Author: Diane Toroian Keaggy

WashU Libraries has received a remarkable gift of 513 letters by U.S. poet laureate Howard Nemerov from a surprising source — the family of Nemerov’s lover. For two decades, Nemerov wrote to Joan Coale of Philadelphia about his work, family and life as a WashU faculty member. This month, Coale’s son presented the letters to Nemerov’s son.

Andrea Stewart-Douglas, WashU’s inaugural director of student financial wellness programs, is helping students learn how to manage their money and plan for the future.

Members of the WashU and St. Louis communities may now recycle their glass in the Ripple Glass depository in the West Campus parking lot. 

Two WashU sophomores are among the 12 scholars chosen nationwide to participate in the Institute for Responsible Citizenship Washington Program, a highly selective initiative for talented Black male college students.  

WashU senior Elijah Darden, in Arts & Sciences, has been selected for the prestigious Gates Cambridge Scholarship, which fully funds postgraduate study and research at the University of Cambridge. There, he plans to earn a master’s in population health sciences.

Student group Silly Squared takes the lighthearted creativity of stickers and turns them into a meaningful platform for WashU students to share their artwork. Every week, the group prints thousands of stickers and hands them out to students for free.

The Rev. Callista Isabelle, WashU’s inaugural director for religious, spiritual and ethical life, will receive the Zenobia Hikes Memorial Award from NASPA, the nation’s leading organization for student affairs administrators, at its annual conference in New Orleans in March. 

WashU’s School of Continuing & Professional Studies is launching a new program that prepares adult learners for high-demand jobs in medical and research laboratories.  Grants are available to cover the full cost of tuition for eligible students.

Washington University in St. Louis is strengthening its partnership with Thrive Scholars, a national nonprofit that prepares high-achieving students from communities with limited resources to succeed at the nation’s top universities. 

WashU’s direct and indirect impact to the St. Louis economy in 2024 totaled $9.3 billion, an increase of $500 million. During fiscal year 2024, which concluded June 30, WashU spent $3.9 billion on salaries, construction and purchasing. That money rippled across the region, generating another $5.4 billion in economic activity.