Alumni

The idea of a national constitution may bring to mind images of stately leaders inscribing the words that will steer the course of a country for centuries. That image is a myth, said Illinois Wesleyan University 2003 alumnus James Melton.

A new book co-written by Melton aims to dispel notions of a constitution as something unchanging or permanent. “We tend to look at constitutions as if they are written in stone, yet the expected lifespan of a country’s constitution is around 19 years,” said Melton, who offered his insights to the Illinois Wesleyan campus at a lecture recently in Beckman Auditorium of The Ames Library.

Melton discussed the book, The Endurance of National Constitutions (Cambridge University Press, 2009), co-written by law professors Tom Ginsburg of University of Chicago Law School and Zachary Elkins of the University of Texas at Austin Law School, and Melton. For the past five years, the three scholars, along with a team of researchers, have been collecting data on all formally written constitutions of independent nations since 1789. Their observations and findings make up the new book, which was released this month. Speaking about The Endurance of National Constitutions brought Melton back to Illinois from the ancient city of Lucca, Italy, where he now works as a postdoctoral fellow with the IMT (Institutions, Markets, Technologies) Institute for Advance Studies.

In the book, the trio explores what political conditions create an enduring constitution. Each constitution is set against an extensive 669-question survey to analyze how well it meets the book’s criteria for a lasting constitution, which includes how flexible the constitution is for future change, how ideas were included in the drafting process and throughout the life of the constitution, and how great the level of detail was in created the groundwork for the document.

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BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Numerous alumni of the Illinois Wesleyan University music and theatre departments have made the transition from the cozy, quaint McPherson Theatre and the ornate, chestnut stage of Westbrook Auditorium, to the lights of Broadway and the red carpet of Hollywood. This year the departments boast two more successful alumnae, recent graduates Lisa Karlin ’06 and Bryonha Parham ’07.

On Nov. 15, the young women make their Broadway debut in Ragtime revival at the Neil Simon Theatre in New York City.

The musical transports its audience back to the early 1900’s and intertwines the lives of three distinctly different groups of people. In the performance, Karlin plays a female swing lead, covering multiple female roles and Parham plays the friend of the female lead.

Both alumnae graduated with bachelors of fine arts in music theatre and spent their four years at Illinois Wesleyan immersed in the theatre department.

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BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Actor Kevin Dunn, alumnus of the Illinois Wesleyan class of 1977, will be on hand for a special screening of his film Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen on Thursday, Oct. 8 at 7 p.m. in the Hansen Student Center (300 Beecher St., Bloomington) as a part of this year’s Homecoming festivities.

Following the film, Dunn and his mentor, Illinois Wesleyan Professor Emeritus of Theatre John Ficca, will host a Q&A session. The event is free and open to the public. The movie is rated PG-13.

Dunn has appeared in more than 80 movies and television roles. Along with his role as the affable father to Shia LeBeouf in the Transformers movies, he has been seen as the speech writer with a crisis of conscience in Dave (1993) with Kevin Klein, and as a foil for Charlie Sheen in the spoof Hot Shots! (1991). He did battle in the blockbuster Godzilla (1998) as the straight-laced Colonel Hicks and has given dramatic turns in such movies as The Black Dahlia (2006) and Lions for Lambs (2007) with Tom Cruise and Meryl Streep. His career on the small screen has been equally illustrious, making appearances on popular shows such as Samantha Who?, Seinfeld, LOST, Law & Order and Boston Legal.

In May of 2008, Dunn received an honorary doctor of humane letters degree from Illinois Wesleyan, and delivered the speech at Commencement. During his talk, “Into Your Waiting Hands,” Dunn said he has great hope for students of this generation. “[You have] developed an unquenchable thirst for disparate points of view, and different sources of information, and this search to find the truth has created an audible rumble across this nation,” he said.

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BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Illinois Wesleyan University’s Homecoming 2009 will be a weekend of reunions and Titan pride.

Homecoming events will run from Thursday, Oct. 8 to Sunday, Oct. 11.

Thursday, Oct. 8

A special screening of Transformers – Revenge of the Fallen will be hosted by actor and alumnus Kevin Dunn, who appears in the movie, will be at 7 p.m. on Oct. 8 in the Hansen Student Center (300 Beecher St., Bloomington). After the film, Dunn will host a question and answer session along with his mentor, Professor Emeritus of Theatre John Ficca.

The screening is free and open to the public. The movie is rated PG-13.

Friday, Oct. 9

Titanium Pep Rally will be held at 6 p.m. on Oct. 9 at Wilder Field. The night will begin with the football team leading the crowd in the fight song, followed by the crowning of the Homecoming King and Queen by President Richard F. Wilson. Comedian Kyle Cease, featured on the one-hour comedy special “Kyle Cease: Weirder. Blacker. Dimpler.” last year on Comedy Central, will perform as a part of the pep rally. His performance may not be suitable for children, but childcare will be available at Rogy’s Learning Place (900 Franklin Ave., Normal). Childcare registration can be done at Rogy’s Web site. A fireworks display will follow this performance.

Back to College classes will be on Friday in the Beckman Auditorium in The Ames Library (1 Ames Plaza, Bloomington). The classes, which are free and open to the public, will include:

• Abraham Lincoln’s Reading – a lesson in the Liberal Arts; Presented by Robert Bray, R. Forrest Colwell Professor of American Literature; 1 p.m.

• Universal Jurisdiction; Presented by Arman Dabiri ’94, Robert M. Montgomery, Outstanding Young Alumnus Award-winner; 2 p.m.

• Will China dominate the world’s geo-political balance by 2050, or will it happen sooner than that?; Presented by Lawrence Herbolsheimer ’72, Distinguished Alumnus Award-winner; 3 p.m

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BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Rear Admiral (RADM) Denise Canton, a 1974 alumna of Illinois Wesleyan University, has been selected as the 2009 Distinguished Alumna for Nursing Excellence. This honor is awarded annually to one alumnus or alumna who has demonstrated outstanding excellence in the fields of nursing practice, education and research. Rear Admiral Canton will be honored at the annual School of Nursing Homecoming Brunch and Award Program on Oct. 10. Both events will take place in the Center for Natural Science Learning and Research (201 Beecher St., Bloomington).

The brunch will begin at 9:00 a.m. in the Commons Area, with the award program following at 10:00 a.m. in room C102. At the award program, RADM Canton will give a presentation entitled, “Bridging the Gap: The Role of the Commissioned Corps of the United States Public Health Service.”

The event is free and open to the public. People wishing to attend should register by calling the School of Nursing office at (309) 556-3051, or by logging onto titanpride.org.

After graduating from Illinois Wesleyan with a bachelor of science in nursing degree, RADM Canton earned a master’s of nursing and a doctorate in nursing science degree from The Catholic University of America. Additionally, she earned a juris doctor from Georgetown University Law Center where she was selected as a Public Interest Law Scholar.

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