Eastern Connecticut State University

Seven student leaders of the Center for Community Engagement (CCE) showcased the fruits of their community involvement at the IMPACT National Conference in Cincinnati, OH, from Feb 18 to Feb 22. The conference is the nation's largest convention focused on civic engagement by university students and administrators. Eastern's CCE student leaders each presented on their volunteer work in the Willimantic/Windham school districts.

Eastern Connecticut State University's annual Equity and Social Justice Awards recognized three student activists for their commitment to civil rights and advocacy for marginalized groups. The ceremony took place on Feb. 20 in the Fine Arts Instructional Center's Susan Sukman McCray Foyer.

Nursing majors enrolled in the Class of 2028 took their oath of service at Eastern Connecticut State University's second annual White Coat Ceremony on Jan. 22 in the Fine Arts Instructional Center Concert Hall. The event was held in accordance with the historic Arnold P. Gold Foundation, which was established in 1993 and whose namesake began the tradition of the ceremony.

Six English majors at Eastern Connecticut State University made history on Jan. 9, presenting their research at the Modern Language Association (MLA) Annual Convention's inaugural undergraduate research poster session in Toronto, Canada. Eastern's group was the largest representation by any institution at the session.

Eastern Connecticut State University recently released its Dean's List for the fall 2025 semester, in which 1,311 students were recognized for maintaining high GPAs.

Audiences explored conflict, protest, and the role of state authority in the Department of Communication, Film, and Theatre's fall 2025 production of "The Burial at Thebes," an adaptation of Sophocles' classic tragedy "Antigone," which was staged in the Proscenium Theatre from Dec. 4 to 7.

Eastern Connecticut State University theatre major Zoe Calhoun '26 (of South Windsor, CT, and Springfield, MA) is having a big senior year. In the fall 2025 semester, she directed two university productions: a reimagination of Jean-Paul Sartre's psychological thriller "No Exit" and a stage reading of "Happening," Nobel Laureate Annie Ernaux's biographical account of getting an illegal abortion in 1960s France. Calhoun's work will be recognized at the upcoming Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival in Albany, NY, from Jan. 27 to 31.

Two senior students in Eastern's Department of Art and Art History recently showcased their research exploring surrealist and gothic art, presenting their senior theses in a symposium on Dec. 3 in Goddard Hall focusing on artists who specialized in the abnormal.

Eastern students showcased their entrepreneurial skills at the College of Business's third annual Big Idea Pitch Competition on Dec. 1 at the J. Eugene Smith Library. The "Shark Tank"-style contest featured 20 original business ideas, presented by Eastern students to a panel of faculty and staff members. Businesses showcased at the event included a hotel for pets, anti-blister soccer cleats, a social networking service for musicians, a dressing aid for individuals with disabilities, and more.

The Department of English at Eastern held its annual English Night, an event celebrating the academic achievements of 40 of the department's students, on Dec. 1 at the Student Center Betty Tipton Room. The event featured the presentations of the Constance Campo and Alexander "Sandy" Taylor Memorial Scholarships, as well as research presentations and inductions into Eastern's chapter of the Sigma Tau Delta National Honor Society for English.

Eight students at Eastern Connecticut State University are taking their studies abroad during the fall '25 semester. From South Korea to Ireland and many destinations in between, travelers are immersing themselves in local culture while expanding their academic horizons.

The Department of Music at Eastern showed its latest opera production, "Cinderella," on Nov. 14 and 16 in the Fine Arts Instructional Center Concert Hall. This whimsical 60-minute production featured a new English adaptation by Professor Emily Riggs and musical direction by Professor David Ballena, bringing to life Viardot's witty and tuneful take on the timeless story.

The Department of Communication, Film, and Theatre at Eastern Connecticut State University delighted attendees with a one-night, sold-out performance of "No Exit," an existentialist play directed by senior communication and theatre major Zoe Calhoun, on Oct. 30 in the Fine Arts Instructional Center Delmonte Bernstein Studio Theatre.

The Department of Communication, Film, and Theatre at Eastern Connecticut State University held showings of the dark comedy "Wonder of the World," written by David Lindsay-Abaire and directed by Professor J.J. Cobb, Oct. 14-19 in the Delmonte Bernstein Studio Theater of the Fine Arts Instructional Center.

14 students from various academic departments at Eastern Connecticut State University presented their research at the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges, better known as COPLAC, from Oct 17-18. The conference was hosted by Keene State College in Keene, NH and welcomed students from several different institutions in the northeastern United States.

More than 150 historians, graduate, and undergraduate students filled the Student Center Betty Tipton Room on Sept. 20 for a conference highlighting the forgotten histories of ethnic minorities in New England's colonial era. "Present from the Start: People of Color in the Revolutionary Era" hosted a myriad of panels and presentations covering more than 200 years of legacy.

This summer, dozens of students from the Business Division at Eastern Connecticut State University sharpened their corporate expertise through a myriad of internships. Each student exercised various professional skills they learned at Eastern and applied them on-site.

The Office of Housing and Residential Life at Eastern hosted its annual resident assistant (RA) training workshop for 72 current campus RAs from Aug. 11 to 22. The training helped RAs cultivate key skills and concepts they need to be successful on the job and support on-campus student residents.

Walter Scudder '25, a four-year starting midfielder and two-year captain on Eastern Connecticut State University's men's soccer team, was named one of three recipients of the Little East Conference (LEC) Student Athlete-of-the-Year Award for the 2024-25 academic year.

Now going strong for four decades, Eastern Connecticut State University hosted 44 hopeful first-year students during its annual Summer Transition at Eastern Program/Contract Admissions Program (STEP/CAP). Coordinated by Christina Irizarry and Kolin Ebron of the Office of Opportunity Programs, STEP/CAP is designed to provide a smooth transition into higher education for select incoming students over the course of six weeks with the help of student community leaders.

Nineteen English students at Eastern embarked on an annual global field course to Florence, Italy, from June 22 to August 2. Titled "Creative Writing Abroad," the course was led by English Professor Christopher Torockio and allowed students to draw writing inspiration by immersing in Italian culture and the countryside. During their six weeks abroad, students were assigned to write a short story inspired by their time in Italy. In doing so, they had ample opportunities to explore locations outside Florence.

Eighteen first- and second-year students majoring in STEM fields participated in a residential program this July meant to support historically underrepresented students in the sciences. Modeled after the National Science Foundation's Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP) program, the two-week Eastern-funded initiative included a transitional "bridge" program for incoming first-year students and a research institute for sophomores.

Thirteen biology students at Eastern submerged themselves in research on oceanic ecosystems as part of two global field courses (GFCs) on San Salvador Island in the Bahamas this past May 2025. The courses, titled "Oceanic Island Ecology" (BIO 319) and "Tropical Biology" (BIO 320), were taught collaboratively by biology Professors Kristen Epp, Brett Mattingly, and Joshua Idjadi.

Members of Eastern Connecticut State University's incoming Class of 2029 caught their first glimpse of college life across six different sessions of SOAR, an immersive two-day orientation experience facilitated by student orientation counselors, known as SOCs.

From a snowstorm at the Grand Canyon to a climb up an active volcano, environmental earth science (EES) students at Eastern Connecticut State University experienced the natural wonders of Arizona during a global field course (GFC) from March 14-26. The course, titled "EES 271: Earth and Environmental Field Excursion," was led by EES Professors Dickson Cunningham and Peter Drzewiecki. The two have traveled to Arizona three times to teach the course.

More than 800 Eastern Connecticut State University students received undergraduate and graduate-level degrees in the 2024-25 academic year, which culminated this past May with two commencement ceremonies at the conclusion of the spring 2025 semester.

Twenty-six students at Eastern Connecticut State University ventured to Switzerland as part of a course titled "PSY 471: Lifespan Development in Psychology," from May 22 to June 2. The global field course (GFC) was led by psychology Professors Jennifer Leszczynski and T. Caitlin Vasquez-O'Brien and prompted students to compare the lifestyles of different age demographics.

Eastern Connecticut State University's Department of Communication, Film, and Theatre held its annual honor society induction ceremony on April 3 at the Fine Arts instructional Center Concert Hall. Eastern's chapter of the Alpha Psi Omega National Theatre Honor Society inducted 21 students. Lambda Pi Eta, the National Communication Association's official honor society for four-year colleges and universities, inducted 23 students.

Eastern Connecticut State University's philosophy program inducted six students into its chapter of the Phi Sigma Tau International Honor Society on April 7. Students, family and faculty gathered in the Connecticut Room in Gelsi-Young Hall to celebrate the occasion.

Eastern Connecticut State University's College of Business inducted 50 students into three honor societies on April 16. Students, family and faculty gathered in the Student Center Betty Tipton Room to celebrate inductees of Alpha Mu Alpha, Delta Mu Delta, and Omicron Delta Epsilon International Honor Societies.