review: “Zaha Hadid Complete Works”

“Zaha Hadid Complete Works” (edited by Gordana Fontana-Giusti and Patrik Schimacher) provides several explanations of Zaha Hadid’s most recent building, the Chanel Pavilion, through the display of the architect’s many drawings and paintings.

Lauren Cruz ’09: Women’s Swimming and Diving

Lauren Cruz ’09 is one of many key returnees this year for the women’s swimming and diving team. Cruz, who is from Forest Hills, N.Y., looks to lead the team from the diving board as it jumps back into the water this season.