Abundant curiosity calls for courage — the courage to keep asking questions when no easy answers appear, to risk being wrong, to risk changing your mind� True curiosity isn’t safe; it’s brave� When you follow your deepest questions — about what matters, what lasts and what you can give — you don’t just make a living� You build a life with meaning� Real curiosity is not a hobby� It’s a courageous act � It builds connection, and it keeps alive our sense of wonder� To live abundantly is to live curiously — bravely, generously and joyfully — for a lifetime�
Trustee Emeritus Kirk D. Kolenbrander, who received an honorary Doctor of Science at the 190th Commencement of Wheaton College May 17, 2025
Vol. 115, No. 1
Assistant vice president for marketing and communications, and editor
Wheaton marked the first day of classes with the traditional celebration of Opening Convocation attended by most of the college The senior class donned the robes that they will wear at graduation and led the procession; faculty and first year students followed. All the speakers, including Student Government President Elizabeth McKinley ’26, addressed the theme for this year’s ceremony: empathy and storytelling And our embedded mentoring ceremony exemplifies our values in that seniors pledge to guide and support first years, and first years pledge to seek support and ask questions In this way, we presage their roles as alums who connect to each other and college while providing networking and guidance for students� Amidst the tradition, however, there were new touches� With traditional and joyful bell ringing to mark the graduating class, the ceremony took place on Chapel Field, rather than in The Dimple where it has been held recently� (With so many participating and attending, the field provides more space and accessible pathways ) The academic robes worn by the Class of 2026 were Wheaton blue and sported the college logo, lending color and school spirit to the festivities
That mix of tradition and innovation continues to be Wheaton’s hallmark This academic year brings with it many new initiatives and improvements, all designed to enhance the college’s offerings for today’s students while retaining our commitment to rigor and excellence in arts and sciences
For example, we returned to the tradition of reading a book for the incoming class, The Serviceberry by Robin Wall Limmerer, and all first-year students are participating in a semester-long workshop this fall on life and career planning The workshop is part of a suite of new programs developed by the Life and Career Design Institute in collaboration with faculty� An overarching goal is to help new students develop the skills and habits of
mind to take full advantage of their time at Wheaton and to prepare for their lives and careers (You can read more about that in this issue )
In athletics, men’s volleyball will take the court for the first time this winter–joining a longstanding women’s team
With men’s and women’s fencing and water polo, men’s volleyball is the fifth new varsity sport that the college has introduced in recent years� These additions provide new opportunities for students to pursue their competitive passions—and they are helping to grow Wheaton’s enrollment and geodiversity�
On a related front, the college renovated several vital athletic facilities during the summer, replacing the turf on Nordin Field and overseeing a long-overdue overhaul of the Balfour Natatorium pool and all of its utilities The renovation of the pool will greatly improve the experience of the five varsity teams that now rely on the facility—artistic swimming, men’s and women’s swimming and diving, and men’s and women’s water polo, entering their second season of competition Lore has it that Wheaton now joins Stanford as one of the few colleges offering a full aquatics program!
Building renovations touched a number of student residences this summer as well The college continued its program of upgrading dorms and theme houses, which we began in 2022, replacing floorings and furnishings, repainting interiors and improving common spaces We also completed major improvements to Chapin Hall, restoring the wooden floors and re-tiling the entryway that were essential to the character of the original building, enhancing student rooms and
improving common areas throughout � Students tell me that the remodeled bathrooms are now the envy of the campus� Ironically, the largest and most costly improvement will be largely invisible� The college fixed the old and inadequate storm drainage system running from Howard Street to Peacock Pond � Over the years, small and root-filled pipes caused flooding problems and limited the use of outdoor spaces and buildings around Hebe Court Now with much larger pipes and a special filter system to keep the pond clean, the college can more fully use upper campus and plan to make the courtyard between Watson Fine Arts and Mars Arts and Humanities more inviting for visiting families and our community With multi-year capital planning and a new WheaInnovate Initiative, Wheaton is building on its dynamic history of tradition and transformation Every day, Wheaton faculty, staff and students are partnering to update and evolve the college for the challenges of today and tomorrow While not every change is visible, each one contributes to ensuring that the college can sustain the visionary tradition that matters most: providing a transformative liberal arts education in a collaborative and vibrant extended community and network that values and strives to create an equitable and just world �
Michaele Whelan, President
Members of the track & field team pose with President Whelan at Opening Convocation.
PHOTO BY KEITH NORDSTROM
Pawsitive presence
Certified therapy dog Tito helps promote calm on campus
Sometimes, just being present can make a difference� Witnessing Tito in action, it is easy to see why�
A 6-year-old Australian Cattle Dog mix, Tito joined Wheaton’s Counseling Center in August 2024 to supplement the services offered by the college’s counseling professionals� He quickly became popular on campus— hosting weekly open events, frequently strolling
around campus and collecting followers on Instagram� Visitors regularly greet him with a smile, gently pet his head, and sometimes, are rewarded with a “kiss� ”
Assistant Director of Counseling Carly Ladd, who lives with Tito, brings him to campus on Tuesdays and Fridays� Upon request, he also attends special events, depending on his availability�
“Animal assisted therapy is growing rapidly on college campuses,” Ladd explained, as significant health benefits result from interactions with animals
At the age of one, Tito was adopted by Ladd from an animal shelter in New Bedford, Mass Possessing a calm, mellow demeanor and loving all people, he is certified as a therapy dog and a Canine Good Citizen— a 10-skill test created by the American Kennel Club that teaches good manners to dogs and responsible dog ownership to their owners
Tuesday with Tito sessions are held weekly, either
on the Dimple (weather permitting) or in the Balfour-Hood commuter lounge� It’s an hour of open time for students to relax and hang out with their new furry friend � Attendance ranges from 25 to 40 individuals, with some stopping by for a brief interaction while some groups stay for the hour�
According to the American Pet Products Association, 66 percent of American households own a pet � “Students don’t always realize how much they miss their own pets,” said Ladd, mentioning that some have become emotional after sitting down with Tito
His presence has also enhanced some therapy sessions, according to Ladd “If someone is emotional or hyperventilating and having a panic attack, Tito has helped students calm down and regulate their emotions ”
Tito has also reframed the type of support that students usually associate with a counseling center, which typically centers around talking about sad things “We provide coping skills and host positive programming,” said Ladd, “helping students spend time outside and connect with their peers ”
In May, Tito made his TV debut on “Chronicle,” a news magazine show that airs weeknights on WCVB-TV, Boston’s ABC affiliate. To find out what’s next for Tito—follow him on Instagram @TherapyDogTito�
–By Troy Watkins
Tito shares his affection for students.
PHOTO BY KEITH NORDSTROM
Nursing and acting students hone skills together in clinical simulations
Last spring, aspiring actors and nurses honed their skills together in Wheaton’s clinical simulation center
The scene resembles the setting of a hospital room Nursing students introduce themselves to a patient (a manikin) and set about their work while the patient’s relatives (student actors) look on, asking questions and offering information
For the nursing students, the goal is to accurately assess the patient’s needs and begin treatment while attending to the patient’s family� The actors’ objective: create the history, personality, physical findings, and emotional structure and response pattern of simulated patient cases, improvising as needed
�
Overseeing the simulations, Lori MartoneRoberts, professor of the practice of nursing and director of simulations, said the acting students’ involvement more closely resembles the multitasking nature of nursing practice in real-world settings
“By integrating student actors into simulations, we can offer our nursing students a more dynamic and realistic experience,” said Martone-Roberts “These student actors bring a sense of unpredictability, making scenarios more authentic ”
Gail Byerlee ’27, a nursing major, agrees “It’s helpful to have the students playing the family members,” she said “It’s great to practice balancing communication with the visitors while caring for the patient ” While student nurses are developing their medical and communication skills, student actors are gaining valuable exposure to a field that they might not have known existed �
“Simulation acting is becoming a rapidly
growing area for actors to get regular work,” said Jay Forcello, affiliated instructor of theatre. “Having a course that specifically shows experience in doing medical simulation is a pretty bright light to a potential employer ”
Professional standardized patient actors (SPA) are educated to assist in the training of health care workers Forcello has worked as a SPA since 2020 and has served as an instructor for various programs in Rhode Island
Considering a major in either theatre or philosophy, Angus Larson ’28 shared what he has gained from the acting course� “It
has helped me a lot, especially the simulations—acting in a way that is different from the theatre,” he said “It makes me listen and think about what to say instead of just reciting lines ”
Martone-Roberts is pleased with the reciprocal partnership and looks forward to the future
“This is an exciting area of growth,” she said “And I strongly believe it will continue to evolve in ways that will benefit both nursing students and student actors�”
–By Troy Watkins
Students in a new theatre course entitled “Student Patient Acting” take on the roles of family members for simulations designed to help nursing students hone their skills.
PHOTO BY KEITH NORDSTROM
While it’s true that he has three majors, a 3.88 GPA and was a presenter at the Northeast Modern Language’s Undergraduate Forum in March, Kyler Cummins ’27 is not “always in his room reading a book,” he said.
At the NEMLA forum, Kyler presented original research on the ways Gothic novelist Ann Radcliffe engaged with the male-dominated world of eighteenth-century aesthetic philosophy. His presentation was titled “Landscapes & Seascapes: Comparing Aesthetic Categories in Ann Radcliffe’s A Sicilian Romance.”
A minute with … Kyler Cummins ’27
Tackling three majors: “It’s easier to think about it as one massive study. History, English and German studies are all separate fields, but you can make a lot of cross connections, which is how I look at anything. I love when I get to do a project that interacts with two or more of my majors.”
Customizing your education: “It’s easier to learn about something if you’re passionate about it. Wheaton allows you to do that. I’ve had several assignments where I’ve gotten interested in the prompt, then talked to the professor and asked if I could write it a different way. Every professor has been willing and excited to work with me, which makes it easier for me to write the paper.”
About his research: “I read the book for a course on Gothic literature, and took an interest in the landscapes in one of her scenes. For me, that interest recolored the entire book. When you’re seeing it through a different lens, you see it with an entirely new perspective.”
On presenting: “I interacted a lot with others at the conference, and attended a few panels, which were surprisingly intimate, so I asked questions. While presenting, I learned as the day went on and got better at explaining my project and getting my ideas across concisely.”
Outside of class: “I live in one of the theme houses—the Outdoors House—and I’m on club soccer. I do lots of hiking, rock climbing, and soccer. It’s nice to have separate worlds.”
After graduation: “I’ll probably pursue more education. I’m interested in the academic world. My goal is to find a Ph.D. program either domestically or abroad.”
Professor’s passion for discovery fuels student success
“I love that moment of discovery,” said Katherine Eskine about the most fulfilling aspect of her role as a Wheaton College professor “Watching someone figure something out, that ‘a-ha’ moment on their face; I don’t think life gets better than that ”
The associate professor of psychology has witnessed numerous such breakthroughs and she has experienced them herself A member of the faculty since 2016, Eskine operates a research lab, where she is assisted by 4-8 students each semester and thrives in facilitating the thrill of discovery in others� “It’s such a privilege,” she said� Last year, two of her mentees, Katie Lanni ’25 and Marguerite Bartlett ’25, received highly competitive Psi Chi Undergraduate Research Grants to help fund their research projects� The classmates were among just 28 Psi Chi Grant recipients nationwide in 2024–25�
Lanni explored the role that listening plays in a person’s executive functioning (the skills used to make plans, solve problems and adapt to new situations) She is pursuing a doctorate in occupational therapy at Tufts University
Bartlett investigated the neurological connections involved in stress responses after listening to music and is enrolled in Georgetown University’s M S program in integrative science
Both students’ projects reflect Eskine’s primary area of research: music and cognition They join a growing roster of students with whom she has worked as a professor, a thesis mentor or a collaborating author Several of her former students have published their research in either professional publications or undergraduate journals
“This type of experience helps students realize the work involved and provides a stepping stone to a career path,” she said �
In her current research, Eskine is collecting data for a project analyzing the effect of music on behavior� “I believe that listening to music makes it easier to make far-reaching, looser connections on the right side of our brain, which, when parallel-processed with your very detailed, language-focused left side of the brain, gives you a little bit of an advantage My current study is testing that hypothesis ”
“I love that moment of discovery. Watching someone figure something out, that ‘a-ha’ moment on their face; I don’t think life gets better than that.”
Associate Professor of Psychology
Using electroencephalography (EEG) to record post-processing during the study will enable Eskine to analyze occurrences on each side of the brain, she said, noting that the study will conclude this fall
In addition to her work, Eskine partners with other investigators as well Most recently, she collaborated with several members of the Augusta University, Medical College of Georgia, among others, to publish an article in the
January 2025 issue of Pediatric Emergency Care�
“We had some interesting findings,” she said � “One of which is, if you use a calibrated measure of body temperature, it’s easier to categorize how serious the emergency is for each child � ”
She is also involved in a German study titled Muse-G, working with a group of researchers who collect survey data from five continents
“I ask people what music they listen to for inspiration, because one of the big debates in the field is how preference influences the effects of music,” Eskine shared
She has already found some differences between the sexes and among individuals from different continents “For instance, I could listen to Bob Marley all the time, but others don’t like it,” she said “So how you feel about the music can change how it affects you ”
Eskine will work on that project while on sabbatical during the Spring 2026 semester When she returns for the 2026–27 academic year, Eskine looks forward to mentoring more students for their senior theses She said, “I already have two students lined up�”
–By Troy Watkins
Katherine Eskine
PHOTO BY KEITH NORDSTROM
Professor Katherine Eskine and Marguerite Bartlett ‘25 analyze how different types of music affect stress responses.
Gilman grants help students
Clayton Walker ’27 is spending this fall studying archaeology and physics in Athens with the expectation that the journey will lead to new adventures
“I want to keep finding opportunities to apply for other research-based scholarships to travel, meet new people, immerse myself in culture and work in my field,” he said.
The physics major from Mystic, Conn , won a Benjamin A Gilman International Scholarship to help fund his study abroad
“I’ve always wanted to travel and explore the world In fact, all the Study Abroad options that are available at Wheaton brought me to the college,” he said “But traveling seemed like a faraway thing that I couldn’t reach With the Gilman, however, it’s possible ”
During his time in Athens, Walker will build on what he learned last year about using satellite imagery in archaeological research� “I’ll be studying particle physics and archeology,” he said � “I’ll be doing carbon dating and more� Getting that handson experience will help me discover some career options�”
Walker is one of six Wheaton students who received Gilman grants last year (see the full list of award winners on the opposite page)� Since 2006, more than 25 students have received the award—administered by the U S Department of State—putting life-changing study abroad experiences within reach Named for late Congressman Benjamin A
Gilman (R–NY), the program is open to students who receive federal Pell grants
“There are ways to make study abroad affordable, and the Gilman scholarship is a valuable option for students� It aims to remove some of the barriers of cost,” said Alida Gomez, associate director of the Center for Global Education�
And the payoff is substantial, she said � “You can never come back from studying abroad the same person as when you went � ” Gomez promotes the Gilman and other grant programs to eligible students, noting that many undergraduates seek support from several sources to finance their study abroad trip “That’s what I encourage students to do,” she said “If you get money from different sources, it can add up to a lot of help ”
The experience of study abroad opens new worlds for students, literally and figuratively Caitly Reynoso ’18, who received Gilman support for study in Italy, said the semester was transformative
“I created a holistic and rich view of the country and culture,” she said “With Gilman support, my time in Italy was phenomenal, as I visited 14 Italian cities I also traveled to four countries while at Wheaton and visited several others while abroad because of how accessible the college made it for me� I’m so thankful for that! It allowed me to discover parts of the world beyond
New York City and to enjoy distinct cultural experiences ”
Lilly Kemp ’23 also looks back with gratitude on her Gilman-supported study “The Gilman scholarship allowed me to fully immerse myself in Spain, without the financial burden looming over me I was able to be present and truly enjoy where I was,” she said
The experience, coupled with her student employment in the Center for Global Education, continues to exert influence. Currently a program leader for summer outdoor activities at Telluride Academy, Kemp is pursuing a position assisting students in a study abroad program, possibly in Spain or London “I’m such an advocate for students going abroad for an immersive experience,” she said “Scholarships like the Gilman are crucial for financial support, and I promote it as much as I can to other students because of how helpful it was to me�”
Thomas Erickson ’19 can testify to the longlasting impact of international study� He participated in a three-week, faculty-led trip to Ecuador, as well as semesters abroad in Turks and Caicos and South Africa �
“I don’t think I would have been able to go to Cape Town without the Gilman,” he said “It was the most stunning place I’d ever been, with a lot of diversity of people, experience and thought Every day there was a new thing to explore It was a huge trip that took a
Thomas Erickson ’19
Lilly Kemp ’23
Clayton Walker ’27
unlock a world of possibilities
lot of resources and planning ”
He credits the experience of living and learning abroad with helping him build the skills and confidence to move cross-country to San Diego, where he now works as a manager for virtual health care provider, Firefly Health
“It’s nerve-racking to take that leap into the unknown, but it was worth it to get out of my comfort zone,” he said “Traveling internationally gave me a lot of confidence, self-worth and direction. As I reflected, I told myself I had done this before when I went abroad ”
“Alida and the staff in global ed work with you and make the entire process so seamless,” Erickson said “I had the drive to do it, to get on the flight and go and have the uncomfortable moments And because of that experience, I feel like I can do almost anything�”
–By Troy Watkins
2024-25 National Scholarship Award Winners
Erin Billinger ’25
Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship to Germany
Caroline Chaffiotte ’22
Erasmus Mundus Joint Scholarship
Morgan Andrade ’25
Hannah Coleman ’27
Laci Hall ’26
Maggie Harte ’26
Prabidhi Malla ’26
Clayton Walker ’27 Gilman Scholarship
Katie Hallee ’26
Udall Scholar, Honorable Mention
Ajahni Jackson ’25
Thomas J. Watson Fellowship (Australia, Singapore, South Africa, Chile and Ireland)
Clara Gonsalves ’25 Projects for Peace, Brazil
Prabidhi Malla ’26 Projects for Peace, Nepal
Mei Ling McDougall ’24 Japan Exchange and Teaching Program
Caitly Reynoso ’18
The annual Honors Thesis Parade streams around the Dimple each spring in a display of unabashed silliness. Students and faculty trick themselves out with all manner of decoration— paper crowns, wizards’ robes, Roman togas, an inflatable squirrel costume and an oversized Zebrafish medallion, to name a few recent fashions. But the price of admission to participate in the procession is measured in months of serious scholarship. As evidence, we offer a selection of this year’s weighty honors thesis titles.
Passion and Poise: Meter, Context, and Meaning in Catullus Translations of the Twentieth and Twentyfirst Centuries
Analysis of Senegal’s Rice Value Chain: Coordination Failures, Naatal Mbay and the Determinants of Smallholder Farm Productivity
On Your Tea: The Antioxidative Properties of Herbal Extracts and Their Effects on Cancer Cell Proliferation
Seasonal Species Composition and Infestation Rates of Shell-Boring Polychaetes in the Eastern Oyster (Crassostrea virginica)
A critical analysis of modern and prominent translations of the Roman rhetorical poet’s works, investigating the influence of modern culture on bringing the ancient works into English. By Maddie Clarkwright ’25
An investigation of the challenges confronting Senegal and its rice growers and potential solutions to benefit small farmers and help the country’s rice industry meet the needs of the nation. By Mouhamed Faye ’25
An examination of the antioxidant capacities of herbal extracts and their corresponding effects on the proliferation of breast cancer cells. By Trisha Harithsa ’25
A study identifying the shell-boring worms (through DNA barcoding) infesting oysters in the Herring River estuary of Wellfleet, Mass., as well as the environmental factors that exacerbate the problem. By Ava Sheedy ’25
Mammal and Bird
Occurrence and Activity Patterns in the Anthony Lawrence Wildlife Preserve in Southeastern Massachusetts
Poetry of a Young Woman: An Exploration of Feminism
An examination of how human activity affects mammal and bird species richness and activity patterns at the Anthony Lawrence Wildlife Preserve in southeastern Massachusetts. By Allen Zhang ’25
An analysis of the key issues that arise in poetry in relation to womanhood, feminism and identity in critical essays, poetry and literary theory, along with original poems exploring those perspectives. By Emily Zielinski ’25
PHOTOS
Elizabeth McKinley blazes her own path
“My parents wanted me to attend Wheaton from the start, but I had to try out my own path first,” said Elizabeth McKinley ’26, the daughter of alums Dave ’93 and Leslie Badham McKinley ’94
“I have baby pictures in Wheaton T-shirts, but following in their exact footsteps felt too predictable ”
After spending her first year at a different institution, Elizabeth transferred to the college for her sophomore year and has enjoyed the type of experience that her parents had envisioned
This year she is serving as president of the college’s Student Government Association
“Wheaton’s education is the right fit for me� I’ve realized that the college provides so many different paths that I couldn’t have followed either of their paths even if I tried … The professors are excited to be here every day and connect with the students� And the classes are unique, interesting and engaging, across all the departments I’ve spent time learning in� ”
Being on campus has also provided McKinley with common experiences that her parents enjoyed as students, such as the Head of the Peacock, eating at Chase or Emerson dining hall and encountering a few professors and staff members who were at Wheaton then and remain here now She said, “It’s been an important journey for me to get here, and I’m so grateful for my parents’ support ”
The flexibility of Wheaton’s Compass Curriculum has afforded McKinley a well-
rounded education and empowered her to create a selfdesigned major in political psychology
“Studying the intersection of political science and psychology was important to me,” she explained “While I could have double majored instead, this allows me to do a focused study in political psychology as a senior and provides me with the independence to study exactly what I want and what is relevant to my interests� ”
administrators in this role, as well as their support of students and our goals� ”
This summer, McKinley served as an intern with Congressman Gabe Amo ’10 (D-R � I �) in the U� S � House of Representatives� She researched legislation, drafted memos and letters, answered calls from the Congressman’s constituents, gave tours of the Capitol and attended hearings and briefings.
“I learned how life on the Hill works and met many interesting people,” she said “Making connections here could potentially open doors for me later in life ”
Arriving on campus as a sophomore, McKinley wanted to make an impact “I’ve always been passionate about making a difference and student government felt like the way to do that,” she said
As a sophomore, she was a member of her Class Council, and last year, she served as the SGA executive secretary, where she worked closely with the student president
“I saw the responsibilities the role entailed and I felt as though I could thrive in it,” she explained, looking to use her understanding of how the college functions to work toward effective change “This year, I hope to improve student spaces and give our student body some fun events to look forward to� I appreciate the connection I have with
McKinley considers herself fortunate to have found a college that fits her needs and looks forward to what’s ahead �
“I feel like I’ve flourished at Wheaton. Being a student here has opened more doors for me than I ever expected,” she said � “I developed confidence in myself that I didn’t have when I got here� I never thought I’d be student body president in college, or working on the Hill, or designing an independent major These were lofty ideas that I thought were unreachable before I came here, but I’ve been able to reach those heights with support from my advisors, professors and peers ”
McKinley said that the internship in Washington is helping her determine her postgraduate plans She enjoys her involvement in the legislative process and believes that working as a staffer is a potential goal
“However, political psychology also lends itself well to campaigning, advocacy, and political management, so I’d like to see what that route would look like too,” she said “I’m not done learning yet, but I know that between my time in Congressman Amo’s office and my Wheaton education, I’ll be prepared for wherever my path takes me ”
–By Troy Watkins
Elizabeth McKinley ’26 and Congressman Gabe Amo ’10.
McKinley had a stunning view of the National Mall from the Capitol.
Promoting impact
Professor Ellie Paris-Miranda honored as Metro South Chamber of Commerce Entrepreneur of the Year
Ellie Paris-Miranda is living her own version of the American dream
With an innovative idea and the support of her family, she opened the Dr Ellie Paris Social Bookstore & Ice Cream Café in Brockton last fall The venture, which seeks to foster literacy, education and upward economic mobility through the American ideals of one book, one scoop, and one community at a time, quickly won fans
In May, Wheaton’s Diana Davis Spencer Endowed Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship was named Entrepreneur of the Year by the Metro South Chamber of Commerce Recipients of the award are “individuals whose businesses have grown through their commitment to their customers, their product and their community,” said Metro South Chamber of Commerce Board Chair Dan Evans during the award presentation� “This café has, in less than a year since its November 2024 opening, become a beacon of literacy, education and economic empowerment ”
Paris-Miranda was surprised and grateful to receive recognition for the venture, the first of its kind.
“The award reminded me how impor tant it is to empower people around you,” she said “It’s wonderful to know that people appreciate the value you bring to a community ”
In addition to its literary options, Paris-Miranda’s social impact bookstore also welcomes patrons to its store by offering a variety of food and beverages, including sandwiches, smoothies and ice cream She explained, “We’ve brought people together through books, bites and ice cream, which makes everyone happy Paris-Miranda has relied on the support of her family members and numerous partner ships to grow her business, located on Main Street in Brockton, Mass�, a city challenged
by a low literacy rate
“I poured my passion for education, social impact and community development into an innovative business model,” she explained “Partnering with other organizations, schools and public libraries, it’s been a miracle,” she said, noting that thousands of people have visited or engaged with her store
Media attention when the store opened has continued to help spread the word In June, the store was featured on Boston WCVB-TV’s “Chronicle,” and followed by Paris-Miranda’s appearance on the station’s “CityLine” program in August, where she shared some book recommendations�
“A lot of great things are happening beyond my wildest strategic planning,” she said � The store has collaborated with Brockton’s Sabura Camp, Plymouth County Correctional Facility and the Brockton Public Schools, where she was named a Brockton Hometown Hero, to name a few�
The Wheaton community has
also played a role in the business’s success Two students, marketing intern Leah Keating ’25 and social media developer Loic Ebelle ’27, provided initial support and ParisMiranda has used the store as a business case study in her courses to teach students about entrepreneurship�
“I have to extend my gratitude to the entire Wheaton community for their support of me and my family,” she said � “Some students directly assisted and others gave me feedback, showed their excitement and admiration for what I was doing and kept me going�”
Paris-Miranda is excited to continue the growth and reach of her store� Future plans include launching a reading effort, called the Booksitter program, where individuals can book time with a “booksitter” to read a book of the client’s choice
Paris-Miranda hopes this program will grow into an independent service that addresses the childcare crisis while also supporting student development and literacy
“We are being creative, innovative and intentional about the ways we can engage our children and our community to fall in love with books and school the way that I fell in love with them,” she said, acknowledging how happy she is with the bookstore’s success
“I’ve been doing this type of work for almost 20 years, and providing this value to others has been, by far, the highlight of my career ”
–By Troy Watkins
Displaying a state Certificate of Congratulations in her store.
Paris-Miranda with local NAACP representatives.
PHOTO BY MARC VASCONCELLOS
Hearing your work come to life
Imagine this: you write an original piece of music for a class assignment. And then, your composition comes to life, performed by a professional string quartet Nine Wheaton College students lived that dream
The Arneis Quartet visited campus last spring to collaborate with Professor of Music Delvyn Case and the students enrolled in his course on music composition through the Evelyn Danzig Haas Visiting Artists program� The string quartet performs a wide-ranging repertoire in concert as well as leading workshops and seminars throughout New England and beyond �
“This program is envisioned so students can learn directly from these world-class artists,” Case said “It’s incredibly rare to have such a robust program at any college— especially a small one like Wheaton In fact, I didn’t have the chance to hear professional musicians perform my music when I was an undergraduate at Yale or a graduate student at the University of Pennsylvania ”
The semester began with an introductory session in which students met the quartet and listened to them demonstrate and discuss samples of string quartet music Then, the students began to compose
Musical composition experience is not required to enroll in the course, just an ability to read music � “We take students from 0 to
100 in the span of a semester,” Case said, “but it works because of the commitment and dedication that every student brings to the course ”
The quartet returned in early April, played each student’s composition and provided feedback and suggestions “It’s a live workshop where they get to hear their draft come to life, played by professional musicians,” said Case�
After revisions, the quartet presented a world premiere of each piece on April 15 in a free recital at Cole Memorial Chapel Rob Bevacqua ’25, a political science major with a double minor in legal studies and music theory and composition, is among the nine students who took the course
“I think it’s an amazing opportunity to hear one’s music played and to have a dialectical experience with the musicians performing your piece,” said Bevacqua, who plays guitar, sings in Wheaton’s Gentleman Callers and has experience composing music �
“It is really easy as a composer with modern technology to write music on a computer and listen to the computer play it back to you … but a musician brings the work to life in an inspiring way that the computer genuinely could never do It becomes real and it is such an important experience to hear the music done the way you want it to ”
“As a composer, it is important to talk with the string quartet,” he explained “Learning and taking criticism is a key component of the compositional process, and the Arneis Quartet are so good at providing that with an expert lens ”
Although Bevacqua is not planning to pursue a career in music, he values the opportunities to improve his skills as a singer, guitarist and composer “I am doing this compositional work because it inspires me and makes me happy�”
–By Troy Watkins
“Music Composition” course participants pose with members of the visiting Arneis Quartet.
Revisiting radio propaganda designed to promote democracy
Wheaton magazine recently sat down with Professor of the Practice of Political Science Nick Dorzweiler to talk with him about his research into the work of mid-twentieth century political scientist Harold Lasswell. The renowned scholar’s now-forgotten national radio program, “Human Nature in Action,” which was designed to help citizens foster a healthy democracy, holds surprising resonances today.
Q: How did you become interested in this subject?
A: Harold Lasswell was one of the earliest figures attuned to the political significance of pop culture, primarily due to its use in propaganda. His first major book, Propaganda Technique in the World War (1927), studied how nations used culture—newspapers, radio, leaflets and even gossip networks—for propaganda Given political scientists’ general lack of attention to popular culture until recent times, there was virtually no scholarship about “Human Nature in Action,” how it fit into Lasswell’s career, or what it might say about his interest in popular culture�
Q: Why would a radio network hire a political scientist for a radio program?
A: When Lasswell and NBC developed this pop psychology program, their goal was to subtly influence listeners to become calmer and reduce their overall anxiety levels Lasswell was concerned that if Americans were too anxious, depressed or fearful, they wouldn’t be able to engage in democratic processes productively What he believed was really needed was to get Americans to think more rationally and control their neuroses so that they could engage in politics productively The idea was to stabilize American social, political and cultural life to prevent collective anxiety, and political unrest
Q: Political unrest was a concern at that time?
A: You have to remember the historical context: the Great Depression had been going on for a decade, bringing immense economic hardship and inequality� World War II was on the horizon, with the rise of Nazi Germa-
ny, Fascist Italy and Imperial Japan, creating a sense of democratic backsliding and rising
Q: There was a comfort with propaganda that is inter-
Nick Dorzweiler Professor of the Practice of Political Science
Publications, honors and creative works
Michael Berg , professor of psychology, co-authored the article, “Social support and resilience as moderators of the relationship between COVID-19 pandemic-related trauma and posttraumatic growth in U.S. adults,” in the Journal of Happiness and Health
Primrose Boynton, assistant professor of biology, served as the senior author of the article, “Fitness effects of killer virus infection on wild Saccharomyces paradoxus,” in Fungal Ecology Delvyn Case, professor of music, delivered the paper “Jesus in Popular Music: A Unique Theological and Spiritual Resource,” as part of the London School of Theology lecture series.
tion,” at the Inaugural Richard Rankin Russell Honorary Lecture at Baylor University in Waco, Texas.
Scott Gelber, professor of education, authored the article, “From Compensation to Accommodation: The History of Learning Disabilities in American Higher Education,” in the History of Education Quarterly
Michael Gousie, professor of computer science, led the panel discussion entitled, “Software Engineering in the Computer Science Curriculum,” at the Consortium for Computing Sciences in Colleges Northeast Conference.
We Are Being Transformed, hosted by Jason Anderson.
Ganapathy Sriram, visiting assistant professor of chemistry, co-authored the article, “Dysregulated phosphatidylserine externalization as a cell intrinsic immune escape mechanism in cancer,” in Cell Communication and Signaling Monica Rey, affilated instructor of film, was featured in The Koinonia Forum keynote panel, “On Amalek, Miracles and Turning Palestine into a Terra Nullius,” at the Princeton Theological Seminary in Princeton, N.J.
Geoffrey Collins, professor of geology, was awarded a grant by the NASA Cassini Data Analysis Program for “Expanding Measurements and Interpretations of Enceladus’ Regolith Thickness Pole-to-Pole,” a project for which
, assistant professor of biology, co-authored the article “First Report of Proctoeces maculatus Infecting the Ribbed Mussel: Detection of a Unique Haplotype in New England,” with Wheaton College students Emma Russo ’26, Isabel Varetto ’28 and Cam Grosser
Italy—America’s enemies—who were using propaganda, spearheading its use, and he saw how effective it was So he thought, “If we want to fight back, if we want to protect and preserve American liberal democracy, we need to make propaganda on behalf of democracy ” But that raises a paradox: what does it mean to create democratic propaganda? Is it democratic to mold citizens’ minds in the way that you think is most rational and democratic through propaganda? For most of us today, or at least for me, that has too many internal contradictions and tensions; I don’t think that’s fully democratic �
Lisa Lebduska , professor of English, authored the essay, “Memoir of a Zebrafish,” in The Write Launch
Kent Shaw, associate professor of English, authored the poems, “What it’s like to have a lot of money” and “Most men want not only to be bad. They want to be bold. They want to be wiser.” They appeared in The Laurel Review
Kira Treibergs, professor of the practice of biology, co-authored the article “How and why instructors use open access lessons,” in Frontiers in Education
Joel Relihan, professor of Greek, Latin and Ancient Mediterranean Studies, discussed “Lucian and Menippean Satire” on the podcast,
Alessandra Ward, assistant professor of education, authored the book Transformative Social and Emotional Learning: Centering Equity and Social Justice in PreK-6 Classrooms
Winter Werner, associate professor of English, authored the article, “The Hikayat Abdullah, the Missionary Press, and the Making of Nineteenth-Century ‘World Literature,’” in Comparative Literature
Aubrey Westfall, professor of political science, authored the article, “The political power of Muslim social capital in Europe and North America,” in Politics, Groups, and Identities
Q: How do your students react to this topic?
A: We recently got into a fascinating conversation about how this applies to our own political situation today How do we confront social media? Do we need government regulation? Do we need influencers, talking about how to control our anxiety on social media? The context of then and now are very different, but there are enough parallels to spark rich discussion
Q: What lesson do you think there might be in this story for us today?
A: While I think we need to pay a lot more attention to the connections between anxiety and politics, I would advocate approaching that in what I think would be a more democratic way� Lasswell believed the
problem was that anxiety was being brought into the public sphere But I think it would be better to integrate our experiences of anxiety into the public sphere We need to be able to talk more honestly, openly and collectively about our experiences of anxiety Democracy is the play of multiple ideas and visions for the future, all colliding at the same time To the extent that a robust democracy is the play of differences, it creates tension, friction and fear: “What are we going to do? How are we going to do it? Will it work?” These are fundamentally scary questions To me, you can’t have a fully democratic society and take anxiety out of it Instead, we need to think about how we honestly and openly confront anxiety in the process of democratic living�
Welcoming a new class of greats to athletics hall of fame
Five individuals and two teams were inducted into the Wheaton Athletics Yowell Hall of Fame at a May ceremony.
Men’s soccer standout Shaun Cavanaugh ’03 was the first player in NEWMAC history to earn Player of the Year honors in consecutive seasons, while collecting All-America honors in his final two years. The Lyons went 65-16-2 during his career, and advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight in 2001.
Ashante Little ’14 won national championships in the 400 meters during both the 2013 outdoor and 2014 indoor seasons. In 2014, she earned the National Indoor and New England Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year accolades from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. Little earned AllAmerica honors in three individual hurdle races and eight relay teams and still holds five Wheaton records.
Neva Metcalf Curry ’00 is one of only seven women’s volleyball players to earn NEWMAC First Team AllConference accolades four times. A four-time All Region selection by the American Volleyball Coaches Association and two-time First Team New England Women’s Volleyball Association member, she owns college career records with 2,084 kills and 338 aces, and ranks second in both digs and blocks.
The 1997 Wheaton softball team posted a 45-7 record and advanced to the NCAA Division III national semifinals. Four team members earned All-America honors, led by first teamer Randi Carine ’97. The team led the nation with 38 home runs and ranked fourth with 131 stolen bases. Kim Sears ’00 finished 24-5 on the mound while Lisa Byrnes Lasser ’99 went 20-2.
As a relief pitcher, Michael Spavento ’02 earned American Baseball Coaches Association First Team All-America kudos as a senior. He recorded an NCAA Division III record of 19 saves with a 1.62 earned run average. His 35 career saves are the second most at Wheaton.
Niara Woods ’02 earned eight All-America selections as a middle distance runner (twice in the indoor 800 meters and six times as a relay team member). She helped the Lyons capture four national championships in the 4X400-meter relay race and maintains the school outdoor record in the 800 meters.
The 2001 Lyons softball team finished 42-9 and also advanced to the national semifinals. Three All-Americans graced the diamond, led by First Team selection Jill D’Arcy Anzalone ’01 Maren Schrader Sullivan ’03 led the nation with 55 stolen bases and on the mound Jackie Demling ’04 went 26-6 and Christine Hineline ’04 finished 16-3.
PHOTOS
With his final toss, Scott Sloan wins a national championship
He’s a Wheaton College record holder, an All-American and a national champion in the javelin For most individuals, that may be considered a stellar college career Scott Sloan ’28 is just beginning his sophomore year
A three-sport high school athlete (soccer, basketball and track) at The Wheeler School in Providence, R I , Sloan was the top-ranked javelin thrower in New England as a senior He joined the Wheaton men’s track and field team last fall, and this spring he set new college, conference and meet records in the javelin Sloan earned numerous postseason accolades, including U S Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association East Region Field Athlete of the Year and First Team Outdoor Track & Field AllAmerican
He competed most of the season through nagging injuries, from which he hopes to heal so he can pursue his dream to make the U� S � Track & Field Team and compete at the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles
�
Sloan heard about Wheaton from fellow Wheeler School graduates who had attended the college “It was close to home, I knew some people on the track team and I really liked [Coach] Kim Spence ’04, the coaches and the guys on the team when I visited,” he said
first in all four meets in which he competed, throwing more than 60 meters each time “In the competitions, I don’t pay much attention to what other people are doing,” he explained “It’s more about seeing my potential and trying to improve myself I focus on being as perfect as I can, and for me, the winning has come with it ”
At the NCAA Division III National Championship meet, Sloan was in 18th place among 22 competitors after two throws, then threw just under 60 meters to move up to ninth and make the finals. After two throws in the finals, he remained in ninth, then leapt to first with his final school-record throw of 67 97 meters When the eight remaining competitors fell short of his mark with their
my competitors, throwing a personal best was a blessing in itself ”
This was the second time that Sloan had won a national championship As a high school senior in the spring of 2024, he earned the title of national champion after winning the New Balance Nationals Outdoor competition with a throw of 62 95 meters
Competing and succeeding this season, despite the challenges, makes Sloan confident about his future
“What gets me the most excited is what I was able to accomplish despite everything that I dealt with this season,” he reasoned “I know I’m the best if I’m healthy ”
Sloan believes that if he can heal and train properly, greatness awaits “My elbow is the only thing that will stop me,” he said, believing that if he builds strength and is able to practice regularly “I could actually go to the Olympics� ”
While in high school, a broken foot led to subsequent injuries to his legs Once he arrived on campus, Sloan spent much of his time focused on recovering so he could compete in the javelin. “I’ve sacrificed other things in my life to be good and succeed,” he said “I can’t even run every day because my foot could break ”
In addition to the leg ailments, Sloan was limited this season by tendinitis in his elbow� “At a meet, I would usually take one throw, then back out,” he said � Sloan placed
last throw, Sloan became the first Wheaton student-athlete to earn an individual national title since Dan Olson ’05 won the high jump in 2004
“Before the last two throws I realized that I wasn’t keeping my shoulder closed, and that’s what makes it work,” he said “My next to last throw was horrible (60 meters), but I came at the last one with confidence that it was going to be good and it just went “Winning the championship was an amazing feeling after a year of doubting that I would be able to perform well with an injured elbow� Regardless of the outcome of
His title-winning throw this season would have placed 11th at the 2024 U� S � Olympic trials, so Sloan’s assertion does not lack merit � He has also trained privately with former U� S � Olympic javelin thrower Sean Furey
“No American had an automatic qualification (of 85.5 meters for the Olympics) last year,” he said “I think I could qualify for the trials, but I’d like to go for that automatic qualification, so I don’t have to throw two different days to qualify ”
Before that happens, Sloan spent the summer coaching kids at Moses Brown School in Providence, and volunteered as a coach for the Providence Cobras, a youth track & field club
As a sophomore, he will also need to decide upon a major. “I’m thinking maybe finance or business economics,” he says “I’m trying to figure out what I’m going to be passionate about, in the same way that I have that passion for sports� ”
–By Troy Watkins
PHOTO BY D3PHOTOGRAPHY
Scott Sloan ’28
Developing leaders
The Weiss Women’s Leadership Program (WWLP) earned state and regional “program of the year” awards from the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators in Higher Education. Alumni who served as mentors and speakers in spring 2025 included Janet Tiebout Hanson ’74 and daughter Meredith Hanson ’11 as well as Jamie Weiss Wieland ’07
Beyond the
Natural intelligence
Hanna Ondrasek ’26 won the Bioharmony Prize at SharkHack, a Major League Hacking event held at Simmons University in April, for developing a program that harnesses AI to assess infant skin conditions.
PHOTOS BY KEITH NORDSTROM
Meredith Hanson ’11 and her mother Janet Tiebout Hanson ’74.
Mary & Donald Weiss P’07, President Michaele Whelan and Jamie Weiss Wieland ’07.
2025 Weiss Women’s Leadership Program participants
classroom
Entrepreneurship summit
Wheaton’s second annual entrepreneurship summit brought more than 300 students together to hear from more than 20 experts, including Segun Idowu , chief of economic opportunity and inclusion for the City of Boston, and singer and songwriter Lauren Henderson ’09, who has also launched her own record label.
Mapping the way
The college sets aside one day each semester for a campuswide celebration of academic exploration, planning and advising sessions, and fun. The spring 2025 edition featured drop-in appointments with faculty in disciplines across the curriculum, a jobs fair with more than 70 employers and craft activities.
Lauren Henderson ’09
Segun Idowu, chief of economic opportunity and inclusion for the City of Boston
Adventureto have new and exciting experiences
Achito have
Selfknowledge excesses andInner Pe to experience personal peac Ecology to live in harmony with the environmen
Family to have a happy, loving family
friEndship to have close, supporTive friends
PasSion to have deep feelings about ideas, acTivities or people
ExcitementTo have a life full of thrills and able
Spirituality
Humorto see humoroustheside of myself and the world
Pleasure
Simplicityto live life simply, with minimal needs
Fitness to be physically fit and strong
Popularity to be wellliked by many people
Compassion to feel and act on concern for other contribution in the world
A COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH
TO
Planning an abundant life and an evolving career
By Michael Graca
In 2015, Tyrone McClain ’04 knew it was time to leave his position as district director for Congressman Jim Himes (D-Conn�)� He had considered law school, but after observing the daily work of lawyers during his time in city government in Bridgeport, Conn�, he was no longer interested in that profession� And his first attempts at searching for a new position went nowhere
“I was only applying to the jobs that I thought that I was qualified for,” he said. “I wasn’t asking myself the right questions I was asking, ‘How do I get a new job?’ versus ‘What do I want my next chapter to be ’”
The breakthrough came when he realized that his skills and interests—helping people by forging connections and creating community—could be applied to other industries In particular, he decided to focus on pharmaceutical companies, a heavily regulated sector where his government experience might be useful
“I did my research I shook my network, talked to people I had very honest conversations, and I learned there were other people like me that had made the transition,” McClain said � “And I started looking at my value, and how I approach work and life experiences. It gave me a huge confi-
dence boost that I could be successful in the industry ”
McClain landed at Pfizer, progressing through several positions to his current role as senior director of public affairs for inflammation and immunology The role draws on all his skills, connecting with policy makers, health care professionals and patients and families who are struggling to live with and control chronic diseases
“My takeaway is that you have to look at yourself and understand what your passion is and examine how realistic it is,” he said “Sometimes what you want to do might not be feasible immediately, but knowing where you want to go can help you gain the skills and experiences that you need to get to your ultimate goal�”
Starting with vision
McClain’s story makes Sean Schofield smile. It exemplifies essential elements of the career and life planning process—selfreflection on interests and values, prototyping ideas, and finding new ways to apply your skills—that the leader of the college’s Life and Career Design Institute wants students to learn and put into practice during their four years at Wheaton
“I think that many people discover the principles and strategies of life and career design in an ad hoc way,” said Schofield, assistant vice president for Life and Career Design “What we want to do is to formalize, systematize and then democratize this kind of thinking for undergraduates so they can apply it early in their careers and even before they graduate ”
Wheaton’s Life and Career Design Institute (LCDI) was launched in the summer of 2024, but the seeds for the new initiative were planted by President Michaele Whelan during her first year at the college. She appointed a task force of faculty, staff and trustees to develop bold and detailed recommendations for building upon the institution’s historic emphasis on experiential learning� The goal: create a holistic, integrated plan that
THE LCDI CYCLE
self story tell your story with impact system make informed decisions and set goals
extends from matriculation through graduation�
The resulting proposal called for transforming career services into a comprehensive center that helps students focus “on designing their Wheaton experience, including experiential learning, and designing their postWheaton life and career ” The LCDI opened in fall 2024, taking on responsibilities for the work formerly performed by career services, plus adding a variety of new offerings Philanthropic contributions fueled the opening of the institute Alumni, parents and friends of the college contributed $3 million in initial funding to support the hiring of institute staff and fund expanded programWheaton plans to establish an endowed fund to support the LCDI’s operations for the future
The broad scope of the institute’s mission— helping students plan for their lives as well as their careers—reflects Wheaton’s holistic orientation In keeping with that philosophy, the Life and Career Design Institute offers its services to alumni as well as collaborating with them to create a robust Wheaton network for the entire college community� In addition, the institute intends to develop
programs for other companies, organizations and working professionals�
The designing life
As its name suggests, LCDI’s approach to assisting students and alumni in thinking about their futures employs the principles of design thinking This methodology emerged in the 1950s—primarily in architecture, engineering and product development—as a means for solving complex problems, explained Tania Schlatter, professor of the practice of design and the coordinator of Wheaton’s design program The concept of applying design thinking to life and career planning was pioneered by two Stanford University professors They developed the methodology for a class and later shared it with a broader audience in the book, Designing Your Life
“The idea of the iterative process, that’s really the most important thing: understand what your situation is now and make decisions based on that, while having some awareness of your larger goals,” Schlatter said � “The objective is to introduce that kind of flexibility and open-minded thinking that is part of resilience� It sets up the ability to synthesis yourtransformexperience with action
pivot when something doesn’t work out, iterate and just be more flexible.”
“When I read about design thinking for career planning, my first reaction was, ‘I’ve actually been following this approach for 15 years ’ I never used the words ‘prototype’ or ‘ideation,’ but this is the mindset that we want students to learn,’” Schofield said. “Design thinking provides a language for the process that is very helpful�”
Know your story
Lesley Bannatyne ’75 could testify to the importance of being open to new possibilities
When she graduated from Wheaton, Bannatyne took a job as a copywriter at a New York advertising firm, but had her sights set on a career in the theatre� Over the years, she worked as a writer in advertising, public relations, publishing and journalism� It was
creative work, but she saw it as a means to an end: funding her pursuit of a life in the theatre� She founded two different theatre companies in Boston�
When the opportunity arose to write a book about Halloween traditions (thanks to a tip from her first-year Wheaton roommate Margaret “Meg” Ruley ’75, a literary agent at the Jane Rotrosen Agency), Bannatyne seized it Halloween An American Holiday, An American History was the first of four more books about Halloween, making her a nationally recognized expert on the holiday’s history and cultural impact
A fiction-writing class at the Harvard Extension School sparked a new pursuit: writing and publishing short stories The professor encouraged every student to submit one of their stories to a contest; Bannatyne’s story “Gravity” won first place from the journal, bosque More short stories, including the unforgettably named “A Corpse Walks Into A Bar,” followed, as did awards and journal publications
“I only began to think of myself as a writer after my first book of short stories, Unaccustomed to Grace, was published,” she said, of the collection published in 2022 � “Before then, I would always answer the question of ‘What do you do,’ by saying ‘I’m an actor, I write for newspapers, I work at Harvard �’” Her second collection of short stories, Lake Song. A Novel in Stories, the recipient of the Grace Paley Prize for short fiction, hit store shelves in September
“In retrospect, one of the things that I enjoyed about being in the theater was creating and telling stories, and my drive was always to be doing something creative,” she said “That overarching theme of being a creative storyteller runs through all the different things that I’ve done through the years, although my specific goals changed over time.”
Starting early
Wheaton plans to integrate life and career design throughout the student experience, which Provost Jonathan Millen says is crucial “It’s more often the case that a student finds that office when they need an internship, or when they need a letter of recommendation, or if they’re
HOLISTIC PLANS: The Life and Career Design Institute strives to help students develop the skills and vision to integrate plans for achieving their personal and professional aspirations.
First-year students participate in a life design workshop during the Wheaton Outstanding STEM Scholars program.
looking for employment,” he said � “By doing it from the start and continuing throughout their college career, what we’re really instilling is both the value of a traditional liberal arts education with true career readiness and preparedness�
The traditional offerings of Wheaton’s career services center remain vital parts of LCDI: coaching students on how to write resumés and cover letters, prepare for interviews, research job and internship opportunities and develop a network of connections Karen Single, one of the institute’s career navigators, said the need for help in résumé writing starts many of the one-on-one counseling sessions she has with students
“For me, the résumé is a stepping-off point for so many other things I use the opportunity to ask them to think about their
decision-making skills, interpersonal skills and time management,” Single said work on the résumé, but I’m introducing other topics and issues that they might need to consider for the next step
Still, Wheaton faculty and administrators don’t in tend to leave it to students to find their way to LCDI when they need a résumé or funding for an intern ship They are building life and career design experiences directly into every student’s experi ence Starting this fall, for example, all newly enrolled students are taking a semester-long life and career design workshop that runs in tandem with the first-year experience courses (previously known as first-year seminars). The workshops meet in person every other week, with assignments to complete during the intervening weeks
likely that a first semester, first-year student can really, truly visualize what they’ll be doing in the spring semester of their junior year nor should they,” said Kathleen Potter, director of life and career naviga-
sTudenTs will focus “on designing their Wheaton experience, and their posTWheaton life and career.”
“As they move through college, they will gather new information and insights, and they will be growing and It becomes part of their educational experi-
A small group of transfer students who joined the college in January were the first to take the workshop during the spring 2025 semester Jonathan Hacsi, who was part of that inaugural group, gave it high marks
The goal is to introduce students to applying design thinking to their lives from the start of their time at Wheaton� “It’s not at all
“The workshop makes the planning process more tangible and achievable,” he said “Rather than one really big goal, like getting an internship, you break it down into a lot of simpler, quicker steps It makes it much more grounded, and it gives you lots of opportunities to check things off your list �”
LCDI team members brought workshop sessions to a variety of other classes and campus groups as well� Professor of Philosophy Jonathan Partridge experienced the impact such conversations can have� He invited Potter to his course, The Good Life, for an interactive session in which everyone, professor included, mapped out three different futures for themselves
“My students got a lot out of the experience and for me, it was tremendous, too,” Partridge said “The exercise of imagining three different future plans, rather than simply one favorite future, immediately changes your mindset to imagining multiple possibilities for what living a good life could mean for you�”
Students connected with representatives from more than 70 businesses and organizations at the spring 2025 Career Fair.
PHOTO BY KEITH NORDSTROM
Looking beyond campus
For all the focus on engaging students in planning, the institute and the college as a whole is looking outward as well, cultivating relationships beyond campus to facilitate internships and employment Early results showed in last spring’s Career Fair, which brought more than 70 corporations, government agencies and non-profit organizations to campus to meet with students
The college’s guarantee of funding support for internships continues, but with a major improvement voted in by Wheaton’s faculty: a standardized approach for allowing students to earn college credit for internship experiences A 300-level course that focuses on professional development objectives will be part of the offering
The institute also organized an inaugural externship program, allowing students to
learn more about the realities of work life in a variety of industries “We designed the program around specific learning objectives such as gaining a strong understanding of the host’s workspace, awareness of the tasks that are part of the host’s jobs and learning what other opportunities existed in that industry or company,” Schofield said. Based on the post-externship surveys, the program will be expanding this year under the title “Career Close-Up ”
At the same time, the institute has partnered with Wheaton’s Office of Alumni Relations to support and expand the college’s alumni network Those connections are intended to be reciprocal, Schofield said.
“The idea of a linear career, where you progress in one occupation or industry, that’s not really the experience that most people have in their lives anymore,” he said “As students and alumni transition throughout their
career, I hope they will remember their alma mater and think ‘Wheaton could help me ’” Some graduates already are reaching out Schofield said that the institute measured a 25 percent increase in requests for assistance from alumni during the 2024–25 academic year, as compared with inquiries in prior years While recent graduates accounted for many of those sessions, Schofield said the institute hopes to hear from alumni at every stage of their life and career Ultimately, he said, broad engagement from Wheaton alums will strengthen the network for students and graduates alike
“Alumni are our best employers, our best internship hosts and our best communication points for our students in networking,” he said “They share something with the students that can’t be bought or changed: they share the experience of living and learning at Wheaton College�”
Student leaders participated in a workshop focused on applying life design concepts to planning for student clubs and organizations.
PHOTO BY PEMA DEKYI LAMA ’28
PHOTOS BY KATE ENMAN
Celebrity biographer Jane Scovell ’56 is finally ready to tell her story
She just released her 16th book, which she calls one of her “best”
By Scott Enman
’15
For 60 years, Jane Scovell ’56 has documented the lives of luminaries such as Elizabeth Taylor, Ginger Rogers, Kitty Dukakis, Tim Conway, Marilyn Horne and Maureen Stapleton, as well as written biographies of Charlie Chaplin’s wife Oona O’Neill, and opera singer Samuel Ramey� Four of her books were on The New York Times and Los Angeles Times Best Seller lists�
As a biographer, known mostly for collaboratively writing books with the subjects themselves, Scovell has told the stories of numerous people — but she’s yet to tell her own Until now
Fresh off the release of her 16th book, which she calls one her “best,” Scovell sat down with Wheaton magazine to reminisce about her life’s work and to reflect on her time at Wheaton and how it prepared her for a career in telling stories
“Looking back, Wheaton was kind of idyllic I have very strong and very fond memories, although I complained a lot,” she says, laughing “I liked the smallness because you knew everybody It had a stunning English department, really wonderful teachers There was a great English teacher named Louise Barr MacKenzie She taught Shakespeare, among other courses
“Just before graduation, Mrs Mackenzie invited me to lunch at the end of which she asked, ‘What are you going to take away from your years at Wheaton?’ And I answered, ‘Oh, all the wonderful friends I
made ’ And she said, ‘Of course, but, maybe you’ll find out later, that some of the things you’ve learned will come into play, as well ’ Well — they sure did ”
After graduating in 1956, back when Wheaton was a women’s college, Scovell wore several different hats: journalist, author, teacher, wife and mother�
Her two passions were and still are opera and movies� “I enjoy life,” she says� “I’m crazy about movies, television, radio, theatre, bal-
let — anything that’s entertainment Any opportunity, I would go to shows When I was younger, I would stand at the opera just to get to see it ”
Scovell was born in Brockton, Massachusetts, a city known for producing boxing greats, including heavyweight champion Rocky Marciano, middleweight champion Marvin Hagler, and boxing referee Arthur Mercante�
“I could not hope to pursue a ring career so I decided to become an actress,” she says� “I soon learned that boxing is a far gentler profession than acting and retired from the stage — before stepping one foot on it While attending graduate school at Columbia, I became a teacher, a more brutal profession, by the way, than the last two named ”
After swapping the stage for the classroom, she taught the history and appreciation of opera, as well as “Music in the Film ” It was while teaching that she discovered her calling as a writer
After graduate school, she moved to Boston, where she produced a column, Plain Jane, in the Boston Herald, wrote for the Boston Globe and Boston Magazine, was part of the small ensemble cast of the WGBH TV show “Hub City Hot Shots,” and taught at Beaver Country Day School, Pine Manor Junior College, Harvard’s Center for Lifelong Learning, and Newton College of the Sacred Heart, which later merged with Boston College�
Though she spent her young adulthood in Massachusetts and returned there for
Some of Scovell’s work on her bookshelf.
25 years after graduate school, she always wanted to live in New York City� “I had made up my mind that I was going to get to New York,” she says� “I wanted to be here; this was the place So the minute I graduated from Wheaton, I moved to Manhattan In New York, you’re always at the scene; this city is just great It shaped me in so many ways ”
Scovell, who lives on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, can routinely be found taking in a show at the Met Opera or Film Forum When working on her books, she would rise at 4:30 a m to start writing, stop around noon, and go to the movies When she experienced writer’s block, Scovell said she would watch films all day to clear her head. Overlooking the Museum of Natural History, Scovell’s apartment might as well be an extension of the museum itself� The rooms, filled with trinkets, books and antique furniture, each have a story to tell� Tomes on the history of opera dot the shelves� A signed New Yorker cartoon from Ginger Rogers stands perched on a ledge� A grand piano sits waiting to be played � Over the course of just 15 minutes, Scovell talks about a party she attended with Marilyn Horne after a Met Gala, about plays she appeared in as a Wheaton student, and a trip to Taunton that ended up with her and her friends having to spend the night in a YWCA room for unwed mothers after missing curfew
At times and with certain words, her Boston accent sneaks out, though she says she suppresses it mostly “I fake it here in New York,” she says, crediting her time spent at the Herbert Berghof Studio for teaching her to present her “Rs ”
Scovell reflects on life and offers sage advice all while pouring a cup of tea She reaches back into her memory bank, remembering details as if they happened yesterday She’s remarkably funny and quick to crack a joke
“I love stories — people’s stories,” she says “They’re fascinating, and you learn so much All the books I’ve worked on, I found something in each of them that interested me� Everybody thinks they have a story to tell,
and then there are those people who really have a story to tell ”
Scovell found her niche cowriting autobiographies serendipi tously A journalist friend, who had been working on a book with opera singer Marilyn Horne, couldn’t get enough money for the project, so Scovell volunteered to do it herself�
thanked each other, and Elizabeth stood up and ended the interview by remarking, ‘You know, it’s very easy to talk to you �’ ‘Well,’ I answered, ‘We did grow up together, albeit you were in Hollywood and I was in Brockton ’”
Aside from being easy to converse with, what has made Scovell so successful in her career, is her immense pride in being able to write in the voice of the people with whom she works
“One of my editors told me I had a gift for capturing other people’s voices,” Scovell says “To do that you have to keep yourself out of the picture Don’t change what someone says, just listen, put it down and then edit judiciously
The timing couldn’t have been better� Horne had just had a major premiere at the Met Opera in Handel’s “Rinaldo�”
“My friend turned over all his material to me, and because of the Horne and Handel clout, I actually got more money than he did,” Scovell says with a wry smile� “That book really had a nice success�”
Soon after, Scovell was on to Elizabeth Taylor and eventually Maureen Stapleton
While working with Stapleton, Scovell recalls always having to keep the actress’
“I love stories — people’s stories. They’re fascinating, and you learn so much. Everybody thinks they have a story to tell, and then there are those people who really have a story to tell.”
libations stocked: “I was running wine back and forth from the package store and writing a book at the same time ”
She also remembers the interview process when she was a candidate to assist in Elizabeth Taylor’s autobiography Sitting in Taylor’s suite in the Alrae Hotel, now The Mark, Scovell said they chatted for some time�
“I told her stories that I knew she’d like,” Scovell recalls� “And then at the end, we
“If you think differently, keep it to yourself You just cannot impose yourself You really have to step back I can see funny things, and funny situations, and I can set it up� At the same time, you have to be true and faithful to your subject � When you have something good, you can use it � But you have to keep your eyes and ears open a bit �”
At 90, Scovell is sharp, sprightly and still quite active� Just days before this interview, she returned from Vienna, where she was promoting her latest work, At Large: Behind the Camera with Brian Large
The book documents the life of award-winning videographer and director Brian Large, who specializes in opera and classical music In June, Scovell and Large celebrated their U S debut of the book at the Czech Center New York, and will do another launch in Prague, come September
“This book really knocked my socks off,” she says “I wasn’t expecting it Brian’s British; he’s very different from me He doesn’t swear He has a wicked sense of humor, and he’s had the most fascinating life
“As for me, how many people are still working at 90? It’s a good career, you know, if you last And I still enjoy working Creating a good sentence is a lot of fun, and nerve-wracking I’m so happy and proud to bow out with what I consider one of the best books I’ve ever worked on� Now, I’m going to write my memoirs for my children and grandchildren�”
Scovell and Brian Large celebrate the launch of the book on which they collaborated.
PHOTO BY KATHARINA SCHIFFL
Scovell shares the inscription with which Maureen Stapleton signed a copy of the book that they wrote together: “My love and thanks to Dr. Jeckyl from Mr. Hyde. Love, Maureen.”
A semester exploring the Bay State’s diverse media industry
A semester exploring the State’s diverse media industry
By Patrick Johnson Associate Professor of Film, Media, and Communications
Massachusetts has become a hub for film and media production over the past two decades� Wheaton College has been a witness to its growth� Hollywood projects like Challengers, Julia Season 2, Don’t Look Up, Professor Marston and the Wonder Women and the upcoming Anthony Bourdain biopic Tony have all used the campus as a backdrop
But while big budget film and television productions draw attention, the state’s vibrant local media community often gets overlooked� From public television to indie theaters, rental houses to sports broadcasters, Massachusetts offers a broad range of opportunities�
In the spring of 2025, I set out with a group of students enrolled in my course “Media in Massachusetts” (FNMS 298) to explore the breadth of the Bay State’s media industry� Each week, we visited a different media company, talking with professionals, touring facilities and getting a sense of the professional possibilities for students who are considering careers in media
What follows is my diary of the journey
Wayfair Studios
First stop: Wayfair Studios Here, everything revolves around content creation for the home goods giant’s website Alumna Tess Meyers ’11, an art director for the company, and Head of Production Kevan Pike (dogs in tow) gave us a whirlwind tour of the massive operation
We watched rugs being photographed, outdoor furniture filmed and furniture unpacked, built and styled for shoots� Students were struck by the range of roles—from builders and stylists to editors and brand ambassadors—and by the sheer effort behind a single image
TAKEAWAY Media skills translate across industries. A background in film or photography lead to myriad opportunities. Sometimes, opportunities with work-life balance far better than setlife come from unexpected places.
Art Director Tess Myers ’11 and her colleague Kevan Pike talks with students about their work at Wayfair Studios.
JANUARY 24
Coolidge Corner Theater
Since 1933, the Coolidge Corner Theater has been a beacon for Boston’s independent film scene. The cinema shows newly produced independent films, cult classics, revivals, and locally produced films. On our tour, projectionist Sam Pender showcased different screening formats, including a 70mm print of The Brutalist We also got a glimpse of the theater’s $14 million renovation
TAKEAWAY Wherever students land, showing up for local screenings and arts events matters. Community keeps film alive.
Norton Media Center
Jason Benjamin, director of the Norton Media Center, showcases the importance of public access television The center provides access to equipment and a low-stakes environment where community members (and Wheaton students) can learn and practice.
But it’s about more than equipment It’s about democracy, com munity and giving people the tools to tell their stories� During our visit, students sat at the news anchor desk; the director facilitated a filming session involving two of our students.
TAKEAWAY Community access TV is a hidden gem. Students should connect with local stations—both for experience and for building networks.
Talamas Camera Rental
At Talamas, manager Scott Lebeda showed off cutting-edge cameras, including the Arri Alexa 35 and a portable motion control arm He also shows us through their lens testing and calibration lab. Conversations ranged from film tax credits to the 2024 strikes and the relentless pace of tech change
TAKEAWAY Rental houses may feel intimidating, but they exist to support filmmakers. Ask questions, seek advice—they want to help.
Boston Productions Inc.
Boston Productions creates interactive exhibitions and documentaries for museums with emerging technologies—virtual reality, artificial reality, touch screens and haptics. We split into small groups to learn about filming/editing for these mediums, working with clients, and developing the physical and haptic elements We even got to beta test several works, which was very exciting
TAKEAWAY In these environments, teamwork is everything. Collaboration drives innovation.
Students learn about staff career journeys that led them to Boston Productions Inc.
Professor Patrick Johnson and students enrolled in his course Media in Massachusetts pause for a group photo at the Coolidge Corner Theater.
Jason Benjamin guides students through a camera and lighting setup.
Elias Stevens ‘25 pauses to take a closer look at one of the advanced camera rigs available at Talmas.
High Output
Walking into High Output, a sound stage and grip/electric rental company, we were floored to learn the “study” set from Knives Out was built and filmed there. We toured multiple departments—sales, billing, repair, warehouse We learned about the importance of safety on set, particularly in regards to electricity and working with heavy machinery� Students even tried out a Chapman dolly�
TAKEAWAY Filmmaking involves so much specialized equipment and processes that no one person can master it all. Students shouldn’t expect to know everything and they need not hide gaps in knowledge. Ask the pros for guidance.
New England Sports Network (NESN)
Technical support manager Chris Reese introduced us to the rapidly evolving world of sports broadcasting Students learned how NESN is adapting to cord-cutting with its own streaming app, NESN 360, and embraced automation, podcasts and short-form content. We also talked with the channel’s chief financial officer and its head cybersecurity for more context on the changing media landscape
TAKEAWAY Media never stops changing. Careers in the industry require constant learning and reinvention.
GBH
At GBH, the flagship PBS station in the Northeast, students toured state-of-the-art facilities, including two sound stages and a music performance space Highlights included visiting a sound mixing suite, where we learned about the process of mixing sound for television documentaries; getting a mini-lesson in color correction from Jim Ferguson and getting to pluck Emmy awards off of their wall of Emmy’s
TAKEAWAY Beyond the impressive technology, the generosity of the GBH staff stood out. Kindness and openness build strong creative communities.
WPRI Channel 12
Our final visit was to WPRI TV 12, where we watched a live taping of Newsmakers hosted by Wheaton alumnus Ted Nesi ’07 with guest Congressman Jake Auchincloss (D—MA) Students stepped into the studio, tested their presenter skills at the weather wall and learned about the variety of roles required to make a newsroom operate
TAKEAWAY From politics to artificial intelligence, media careers intersect with every issue shaping society.
Eli Jarsky ‘27 tries his hand at presenting the weather forecast in front of a green screen at WPRI TV 12.
The class surveys the mountain of gear in the warehouse at High Output, which provides production services and equipment for film, television, theatre, and events.
The class takes a long look into the control room at New England Sports Network.
Students take note of the on-set arrangements for a GBH panel program.
The Blue Man
By Troy Watkins
Adam Erdossy ’03 performing with Blue Man Group
PHOTO BY CAROLINE TALBOT
In a world of constant noise, they never spoke. In a sea of performers seeking fame, they were a trio of cobalt anonymity. For three decades, the Blue Man Group captivated audiences in Boston, a bizarre and beautiful spectacle of music, mischief and paint-splattered mayhem.
In July, after 30 years, the lights dimmed for the final time. It was the end of an era, and for Adam Erdossy ’03, it was the conclusion of an extraordinary 18-year journey. He may be as surprised as anyone that he enjoyed such a long tenure as a blue man.
Wheaton magazine caught up with Erdossy ’03 just before Blue Man Group performed its final show to talk with him about his journey through nearly two
At that time I was steeped in the world of Greek tragedy, so that Jello launch blew my mind.”
Erdossy was interested in world travel when he enrolled at Wheaton and quickly found a second home on campus and in the theater. “At Wheaton, acting classes with Professors Pamela Bongas and David Fox didn’t feel like work to me,” he said. “It was fun, and the more I put into it the more I got out.”
Matthew Allen. With his help, Erdossy landed a Davis Fellowship and conducted research on theater and dance in India.
“In Western culture these two are often separated,” he said. “That is certainly the path that led me to Blue Man Group, which combines music and physicality in this unique, weird, awesome performance.”
After graduating from Wheaton with a degree in theatre and dramatic literature, Erdossy joined a theater ensemble in New
Man’s last bow
decades as a “Blue Man,” and what comes next.
When he first saw BMG as a college student, it did not resonate with Erdossy. But one moment made him laugh really hard.
“They invited an audience member on stage and wiggled a Jello-like substance to see how they reacted,” he recalled. “Then, suddenly the Jello was catapulted into the audience with the Blue Men innocently conveying ‘wow, that’s never happened before!’ I thought it was the funniest thing I’d ever seen, the randomness of it, and the total destruction of the fourth wall.
He took theater courses during a Study Abroad trip to Australia and spent a semester at the National Theater Institute in Connecticut. During that time, he spent two weeks studying at the Moscow Art Theater. As a senior, he played Creon in “Antigone” and the lead in “Tartuffe.”
“Wheaton College was a great match for me,” Erdossy shared. “As a student, it allowed you to form your own path, give you options and just the right amount of nudging and support that you needed.”
He took a wide variety of courses, including Ethnomusicology with Professor
York City, and took advantage of opportunities to learn and survive in a challenging field. He served as a technical director at a theater and a stagehand at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. He also did lighting work for soap operas, worked in cafés and did some street canvassing for Greenpeace.
A classmate from the National Theater Institute saw a listing for BMG auditions. Erdossy decided to give it a go. In his audition, he was asked to use drumsticks, but didn’t know how to hold them properly. “They taught me how to hold the sticks,
then gave me a couple of things to try,” he explained. “I tried and struggled, and then I’d ask questions.” It lasted about two minutes and Erdossy thought he blew it.
A month later BMG invited him to an acting audition.
“In the middle of that audition I was making a complete joke out of myself and one of the auditioners started recording me with a little camcorder,” Ersdossy recalled. “I walked out of that audition also unsure of how I had done. Before I had gotten to the street they called me and invited me to the next audition. That’s how it all started.”
After auditioning, Erdossy started to understand Blue Man Group. “They didn’t want to see what I could do. They wanted to see who I was,” he said. “So when you get
presented with something that is challenging or that you don’t fully understand, how you react to it reveals a lot about you. I didn’t get defensive, I asked questions.”
After 18 years performing as a Blue Man, Erdossy shared his appreciation for his role in the iconic show.
“Blue Man is unique, yet he embodies the best and most pure elements of being human,” he shared. “He’s innocent and inexhaustibly curious. In my opinion, this was the magic and allure of both getting to perform in and to experience the Blue Man show.
As a BMG member he joined casts in Boston, Chicago, Las Vegas, New York and Tokyo—where he met his wife, Seiko, and their son, Leo, was born. He also participated in U.S., Australia and world tours, but always returned home.
Boston’s shows ran 4–8 times each week, depending on the week and season.
More than 4.5 million people attended a performance during its three decades at the Charles Playhouse.
Each night, it took about 45 minutes for Erdossy to transform into a Blue Man. A bald cap made of silicon was glued down to cover his ears and hair, then blue makeup was applied to the neck and face.
“For such a simple transformation physically, the emotional, metaphorical and magical transformation that happens is really remarkable,” Erdossy said, admitting that learning to trust the character was the most challenging part of the role. “You have to be open and vulnerable, willing to let your inner life out to play and interact with the world around you.
“Whatever happened in the show, no matter how off script or crazy it became, it was a gift, a tremendous opportunity to explore and be alive in that specific moment with that cast, musicians and audience. It is a deep feeling of connection we just don’t experience enough of in our daily lives.
Overall, Erdossy says that BMG has been an incredible experience. “I’ve always been a world traveler. How I view people around me has been changed by going places where I was the outsider. When you are in an uncomfortable place and people show you kindness, your capacity and understanding of empathy evolves and deepens. That began during a trip to South Korea and Japan during the winter break of my sophomore year and continued during my semester in Australia. Wheaton helped open my eyes to that experience and to consider myself a global citizen.”
During the performances, Erdossy most appreciated playing unique music with talented musicians and the profound interactions with the audience. “I have tremendous respect for people who trusted me to bring them on stage, especially the people that were nervous,” he explained. “It never
Adam with wife Seiko and son Leo.
Son Leo applies Adam’s face paint.
PHOTO BY ROBB SIMRING
ceased to amaze me how deeply we could connect and communicate without uttering a word. We were also working against a force that is pulling us apart in today’s society and in those moments in the show we sliced through that to connect with and celebrate each other.”
Erdossy shared that among many things, he will miss the community of people that formed around this character. “It was always bigger than ourselves. It was a communal phenomenon to realize that we’re all more than just the role we played.
It was an oddball, super talented, group of cool people who fit right in with Blue Man Group.”
With the show in Boston closed, Erdossy is moving to his wife’s hometown in southern Japan, where her mother and brothers live. There he hopes to teach a workshop that has previously taught at Wheaton— one created with Stephanie Burlington Daniels ’97, professor of theatre. He is working on a film with a friend and may also do some photography and acting.
“Blue Man is one of the few long-term
theater gigs that you could depend on,” he reflected. “But there is so much out there, so many talented creators. I am indeed sad to close this chapter in my life, but also very excited about what’s next.”
He’s eternally thankful for the role Blue Man has played in his journey.
“I spent 18 years doing Blue Man and it’s such a huge part of my life. It will always be. If I had the opportunity to do it, I would absolutely jump on it again.”
Blue Man Group performs
PHOTO BY CAROLINE TALBOT
Scientific beginnings
Silas Vega ’29 and Cheyenne Colbert ’27 explained the intricacies of the experiments they ran exploring options for boosting the human body’s immune response to fight cancer Another pair of student researchers shared results on the beneficial impact of personal music choices in reducing physiological stress
Student research poster sessions were arranged in Emerson Dining, illustrating the range of research projects offered through the Wheaton Outstanding STEM Scholars (WOSS) program, an intensive experiential learning opportunity for incoming first-year STEM students
The presentations, which featured students who participated in the program during the summer of 2024 and 2025, were part of a daylong symposium celebrating the culmination of the college’s multi-year effort to increase student engagement and enhance outcomes in science with the support of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI)� Students from Mercy College and the College of the Holy Cross also presented their work � André K � Isaacs, associate professor of chemistry and neuroscience at Holy Cross, delivered a keynote address�
“In my opinion, the student showcase was the highlight of the symposium,” said Juvenal Lopez, assistant professor of biology and coordinator of the WOSS program “It is humbling to learn about the incredible work that our students do at such an early stage of their academic careers ”
And the program will continue thanks to support from the Wheaton community The HHMI grant funding has ended, but gifts from the estate and family of Ambassador Samuel R Gammon III and his wife, Mary ’48, will provide the funding for future summers of scientific exploration by new college students
Cam Grosser ’28, who conducted research in 2024 with Assistant Professor of Biology Andrew Davinack, earned a co-author credit on research published in the peer-reviewed journal Acta Parasitologica as a result of the program�
“Participating in the program before my first year at Wheaton was super helpful,”
said Grosser, an environmental science major. “I started my first year having already done some research and co-authoring a paper as well ”
The program combines a broad introduction to college-level science courses and workshops aimed at developing skills for career readiness along with an intensive research experience with a faculty member. It is specifically designed to reduce the barrier to entry into research experiences in STEM and promote meaningful interactions between incoming students and Wheaton faculty and staff
“I signed up for the program because I wanted to get lab experience,” said Vega, an Eliza Wheaton Scholar from East Brunswick, N J “The lab sessions were really good because a lot of what we did was new to me, but it wasn’t so difficult that I couldn’t get a grasp of it. The first day, Visiting Assistant
Professor of Chemistry Ganapathy Sriram had us practicing pipetting for two and a half hours, because we were going to be doing it the whole time we were there He wanted to make sure we were really good with the basics before we got into the rest of the research
“For me, it helped me to figure out what I want to do in college,” said Vega, who plans to pursue his interest in biology and chemistry to position himself for a career in cancer research
In addition to launching the WOSS program, the HHMI grant-funded effort has also resulted in the adoption of new, data-based approaches to teaching STEM topics, supported faculty professional development in inclusive pedagogy, and an ongoing assessment plan to better understand students’ experiences in science education� and measure progress toward being fully inclusive�
Silas Vega ’29 and Cheyenne Colbert ’27
PHOTO BY KEITH NORDSTROM
College raises $24.4 million in fiscal year 2025
Wheaton alumni band together to make a difference on Wheaton Giving Day, Athletic Day of Donors and other occasions
More than 3,000 alumni, parents and friends of Wheaton contributed $24 4 million to the college during the 2024–25 fiscal year, which ended on June 30, 2025 It marked the second highest total in the college’s history
More than $3� 5 million of the total was received as annual fund gifts, providing immediate support to the college’s greatest areas of need—such as the Critical Retention Scholarship Fund, Athletics, Experiential Learning and Financial Aid �
When other forms of participation are included more than 4,600 individuals contributed to Wheaton, as class officers, guest speakers, Reunion organizers, donors, leadership fundraising volunteers, Giving Day ambassadors, mentors and job and internship providers
“Thank you for your continued support of our mission, our students, our faculty and our campus community,” said Merritt Crowley, vice president for Advancement
“Your engagement helps launch academic programs, expand career exploration and strengthen a unique education and experience Wheaton’s strength comes from our shared sense of purpose in continuing to grow and evolve as an institution ”
The college has expanded educational and athletic opportunities over the past few years, while reducing expenses and reinforcing its financial foundation. The addition of new majors, 4+1 Master’s programs, the Life and Career Design Institute and five varsity teams has coincided with a renewed focus on connection and engagement through our All
Wheaton’s strength comes from our shared sense of purpose in continuing to grow and evolve as an institution.
Together Now effort �
“Whether mentoring students, serving as a guest speaker or a volunteer, providing internship, externship or job opportunities, or supporting institutional priorities, each contribution impacts Wheaton’s success,” Crowley said �
A portion of the year’s giving came in just two days—a pair of 24-hour giving events that attracted widespread participation
On April 22, Wheaton’s annual Day of Giving raised more than $150,000 The gifts will enable more students to attend the college, and some 220 students will benefit from the Critical Retention Scholarship Fund, ensuring the resources necessary to continue their education and pursue their goals
This investment helps to provide scholarships, hands-on learning experiences and critical support to empower students to thrive
In February when the college held its first Athletic Day of Donors, more than 400 alumni, faculty, staff and current students contributed $65,000 The funds will address needs across Wheaton’s athletic programs, including equipment, player nutrition, recruiting, travel and technology enhancements�
“Being part of the Lyons community was the highlight of my Wheaton experience,”
said Lydia Regan ’17, who served as one of 25 alumni athletic ambassadors promoting the campaign to fellow athletes “Supporting the Athletic Day of Donors was an easy choice because I want future generations of Wheaton athletes to have the same incredible opportunities to grow, compete and build lasting connections� ”
The final push of this year’s effort occurred in June, as some of the college’s most devoted supporters provided a dollar-to-dollar match of up to $300,000 in donations during the month-long All Together Now challenge� Five hundred donors contributed $831,000 to answer the call to invest in Wheaton’s future
This fundraising is all the more extraordinary and a testament to the faith in Wheaton College as an institution Like many institutions in Massachusetts and beyond, Wheaton faces external pressures, including federal changes to financial aid, loss of grant funding, barriers to student visas, more families facing financial hardship and increased state support for students attending public universities
In this context, Wheaton has been improving efficiencies across its operations, reducing expenses, and implementing changes to ensure that the college continues to thrive and remain academically excellent These efforts when combined with donor philanthropy directly improve the Wheaton experience and illustrate its capacity to respond in ways that enhance the college’s mission of preparing students for abundant lives and evolving careers�
Reconnecting, story by story
In May I attended my 30th Wheaton reunion and was struck by the depth and breadth of stories I heard from alums—some of whom I never, or rarely, spoke to while we were students
Among those conversations was one with Sandra (Sable) Gilpatrick ’95 and Shiwei Julia Huang ’15 Sandra and my academic and extracurricular circles did not overlap; instead, we later became friends as new moms and independent business owners in Boston My interaction with Shiwei, who interned with Sandra, was brief yet brimming with joy� In just a few minutes it was clear to see the mutual affection between the two, and I was in awe, hearing the depth of Sandra’s commitment to providing opportunities for Wheaton students, and Shiwei’s commentary about how Sandra’s guidance has changed her life
It shouldn’t be surprising that I was so moved by these stories; part of my professional work involves helping organizations and brands bring their impact stories to life But there was something else that I will be plain about Immediately after graduating, I was a Very Involved Wheaton Alum—I made Annual Fund calls, sat on boards, spoke on panels and answered every Wheaton request with an enthusiastic yes And then 20 years ago when my father died, I became a parent, and left academia to build a new creative career from scratch, my Wheaton tank dried up and I checked out � In
the passing years, I have been swept along in the tidal wave of activity that accompanies raising humans and being an entrepreneur, and at this particular phase in my life I still
don’t have the bandwidth to sit on boards, but after that incredibly moving day at Wheaton—where I felt my reconnection spark with my classmates, as well as faculty and staff who helped me realize my value and voice—I wanted to do something
And so, I decided to follow my own mantra about volunteering—which is to step into the ring in a way that is aligned to your skills and brings joy� I reached out to Wheaton and
offered to donate my skills, service and platform to bring a five-feature alum interview series to life—start to finish. I want to bring to light the stories of alums across classes who are connecting, changing one another’s trajectories and impacting lives across different walks of life I didn’t want to simply throw a suggestion into the suggestion box because I know that ideas are one thing, and action is another I was so delighted when the communications team said yes!
I hope this series, which is forthcoming on the college’s alumni website, will help you see yourself as a piece of the unique fabric that is the Wheaton College family� I hope you may feel moved to reconnect, to offer your hand if you have the bandwidth or to make a friendly connection� In tough times especially, we need one another, and this past spring I was reminded that Wheaton can be a caring anchor in stormy times Stay tuned for the first feature in this series And if you know of—or are yourself— a pair of alums in different classes who have sparked impact for one another and beyond, please use the QR code to introduce yourself I am eager to bring future stories of connection to life!
Christine Koh ’95 is a former music and brain scientist turned writer, podcaster, designer and creative director. You can find her work at christinekoh.com.
Christine Koh ‘95 visiting Wheaton in 1991 after her admission to the college.
PHOTO BY GEORGE KOH
Fueling the future of nursing
Wheaton received a $5 million dollar gift from alumna Georgia Wall Gogel ’ 71 and her husband, Don Gogel, to fund scholarship resources, experiential learning, emergent needs of students in the nursing program as well as a full scholarship for a member of the Class of 2030
The impact that nurses can play in addressing public health needs inspired the Gogels to direct their philanthropy to the program
“Well-trained nurses will play an increasingly important role in addressing the crisis we face in the delivery of high-quality health care locally, nationally and internationally,” said Georgia Gogel, who graduated as a government major with Phi Beta Kappa and Summa Cum Laude honors “Wheaton’s innovative nursing program, which incorporates sophisticated technologies and features outstanding faculty and talented students, is certain to achieve positive outcomes with respect to the quality of care that patients experience�
“In addition, the nursing profession now provides an attractive and well-compensated career path,” she said � “Our funding of scholarships will support high-quality nursing students who would not otherwise be able to pursue a nursing degree at Wheaton� ”
After a legal career as a partner in two New York City law firms specializing in complex real estate transactions, Georgia transitioned to dedicate her time and career to
legal advocacy and philanthropy on behalf of Graham Windham, the nation’s oldest child welfare agency, founded in 1806 by Eliza Hamilton Graham serves over 8,000 at-risk youth in New York City each year She has served as a Trustee for over 30 years, including 19 as Chairman, to ensure equity access to education and all of the resources necessary to build strong programs that all young people need to grow and to thrive Her husband, Don, who graduated from Harvard University in 1971, is the chairman of Clayton, Dubilier & Rice He is a trustee of the Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City, where he has served for 44 years
The Gogels’ generosity has had an immediate impact at Wheaton The nursing program welcomed more students—59 members for the Class of 2029—than any other academic program at the college. In its first two years, the program has enrolled students with an impressive average GPA of 3�75�
Wheaton College President Michaele Whelan expressed her appreciation�
“This is a pivotal moment for our nursing program and the future of healthcare education at Wheaton� The generosity of the Gogel family will help reduce the financial pressures and barriers that many students and their families face,” President Whelan said “This gift will allow our students to focus on their education, including global and clinical experiences, and attain their goal of becom-
ing healthcare professionals, regardless of their families’ financial means. As a result, Wheaton will be positioned to yield the most qualified students and retain them through graduation� ”
Dean of Nursing Colette Dieujuste said the impact will extend beyond Wheaton: “It’s hard to put into words just how meaningful and transformative this scholarship will be for our nursing students� The opportunities it will create and the experiences it will provide will leave a lasting impact on our students’ education at Wheaton, their growth as future nurses, and ultimately on the patients and communities they will serve ”
Georgia Wall Gogel ‘71 and husband Don
Wheaton’s nursing skills lab provides space for students to practice and master foundational clinical skills.
PHOTO BY EDWARD CARUSO
Book or treat?
Sally Alice Unkles Smith ’64 started a popular tradition in Palm Beach by accident � It started on Halloween night in 1994, when she ran out of candy The retired librarian replaced M&Ms with books
Encouraged by the response she received and determined to make a difference, Smith has continued to hand out books instead of candy on Halloween for three decades Her unique effort led to a feature article in the Palm Beach Daily News “It’s interesting to make the front page without dying or getting married,” Smith mused
Families have enjoyed the special Halloween gift that Smith has awarded for more than a generation in her Florida neighborhood, where she is referred to by local children as the “book lady ” Some kids have shared that her house is either their first stop or their favorite
Smith earned a degree in economics at Wheaton and has been involved with libraries throughout her life� For 25 years she served as a trust officer—settling estates
and administering property, investments or partnerships held in a trust � Smith then decided to pursue a degree in library and information science Highly interested in children’s literature, she studied at Oxford University and at colleges in London and Washington, D C , before completing a M A at the University of South Florida
She later worked as a children’s librarian for The Society of the Four Arts in Palm Beach
After retiring, Smith has kept involved with several literacy events as a volunteer, such as reading to local school children to give the teachers a short break
Since those first books as treats were handed out in 1994, Smith has spent the summers visiting libraries and thrift stores to purchase as many published works as possible, from children’s to coffee-table books “The Salvation Army has been the best source for books,” she says, “and my family has always supported them� In fact, my late husband served for a time as board chair for the local Salvation Army�”
Her All Hallow’s Eve tradition has grown significantly over the years. Some neighbors have assisted to arrange and display the books or keep track of the volumes handed out And when they ran out of tables, her son’s surfboards set up on saw horses passed as a makeshift display
Halloween 2024 marked the largest celebration to date To accommodate the popularity of her giveaway, local police blocked off three neighborhood streets to traffic, designated them the “Halloween streets” and food trucks provided culinary options Smith handed out 125 books and estimated that a crowd of a least 250 stopped by, with every child accompanied by at least one parent. The benefits of reading, especially starting at a young age, are well documented, Smith says
“How are they going to learn if they don’t know how to read and enjoy reading?” Smith wonders� “We hope that their parents read and they can emulate their parents� ” –By Troy
Watkins
Sally Alice Smith ’64 has been handing out books instead of candy for Halloween for 30 years.
Ishaan Madan’s quest to gain new insight into the chemistry behind the origins of life recently received a major boost with a grant from the National Science Foundation The 2022 Wheaton graduate, now a Ph D candidate in planetary science at Purdue University, has earned a competitive Graduate Research Fellowship to help fund his research
Madan’s work examines the emergence of life on Earth and the conditions needed for it to arise beyond our planet from a chemical perspective “I look at it from a lens of computational chemistry, so I create models and run simulations to figure out whether certain chemicals will form based on the starting material that’s available,” he explained � “I do this for different environments in our solar system� ”
Moving forward, most of Madan’s research will be focused toward Titan, Saturn’s largest moon� “It’s a very interesting place,” he said � “We think there’s some really cool chemistry happening there that was also occurring early on Earth� It’s like a natural lab to be explored ”
Part of the research is aimed to support NASA’s Dragonfly mission to Titan in the next decade “I hope my research will provide some guidance about what kind of chemicals that they can expect to potentially find
on the surface when they get there ”
Madan came to Wheaton as a Posse Scholar and touts what he gained on campus “Without my Wheaton education, I wouldn’t be here,” he said “A lot of what I learned in my higher-level chemistry classes, I use on an everyday basis ”
He first trained his attention on the larger planets of our solar system as a Wheaton student He participated in research with Professor of Geology Geoff Collins, who studies how geology works on the ice-covered ocean worlds of the outer solar system, and what geology can tell us about the possibly habitable environments within those alien oceans
“Geoff Collins was one of the most influential people in my Wheaton journey� I did my very first research project with him,” he said. Professor Collins also helped the biochemistry major with his senior thesis and graduate school application� “He’s an authentic human being and a beautiful soul� ”
While at Wheaton, Madan won a Barry Goldwater Scholarship, a national award in the natural sciences, engineering and mathematics that supports undergrads who show exceptional promise in becoming research leaders in these fields.
Instead of pursuing research right after graduating, Madan chose to gain some financial stability by taking a job with Epic, the largest electronic medical records company in the United States A year and a half into his position of maintaining oncology software, he longed to get back into the sciences
project he had been collaborating on with a colleague “That focused on trying to study alternative forms of chemistries that might be occurring in Venus’s atmosphere,” he explained “We examined how certain analogs of chemicals used by microscopic life may form in places away from Earth ”
To continue his education and return to research, Madan followed the recommendation of a mentor and chose Purdue University, where he is fulfilling his desire to work with Dr� Ben Pearce� Pearce’s research aligns with the questions that Madan aims to explore about the chemistry of life on Earth and its potential to exist beyond �
Last fall, Madan started at Purdue, where he received a university fellowship to fund his research for the first two years of his five-year Ph.D. program. The NSF fellowship will provide funding for the following three years at a value of approximately $160,000
After resigning, Madan traveled abroad for six weeks to complete a research
“With the NSF support, I can focus my attention on my research, which is such a privilege,” he said “I don’t have to do any TA [teaching assistant] duties, unless I choose to ”
Madan is thankful for and feels blessed by the support to continue his passion for research while determining what his future holds
“I’ve always been driven by curiosity for space and a desire to do meaningful work that helps humanity,” he said “Whether I stay in academia, work in space research, or build something of my own, this award gives me more agency in choosing a path aligned with my values� ”
–By Troy Watkins
Ishaan works with Purdue Professor Ben Pearce.
Ishaan Madan ’22
PHOTO BY JOHN UNDERWOOD PURDUE UNIVERSITY
PHOTO BY JOHN UNDERWOOD PURDUE UNIVERSITY
Gold medal support
Physical Therapist Thais Mollet ’99 paves road to podium for
USA Cycling team
Thais Mollet ’99 took a bike ride that changed her life You might say it led her to three Olympics
A physical therapist (PT) and recreational cyclist, Mollet was biking one sunny afternoon and crossed paths with a former patient riding a hand cycle Mollet had treated his spinal cord injury and stayed in touch over the years while he had become an accomplished para-cyclist with connections throughout the worldwide para-cycling community
Through that serendipitous reconnection, Mollet landed an opportunity to serve as a physical therapist at the Para-Cycling Road World Cup in 2014 and the sport’s world championship event, where she met the Team USA track cycling coach�
After treating the coach’s wife, USA Cycling team member Sarah Hammer, Mollet was eventually invited to travel with the team in 2015, which she continues today� And what a ride it has been�
Mollet serves as PT for USA Cycling and travels about 4–6 months each year to world cup and world championship events with both the track and road cycling teams and the BMX freestyle team
But the Olympics have been the highlight Following the games in Rio in 2016 and Tokyo in 2021 (due to COVID), the USA Cycling team experienced its most successful Olympics since 1984, collecting seven medals in Paris in 2024 Six of the medalists were treated by Mollet
“It’s also heartbreaking when it doesn’t go exactly to plan and Chloé Dygert is an example of that ” Widely respected as the gold medal favorite for the time trial event, Dygert crashed in a turn on a rain-slickened track, Mollet shared “But she got back up immediately and won the bronze medal, finishing less than a second away from a silver ” Mollet has gotten very close to Dygert over the years “She had a terrible injury four years ago and has been fighting to get back since then,” Mollet explained “To see her win a team gold and an individual bronze this year was amazing�”
In addition to the well-timed bike ride, which set her on a path to the Olympics, Mollet humbly acknowledges the sage advice she received from a professor after a challenging first year at Wheaton� Hailing from a very small high school in Westport, Conn , with just 48 in her graduating class, Mollet knew that she wanted to be a physical therapist from a young age and chose Wheaton for its size and its potential to provide the education she sought to pursue her goals “I needed to have a true connection with my professors and figured out that majoring in psychobiology would provide me with the prerequisites for PT school,” she said
“That made a huge difference for me,” Mollet said “I turned it around and got straight A’s So I always give credit to Dr Morgan because I don’t know where I’d be without her ” Mollet earned a doctorate in physical therapy from Boston University and gained experience at a few clinics before joining SpineNevada in 2008, where she served for more than 11 years�
When the pandemic arrived in 2020, Mollet ventured out on her own and established Mollet Physical Therapy in Reno, Nev� “As my own boss, I can travel whenever I want,” she said �
The flexible schedule provides the freedom needed to travel with the USA Cycling teams, providing daily massages and treatments for athletes with acute or chronic injuries, among other tasks “We are a small group—including a coach or two, a mechanic and sometimes a massage therapist—and pitch in to do whatever is necessary to support the team ”
The U.S. earned its first gold medal in women’s team pursuit as well as individual golds in women’s omnium and women’s road race “It’s incredible to watch these athletes train every day for these events and so gratifying and fulfilling to watch them compete at that level and to help in any way that I can,” said Mollet �
Mollet met Kathy Morgan, associate professor of psychology, during her first year and shared her desire to become a PT After an academically mediocre first year, Professor Morgan invited Mollet into her office and told her that if she wanted to become a physical therapist, she needed to improve her grades or she would not get into PT school�
Mollet considers herself fortunate to do what she’s doing “Coming out of college, I didn’t realize it was possible to travel the world and be a physical therapist—two of my passions I’m very lucky, but I think that luck is where preparation meets opportunity and I was prepared when the opportunity came ”
She intends to continue with USA Cycling and hopes to go to the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles “I get to travel the world and hang out with my friends and watch these athletes from the front row, so I have no complaints� It’s been a very rewarding career�”
–By Troy Watkins
Chloé Dygert and Thais Mollet ’99
Thais Mollet ’99 at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
Alumni celebrated for distinguished service in youth advocacy and education
The Wheaton College Alumni Association honored two of its own in May—Martha Stone ’70 and Derron Wallace ’07—presenting them with Alumni Achievement Awards for their significant contributions to society
Stone serves as special counsel for the Center for Children’s Advocacy, which she founded in 1997
A vibrant non-profit with 13 attorneys, the CCA provides legal representation and advocacy for the most vulnerable at-risk children in Connecticut, addressing issues of abuse and neglect, racial justice, educational inequities, youth homelessness and access to medical and mental health care
Stone earned a bachelor’s degree in government from Wheaton and a JD and LLM from Georgetown University Law Center She later served as legal director of the Connecticut Civil Liberties Union and was associate director of Children’s Rights, Inc , a national organization that litigates foster care nationwide
She has received numerous awards for distinguished service and was an adjunct professor at the University of Connecticut School of Law for 26 years
Stone accepted the award “with gratitude and humility” and credited the late Professor of Political Science Jay Goodman with helping students get through the turbulent years of her time at Wheaton. The self-confidence and
fearlessness she learned from Goodman helped her career advancement She also learned to “love what you do” from Goodman and how to stand up for herself�
Derron Wallace is a sociologist, organizer, writer and educational researcher A member of the Brown University Department of Africana Studies / Rites and Reason Theatre and the Annenberg Institute, he previously served for several years as associate professor of sociology and education at Brandeis University
Also the Frances B Cashin Fellow at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University, his research and organizing focuses on ameliorating structural and cultural inequalities in urban schools and neighborhoods as experienced by Black youth
“Gratitude fills my heart today, in part because Wheaton afforded me great growth,” Wallace said after accepting the award “I learned how to think, write and lead here ”
Wallace said that he learned that there were things that were worth fighting for—such as creating a major in African American studies at Wheaton, a cause he championed and that faculty approved during his time as a student
“In this moment of political turmoil in this country, I hope that you all find something worth fighting for, something that transforms your life and changes the world and I hope Wheaton is a
part of what you will fight for.”
Wallace’s research has been published in leading sociology and education journals He has received numerous awards recognizing his scholarship on Black youth and earned a pair of awards for excellence in teaching and research from Brandeis�
His award-winning book, The Culture Trap: Ethnic Expectations and Unequal Schooling for Black Youth, explored cultural explanations of Black students’ achievement and behavior in London and New York City schools�
A Posse Scholar at Wheaton, Wallace double majored in sociology and in African, African American, Diaspora Studies, and received a Projects for Peace grant, a Watson Fellowship as well as Fulbright and Marshall scholarships He holds a master’s in international education and a Ph D in sociology of education from the University of Cambridge
Four alumni recognized as inaugural recipients of new volunteer leadership award
The Office of Engagement established a new award for volunteer leadership in 2025 and selected its first four recipients—Becky Callow ’73, Marci Lunder Miller ’77, Hope Gallagher Ogletree ’75 and John Talanian ’93
The Sharon G Levine ’70 Memorial Volunteer Leadership Award was created to recognize Levine’s extraordinary dedication to fundraising and volunteerism at Wheaton “Sharon was devoted to fundraising, mentorship and community, which has left a lasting legacy She embodied the spirit of the college and inspired other volunteers through her selfless spirit,” said Courtney Ryan Shurtleff, assistant vice president for Advancement,
The award was presented during Reunion Weekend to Ogletree and Talanian for their service, leadership and accomplishments Callow and Miller will receive their awards at a later date
Talanian has volunteered at Wheaton for 25 years, including a decade on the President’s Commission
As a member of the Board of Trustees for 14 years, he has chaired several committees and provided leadership and mentorship to many “You are a trusted advisor, a connector and a quiet force for progress in our community,” said Shurtleff while presenting the award
Ogletree has served her class and the college with steadfast devotion, serving as her Class Fund agent for 25 consecutive years, as well as class president, class reunion chair and secretary to the Alumni Board Shurtleff lauded Ogletree for embodying
the values that Sharon held most deeply: dedication, mentorship and generosity
PHOTOS BY NICKI PARDO
PHOTOS BY NICKI PARDO
Derron Wallace ’07
John Talanian ’93 and Hope Ogletree ’75 receive awards from Courtney Ryan Shurtleff, assistant vice president for Advancement.
Martha Stone ’70
pulse of protest
Icame to Wheaton knowing I wanted to study biology I’ve always been drawn to the outdoors, and I had this vision of working in environmental conservation, helping people adapt to climate change� But during my coursework at Wheaton, something unexpected happened—I fell into a deep exploration of protest music � Music has always been a part of my life� I started violin in third grade and switched to cello later on, playing in orchestra all through school
When I arrived at Wheaton, I didn’t have a cello for a while, so I wasn’t in the college orchestra, but music never left my life At the same time, I have been interested in learning Arabic—mostly because I thought it was a beautiful language, written and spoken. During my first year, I took two semesters of Arabic, and as part of that course, we studied the Arab Spring Around the same time, I was in a world music course taught by Professor Julie Searles That overlap—learning about uprisings in the Middle East while exploring music’s global impact—sparked something in me
ists like Ramy Essam, who performed solo in Cairo, Egypt’s Tahrir Square with just a guitar and his voice, rallied massive crowds� Other songs, such as Baraye by Shervin Hajipour, pulled lyrics from tweets and social media posts, transforming digital resistance into real-world solidarity� El General, a Tunisian rapper, also stood out as a major voice of dissent � That project opened the door for me to see how music can be a powerful tool— not just to express emotion, but to unify and mobilize people
“This is something I love about having studied at Wheaton—the opportunity to take a wide range of classes and discover new topics. ”
As part of the world music course, I took an indepth look at how music had influenced the Arab Spring that began in 2010� Art-
Later, I expanded on that project in a creative writing course called World Englishes, taught by Professor Ruth Foley That course gave me the space to look at how English and native languages are used in protest songs It was a challenge—I only analyzed 10 songs in depth, simply because finding reliable translations and context was so difficult. But what I found was fascinating, and I created a timeline mapping the songs, their meaning and the context that inspired each one In many postcolonial countries, protest songs often use English to speak to global audiences or government powers, while use of the country’s native language shows solidarity with the people and the movement they’re supporting� It’s a strategic and emotional choice—language becomes a bridge�
As someone who listens to mostly indie music and plays classical cello, I found it kind of funny to be digging so deep into punk, rap, and other genres to which I don’t typically listen� But I was—and still am—drawn to the raw passion in protest music � There’s something powerful about hearing a song that makes you feel deeply, even if you don’t speak the language� Music has a way of transcending borders, identities, and even disciplines�
This is something I love about having studied at Wheaton—the opportunity to take a wide range of classes and discover new topics Thanks to studying protest music, I got more into sociology and economics because I was fascinated in the psychology of markets and how money affects social behaviors
In fact, I ended up with a minor in political economics
This work also reflects the kind of scientist I want to be It’s clear that the researchers who have strong community ties produce better, more impactful work The ability to connect with people—culturally, emotionally, socially—is just as important as technical expertise That’s why I value the interdisciplinary experiences I’ve had They’ve given me a broader understanding of people and culture, how knowledge is shared and movements are built �
—By Daphne Giampietro ’25
Daphne Giampietro ’25 explains her study of protest music during Academic Festival.
PHOTO BY KEITH NORDSTROM
Create a lasting legacy.
“I made a bequest of my entire estate to Wheaton to establish an endowed scholarship fund for first gen eration students, with the hope of helping as many as possible achieve their academic goals
My interests at Wheaton were math and history, and U� S � History professor Nancy Norton was my favorite instructor and the genuine interest she took in each of her stu dents
My years at Wheaton formed my character allowed me to become who I am—a lifelong teacher and a contributing member of my community privilege to spend four years on a beautiful campus with a caring faculty opportunity
