Author: Leslie Gibson McCarthy

Timothy McBride, PhD, professor at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis and an expert on healthcare policy and health economics, has been named chairman of the MO HealthNET Oversight Committee for the state of Missouri.

Missouri’s first Family Impact Seminar, a national program aimed at educating lawmakers on family policy issues, was held Jan. 17 in Jefferson City for legislators and aides, and the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis took a lead role in bringing the forum to the state.

The Brown School has appointed three new assistant deans. Cynthia Williams has been promoted to assistant dean for field education and community partnerships; Nancy B. Mueller has been named assistant dean for planning and evaluation; and Freddie Wills Jr. has been named assistant dean for strategic implementation. The appointments were effective Jan. 2.

Enola K. Proctor, PhD, the Frank J. Bruno Professor of Social Work Research and associate dean for faculty at the Brown School, has been named director of the Dissemination and Implementation (D&I) initiative at the Institute for Public Health.

The Refund to Savings Initiative, the largest savings experiment ever conducted in the United States, begins with this tax season and is expected to reach almost 1.2 million households within the next few months. The project is a novel collaboration of university researchers, led by Michal Grinstein-Weiss, PhD, associate director of the Center for Social Development at Washington University in St. Louis, and corporate partner Intuit Inc., the maker of TurboTax software, Quicken Books and Mint. This groundbreaking project is ushering in a new way of doing research.

Students from Brittany Woods Middle School in the University City School District and Hixson Middle School in the Webster Groves School District came to WUSTL Jan. 29 to participate in the “Investigating Nanotechnology” program.

In the decades ahead, China will have a very large older population, with many older adults who are relatively healthy and interested in being actively engaged in their communities. Contributions of older adults will be necessary for social and economic development of families, communities and society. Peking University Press recently published Productive Aging in the World: Toward Evidence-Based Practice and Policy. The book is the result of a conference on productive aging in August 2011 at Peking University, co-organized by the Center for Social Development (CSD) at Washington University in St. Louis, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and Peking University in Beijing.​

In what is believed to be one of the earliest public works by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Charles Guggenheim, Washington University in St. Louis has unearthed and digitized a slice of academia in the early 1950s called The Second Century. Written and produced by Guggenheim as part of the school’s first major fundraising effort, the 30-minute film — filled with 1950s earnestness — chronicles the attributes of not only Washington University, but also the merits of a university education.

As China prepares to transfer its leadership in March, the potential exists for a more progressive government. With asset-based policies increasing throughout Asia in response to rising inequality and aging populations, there’s never been a better time for discussion and information. This past November, the Center for Social Development (CSD) at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis co-hosted the conference “Lifelong Asset Building: Strategies and Innovations in Asia” at Peking University.

Faculty and graduate students with an interest in labor, households, health care, law and social welfare are invited to take part in a series of Monday brown-bag luncheon seminars to be held biweekly on the Danforth Campus at Washington University in St. Louis beginning Monday, Feb. 4. In its 17th year, the Work, Families and Public Policy series features one-hour presentations on research interests of faculty from local and national universities. Presentations will be from noon-1 p.m. in Seigle Hall, Room 348.