45th Reunion Class of 1972

Reunion Recap

What a weekend! To quote classmate Dave Hagerty, “From Andy Feinstein leading us to O’Rourke’s fabulous cuisine and intimate atmosphere to Tom Wu, Bonnie Blair, Seth Davis, Steward Reid and Bruce Throne showing their intellectual insight on energy and climate change to Michael Kaloyanides, Blake Allison, Stephen Blum, Michael Kisbauch and Lisa Itts transporting us with such musical skills to our magical times at Wesleyan, it was an amazing and rich weekend. Looking forward to 2022.”

We missed all the classmates that couldn’t make it back to campus but we look forward to catching up with each other at our next Reunion. As Andy Feinstein said, “We’ve got the coolest class from the coolest university. That was a terrific weekend, with the high point being the band on Saturday evening. I suggest we plan an extravaganza for the 50th.” Mark your calendars for May, 2022!

Check out pictures and posts from the weekend on the Facebook group Wesleyan in the 70s. If you’d like to share any other Reunion stories or chat about anything else related to Wesleyan, email Kate Quigley Lynch ’82, P’17, ’19.

So far, the class has raised just over $107,000 for the Wesleyan Fund with a goal of $130,000.The class Reunion gift which includes multi-year gifts and pledges totals just over $800,000. Our goal is $828,000. It’s not too late to make a gift and for every gift, of any amount, made before midnight on June 30, the Board of Trustees will donate $500 to financial aid, up to $1 million. GIVE


Reunion Committee Members

  • V. Blake Allison III
  • Bonnie Blair
  • Pat Bauer
  • Jean Christensen
  • Seth A. Davis
  • Richard Easton
  • Paul Edelberg
  • Andrew Feinstein
  • Steve Goldschmidt
  • Dave Hagerty
  • Peter Hicks
  • Michael G. Kaloyanides
  • Randall Pinkston
  • Stewart Mills Reid
  • Rob Seigel
  • Steven M. Sheffrin
  • Paul Vidich
  • Leon F. Vinci
  • Bob White

Events

Thursday, May 25, 2017

2:00 PM to 10:00 PM
Registration
Everyone—alumni, parents, students, and families—please check in for a final weekend schedule (with updates and event locations), meal tickets, a welcome packet, campus maps, and more.
Usdan University Center (show in map)

Friday, May 26, 2017

9:00 AM to 11:30 PM
Registration
Everyone—alumni, parents, students, and families—please check in for a final weekend schedule (with updates and event locations), meal tickets, a welcome packet, campus maps, and more.
Usdan University Center (show in map)
11:30 AM to 1:30 PM
Welcome Picnic Lunch
Join friends, classmates, and family members for lunch when you arrive on campus for the weekend.
TICKETS: This lunch requires advance purchase/registration. Lunch is included for members of reunion classes with a flat rate fee (5th, 10th, and 50th Reunion classes). Lunch is complimentary for WESeniors (Classes of 1940 through 1966) and their guests. To make sure that we have an accurate number of meals, we'd like to know if reunion alumni who have the flat rate fee and who are WESeniors plan to attend this lunch.  Please click on the Friday lunch option when registering if you plan to attend. All other reunion classes and parents and families of graduating seniors will be charged the following for lunch:
$20 per person for all other adults and children over age 12 (including graduates)
$10 per person for children 12 and under
Russell House Lawn 
5:00 PM to 6:30 PM
President’s Reception Honoring Leadership Donors and Volunteers

Please join President Michael Roth '78 and the Wesleyan Board of Trustees at a reception celebrating members of the Wesleyan Leadership Societies. Wesleyan Leadership Societies—the Wesleyan Circle, the 1831 Society, the Olin Associates—recognize the extraordinary commitment and support of Wesleyan leadership donors and volunteers. By invitation only.
President’s House Lawn

5:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Red, Black, and Green! All-College Dinner
Join friends, classmates, and family members for an informal, eco-friendly buffet dinner in the Marketplace at the Usdan University Center.
TICKETS: This event requires advance purchase/registration. Dinner is included in the registration fee for WESeniors (Classes of 1942-1966) and members of reunion classes with a flat rate fee (5th, 10th, and 50th reunion classes). To make sure that we have an accurate number of meals, we'd like to know if reunion alumni who have the flat rate fee and who are WESeniors plan to attend this dinner.  Please click on the Friday Red, Black, and Green Dinner option when registering if you plan to attend. All other reunion classes, parents and families of graduating seniors will be charged the following when they register:
$20 per person for adults and children over age 12 (including graduates)
$10 per person for children 12 and under
Usdan University Center
6:00 PM to 7:30 PM
45th Reunion Reception for the Class of 1972
McKelvey Room, Stewart M. Reid House, Office of Admission
6:30 PM to 7:30 PM
Shabbat Services
Please join Wesleyan’s Jewish chaplain, Rabbi David Leipziger Teva, and the Wesleyan Jewish community for Shabbat services. All are welcome. No reservations necessary.
The Bayit, 157 Church Street
7:30 PM to 9:30 PM
’72 Dinner at O’Rourke’s Diner

A trip to Middletown wouldn’t be complete without a stop at O’Rourke’s Diner, which looks the same as it did in 1970, but, because of the brilliant heart-based cooking of Brian O'Rourke, is now something of a gastronomic mecca. Catch up with ’72 classmates over dinner that will range from steamed cheeseburgers to culinary delights! Dinner is $60 per person. RSVP to Andy Feinstein ’72 (feinsteinandrew1950@gmail.com). First-come, first served. Seating is very limited.
O'Rourke's Diner, 728 N Main Street

7:45 PM to 10:00 PM
Shabbat Dinner
At this special dinner for returning alumni, graduating seniors, and their families, we will welcome Shabbat with song, food, and joyful fellowship.
TICKETS: This dinner requires advance purchase/registration.
$20 per person for all and children over age 12 (including graduates)
$10 per person for children 12 and under
Daniel Family Commons, Usdan University Center
9:00 PM to 11:00 PM
Stargazing
View some celestial wonders through the renovated 20-inch Clark refractor.  Weather permitting.
Van Vleck Observatory
10:00 PM to 1:00 AM
Friday Night Annual Reunion Party
All are welcome! Come dance the night away and mingle with classmates, fellow alumni and graduates. Featuring alumni bands The Straw Dogs and Balloon.
10  p.m.-11:30 p.m.: The Racquets with band members Sam Beck '17; Jared Feinberg '17; Ryan Breen '17; Jeremy Freeman '17
11:30 p.m. - 1 a.m.: Balloon with band members Nick Earhart '07; Nick Nauman '07; Michael Hurder '07; Owen Roberts '07
Eclectic

Saturday, May 27, 2017

8:00 AM to 10:00 PM
Registration
Everyone—alumni, parents, students, and families—please check in for a final weekend schedule (with updates and event locations), meal tickets, a welcome packet, campus maps, and more.
Usdan University Center (show in map)
8:00 AM to 10:00 AM
Annual Family Swim
Enjoy a morning swim in the Freeman Athletic Center pool. Towels will be provided.
Freeman Athletic Center (show in map)
8:30 AM to 10:00 AM
Cardinal Loop Fun Run (2.1, 3.2, 4.3 Mile Courses)
Start the day off with an exhilarating run through campus.
Meet at the base of Foss Hill (show in map)
9:00 AM to 10:00 AM
Education and Ideas in Dark Times: A Conversation with President Michael S. Roth ’78 and Leon Wieseltier

Speakers: Michael S. Roth '78 became the 16th president of Wesleyan University on July 1, 2007. Formerly president of California College of the Arts (CCA), Roth is known as a historian, curator, author and public advocate for liberal education. A professor in history and the humanities since 1983, Roth was the founding director of the Scripps College Humanities Institute in Claremont, Calif., a center for intellectual exchange across disciplines. He developed a reputation as a leader in the arts community through his accomplishments as associate director of the Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles and his success as President of the California College of the Arts in enhancing that institution’s academic quality, national reputation and financial strength. Roth describes his scholarly interests as centered on "how people make sense of the past." He has authored six books, most recently, Beyond the University: Why Liberal Education Matters (Yale University Press, 2014). Leon Wieseltier is the Isaiah Berlin Senior Fellow in Culture and Policy at the Brookings Institution. He has had a long and distinguished career as a writer, editor, and social and political commentator. From 1983 to 2014, he was the literary editor of The New Republic and currently serves as a contributing editor and critic at The Atlantic. Wieseltier holds a bachelor's from Columbia University and was a member of the Society of Fellows at Harvard University. At Oxford University, he studied under Isaiah Berlin. He holds honorary doctorates from Brandeis University and the Jewish Theological Seminary, and was awarded the Dan David Prize in 2013. He is the author of several books, including the widely acclaimed Kaddish (Knopf, 1998).
Commons, Fries Center for Global Studies, Fisk Hall

10:00 AM to 11:00 AM
Memorial Service
The service remembers all alumni who have passed away. Individuals are invited to offer personal remembrances.
Memorial Chapel (show in map)
10:00 AM to 11:00 AM
Crew Reception and Alumni Row
Relive good times on the water.  All former oarsmen, oarswomen, and friends are invited to gather at the boathouse for an afternoon row and refreshments.
Macomber Boathouse, 35 Harbor Drive
11:15 AM to 12:00 PM
Assemble for the Annual Parade of Classes
Seniors and their families are invited to join alumni for this traditional Wesleyan festivity featuring a live Dixieland band. The parade is scheduled to begin promptly at 11:30 a.m. rain or shine, and is followed immediately by the Assembly and Annual Meeting. Look for the class year signs and line-up beside the sign with the year you graduated.  The parade begins on Huss Courtyard (behind the Usdan University Center) and parades around the Memorial Chapel onto McKelvey Green.  All parade participants are encouraged to parade into the Memorial Chapel for the Wesleyan Assembly and Alumni Association Meeting.
Huss Courtyard, Usdan University Center (show in map)
12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Wesleyan Assembly and Alumni Association Meeting

This year's featured speaker is distinguished alumnus award recipient, Nicholas J. Rasmussen '87, Director of the National Counterterrorism Center who will speak on "The Pursuit of Public Service in a Politically Divided America: Reflections of a Career Civil Servant." 

The 2017 Distinguished Alumni, McConaughy, and Outstanding Service Awards are presented at this time.

Distinguished Alumni Awards are presented to alumni in recognition of achievement in their professions.
Michele A. Roberts '77
Amy Schulman '82, P'11
Tos Chirathivat '85, P'14,'17
Nicholas J. Rasmussen '87
Isaac O. Shongwe '87
Santi White '97
Robert Lewis Allbritton '92

The James L. McConaughy Jr. Award was established in 1959 by the class of 1936 in memory of James L. McConaughy Jr. '36, the James L. McConaughy Jr. Memorial Award recognizes a member of the Wesleyan family (including students, faculty, alumni, parents, and members of their respective families) whose writing, or other creative achievement, conveys unusual insight and understanding of current and past events.
Matthew H. Weiner '87, P'18

The Outstanding Service Award is presented to alumni, parents, or other members of the Wesleyan community in recognition of outstanding volunteer service to Wesleyan, their community, or the nation.
Rick Nicita '67
Memorial Chapel

1:00 PM to 2:00 PM
Strolling Magician and Magic Show
For children of all ages!
Andrus Field (show in map)
1:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Picnic and Festival on Foss Hill
This lively festival of entertainment and games is a great place to connect with friends and family members between WESeminars and other weekend programs. Don’t miss the magic show, tattoos, and more. Lunches are portable and can be picked up on your way to Foss Hill, afternoon WESeminars, or other events and destinations.
TICKETS: This lunch requires advance purchase/registration. Lunch is included for members of reunion classes with a flat rate fee (5th, 10th, and 50th reunion classes). Lunch is complimentary for WESeniors (Classes of 1942 through 1966) and their guests. To make sure that we have an accurate number of meals, we'd like to know if reunion alumni who have the flat rate fee and who are WESeniors plan to attend this lunch.  Please click on the Saturday Festival on Foss Hill lunch option when registering if you plan to attend. All other reunion classes, graduates, and parents and families of the graduates will be charged the following for lunch:
$15 per person for adults and children (including graduates)
Tent, Andrus Field and Foss Hill (show in map)
3:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Alumni of Color (AOC)/ Students of Color (SOC) Reception
Please join us at a reception honoring Alumni and Students of Color. All are welcome.
Tent adjacent to the Center for African American Studies
3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) Alumni Reception
Please join members of the LGBTQ Alumni Network, parents and friends as we welcome graduating seniors to the alumni community.
McKelvey Room, Stewart M. Reid House, Office of Admission (show in map)
4:00 PM to 5:00 PM
WESEMINAR Sustainability, Climate Change, and Energy in an Era of Alternative Facts

Members of the Class of 1972 who have spent the bulk of their careers working in the environmental and energy sector will discuss their professional experiences, and exchange thoughts about the future of sustainability, environmental law, and renewable energy in the Age of Trump. Panelists have had experience representing developers of renewable energy, oil and gas exploration, municipal power suppliers, manufacturers, land owners, and environmental groups.
Speakers: Bonnie Blair ’72; a partner in the Washington, D.C. office of Thompson Coburn, LLP, primarily represents cities that operate electric systems for the benefit of their citizens.  Much of her work focuses on the energy markets operated by the California Independent System Operator Corporation, referred to as the California ISO, which has been in the vanguard of incorporating renewable energy resources into electricity markets and delivery systems. Seth Davis ’72, a partner in Elias Group LLP in Rye, New York, has specialized in environmental law since 1980. He is currently Chair of the American Bar Association’s Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources. Stewart Reid ’72 is the Chairman and CEO of Millbrae Energy, and has 30 years of experience in the oil and gas business and is highly experienced in the financial as well as the drilling, acquisition and production aspects of the industry. Previously, Mr. Reid founded SMR Energy, a private oil and gas acquisition purchaser, and prior to entering the energy business, Mr. Reid practiced law at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett. Bruce Throne '72, privileged to have attended Professor Clem Vose's Constitutional Law class, has practiced primarily regulatory and energy law in Santa Fe, New Mexico since 1976 and recently assisted Facebook, Inc., a member of the corporate Renewable Energy Buyers Alliance, with the development and regulatory approval of New Mexico's first "green energy tariff" for electric utility service for its newest data center.
Moderator: Barry Chernoff, Director, College of the Environment; Chair, Environmental Studies Program; Robert Schumann Professor of Environmental Studies; Professor of Biology, Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences
Sponsored by the Wesleyan Lawyers Association
Room 116, Judd Hall

4:00 PM to 5:30 PM
Annual Reception Honoring Retiring Faculty

All are welcome to honor members of the faculty who retire this year.
Retiring Faculty 2017:

  • David Beveridge, Joshua Boger University Professor of the Sciences and Mathematics and Professor of Chemistry (attending)
  • John Finn, Professor of Government
  • Albert Fry, E.B. Nye Professor of Chemistry (attending)
  • Peter Patton, Alan M. Dachs Professor of Science and Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences (attending)
  • Rex Pratt, Beach Professor of Chemistry
  • Michael Roberts, Robert Rich Professor of Latin and Professor of Classical Studies (attending)
  • Ruth Striegel Weissman, Walter A. Crowell University Professor of the Social Sciences

In addition, we will honor faculty who retired in 2016:

  • Abraham Adzenyah, Adjunct Professor of Music, Emeritus
  • Philip Bolton, Professor of Chemistry, Emeritus
  • Alex Dupuy, Professor of Sociology, Emeritus (attending)
  • Mark Slobin, Winslow-Kaplan Professor of Music, Emeritus

Susan B. and William K. Wasch Center for Retired Faculty, 51 Lawn Avenue

5:30 PM to 9:00 PM
Reunion Class Receptions and Dinners
WESeniors (Classes of 1942–1966) and the Classes of 1957, 1962, 1967, 1972, 1977, 1982, 1987, 1992, 1997, 2002, 2007, and 2012 gather for their Class Dinners and special programs.

WESeniors: Andersen Meeting Room (110), Usdan University Center
1952: Andersen Meeting Room (110), Usdan University Center
1957: Taylor Meeting Room (108), Usdan University Center
1962: Olson Commons, Gordon Career Center
1967: Campbell Reference Center, Olin Memorial Library
1972: Patricelli '92 Theater
1977: Mink Dining Wing, Usdan University Center
1982: Daniel Family Commons, Usdan University Center 
1987: President's House Lawn
1992: Beckham Hall, Fayerweather
1997: Tent with red flag, McKelvey Green (lawn in front of College Row)
2002: Tent with black flag, McKelvey Green (lawn in front of College Row)
2007: The West Wing, Usdan University Center
2012: Russell House Lawn

TICKETS: Each dinner requires advance purchase/registration. Dinner is included for members of reunion classes with a flat rate fee (5th, 10th, and 50th reunion classes) and is complimentary for WESeniors (Classes of 1942 through 1966) and their guests. All other reunion classes will be charged the following for dinner:
$55 per person
9:30 PM to 10:00 PM
Traditional All-College Sing
Steps of North College; Rainsite: Memorial Chapel
10:00 PM to 1:00 AM
All-Campus Party featuring The Rooks
All are welcome to attend this year's annual All-Campus Party with The Rooks. Open to all. Don't miss it. Cash bar. ID required. Bar closes at 12:45 a.m. No outside alcohol permitted. 

The Rooks, formed at Wesleyan in the fall of 2011, are equal parts kick-back, head-knock, and get-down; the music you rock to at the party, and the perfect soundtrack for the ride home.

Hard-hitting performances at NYC's Irving Plaza, Mercury Lounge and Brooklyn Bowl, as well as highly successful residencies at Arlene's Grocery and Pianos NYC (second highest grossing residency in venue history) have earned them further acclaim, including Deli Magazine's Artist of the Month award (Feb 2014) and win of the 14th Annual Independent Music Awards in the R&B/Soul category.

After their 2013 EP "Something You Can Take," their 2015 follow-up "Wires," several tours, and more hours watching Beyoncé videos on YouTube than they care to admit, The Rooks are getting into the studio to work on their first full-length album.

Band members: Graham Richman '11, Guitar; Spencer Hattendorf '12, Sax, Vox; Garth Taylor '12, Lead Vox; Connor Schultze, Bass (Manhattan School of Music 2016); Donnie Spackman, Drums; Daniel Papson, Keys (Skidmore College 2012)
Tent, Andrus Field

Sunday, May 28, 2017

8:00 AM to 2:00 PM
Registration and Information
Usdan University Center
9:00 AM to 10:00 AM
Roman Catholic Mass
Memorial Chapel

Accommodations

Courtyard by Marriott, Cromwell
860-635-1001
Rate: $195/night
Block cutoff date: 5/4/17

Class Notes

[Read Class Notes]

Please send new notes to the Class Secretary:

Seth A. Davis
sethdavis@post.harvard.edu

Your contact information

[Update Contact Information]

Be sure to update your contact information on Wesconnect so that your classmates can get in touch. For fast signup help contact the Wesconnect staff.

Staff Contact

Kate Quigley Lynch '82, P'17, P'19
Assistant Director
(860) 685-5992
klynch@wesleyan.edu