Spring is here and finals are just upon us. Time to evaluate this past semester in all its glory.
PRESIDENT MICHAEL ROTH
Grade: B
The honeymoon is over. While Roth came in with exciting new initiatives—such as his grant-based financial aid program and his fundraising efforts—the controversies over Zonker Harris Day, student involvement in the Physical Plant workers union’s protest, and the cancelled museum have alienated some students. We commend Roth on his accessibility through his blog, requests for student and faculty feedback, and attendance at a wide range of student events. He spent the last semester reexamining Wesleyan’s reputation amongst its peer institutions. We hope he keeps in mind why we chose Wes to begin with.
BON APPETIT
Grade: A-
Dining has gone from decent to near perfect. While the food has always been a step up from Aramark, the expansion of the Café, the option of using meals at lunch in the Marketplace, and the addition of art and music to the cafeterias have vastly improved our dining experience. Additionally, the renewal of the UNITE-HERE Local 217 dining workers union’s contract is a plus. Only downgrade: the complicated to-go system is a bit absurd.
STUDENT INVOLVEMENT
Grade: A-
Props to student groups for planning interdisciplinary programs. EON, SEWI and WesPeace co-coordinated Earth Day festivities. The “Making Democracy Work” conference tomorrow was organized by the Roosevelt Institution, and sponsored by Traverse Square, Campus Progress, the WSA’s New York Times Readership Program, ADAPT and President Roth. And even the Wesleyan Democrats and the Wesleyan Republicans hosted a political debate together.
AFFORDABILITY
Grade: D
CNN ranked Wesleyan the ninth most expensive university in the nation in 2006, and tuition has only increased since then. While Wesleyan’s new grant-based financial aid program is important, we wonder where our money for course fees and Fire Safety fines is going, and urge the administration to be more transparent about what our money is used for.
WESLEYAN-MIDDLETOWN RELATIONS
Grade: B+
This past semester, national and local politics galvanized our relationship with the Middletown community, as students and residents banded together to vote in the primaries and protest the construction of the Armed Forces Reserve Center by Freeman Road. Additionally, with the reopening of O’Rourke’s, the launching of the Middletown Reads program, and increased submission of Wespeaks by local officials, students are coming to recognize Middletown as their home, not just where they attend school.
Leave a Reply