James D. Matthews

Illinois Wesleyan Schedules Sept. 11 Events

BLOOMINGTON, Ill — Illinois Wesleyan University will hold three special events on September 11 in recognition of the one-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

A campus-wide commemoration will be held at 11 a.m. on the McPherson Beach. James D. Matthews, dean of students and associate professor of French, will be joined by two Illinois Wesleyan students, Kathleen Duis, a junior from Sullivan, Ill., and Jordan Ault, a junior from Pekin, Ill., in offering reflections on the events of a year ago.

The program will also feature the premier of "9.11.2001: Symbols and Reflections (In Memory of the Victims of 9.11.2001)," a composition for brass and percussion written expressly for the occasion by Mario Pelusi, associate professor of music composition and director of the School of Music. Pelusi will conduct the ensemble’s performance of his new work.

At 7:30 p.m. in the Hansen Student Center, a panel of faculty, administrators, and students will address the topic: "After September 11: Bursting the IWU Bubble." Panelists will discuss whether or not the University has changed in the year since 9/11 and how it might change in the future based on those events. The panel will be composed of Teodora Amoloza, professor of sociology and director of international studies; Robert Bray, professor of English; Paul Bushnell, professor of history; Kristin Gregory, a senior from Carbondale, Ill; Connie Horton, director of counseling services; and John Rapp, a senior from Towanda, Ill. Janet McNew, provost of the University, will moderate the panel.

Immediately following the panel discussion Illinois Wesleyan’s Student Senate will lead a candlelight vigil.