Contact Cathy-Lee Rizza at the WesCard Office (wescard@wesleyan.edu) to make the initial request for a refund of your Middletown Cash (note: points are not eligible for refunds). She will help you close your Middletown Cash account, and your balance minus a $25.00 administrative fee will be transferred to your student account. You will then need to fill out a refund request form on the front page of the student accounts website.
Campus Resources
Oak Hall Regalia Pre-Orders Available for Pickup at Tomorrow – 5/21 at 10am
Students may pick-up their Oak Hall pre-ordered regalia from WRJJ Bookstore starting Friday, May 21st, at 10 AM. Only regalia pre-ordered via the Oak Hall website will be available for pick up tomorrow. Note that the bookstore cafe opens at 9am, but the store will not be open until 10am.
More information is forthcoming for students who still need to purchase regalia.
Please contact WRJJ Bookstore with any questions. (860-685-3939).
End-of-Semester Dining for Seniors – Spring 2021
Dining for spring Semester will close following brunch on Saturday, May 22nd. If you will be staying for Commencement, please plan ahead and stock up on groceries (use of your points) from WesShop prior to the end of finals. Any unused points are forfeited after dining closes.
WesShop hours:
Friday 5/14: 2pm-6pm
Saturday 5/15: 2pm-6pm
Sunday 5/16 – Thursday 5/20: 12pm – 10pm
WesShop closes for the semester after hours on Thursday, 5/20.
Please email dining@wesleyan.edu with any questions.
Finals Write-In + Study Space! – 5/16
Join the Writing Workshop for our first ever Finals Write-In + Study Space! On Sunday, May 16th we’ll be in Tischler Hall (Exley 150) between 2-8pm. Stop by for the most productive afternoon of your finals season–and to make all this work a little less lonely. Writing Tutors will be available for drop-in sessions, and we’ll have plenty of free snacks and stationery to go around. Be one of the first 5 to RSVP and we’ll have a goodie bag for you to pick up on the day-of!
If you can’t come on Sunday, we hope you’ll still make a Writing Workshop appointment this Reading Period. Visit your Writing Workshop Account (WesPortal > Academics) for more details. Email writingworks@wesleyan.edu with any questions.
FGLI Graduation Celebration – 5/25
To the first generation and/or low-income students in the class of 2021:
We celebrate and honor your legacy!
We are proud of how much you have accomplished for yourselves, for your families, and us all. You are invited to the inaugural Honoring the Legacy event (RSVP link) to celebrate graduating FGLI seniors on Tuesday, May 25th from 12noon-1:30pm in the Hogwarts Tent (next to the parking lot at 301 High Street – Facebook event). The Socioeconomic Status and Disability interns in The RC created this event to celebrate the graduating FGLI community at Wesleyan. During the event the FGLI seniors will receive a free lunch, customized graduation swag, and well wishes from each other and the Wesleya n community.
DATE OF THE EVENT: May 25th, 2021
TIME: 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM
LOCATION: Hogwarts Tent (next to the parking lot at 301 High Street
Please RSVP (link) because seats are limited as we need to adhere to COVID-19 capacity restrictions.
To everyone who have friends and connections to the FGLI students in the class of 2021, please help us celebrate them by submitting your best Wesleyan memories with the graduates and/or video recording a few words of congratulations (submission link), be it pictures or videos. The videos and pictures will be compiled together to form a post collage and video montage that will be displayed throughout the event. The submission deadline is May 18th at 5PM.
Thanks,
Griselda, Shakira, Briana, and Alice
Vaccine Side Effects
To the Wesleyan community:
As previously announced, the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine will be administered to our students on April 24-25 with the second dose on May 15-16.
We encourage everyone to take advantage of the vaccine. It is safe and effective, and has been shown to keep people out of the hospital. The vaccine may cause side effects, which means that our immune system is responding appropriately. The types, level, and duration of side effects can vary from one individual to another and do not indicate the degree of immune response.
You will most likely experience a sore arm, redness, and/or swelling at the injection site that may last a day or two. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) advises individuals not to ‘’pre-medicate’’ with anti-inflammatory agents just prior to receiving the vaccine. There is a concern that pre-medicating may inhibit our immune system response.
You may also experience fatigue, headache, muscle aches, chills, fever, and/or nausea, which may last one or two days and prevent you from attending work or classes. Supportive measures such as rest, adequate hydration, cool compress at the injection site, Tylenol or Ibuprofen can help ease discomfort.
During this period of campus-wide immunization, we would ask for flexibility for community members who have been vaccinated. Specifically, we request that those who miss a day or two of classes or work not be required to get documentation from a healthcare provider. Because symptoms are similar to those that we screen for at the testing site, we recommend that anyone who has had a COVID-19 vaccine in the past 48 hours and has these symptoms receive a test.
If you are concerned about or experience any post vaccination symptoms, please contact your healthcare provider (staff and faculty) or the Davison Health Center (students):
- Increasing arm redness after 48 hours
- Shortness of breath
- Severe chest or abdominal pain
- Significant lightheadedness or fainting
- Mental status changes
None of the messenger RNA vaccines including the Pfizer vaccine have been associated with the rare blood clotting phenomena known as Vaccine Induced Thrombotic Thrombocytopenia (VITT).
Most experts agree that one is fully immunized at two weeks following the second dose of the Pfizer vaccine. Until we achieve campus herd immunity, we will still need to adhere to all COVID-19 guidelines.
Anyone who has had COVID should receive a vaccine as soon as possible after release from isolation. Initially, the recommendation was to wait 90 days (natural immunity could be expected to provide protection for at least that long). This recommendation was based on the concern that there was not enough vaccine available for the general population, but supply is no longer an issue.
Wishing you all wellness and safety,
Tom McLarney, MD
Important Commencement Updates – 4/20
Dear Wesleyan community,
We are all excited and eager to celebrate the 189th Commencement and the accomplished and persevering Class of 2021 in person next month. I write to share important details and updates about Commencement. Our condensed Commencement exercises will take place on Andrus Field beginning at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, May 26, rain or shine. Graduates and guests will be in a celebratory mood, but we must adhere to all COVID-19 safety precautions—wearing masks and maintaining appropriate distance.
Other important updates:
–All graduating students—including remote students, December 2020 completions, and graduate degree candidates—may participate in Commencement. Diplomas will be mailed to all graduates after Commencement. December completions and graduating seniors who are studying remotely are permitted to return for Commencement day or may opt to stay on campus Tuesday, May 25, through noon Thursday, May 27. Graduates planning to return to campus for Commencement should inform the University by April 30 by completing the Commencement Plans form.
–While the University would prefer to welcome more guests to campus, we are limiting our numbers to two guests per graduate to ensure the safety of all of our attendees. Graduates will be asked to register themselves and their two guests through the University Box Office. A separate email with the registration link will be sent when registration opens the week of April 26. Registrations are nontransferable.
–All guests should be vaccinated or have received a negative PCR test result three to five days prior to arriving on campus. Guests will enter through designated areas near Andrus Field, and contactless guest check-in will be outside the Usdan University Center.
–Guests will be seated together in groupings of two. All groupings will be spaced to ensure proper social distancing. Guest access to campus will be for Commencement day only. (Other Commencement-related events and activities will be virtual or limited to graduates.)
–For those who cannot attend in person, the Commencement ceremony will be live streamed on the Commencement 2021 website and Wesleyan Facebook page beginning at 11:00 a.m. on May 26.
For more information about Commencement please visit the Commencement 2021 website or email rc@wesleyan.edu.
Finally, these plans are subject to change if conditions warrant. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation in making sure we all can mark this milestone safely. We are really looking forward to this!
Sincerely,
Mike Whaley
Vice President for Student Affairs
Notes from the Class Dean – 4/15
Dear members of the class of 2021,
I hope this message finds you doing well. We’re entering the final month of the semester, and I know many of you are anxious for more information to help you prepare for what is to come. The following information should help you finish up required paperwork as we look towards the end of May. I anticipate that you will receive more announcements about commencement from university leadership sometime next week.
Major/Minor/Certificate Certification Forms
This is a final reminder to complete your major/minor/certificate certification forms if you haven’t already done so. You may access instructions here. Class Deans and the Registrar’s Office staff use information provided on these forms to help confirm whether graduation candidates will be cleared for their degrees at the end of the semester.
Honors Thesis Registration/Uploads
Honors candidates may upload their thesis submissions starting at 8:00am, EST on April 20th; the link for thesis submissions will close at 4:00pm, EST on April 21st.
Diploma Name and Address
This Sunday, April 18th is the deadline to submit the name that should be reflected on your diploma. Also submit the correct mailing address for the Registrar to send your diploma when it’s ready; you may submit this information through the Diploma Name and Address link in WesPortal as well. Note: undergraduate students will not receive their diplomas at commencement. The Registrar will mail diplomas for students who have completed all degree requirements and have been cleared to receive their diplomas (i.e. do not have any holds).
Diploma Holds
Students planning to graduate in May must have a student account in good standing to receive their diploma. Please contact the Student Accounts Office with questions. Additionally, eligible graduates with disciplinary holds will not receive their diplomas until those holds are removed. You may contact the Dean of Students Office with any questions.
Upon Completion Policy
I only had two students attend the Upon Completion Q & A I hosted on April 8th, and I didn’t receive many questions for the session. I’ll take that to mean that my clarifying email about the upon completion policy was helpful! You may access the content from that email here.
Change of Grading Mode
The Registrar sent out confirmation that the change of grading mode deadline is 5pm, EST, Thursday, April 28th. Remember, this change only impacts courses with the student option.
Withdrawing from Courses
Some of you have already opted to withdraw from a course with a “W” on your academic history/transcript. A “W” is not punitive in nature; it just means you withdrew from a course after the drop/add deadline.
You may request to withdraw from a course by completing the withdrawal form and emailing it to me, your instructor, and your faculty advisor. I will not send forms to the Registrar for processing without hearing from your faculty advisor and instructor. Wednesday, May 5th by 5pm EST is the deadline to withdraw from full semester and/or 4th quarter courses. Check with your faculty advisor(s), Credit Analysis Report, and Gen Ed Report (where applicable) before you request to withdraw from any courses.
2021 Commencement Regalia Updates
- Pre-ordered caps and gowns will not be delivered to the WRJJ Bookstore until mid-May.
- You must call Oak Hall (not the bookstore) if you wish to make a change to your order: 800-456-7623. Please tell Oak Hall that you are a Wesleyan University student from Middletown, CT and need to make a change. You’ll need to give them your order number.
Don’t forget the following resources for the final stretch of the semester:
CAPS (remember CAPS offers an after-hours service you may access with the same phone number for business hours: 860-685-2910)
Gordon Career Center (Check out Cardinals Helping Cardinals)
Office of Religious & Spiritual Life
Scientific Computing and Informatics Center (SCIC)
Student Academic Resources including Academic Support Services
WesNest (see WesPortal)
Take gentle care,
Dean Leathers
UPDATE: Wesleyan/CHC Vaccine Clinic for Students
Dear students,
I write with an update regarding the University’s partnership with the Community Health Center (CHC) to host vaccine clinics on April 24 and 25. Due to the Federal Drug Administration’s current review of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, CHC will now administer the two-dose Pfizer vaccine.
Students who choose to be vaccinated at this clinic will receive the first dose on their originally scheduled date and the second on May 15 or 16, three weeks after the initial dose. Parking Lot V at 75 Vine Street will serve as our walk-through vaccination site. All Wesleyan students—both undergraduate and graduate—enrolled in the spring 2021 semester and studying on campus may receive the vaccine.
If you have already registered, you do not need to register again. However, if you registered and have been vaccinated at another location, please cancel your appointment. For students who need to cancel or modify their appointment, you may do so by using your confirmation email (CHCvaccineclinic). Please make any changes to your vaccine appointment by Friday, April 16.
Please note that students who are studying remotely are not eligible to receive the vaccine at this clinic. In addition, students who have already been vaccinated or who are in isolation or quarantine at the time of the clinic will not be vaccinated at this clinic.
You will need to bring your Wesleyan ID card and the completed prevaccination questionnaire with you to your appointment. Because the clinic needs to prepare and plan for a specific number of vaccine doses, it is critical that you arrive promptly at your scheduled appointment time. To avoid congestion, please do not accompany your friends to their appointments if you do not have an appointment at that time.
Wesleyan will require all students to receive the vaccine prior to returning to campus for the fall semester. Every student (with the exception of those who have approved medical or religious exemptions) will need to verify with the University that they are fully vaccinated prior to their arrival. Students can upload their vaccination record to the Davison Health Center.
Rick Culliton
Dean of Students
Chair, Pandemic Planning Committee
2021 Commencement Regalia Reminder – 4/13
2021 Commencement Regalia
Students, please note:
–Pre-ordered caps and gowns will not be delivered to the WRJJ Bookstore until mid-May.
–If you want to make a change to an order you must call Oak Hall (not the bookstore) to make a change to your order: 800-456-7623. Please tell Oak Hall that you are a Wesleyan University student from Middletown, CT and need to make a change. You’ll need to give them your order number.