September - October 2021, Vol 3, Issue 1

MacricostA&S
News

Western Connecticut State University

Department of Writing News

Publication and MFA Retreat

Oscar De Los Santos and Kelly L. Goodridge published A Modern Bestiary: When the Ape-Hawk Strikes! via Twin Terraces Press this month. Additionally, they presented their essay, “Take Me To Your TV: The Evolution of Alien Invasion Programs” at the Northeast Popular Culture Association (NEPCA) Conference, October 23, 2021.

Anthony D'Aries, Assistant Professor/MFA Coordinator, led a group of 12 current MFA students and alumni on a 4-day writing retreat at the Highlights Foundation, Sept 30-Oct 3. Attendees had uninterrupted time to write, as well as opportunities to read their work during outdoor evening readings. This inaugural retreat kicked off an exciting partnership between the MFA program and the Highlights Foundation, which has a long history of producing inspiring literature for children and young adults.

Department of Biology News

Congratulations on Provost's Teaching Award

Dr. Kristin Giamanco, Associate Professor in the Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences received the Provost’s Teaching Award and gave a speech at the University’s opening meeting in August. Dr. Giamanco started at WCSU in 2016 and her major teaching responsibilities include upper-level courses: Developmental Biology and Cell Biology.

Department of History News

Faculty In the Media

Dr. Leslie Lindenauer was involved with several recent witchy events in October:

-On Sunday, October 3, she did a Zoom presentation for Viktor Wynd’s London-based Last Tuesday Society, “Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea: Witchcraft and Witch-Hunting in Early New England.”

-On Thursday, October 7, she was a guest on radio's Where We Live, the daily news-talk show with host Lucy Nalpathanchil, for a show about local witchcraft, "Connecticut witches of the past, present and future"

-On Thursday, October 21, she was a guest on Paul Steinmetz’s podcast, @WCSU.

Alumni News

New Job At NASA

Alberto Lopez graduated in May of 2021 with a major in Earth and Planetary Sciences. While at WCSU, he worked on the IT Service Desk for 4 years. Now, he works at NASA as a Tier II IT specialist. He helps support different internal JPL systems such MARS 2020 (Perseverance), Insight, and many more. Alberto remarks that he couldn’t have achieved this position without obtaining experience on the WCSU IT Service Desk. At the service desk, he developed his critical and analytical thinking skills when encountering challenging IT situations.

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