IWU News

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Cloaked in green robes that matched the beauty of the Eckley Quad on a spring afternoon, 472 students attended ceremonies for the 158th Commencement at Illinois Wesleyan University on Sunday, May 4.

Actor Kevin Dunn, a 1977 Illinois Wesleyan alumnus who has appeared in more than 80 movies and television roles, delivered the Commencement speech after being conferred an honorary doctor of humane letters degree. For the class of 2008, Dunn offered both his recollections of the past, and words of hope for the uncertain future today’s graduates face in his speech titled “Into Your Waiting Hands.”

Watch the address, see a Commencement photo album or read Commencement remarks.

“I have memories, vivid memories of freedom, of camaraderie, of invulnerability, and an endless stream of pranks, impromptu parties and cramming for exams,” said Dunn, who was a theatre major at Illinois Wesleyan. “There were late nights at the theatre, building sets, rigging flies and focusing lights. Performing in plays on the McPherson stage, wildly cheering on [Illinois Wesleyan basketball player] Jack Sikma and the rest of Dennie Bridges’ Titans as they barnstormed through the league.”

Dunn revealed that he almost did not return to Illinois Wesleyan for his senior year after his father was laid off. Recalling a meeting with Professor Emeritus of Theatre John Ficca, Dunn said, “Dr. Ficca listened, intently, with an occasional nod, as I told my story, and after what seemed to be an eternity he told me, ‘If you leave school now, sport, you won’t come back. And years from now you’ll look back on your decision and wonder if you could have succeeded in becoming an actor.’”

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BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – When junior Jacob Weis decided that he must study in Uganda, he looked to Illinois Wesleyan for his opportunity. “I transferred from another university to Illinois Wesleyan so that I could spend a semester in Africa,” said Weis, who will study this fall in Kampala, Uganda’s capital city, and will also visit Rwanda as part of an Illinois Wesleyan-affiliated study abroad program, School for International Training (SIT).

SIT offers field-based, experiential programs for undergraduate students in nearly 50 countries on six continents. Weis chose Uganda after viewing the film Invisible Children, a documentary about the effects of the on-going civil war on the people of Northern Uganda.

Weis has spent his time at Illinois Wesleyan preparing for the trip, during which he will focus his studies on the Ugandan educational system. “I hope that through my studies I will be able to see what needs to change to help Uganda progress as a country,” said Weis. He plans to research Ugandan culture, educational opportunities, teaching style, opportunities for higher education, and how middle schools are run.

Illinois Wesleyan junior Angela Rumsey was also inspired to travel to Uganda after seeing the film Invisible Children. A Lombard, Ill. native, Rumsey traveled to Kampala, where she attended classes and completed a six-week internship through SIT during the Fall 2007 semester.

“I lived with a Ugandan family in Kampala, which is a very modern city, went to school on weekdays, hung out with friends—both Ugandan and American—and went out to eat,” said Rumsey. “In theory, all these things seemed like home, but they were still very different.”

The anthropology and international studies double major with a concentration in development studies chose the SIT program because “I was more interested in being active than just sitting in a different university,” said Rumsey. “I interned with Child Restoration Outreach, an organization that works with disadvantaged children, where I worked with them in classrooms, counseling sessions and just playing outside. It gave me experience that I could have never received just by going to class, even if it was in a different country and culture.”

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BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Jessica Olsen, a senior at Illinois Wesleyan University, has been offered a Fulbright grant to teach in Germany.

Operating in 150 countries worldwide, the Fulbright Program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Envisioned by U.S. Sen. J. William Fulbright in 1945, the program promotes a mutual understanding between people of the United States and other countries of the world. Since its inception, nearly 103,000 Americans have studied, taught or researched abroad with the program.

Olsen received a grant through the Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship Program to help improve English language abilities and knowledge of the United States abroad. Through the program, she will spend 10 months teaching in a German high school.

“This is an unbelievable opportunity to explore what the German education system is like,” said Olsen, an English literature major with a concentration in secondary education and a minor in German. “I hope to share ideas and experiences that I can bring back home.” After her time abroad, the Rockford, Ill., native plans to teach junior high or high school in the United States. “Whether I end up teaching English or German, the Fulbright gives me a chance to combine all of my interests and work with students,” said Olsen.

The third Illinois Wesleyan student awarded a Fulbright in the last five years, Olsen was given the prestigious honor of being awarded two Fulbright grants – one to Germany and one to Austria – before choosing to travel to Germany. “To be able to have a choice is a unique and fantastic opportunity,” said Sonja Fritzsche, associate professor of German and Eastern European Studies and Fulbright advisor for Illinois Wesleyan. “The Fulbright application is a rigorous process and extremely competitive – with Germany being one of the toughest spots to land. This is a very high honor for a graduating senior.”

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BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Taking its name from the street that runs through Illinois Wesleyan’s campus, The Park Place Economist is a well-established economic journal published by Illinois Wesleyan undergraduates, and is one of several undergraduate journals at the University.

Students are responsible for gathering submissions, choosing articles, editing and proofreading and planning the layout for publication. Available in print and online, this annual journal is an opportunity for student work to be published, along with the experience to have an active role in the creation of an academic journal.

This year’s edition will feature nine articles discussing a range of issues including financial aid amounts affecting academic performance, gender inequality affecting growth, and capital investment and rural-urban migration in China. Senior economics major and The Park Place Editor-in-Chief, Elizabeth Taylor, worked with a team of 16 students and faculty advisor, Economics Department Chair and Associate Professor of Economics, Robert M. Leekley, to successfully publish its largest edition thus far.

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BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – With the intent to pursue advanced studies of the Hindi language, Illinois Wesleyan University junior Kari Irwin will study at the American Institute for Indian Studies (AIIS) for 10 weeks this summer in Jaipur, India.

A religion and philosophy major from Palatine, Ill., Irwin took a course in intensive Hindi last summer at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she learned about the program in Jaipur.

In addition to her acceptance to the AIIS program, Irwin also received a Critical Language Scholarship, which is sponsored by the United States Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and is administered by the Council of American Overseas Research Centers.

Critical Language Scholarships are awarded to American students and recent graduates who wish to pursue various levels of intensive overseas study in “critical need” foreign languages. Recipients are expected to continue their language study beyond the scholarship period and later apply their critical language skills in their professional careers.

Irwin believes that a mastery of Hindi will “not only be useful, but will be necessary” for her research and desired profession. “Following my graduation next year, I hope to research the expression of popular religion in India before beginning by graduate studies in South Asian religions,” said Irwin, who hopes to eventually complete a Ph.D. in South Asian religions with the intent to become a professor.

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