Author: Jessica Daues

Cheryl Block, J.D., Jeff Catalano, Ph.D., Mariska Leunissen, Ph.D., and Ron Shalev, Ph.D.

The Office of Human Resources has announced several enhancements to the health plans for faculty and staff that will be effective Jan. 1, 2008. It also will hold 14 informational meetings to give faculty and staff a chance to ask questions about health benefits during open enrollment, which begins Nov. 1 and ends Nov. 30.

Washington University marked the acquisition of its “One Hundred Years of Little Black Sambo” collection with a reception Oct. 12 at Olin Library. Most of the collection’s 234 items — which include books, puzzles, dishes, games and figurines — were created between 1899 and 1999 and were purchased in part through the financial support of Constance Levy and her late husband, Monroe; the Center for the Humanities in Arts & Sciences; and the University Libraries.

Campus Sustainability Week begins at the Gargoyle at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 24, with a webinar titled “Building a Durable Future: Community, the Campus, and Deep Economy.” The event, produced by the Society for College and University Planning, will be presented by the Committee on Environmental Quality and is open to all WUSTL students, faculty and staff.

There still is time to help the United Way of Greater St. Louis assist those that need it most. WUSTL continues to accept donations to the annual United Way of Greater St. Louis campaign, which began Sept. 4. The University’s goal for this year’s drive is $555,000, and those who have not yet donated are encouraged to do so as soon as possible.

J. Dillon Brown, Ph.D., Bill Bubelis, Ph.D., Sudarshan Jayaraman, J. Lamar Pierce, Ph.D., And more…

WUSTL’s efforts to create a more sustainable campus were recognized earlier this month when the University was named one of 15 new “Blue Skyways Partners” by the Blue Skyways Collaborative, a collection of public and private entities working to reduce diesel and energy-related air emissions in the central United States.

Elizabeth Borgwardt, J.D., Ph.D., Daniel Bornstein, Ph.D., Gerrit De Geest, J.D., Ph.D., Michael Lewis, Ph.D., And more…

An extra degree of precision will be added to radiation treatments for prostate cancer at the School of Medicine following the installation of two new technologies.

Although the causes of Alzheimer’s disease are not completely understood, amyloid-beta (A-beta) is widely considered a likely culprit. But now School of Medicine researchers have uncovered evidence strengthening the case for another potential cause of Alzheimer’s. The finding also represents the first time scientists have found a connection between early- and late-onset Alzheimer’s.