Although she easily blends in with her fellow students at the Student Government Association (SGA) meeting or when she’s assisting with Orientation programming for next year’s freshman class, Veronica Conte is not your ordinary coed. Not only is she an adult learner with a family of her own, but she also has been on enough college campuses to know what she wants in a higher education institution. And she knew immediately when she found that in Dover, Delaware.

Conte is a first-year nursing student at Wesley College working towards her second bachelor’s degree. She received her first undergraduate degree—a Bachelor of Science in psychology— from Northwestern University. She earned this in only two years, sometimes taking 32 credits a semester. Since Northwestern allowed at most 22 credits a semester with special permission, Conte was enrolled at three different schools at once, including Central Texas University and St. Leo University, in order to fulfill her goal. Despite the heavy course load, Conte was a Dean’s list student and a member of the honor society in psychology.

After beginning her next pursuit for a degree from an accelerated nursing program, Conte attended Drexel University, but then transferred to Wesley. She explained, “I live in Middletown, Delaware and Drexel is about an hour’s drive. It’s a lot of traffic and the commute was not working out for me, particularly in an accelerated program.” Conte felt that not living near campus put her at a disadvantage academically. “With my family demands and two hours a day being eaten up by travel, I was not readily available to study after classes in the lab or work on group projects as the students living on or near campus could.”

As a non-traditional student, the fact that Conte is married with two teenage children has not stopped her from being highly active with campus life at Wesley. She is a member of the Student Nurses Association, an SGA representative for the International Student Association and serves on both the Student Activities Board and the Orientation Panel. She was even asked to sit in on an employment interview for a professor who could potentially become one of her teachers.

“Wesley is extremely transparent, like with town meetings. They don’t do that at other schools. I was so astonished when I went to this meeting and they started talking about what’s going on in my department of study. Wesley has made itself more student-oriented than other schools. Even though it’s a smaller school, I believe that in the long run it’s going to help with the satisfaction and retention.”

Conte’s family is very supportive of her educational endeavors and they help her juggle the roles of wife, mother, volunteer and student. This gives her a chance to attend to her studies. In her time away from the classroom, Conte also does extensive volunteer work. Her husband of 18 years was in the military for 10 years and during that time, Conte volunteered for various programs. Now she is in the process of becoming a Red Cross certified disaster relief volunteer and is scheduled to help with a Habitat for Humanity project in her hometown. She also participated in Wesley’s Relay for Life program to support the American Cancer Society.

Although Wesley College is the smallest institution that Conte has attended, she is most proud to be a Wesley student. Her professors’ accessibility is a welcome change for her, and she has great respect in particular for her advisor, Dr. Robert Contino. She also praises the administration, especially President Johnston and Dean Mary-Alice Ozechoski, who always have time to stop and chat with her and ask about her family. “I am happy to have found a place that feels like home.”

Founders Day Food Drive

For Wesley’s 137th Founders Day celebration, the planning committee integrated a community service project as a demonstration of the College’s Methodist values and history of service to the area. Grocery bags were distributed around campus to faculty, staff and students as well as area residents so that participants could collect non-perishable food items to donate. Student athletes did their part by filling two campus vans with donations they collected at the Super Fresh and Acme markets in Dover on March 17. By the time the Food Bank picked up the College’s donation, the Wesley community had collected 2,994 pounds of food that would benefit the reported 241,600 people who receive emergency food each year through the Food Bank of Delaware.

123 = ABC: In 1 Day, 20 Blocks in Downtown Dover Will Receive Over 300 Hours of Volunteer Service Resulting in A Beautiful Community.

On August 21, the incoming Class of 2014 will take to the streets as Wesley College partners up with the Dover Housing Authority, the Central Delaware Habitat for Humanity and the Office of Senator Thomas Carper in one of the biggest clean-up projects the city of Dover has ever seen. The clean-up crew will consist of approximately 500 incoming freshmen, as well as faculty and staff, community members and returning student athletes.

The 123=ABC event is a one day community clean-up project focusing on improving curb appeal and streetscape. Volunteers will work on several streets within a 20 block radius in downtown Dover, picking up trash, painting curbs and planting flowers and shrubs. Interested in learning more or becoming a volunteer? Click here.

Helping Haiti

It did not take long for an earthquake to change Haiti forever. It also did not take long for the Wesley College campus to organize. In response to the horrifying catastrophe, the Wesley community came together to demonstrate its compassion and support.

Over a two day period in January, a total of 248 students contributed to the cause by fasting and giving up 342 cafeteria meals. The cost of those meals was donated by Aramark Food Service to the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), an agency that is currently on the ground in Haiti, helping in the recovery of the country from its disastrous earthquake.

For several weeks in January and February, the Residence Hall Association (RHA), under the leadership of resident assistant Ashleigh Maser, sold $1 hearts for display around the campus. These proceeds directly supported the Haiti Plunge Project’s Relief Fund for Haiti, which is helping to create sustainable development through agricultural cooperatives in the mountains of Haiti’s central plateau. The RHA also held a clothing drive and collected new and gently used clothing for the Red Cross in conjunction with Senator Thomas Carper’s office.

Alumnus William “Bill” Willis, Jr. ’66 and proud Wesley parent Kathleen Jennings became the newest members of the Wesley College Board of Trustees in March. “I am elated that Ms. Jennings and Mr. Willis have joined Wesley’s Trustees. They bring talents and experience that will complement our Board as we continue to grow as an institution. Each is articulate, energetic, actively involved in the life of Delaware, and shares a vision for Wesley College. Their perspectives and expertise will be helpful as we shape Wesley for the future,” said President Bill Johnston.

Willis is president of Willis Chevrolet, with dealerships in both Smyrna and Middletown, Delaware. After graduating from Wesley College and West Virginia Wesleyan College and then serving two years in the U.S. Army, Willis returned to work for the family business and make an impact in his community. He serves on the Board of Blue Cross Blue Shield Delaware and is an active member of Asbury United Methodist Church. He has 40 years of service in the automobile industry and is a former president of the Delaware Automobile and Truck Dealers Association (DATDA). He also represents Delaware as a member of the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA).

Jennings is an attorney and partner at Biddle & Reath, LLP in Wilmington, Delaware, practicing criminal defense and regulatory enforcement, among other fields of law. She was previously a partner at WolfBlock, LLP as well as Oberly, Jennings & Rhodunda P.A., both in Wilmington. From 1993 to 1995, she served as chief deputy attorney general. Prior to that position, Jennings was acting state prosecutor in the criminal division and deputy attorney general. An alumnus of the University of Delaware and Villanova University School of Law, Jennings is also a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. Her daughter Rebecca is a current sophomore at Wesley.

“Personally, I have always valued education for its ability to enrich our intellectual awareness of the world and to open doors for success in America. The future of our youth, and for that matter this country, resides in the success of our educational system. There is no higher priority,” said Jennings.

The Wellness Center at Wesley is new and improved in 2010. Its purpose has always been to provide free, quality healthcare services on campus so students don’t have to outsource their medical needs. Now however, having recently relocated to the basement of Carpenter Hall, the Center is much better equipped to meet the demands of a growing student population. In addition, wellness at Wesley now means both physical and mental well-being in one convenient location.

Before the move, the College nurse’s office was located on the first floor of Carpenter Hall and needed a keycard for entry. Since the move, health services have become keycard free, meaning no IDs are necessary. Convenience in terms of services offered is the most significant advantage, as both the counseling services and healthcare are now in the same location for the first time in Wesley’s recent history. The central location in Carpenter Hall is still beneficial for all students, since it is in close proximity for commuters coming to and from classrooms and is surrounded by residence halls so it is easily accessible for on-campus students.

But location isn’t everything. Jill Maser, director of health services, appreciates all the square footage they have gained with the move to the ground floor. “We love the space. It’s nice because we now have a triage room, a treatment room, a check-in area, and client inter-office space,” Maser said. The additional space has been a much needed improvement and will allow for increased functionality of the Wellness Center. It now offers six separate rooms for evaluation, compared to the four dispersed dorm rooms that were previously used. Each of the new evaluation rooms is also larger in size and can more comfortably accommodate patients.

Director of Counseling Services Ann Rogge, Director of Health Services Jill Maser and Nursing student Brandon Hoskins in the new Wellness Center.

The move also has created added benefits for patient confidentiality and practicality. With the space to now serve dual purposes for medical and mental healthcare, having students in one general waiting room provides anonymity of their awaiting services among fellow patients. Ann Rogge, director of counseling services, explained, “The increase in confidentiality has been a really positive thing. The move has been terrific in reserving that confidentiality.” The counseling office was previously located in the Office of Student Life, a very public environment near the main lobby area in the College Center. Rogge feels her clients appreciate the change of scenery and improved sense of privacy. Combining the resources of the counseling center and the health center also makes good sense for treatment purposes, since often times, students with certain medical conditions are struggling with stress and anxiety surrounding that. Now they can seek counseling at the same time and in the same location.

Aside from the new Wellness Center area being a more comfortable and convenient environment for students, the improvements also have changed the way students at Wesley are thinking about wellness as part of their lifestyle. “It is moving students away from just going to see the nurse or the doctor, or the counselor. They are really starting to think about what they are doing to keep themselves healthy, because it is a multidimensional thing,” stated Mary-Alice Ozechoski, dean of students. “So, to us this feels like an opportunity to say to students that as you graduate from college and you think about adulthood, and as you get older, wellness becomes more and more important.”

The Wellness Center has introduced new programming and wellness lifestyle sessions to go hand in hand with the new outlook among students. One new program is a weight loss support group, in which individuals are coming together once a week to talk about what is working for them in terms of dieting and fitness. They are getting more regular exercise, weighing in, and gaining valuable nutritional information as a result. “These are the types of programs that we think this Center will allow us to continue to do,” Ozechoski explained. The Wellness Center staff hopes its expanded services will engage more students and help them to develop and maintain a healthy lifestyle one step at a time.

For more information on the Wellness Center, click here for Counseling and here for Health Services.

BY EMILY ENNIS ’10

From left: Megan Varga, Amber Bell, Tanner Polce, RHA Advisor Kevin Hansbury ’00, Ladonna De’Souza, Bryan Zarou, Devon Reynolds and Jessica Barranco.

For an incoming freshman, adjusting to dorm life can be a scary experience. The toilet is overflowing. Now what? My roommate is a bully. Who can help me? Luckily, the newly instated Residence Hall Association (RHA) exists to help with these problems and other issues that students commonly face when learning to live away from home. The RHA serves all residents at the College, providing representation and programming opportunities for students living in Wesley’s various residence halls, including the Joseph S. Bellmeyer Honors House.

The RHA has been approved by the Student Government Association to become an official student organization in the fall, and it will be composed of a campus-wide executive board with an executive director, executive business manager, special programs chair and executive secretary. The executive board was elected this spring and each residence hall will hold elections in the fall for its individual hall council, consisting of a president, vice president, treasurer, program coordinator and secretary. “The RHA is there to represent the voices of the students,” said Director of Residence Life Kevin Hansbury ’00. He explained how the Residential Living  can address any concerns or suggestions the residents might have to improve student life and the residential atmosphere.

Although the organization was not officially approved until recently, the RHA has already developed a following and has begun to make its mark on the College’s campus. Since community service is a priority for the RHA, the group has already helped with food drives and other charity causes such as the Giving Tree program this past December. As part of this program, the members purchased Christmas gifts for foster children and held an event on campus in which they gave each child a bag of gifts and provided dinner and activities for the participants. The night concluded with a visit from Santa Claus. The RHA also has donated clothing and food for the Haiti relief efforts.

The RHA looks forward to collaborating with other student organizations for community projects. “The RHA is a great way for students who live on campus to get involved with the local and greater communities, and quickly engage with other students. Students know that their interests arerepresented through RHA,” said Hansbury.

Involvement in the RHA not only enhances the living experiences for the students but also those of fellow local residents. Students can become familiar with their new Dover home by volunteering and helping to shape their campus and the community into an even better place. The program currently has 14 members, but with a new semester this fall and a new incoming class, the group expects its membership to grow significantly.

“RHA is a great tool, for first-year students in particular, to have an easy entry to engagement at Wesley,” said Hansbury. It is a welcome addition among Wesley student organizations and one that will further strengthen residence life at the College and make Wesley even more community-oriented.

Yong Duan

Chaplain Dr. Mark Pruett-Barnett gives a firsthand account of the Wesley College Spring Break Service Project Trip to Mississippi from March 1–4 that he coordinated and then had the joy of experiencing with a crew of six Wesley students.

If you were to drive on Route 90 around Biloxi, Mississippi, you would find it hard to believe that Hurricane Katrina had mauled the businesses, homes and lives of so many people just 4 1/2 years ago. Everything now is brand new—the shopping malls, the casinos, beautiful upscale homes—all within easy walking distance of the beautiful Gulf Coast beaches. However, when you go just a couple of blocks inland, it is hard to believe that so little has been done in the same time frame. People’s homes and businesses stand in dire need of repair. A different kind of flood—that of volunteers—has been in Mississippi since 2005 helping people get back on their feet.

Over spring break, six intrepid Wesley College students— Yong Duan, Amanda Fetterolf, Amanda Hudson, Sydney Kahan, Nicole Oyola, Bryn Warner—and I were privileged to go and play a part in the ever-ongoing recovery from Hurricane Katrina. We met the Volunteer in Mission leaders for our trip, the Rev. Dr. Richard Vance and Linda Culp, at Baltimore Washington International Airport for our flight down to New Orleans. After a pleasant flight, we took a van to Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi where we would stay.

“I became close to this small group and I understand everyone better now. This trip has changed my views of the damage of the hurricane—the loss damage was to the people, not the land.” —Amanda Hudson

Sydney Kahan, Amanda Fetterolf and Yong Duan apply a fresh coat of paint.

For four days, the Wesley crew worked on people’s homes. The first day, Monday, March 1, the crew worked at spreading pesticide on studs and beams of a Katrina-devastated house in order to get rid of mold. What a stench! Everyone wore respirators in order to keep the smell down. On the second day, the crew had a very “concrete” experience—literally! While wearingspecial suits to keep in body heat (it was very cold in Biloxi for most of the trip), we hauled bags of concrete, drilled holes and placed rebars and then mixed, poured and smoothed out the concrete. Wednesday saw us back at the first house, painting the studs and beams. That was all there was to paint, since the entire inside of the house had to be gutted after Katrina. Eventually, future crews will put on new siding and finish the inside of the home. Thursday saw us at a house owned by Frank. Frank is a waterman who we got to know very well as the crew painted the exterior of his house. He had many stories of his family and life in Biloxi.

“The event that touched my heart the most was when a woman by the name of Phyllis came and talked to us while we were eating lunch. She asked where we were going to be working the rest of the day and we told her, not thinking anything of it. The next thing we know, Phyllis is standing before us with a huge cake, just for us.” —Amanda Fetterolf

We had a chance to do more than work. We also ate! We had the opportunity to eat at D’vine’s, a wonderful BBQ place. Norma is the owner who has been on The Food Network’s “Dinner: Impossible.” She told us about her TV adventures as well as her Christian testimony about how she obtained her restaurant. Her sister Brenda shared her harrowing story about how her family narrowly escaped death in Katrina by going up through the roof of their house and getting into a tree. Before we left, we had a chance to go by Brenda’s house and see the famous tree. It was gigantic—a true tree of life for her family.

Sydney Kahan and Yong Duan

We had a rollicking time at The Shed, which also had been on the Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives.” The wonderful congregation of Prince of Peace Baptist Church also fed us some “down home Mississippi cookin’” one evening. Even better were the times of fellowship and worship we had with this congregation. The work this congregation has done in the area after Katrina could not be matched by churches many times its size.

“Mississippi was an incredible, life-changing experience. Not only do the people of Mississippi inspire you, they help you believe and have faith in good.” —Sydney Kahan

We left on Friday for a short visit to New Orleans before our flight left for home. We were tired and ready to go, but we would miss the people we met and we were happy with the work we had done. Pastor Darrell Taylor of Prince of Peace had told us he thought that the volunteers, which now included us, who gave their time, energy and skills in the 4 1/2 years since Katrina, had done more than all of the government agencies combined. One of the things that really gratified me was a comment made by Jimmy Travino, our site supervisor. He said that out of all the groups with which he had worked (and there have been a lot), the Wesley crew was his favorite. I could not have asked for any better than that.

“I grew so much from this experience and if I had the chance, I’d do it over and over again. I guess I know where I’m going every Spring Break from here on out…I can’t wait to go back!” —Bryn Warner

Back row, from left: Sydney Kahan, Amanda Hudson, Bryn Warner and mission leader Linda Culp. Front row, from left: Yong Duan, Amanda Fetterolf, Nicole Oyola and mission leader Rev. Dr. Richard Vance.

As an 18-year-old rising sophomore at Wesley, Tanner Polce has already experienced more than many middle aged adults have in their lifetimes. He is a double major in political science and international affairs, with a minor in history. He is also president-elect of the Student Government Association (SGA) for the 2010–2011 school year. Polce is equally at home on the soccer field with his fellow Wolverines or in Washington D.C. working as a Senatorial intern. And although his effusive energy and optimism give no indication, he has battled Crohn’s disease for the past 10 years.

Polce attended Southern Garrett High School in Oakland, Maryland and then Easton High School in Easton, Maryland, where he graduated in the top five percent of his class. Academically, he is considered a Wesley junior, having attended Chesapeake Community College during his senior year in high school. Polce was very active in student organizations and played varsity soccer at the high school level, and he has continued to pursue his interests at Wesley. He is treasurer for the Lincoln-Jackson club, a member of the Wesley Democrats, a student ambassador, a player on the men’s soccer team, former vice president of the SGA and president of the Williams Hall Residence Association.

Given his past high school involvement in the Model United Nations club and Junior Statesmen of America as well as his leadership roles in student government and political groups on Wesley’s campus, it is not surprising that Polce aspires to be a politician. He likes to work as a problem-solver with the students and “give voices to those who don’t have voices.” After his expected college graduation at age 20, Polce plans to attend law school to study constitutional law and then get involved with politics, hoping to run for Congress or the Senate “years down the road.”

Polce is already becoming well-prepared for a Senatorial position, as he is an intern for Delaware Senator Thomas Carper and works at the Senator’s office in Dover. In his internship, he fields calls from constituents and relays messages to the Senator, among other duties.“There’s never a dull moment in the office,” he said. He enjoys doing “whatever he is asked to do” and sees his position in assisting the Senator as a tremendous opportunity.

The can-do attitude and ambitious spirit that Polce exhibits are even more impressive considering the health challenges he has had to overcome. Polce suffers from Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. He now has had chemotherapy every 6 weeks for the past 8 years. “That really made me mature and age, and put life into perspective.” He is fortunate to have a strong family support system behind him, including his mother and stepfather, Rebecca and Mike Kilgus, and his father, Fred Polce, whom he describes as his “hero.” “I have the greatest family ever,” he said, explaining how supportive they have been of him, and why he considers himself very family-oriented.

Polce’s maturity and seasoned point of view have influenced his abilities as a student leader and made him an effective public speaker. He recently addressed the College’s Legal Society in Wells Theater on campus. He spoke about life’s struggles and the themes of self-definition, self-motivation and inspiration. He freely shares his talents on campus as well as within the local area. Believing in the importance of working together for the community and for the people, he is a volunteer for Habitat for Humanity. In addition, he plans to take his fellow residents of Williams Hall to volunteer in the organization’s central Delaware ReStore, which provides affordable building and home goods to needy families and has saved tons of usable materials that would otherwise litter landfills. He also has participated in the Curbside Cleanup program.

Polce’s love for life and Wesley College shines through in all the activities in which he participates. He fits the mold for the perfect Wesley student ambassador to lead campus tours and market the College to prospective students and their parents. “I love open houses, tours and everything else. It’s great because I get to speak volumes about how much I love Wesley.” The College community is smitten with the charisma, drive and incredible perseverance of new student body president Tanner Polce. And fortunately, the affection is mutual. Polce expressed, “I’m proud to say I’m a Wolverine. I’m proud to say I go to Wesley. I never doubt that this was the right decision for me.”

While many studies show that student apathy is a much greater challenge today than it ever was a generation ago, Wesley College administrators are taking a proactive approach with incoming students to reverse the trend at Wesley College. What better place to start than with the class of 2013, the largest freshman class that has ever set foot on Wesley’s campus. Earlier this year, the Office of Student Life enacted a program to encourage new students to “take a big bite out of their college experience” rather than just go through the motions of school. This took the form of a New Student Leadership Retreat at Camp Saginaw in Oxford, Pennsylvania. While it was an optional program, the idea was to create enough buzz early on to make this an experience the students would not want to miss.

Mary-Alice Ozechoski, dean of students, explained that the Office of Student Life wanted for students to gain an understanding of the opportunities available to them and learn how to get the most out of their college experience. She noted that the model used at this retreat was one she had used at other schools in the past. “I found it to be a very effective tool for increasing student participation in events, clubs and organizations,” she said. Another potential benefit, she pointed out, would be a gain in student retention and overall student satisfaction with the College.

This Retreat gave first-year students a chance to get away and learn new things about themselves as well as Wesley College. Designed to provide insight into the importance of being involved on campus, the Retreat also helped students realize their potential as leaders, emphasizing that leadership skills are not only applicable to teams and campus organizations, but will also benefit them in innumerable circumstances throughout life. Students learned “why leadership and involvement are so critical to employment and graduate school success,” Ozechoski explained.

In total, 110 freshmen and 30 upper-class student leaders, such as the orientation leaders, attended the Retreat. Ozechoski was pleased to see that student attendees found a way to “break out of their shell” and develop skills that she believes will help them negotiate a “complex world.” They gained valuable problem solving, creative thinking, teamwork and communication skills and acquired the stepping stones toward having a beneficial and productive Wesley experience overall. As an orientation leader who participated in the Retreat, Wesley student Noelle Jacob enjoyed being a part of the process that helped the new students “realize what they’re capable of being or doing on campus and in their future.” Jacob found that she strengthened her own individual leadership skills at the same time.

Ozechoski expressed her desires for all students at Wesley, especially the new class of freshmen, to continue to challenge themselves, try new things and become a part of the College by finding their voice and helping Wesley to move forward. “I hope students understand that a small college affords you every opportunity to become involved in or out of the classroom,” she said.

On Family Day on October 24, all students who attended the Retreat were honored at a ceremony and reception at the Wesley Chapel. This gave families an opportunity to celebrate their students’ involvement in the program, and it was another way for the College to reward the student participants for their hard work at the Retreat and leave an impression that they are important to the campus community. Ozechoski commented, “I hope they [the students] appreciate that their talents are unique and that we all benefit from those who are engaged in campus life and then in the larger world.”

For the 140 students who attended, the important skills they learned will serve them well throughout their Wesley College careers and well into their future lives. For some of the upperclassmen like Jacob, participating in the program reinforced the self-fulfillment of being in student leadership roles on campus and how that is perceived by other members of the campus community. “Attending the New Student Leadership Retreat benefited my future by showing individuals I care about being a leader and that I enjoy having a positive impact on others,” she said. For all the participants, the friendships they formed will be another lasting effect of the experience. The bonds and memories made at Camp Saginaw will always be part of their Wesley story.

WHEN IT was time to find a college, Sydney Kahan knew exactly what she wanted. She wanted to move out of the cold north and away from home. She also wanted to keep playing soccer, study to become a nurse, and continue to travel. She found all of those opportunities at Wesley College.

Kahan and her family are Reform Jews. When Kahan was a junior in high school, she participated in March of the Living, a trip to Poland and Israel for Jewish teens. She spent two weeks away from home without a cell phone or a laptop. This was her first time out of the country. During the week in Poland, Kahan joined 11,000 Jewish youths from all over the world as they marched in silence from Auschwitz to Birkenau on Yon Hashoah — Holocaust Remembrance Day. This was the same route Jews were forced to march to the gas chambers, the route known as the March of Death. She and the other teens then toured the concentration camp at Birkenau.

Visiting such an important piece of Jewish history was not easy for Kahan.“Poland was the hardest thing I have ever gone through. I had trouble sleeping some nights.” Israel, on the other hand, was a completely different experience. The youth who participated in March of the Living spent a week in Israel where they celebrated Israel’s Independence Day, Yom Ha’atzmaut. “On this day, you pretty much party in the streets of Israel. It’s crazy,” she said. The crowd in the streets was a mixture of Orthodox, Conservative and Reform Jews, all coming together to celebrate and sing songs they all knew.

After the celebration, Kahan marched from the old city of Jerusalem to the Wailing Wall. She felt a strong connection with her religion while she was there. “My whole Jewish identity I feel like I’ve gotten in touch with, especially in Israel.” She hopes to return again one day, possibly in a study abroad program. Kahan chose Wesley College because it fit her search for a school south of her hometown, Cranston, Rhode Island, that had a competitive Division III women’s soccer team and a strong nursing program. She found all of that at Wesley, and after spending a night with “the soccer girls,” Kahan knew
Wesley was the place for her. She already loves the school after
spending the first half of the fall semester taking a full class load and playing goal keeper on the Wolverines women’s soccer team. “So far,” she said, “soccer has been amazing. It is a huge reason why I like the school so much. It gets you involved so quickly.” Juggling sports and academics is not easy, though, especially since the nursing program is intense, so her goal is to maintain the balance between the two while she is at Wesley. Kahan is considering moving on to a master’s in nursing after she graduates and hopes to be a pediatric oncology nurse. Her best friend was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of 11 and Kahan has been interested in helping sick children ever since her first exposure to that world. When she was a sophomore in high school, she attended the National Youth Leadership Forum (NYLF) on Medicine, a ten day experience for high school students who want to explore medical professions. She stayed on Emory University’s campus in Georgia and attended lectures by top doctors and surgeons. She also toured a hospital, watched a birth, and even helped skin a cadaver. She learned about possible options in the field of medicine and made some good friends in the process.

Kahan was fortunate to have taken part in the NYLF trip as well as March of the Living, both eye-opening experiences for a teenager.
As the trip to Georgia was also her first extended time away from home, it helped solidify her later decision to move away for college. Now completely content in her pursuits at Wesley, she hasn’t regretted her decision one bit and she looksforward to the many opportunities still to come in her college career.

WESLEY COLLEGE has become a home to the thousands of students who have passed through its doors. Those who spend part of their life at the College experience a nurturing environ­ment that provides both learning and growth. Some students come from further away than others, making the home away from home element even more important. Hui Zeng, a 20-year­old international student from Shanghai, China, has found that her Wesley home has far surpassed her expectations.

“I believe to be an international student is a challenge and also a wonderful experience. That’s why I came here,” Zeng explained. A former student at Yangtze University in Jingzhou-Hubie, China, Zeng studies English as her major and has a passion for American culture. “I think for a language learner, environment is very important,” she noted. Wesley provides the perfect environment for her needs as a student and visitor from across the world.

Zeng has found “the way of study” in America to differ greatly from China. “Here I feel like I can really learn some­thing, not just fight for the final grade in the last one or two weeks,” she explained. At Wesley, she has found an atmosphere that engages students every day in and outside the classroom and promotes lifelong learning. Zeng has taken a variety of the classes offered, including Introduction to Business, Public Speaking, American Heroes, College Writing, Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) and College Choir, and she has enjoyed every single one of them. She shares a common sentiment with many other Wesley students who have attended over the years. “We have small classrooms and we can talk to professors like we talk to friends.” She likes the fact that she is not just a number in Wesley’s system, and found that her initial worries of coming to an American school subsided quickly once she arrived on campus.

Zeng believes the small college atmosphere has benefited her in more ways than one. “I feel that Wesley has taken good care of me,” she commented. She is very pleased with her apart­ment-style accommodations in Malmberg Hall. Zeng admits to “having a lot of fun” outside the classroom too. She has enjoyed trips to Philadelphia with Wesley’s International Student Association (ISA) and Washington D.C. with her history class.

Zeng came to Wesley “expecting to learn better English skills and know more about American culture.” But she will take away from her experience so much more than that, including an increased self-confidence and awareness of the world around her. During her one year stay at Wesley, she has already become much more independent. Zeng explained that in China, her dependence on family and friends was a large part of her life, and she worried about adapting to the American way of life as an international student here alone. “I think the most important thing of one’s life is to experience, and being an international student is just that. It is eye-open­ing. I learned how big the world is and how different life can be,” she commented. This has been the icing on the cake in her American college career.

When she returns to China, Zeng will not only have better English skills and understanding of American society, but also her own personal achievements that will enhance her future as a student and working professional. And that spells success in any language.