Author: Barbara Rea

Aron Rodrigue, this year’s annual Holocaust Memorial Lecturer, has put to rest the widely held notion that Sephardim living in the Balkans and other European lands during the Holocaust were not as badly affected as the Ashkenazi in Eastern Europe. The truth is they experienced the same persecution and destruction under Nazi occupation. Rodrigue will speak on campus Monday, Oct. 29.

​On Thursday, October 18, New York Times Magazine chief political correspondent Matt Bai will deliver a talk on “ESPN-ing Politics: The Politics of Political Journalism.” The student organization Controversy ‘n Coffee is hosting the talk which begins at 7 p.m. in Simon Hall’s May Auditorium on the Washington University Danforth Campus.​

On Wednesday, Oct. 17, Meriwether will be at WUSTL for a screening of American Meat and panel discussion featuring diverse opinions on the subject. The 82-minute film, introduced by Meriwether, will begin at 6 p.m. in Simon Hall May Auditorium; the panel will follow and conclude at 8:30 p.m.​​

Teacher Erin Gruwell’s story of transforming students who were labeled stupid and apathetic into confident, motivated high school graduates became an inspirational best-selling book and movie. Gruwell will discuss “Becoming a Catalyst for Change” at 4 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 3, in Anheuser-Busch Hall Moot Courtroom. Part of the Assembly Series, the talk is free and open to the public.

Educator, administrator and physicist Walter Massey, PhD, is delivering the inaugural James E. McLeod Memorial Lecture in Higher Education Tuesday, Oct. 2. His lecture, titled “Liberal Arts: The Higgs Boson of Higher Education,” will begin at 4 p.m. in Graham Chapel.

Himadri Pakrasi, PhD, director of WUSTL’s International Center for Advanced Renewable Energy and Sustainability (I-CARES), has become the inaugural holder of the Myron and Sonya Glassberg/Albert and Blanche Greensfelder Distinguished University Professor.

​Six-year-old Ruby Bridges entered the history books when she entered first grade. As the youngest foot soldier in the battle to integrate public schools, she will have a powerful story to tell at the Ervin Scholars’ 25th anniversary keynote event at 4 p.m. Friday, Sept. 14, in Graham Chapel.  

Author Wes Moore visited campus Sept. 4 and spent the day talking with groups of students and faculty, before giving an Assembly Series address. His book, The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates, is the 2012-13 selection for the First-Year Reading Program. Winners of the reading program essay contest had a special opportunity to sit down with the author in the Whittemore House.

Due to pre-election media responsibilities, George Will, who was to present the Fall keynote lecture for the John H. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics at Washington University tonight, has rescheduled this event for 7 p.m. Tuesday, December 4, Graham Chapel.

What’s more important for a child’s success: Learning math or learning resiliency? Veteran journalist and educational reform advocate Paul Tough will discuss his new book, How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity and the Hidden Power of Character at 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 11, at Washington University in St. Louis.