issue 2.2   |   08.13.2007   |   http://www.wesleyan.edu/deans/fym/

The First Year Matters newsletter is published by the Office of the Dean of the College and features information about academic and community life at Wesleyan; news about events and happenings on campus; and profiles of people and their work.

Academics

As you plan for your arrival at Wesleyan at the end of this month, please review A New Student's Guide to Academic Advising and Planning at Wesleyan. The Guide is designed to help you think about your educational goals by providing advice on how to get the most out of your relationship with your faculty advisor and guidance on how to build a program of study. The Guide also provides information about study abroad and the major declaration process, as well as information on the honor code and the procedures of the Honor Board. During New Student Orientation, the SARN Peer Advisors will be available in residence halls to assist new students in preparing for their individual meetings with their faculty advisors and maintain a regular presence in the residence halls during the academic year where they provide information and referral to academic services and resources. If you have any questions now, visit the SARN Peer Advisors on-line at the Peer Advisor blog. Anyone can browse the blog, but only authenticated members of the Wesleyan community may post comments.

Have You Taken Your On-Line Placement Tests Yet?

Placement testing in math is required of all new students. In addition, foreign language placement tests are required of new students who have studied a language previously and are considering further study while at Wesleyan. French, Italian, Russian and Spanish placement tests are available on-line through the e-portfolio. For additional information, click here.

The deadline to complete all on-line testing is August 27, 2007. Complete your tests soon!

Events

New Student Orientation introduces new students to the Wesleyan community and assists with the transition to university life. The combined Orientation programs consist of International Student Orientation for new international students (August 24-27) and New Student Orientation, for the Class of 2011 as well as new transfer, exchange, and visiting students (August 28-September 3). As you get ready to arrive at Wesleyan, look through the New Student Orientation website to find more information about Orientation week activities. The Orientation office is staffed with five Orientation Interns who are happy to answer questions. They can be reached at (860) 685-6667 or at orientation@wesleyan.edu.

In cooperation with the Raymond E. Baldwin Lecture Fund, the First Year Matters Program , the Offices of Affirmative Action, Residential Life, Student Activities & Leadership Development, and the Dean of the College, Wesleyan University is proud to announce that Helen Zia will be giving the 2007 Welcome Address entitled "Crossing Boundaries in a 'Minority' Majority America and other Diversity Challenges."

Helen Zia is an award-winning journalist and a contributing editor to Ms. magazine, where she was formerly executive editor. She is author of numerous articles and books including Asian-American Dreams: The Emergence of an American People, published in March 2000. (Read a review and excerpt from her book.) A second-generation Chinese American, Zia has been a feminist activist for more than two decades on social justice issues, and has long been active in the Asian-American civil rights movement.

The address is scheduled for Wednesday, September 5, 2007, at 4:30 p. m. in the Memorial Chapel. This is a wonderful opportunity to hear one of the leading scholars of our time share her ideas regarding social justice.

Other welcome week events include Thursday night's Coffeehouse at Usdan University Center, Friday's Grand Opening of the Suzanne Lemberg Usdan University Center from 3:30 -6:00 p. m., and Saturday's outdoor movie. Watch the Events Calendar for specifics on these events!

Community

Your "One Shot" Legacy, Photos and Exhibit

Charles Teenie “One Shot” Harris was known for his uncanny ability to capture the legacy of a moment with a single shot, so its impact could span beyond that point in time. Similar to choreographer Ronald K. Brown who created the dance performance inspired by One Shot’s work, we ask that you engage in exploring your own legacy through a single photograph. View the Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE DVD that you received in the July mailing and visit Teenie “One Shot” Harris’ work on-line and then read the supplemental readings available through your e-portfolio.

Each of you has your own legacy, too! Consider what your legacy is and attempt to catch a moment of your legacy in one shot.  Bring your one-shot photograph to your first residential hall meeting at 9:15 p. m. on Tuesday, August 28.  You will put it up on a bulletin board located in designated areas within the residence halls to collectively create an exhibition that reflects the Class of 2011’s and all new students’ mosaic of legacies and contributions to the Wesleyan community. Your photograph must be no larger than 3 inches by 5 inches with your full name clearly printed on the back.  Please note that your picture will not be returned to you.  The First Year Matters program will archive the Class of 2011 and incoming students’ exhibits for future opportunities to revisit your legacies and extend your moment in time. 

If you have questions, contact  Dean Danny Teraguchi at dteraguchi@wesleyan.edu.

Health and Safety

Transitioning to Campus Life College life, as exciting as it is, can be significantly different from your past experiences. New environment, new friends, new classes, new ideas, new experiences are yours for the taking! There is familiarity with being a student since you've been doing that most of your life, but you may need to adapt your study habits to a less structured and more demanding academic environment. And you may be living on your own for the first time, responsible for everything from getting up on time for class to doing your own laundry to budgeting your money. A few suggestions for managing the transition:

• Talk with friends and family members who have recently attended college about their experiences transitioning to campus life -- the challenges, the joys, the things they wish they knew starting out. You may be able to glean some words of wisdom!
• Make a plan with your parents/guardians for how frequently you will talk and email. Strive for regular, but not daily, contact. It will help you concentrate on adjusting to Wesleyan while still reducing the likelihood of feeling homesick.
• Once on campus, seek out opportunities to get involved in one or two activities outside the classroom. Focus on quality, not quantity. You have plenty of time over the next four years to try out everything!
• Being a college student does not have to equal being unhealthy. Strive for balanced eating habits, a regular sleep pattern and a manageable workload.
 
• If you are of age and choose to consume alcohol while on campus, party with a plan! It will greatly reduce your risk for problems related to your own consumption. Learn more about how to do this with Randy Haveson during New Student Orientation.
• Keep up your exercise routine at Wesleyan's great athletic facilities, with WesWELL's non-credit fitness classes, or on your own. Physical activity greatly helps with reducing stress levels and with mental acuity.
• Ask for help if you need it academically or personally. We want to help you succeed!
• Pick up more tips for adjusting to campus life here.

Ping My Health! WesWELL, the Office of Health Education, offers a free online health assessment called PingMyHealth to help you keep on top of your health. It is completely anonymous and confidential, only takes a few minutes to complete, and offers immediate personalized feedback...plus a chance to win an iPod. Ping your health today!

People

Emily Malkin '08

Emily Malkin ’08, from Cincinnati, Ohio, is a History major researching and writing a thesis on British Imperialism. She has received a grant from Wesleyan to return to South Africa for the month of August to do research on English-speaking South Africans in Cape Town in the 1930's and 40's, during the fall of the British Empire and the rise of Afrikaner nationalism. She has worked at the Middletown YMCA as a lifeguard, swim instructor and youth and lifeguard coordinator; worked in the Admissions office as a WesFest intern and is a senior interviewer this coming year.

Malkin has a passion for community outreach – both on campus and in the local community of Middletown. It never crossed her mind when she applied, and then was appointed, to the Wesleyan Student Assembly’s (“WSA”) Community Outreach Committee (COCo), that she would one day be the elected vice-president of the WSA. Malkin and Matt Ball ’08, the president of WSA, are committed to representing Wesleyan students in the best ways possible and keeping the student body aware of WSA activities. Malkin urges students to ask the WSA about starting a student group or applying for WSA funding to support activities. The WSA also plays a role in helping to shape campus and administrative policies. It is one of WSA's main jobs to represent the interests and needs of students to the Wesleyan administration and Board of Trustees. Students should contact the WSA with their concerns and suggestions. WSA represents the student body on many Wesleyan governance committees from the Educational Policy Committee to the Student Life Committee. WSA can bring your concerns to the table when decisions are made about life at Wesleyan – and make a difference! Malkin’s work with the WSA has been rewarding in that she has seen how Wesleyan as an institution has evolved since her first year and knows that she played some small part in helping to make the decisions that led to what Wesleyan is today.

Janice Watson

Janice Watson, from Middletown, CT, is the mother of 3 young adults. Currently, she is pursuing an associates' degree in science at Manchester Community College. She has recently moved from the Office of the President to the Office for Diversity and Academic Advancement as the Administrative Assistant. Watson enjoyed her six years working with former President Doug Bennet and his office. There she had the opportunity to work with the Bennet family, the Board of Trustees, faculty, staff and some students. She particularly enjoyed meeting alumni, especially the ones who would visit and reminisce about their times living in the dormitory of their college years - South College!

However, she wanted to have more interaction with the student body and help students succeed at Wesleyan. Working in the Office for Diversity and Academic Advancement is especially meaningful for Watson. Watson believes that it is important for students to see and work with a wide array of faculty and staff. She looks forward to learning about and sharing histories and life influences while at the same time exchanging differences among commonalities and commonalities among differences with members of the Wesleyan community.

Watson has no doubt in her mind that the class of 2011 includes some of the future's most influential people and is excited to meet you on your arrival day!