Author: Deb Parker

PB&Joy, the university-wide food drive, soon will be under way and all faculty, staff and students are invited to join a planning committee. Anyone interested is asked to attend a planning meeting Feb. 2 or 3 in Danforth University Center. Last year’s drive yielded three tons of food for area people in need.

Public health in St. Louis is the first social issue to be explored during “St. Louis Up Close,” a new series featuring casual conversations with local nonprofit leaders. Five more discussions are planned for the series, which is sponsored by the Gephardt Institute for Public Service and the Community Service Office. All talks are free and open to the public.

In response to student requests for additional eating and working space in the Danforth University Center, a 900-square-foot area recently underwent renovation. The new space — with an informal meeting, room, more seating, tables and electrical outlets — opens this week.

WUSTL ushered in the Lunar New Year with a fireworks show Jan. 22 in Mudd Field. The Lunar New Year — observed this year Jan. 23 — is one of the most important traditional Asian holidays. Prior to the fireworks show, students enjoyed food, origami, calligraphy, information booths and performances in Tisch Commons. The celebration continues this weekend with two high-spirited performances at 7 p.m. Jan. 27 and 28 in Edison Theatre.

WUSTL’s Community Service Office, in partnership with St. Louis Emergency Winter Outreach, recently asked for winter wear donations to help the homeless. Thanks to the generosity of the WUSTL community, more than 200 coats and many other winter items have been distributed. The need will continue through the next few months.

Last spring, Washington University in St. Louis adopted “Green Dot,” a national program that capitalizes on the power of peer influence to prevent sexual violence, intimate partner violence and stalking violence on college campuses. Advocates nationally believe that bystanders hold the key to reducing assaults on campus.

A diverse array of employers will be on campus Wednesday, Feb. 1, for the Spring Internship & Career Fair. All WUSTL students and alumni are invited to participate in the event. For those who are interested, mock interviews begin this Friday, Jan. 27, followed by “prepping” workshops Monday and Tuesday, Jan. 30 and 31.

The Spring Activities Fair, open to all students, will be held at 4 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 25, in the Danforth University Center. Featuring approximately 150 student groups and university departments, the event is an opportunity for students to explore options for involvement and find experiences that will augment classroom learning.

Student groups at Washington University in St. Louis will usher in the Year of the Dragon and celebrate one of Asia’s most important holidays — Lunar New Year — beginning with a fireworks show Sunday, Jan. 22, and concluding with a two-night, high-spirited performance Jan. 27-28 in Edison Theatre. Events are open to the public. Benefit proceeds will help support victims of the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that devastated the northeastern region of Japan.

Six staff members soon will be packing their bags for Shanghai or Paris, as winners of the Global Diversity Overseas Seminar program. The intent of the new program is to encourage a fuller appreciation of diversity on campus by introducing select faculty and staff members to dramatically different cultural contexts.