Illinois Wesleyan Ranked No. 4 'Liberal Arts College on the Rise'
Based on "amazing success over the past 15 years," Illinois Wesleyan is ranked No. 4 nationally among "incredible liberal arts colleges on the rise," according to College Gazette. Metrics included University programs and accomplishments by faculty, students and alumni.

Students Win Top Prize at HackHarvard for Dog Training Robot
Train-O, a dog training robot developed by a team of Illinois Wesleyan students during a 36-hour hackathon, was recently awarded "Best Hardware Hack" at Harvard University's fifth iteration of HackHarvard.

Faculty Finance Book to be Published in Spanish
The Fundamental Principles of Finance, a textbook written by Associate Professor of Finance Robert Irons offering an innovative approach to financial theory, has been selected for Spanish translation and publication.

• Two Titans combined for three event wins in the annual swimming and diving IWU Invitational on Nov. 23.

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Monday, Dec. 2

4 p.m., CNS C101 – Faculty Meeting

7 p.m., Multifaith Meditation Room (2nd Floor), Memorial Center – Self Care Meditation – Enjoy a relaxing time with stories, music, and meditation. Students from all spiritual, religious, and secular backgrounds are encouraged to join. The Multifaith Meditation Room, located up the stairs from Campus Safety and Young Main Lounge, is open any time for students seeking a quiet place to meditate, pray, or just relax in silence. Contact sharuyam@iwu.edu for more information. Sponsored by the Office of Multifaith Engagement.

Tuesday, Dec. 3

Giving Tuesday marks a global generosity movement, and Titans and friends are invited to celebrate by making a gift toward an IWU student's education, experience, and future.

Wednesday, Dec. 4

10 a.m.-noon and 1:30-3:30 p.m., Hart Career Center – Walk-In Wednesdays – Bring your resume or cover letter and have a Hart Career Center staff member review it. Have a quick question about Handshake? Need help preparing for an upcoming interview? We're here to help.

11 a.m.-1 p.m., The Ames Library – Course Cluster Open House – The Ames Library will host an Open House for students participating in this fall's Fact or Fiction Course Cluster. More than 100 students from 15 different courses will present research and creative works based on the annual theme, Fact or Fiction. The Ames Library encourages everyone to attend the Open House to interact with the students who are presenting. 

4 p.m., Multicultural House – ReligiosiTEA: Interfaith Cooking – Join IWU Interfaith at the MC House for some holiday cooking, with dishes from around the world. This is our last ReligiosiTEA of the semester, but we'll be back with an exciting lineup of events in the spring.

7 p.m., Shirk Center – Men's Basketball vs. Wheaton College – Live streaming video at www.iwu.edu/livesports.
 

Thursday, Dec. 5

6 p.m., Evelyn Chapel – Light the Night: A Multicultural Celebration of the Season of Light – Join the Office of Multifaith Engagement for this special IWU celebration of the season of light, featuring performances from over 15 student groups. As we inch closer to finals and the shortest day of the year, enjoy this festive evening celebrating shared images of light as a symbol of peace, wisdom, and illumination. A reception will follow in Joslin Atrium.

Friday, Dec. 6

Last day of classes

8:30 a.m., Young Main Lounge, Memorial Center – All Staff Meeting – President Georgia Nugent invites all IWU staff employees to attend the annual All Staff Meeting. A continental breakfast will be provided. All offices may close for this meeting.

4-6 p.m., Joslin Atrium, Memorial Center – Retirement Reception for Lynda Duke – Faculty and staff are invited to stop by and share well wishes to Associate Provost Lynda Duke as we offer thanks for her more than 18 years of dedicated service to Illinois Wesleyan.

7 p.m., Dugout, Memorial Center – De-Stress December – Are you stressed out for finals? Well then, come out to De-stress December to relax as you sip on some delicious hot cocoa & tea, sponsored by the Campus Activities Board.

7:30 p.m., Westbrook Auditorium, Presser Hall – Student Composition Concert

Saturday, Dec. 7

Indoor Track, Shirk Center – Track and Field - Alumni/Titan Opener

1 p.m., Westbrook Auditorium, Presser Hall  – Unlicensed Syncopation

5 p.m., Shirk Center – Women's Basketball vs. Carthage College – Live streaming video at www.iwu.edu/livesports.

7 p.m., Shirk Center – Men's Basketball vs. Carthage College – Live streaming video at www.iwu.edu/livesports.

Sunday, Dec. 8

11 a.m., Turfler Room/Joslin Atrium, Memorial Center – December Graduate Brunch – Sponsored by the Office of Alumni Engagement.

3 p.m., Holy Trinity Church, 711 N. Main St., Bloomington – Christmas Choral Concert

Monday, Dec. 9

Reading Day (NO CLASSES) in preparation for final exams Dec. 10-13.

4 p.m., Auditorium, Myers Welcome Center – IWU Freeman Asia Informational Session  – Thanks to the generous support of the Freeman Foundation, IWU will be able to support up to 40 students to do internships in Asia for up to two months in summer 2020. This opportunity is available to all students who are currently sophomores and juniors and who will return to the IWU campus for at least a semester following the internship. Come learn about funded internship opportunities in Hong Kong, Thailand, Japan or the Philippines, and listen to the experience of students who participated this past summer. Sponsored by the International Office and Hart Career Center.

7 p.m., Shirk Center – Women's Basketball vs. University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point – Live streaming video at www.iwu.edu/livesports.

7 p.m., Multifaith Meditation Room (2nd Floor), Memorial Center – Self Care Meditation

Campus Delivery of the IWU Magazine

Illinois Wesleyan University Magazine’s Winter 2019-20 issue is coming soon! Features include a Q & A with President Georgia Nugent, Associate Professor Amanda Vicary's true crime research, and an upstream approach to community healthcare from Dr. Beth Mulberry, a 1986 IWU alumna. Sign up to receive your campus copy or edit your campus delivery preferences.

Maintenance on the Campus Data Center on Dec. 5

The University will be performing scheduled maintenance on the power system in the campus data center this Thursday, Dec. 5, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Should we experience any problems while performing this maintenance, Information Technology Services will provide the necessary communication with the campus.

Benefits Choice/Open Enrollment Reminder

If you want to change your health insurance plan option or enroll yourself or a dependent in the insurance plan for 2020, please return your enrollment form(s) to Human Resources (Holmes Hall 209) by this Friday, Dec.6. 

Flexible Spending Enrollment Reminder 

If you want to contribute to a Flexible Spending Account for 2020, please return your Flex enrollment form to HR by Friday, Dec.13.
* Note: This year, if you do not want to participate in a Flex account, you do not need to complete a form.

If you need an enrollment form, please see the HR Website. If you have questions about the insurance plans or the Flexible Spending Accounts, please contact Marie at mgiusti@iwu.edu or Londa at ldunlap@iwu.edu

Holiday Luncheon

Faculty and staff are invited to the 2019 Illinois Wesleyan University Holiday Luncheon —
Friday, Dec. 13, 11:45 a.m.
Young Main Lounge, Memorial Center

Please RSVP by Dec. 9 at rsvp@iwu.edu or (309) 556-3540. When you RSVP indicate any dietary restrictions and if you want your name removed from the prize drawings.

Upcoming TIAA Live Webinars

TIAA's December 2019 live webinars are open to all IWU employees and are available for registration. The December webinar lineup includes the following special topics:

Planning for diminished capacity and illness

Dec. 10 at 11 a.m.

Aging can change many things in a person's life, including the ability to manage one's own money. You can learn about the important documents you should consider putting

in place, as well as the various options, including funding for long-term care.

Responsible investing - Portfolios with purpose
Dec. 11 at 11 a.m.

Did you know that responsible investing (RI) enables investors to align their social and environmental principles with their financial goals? This webinar will cover the factors

that make an investment socially responsible, the history of RI and ways for individuals to incorporate RI into their investment strategy.

Planning for retirement - The why, what and how
Dec. 12 at 11 a.m.

This webinar will discuss the challenges and risks people face in retirement, and how good planning can address them.

All about IRAs

Dec. 12 at 2 p.m.

You can learn the facts on IRAs, how an IRA may help you meet your retirement savings goals and which one may be right for you.

• Dr. Kyle Chin '15 earned his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from the University of Michigan School of Dentistry, and is now a general and cosmetic dentist serving patients in the Chicagoland area.
  
  
• The appointment of S. Georgia Nugent as Illinois Wesleyan's president was noted in the Chronicle of Higher Education and Princeton Alumni Weekly.
  
  
• James Plath, R. Forrest Colwell Endowed Chair of English and Professor of English and co-author of the book The 100 Greatest Literary Characters, wrote for The American Scholar about 10 literary runners up.