In case you missed it, President Michael Roth sat down for an interview with the Argus last week to talk about what he thinks he’s accomplished during his two years in office (budget-balancing, forming A Long-Term Plan) how Wes has changed since he was a student here thirty years ago, and what he plans for the future despite economic pressures.
There’s the typical talk about enhancing financial aid, increasing investment in the sciences, encouraging creativity, and maintaining a distinctive Wesleyan spirit/character/personality/etc.
But there are also the more ambitious goals of launching the “College of the Environment”, a major program which will eventually be on par with CSS and COL, doubling the number of international students attending, and actively encouraging all students to pursue senior capstone projects, which are all pretty big deals – we’ll definitely be hearing more about these in the future.
Roth thinks idealism has always been a constant among Wesleyan students, but apparently the fight song has grown in popularity in recent decades:
I belonged to Alpha Delta Phi and I was very involved with the activities of the fraternity but I’d never heard the fight song—I didn’t even know there was a fight song! Wesleyan students sing it not so much with irony as with glee. Of course, part of the student culture is oppositional and that’s also a very good thing, but I think we express our school spirit more freely today than in the past.
Do we really? How apathetic were students thirty years ago, if our generation represents a high point for Wesleyan school spirit?
Argus: Two Years In, Roth Looks Back
wesrugby and i imagine all of the other sports teams, too, sing the fight song at every game.
wesrugby and i imagine all of the other sports teams, too, sing the fight song at every game.
oh my god, are we really critiquing his SOCKS?
oh my god, are we really critiquing his SOCKS?
I smell Martin Benjamin lurking behind #16.
I smell Martin Benjamin lurking behind #16.
Congratulations, Michael – you have every reason to gloat over your accomplishments. Please work on that Time or Newsweek headshot.
Congratulations, Michael – you have every reason to gloat over your accomplishments. Please work on that Time or Newsweek headshot.
for the record, how many people say alpha delts are the lamest people on campus and then use the aef or eat at the s&c? get your shit right, wesleyan.
for the record, how many people say alpha delts are the lamest people on campus and then use the aef or eat at the s&c? get your shit right, wesleyan.
@8:47 – his socks are fine. it’s not a formal portrait.
@8:47 – his socks are fine. it’s not a formal portrait.
Justin, are you for serious? I’m sure we’ve sung the fight song at, like, house parties. Or something. I’ve known it since freshman year, at least – I thought pretty much everyone did. I’m suuure you’ve been around for it…
Roth needs to get longing socks.
Roth needs to get longing socks.
Michael is correct; thirty years ago, it was by no means clear that the business model President Campbell had put into place would succeed: that the sciences Ph.D programs would become self-supporting, that serious artists and performers would ever be attracted to a formerly all-mens college or that alumni contributions would kick in anywhere near the 50% level. Read, President Chace’s book, “100 Semesters”; there were a lot of naysayers (including, President Chace.) I was frankly, quite surprised the first time I heard anyone not wearing a blue blazer sing, the fight song.
Michael is correct; thirty years ago, it was by no means clear that the business model President Campbell had put into place would succeed: that the sciences Ph.D programs would become self-supporting, that serious artists and performers would ever be attracted to a formerly all-mens college or that alumni contributions would kick in anywhere near the 50% level. Read, President Chace’s book, “100 Semesters”; there were a lot of naysayers (including, President Chace.) I was frankly, quite surprised the first time I heard anyone not wearing a blue blazer sing, the fight song.
if you haven’t heard the fight song, clearly you have never been to a gag reflex show of any kind. good job supporting your classmates.
if you haven’t heard the fight song, clearly you have never been to a gag reflex show of any kind. good job supporting your classmates.
if you haven’t heard the fight song, clearly you have never been to an athletic contest of any kind. good job supporting your classmates.
if you haven’t heard the fight song, clearly you have never been to an athletic contest of any kind. good job supporting your classmates.
for the record, alpha delts are the lamest people on campus.
for the record, alpha delts are the lamest people on campus.
For the record, Alpha Delts now sing the fight song all the time.
Go Wes!
For the record, Alpha Delts now sing the fight song all the time.
Go Wes!
i’m sure justin is totally ashamed at mentioning Usdan on a post that had NOTHING TO DO WITH USDAN.
i’m sure justin is totally ashamed at mentioning Usdan on a post that had NOTHING TO DO WITH USDAN.
It’s not reposting if it’s never been posted on Wesleying before. Would you rather not have Wesleying put up really relevant things at all, if they’re not posted about immediately? Anyway I haven’t seen the Argus in the past week, so this is news to me.
It’s not reposting if it’s never been posted on Wesleying before. Would you rather not have Wesleying put up really relevant things at all, if they’re not posted about immediately? Anyway I haven’t seen the Argus in the past week, so this is news to me.
Dude, weeks-old Argus articles are the best. Keep on posting Sheek!
Dude, weeks-old Argus articles are the best. Keep on posting Sheek!
Sheek,
Why do you always repost weeks-old Argus articles?
Sheek,
Why do you always repost weeks-old Argus articles?
Good job turning a completely unrelated-to-Usdan thread into an opportunity to talk about it vs. Mocon.
I’ve heard the fight song, and I’m not a member of the WSA. The whole audience shouted “go wes!” at the end of the fight song part of a song sung by the Wesleyan Spirits during one of their concerts… It was pretty clear most everyone knew it.
Good job turning a completely unrelated-to-Usdan thread into an opportunity to talk about it vs. Mocon.
I’ve heard the fight song, and I’m not a member of the WSA. The whole audience shouted “go wes!” at the end of the fight song part of a song sung by the Wesleyan Spirits during one of their concerts… It was pretty clear most everyone knew it.
I read that and was a bit surprised. I’d never heard anyone sing the Fight Song until I joined the WSA senior year. Is there really all this school spirit at Wesleyan? Have I just missed seeing it?
Places where I’ve seen Wesleyan tradition and spirit come together was in Mocon, when we’d give speeches from the top of the steps and bang on tables… or Zonker Harris Day, and Duke Day.
Now, with Usdan and ResLife’s sanitization of WestCo, that kind of spirit has been taken away.
I read that and was a bit surprised. I’d never heard anyone sing the Fight Song until I joined the WSA senior year. Is there really all this school spirit at Wesleyan? Have I just missed seeing it?
Places where I’ve seen Wesleyan tradition and spirit come together was in Mocon, when we’d give speeches from the top of the steps and bang on tables… or Zonker Harris Day, and Duke Day.
Now, with Usdan and ResLife’s sanitization of WestCo, that kind of spirit has been taken away.