Author: Leslie Gibson McCarthy

Beginning Wednesday, May 30, the Record shifts into its summer schedule. Look for weekly emails on in your inbox each Wednesday through the middle of August. The website, record.wustl.edu, will continue to be updated regularly daily. Have a great summer!

Spontaneous bursts of joy broke out all day long on the campus of Washington University in St. Louis as the university held its 151st Commencement May 18 in Brookings Quadrangle. From the memorable speech made by Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Mike Peters to the conferring of honorary degrees and singing of the “Alma Mater,” it was a day of smiles. A slideshow commemorates it all.

Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton will confer degrees at the 151st Commencement ceremony, which begins at 8:30 a.m. Friday, May 18, in Brookings Quadrangle on the Danforth Campus. The 2,760 candidates will receive 2,878 degrees, of which 1,450 are undergraduate and 1,428 are graduate and professional.

Senior class president Alex Cooper views his time at Washington University in St. Louis as truly “transformative.” When he takes the podium during the 151st Commencement ceremony May 18, he will urge fellow graduating seniors to reflect back on their time at the university, paying special attention to the key relationships that have fostered growth.

Marion G. Crain, JD, the Wiley B. Rutledge Professor of Law and a Faculty Fellow in the Office of the Provost at Washington University in St. Louis, has been named vice provost, announced Edward S. Macias, PhD, provost, executive vice chancellor for academic affairs and the Barbara and David Thomas Distinguished Professor in Arts & Sciences.

Tingting Wu, the Record’s Outstanding Graduate in architecture from the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts, has a strong interest in blending natural wilderness with man-made wilderness. A native of Shanghai, China, she creates architecture at the intersection of art and landscape.

Adrian “Addie” Smith, the Record‘s Outstanding Graduate from the School of Law, has spent much of her life searching for just the right spot to focus her enthusiasm on building a brighter future for disadvantaged children. And she appears to have found it. After graduation May 18, she will become a lobbyist for Native American children.

Akhila Narla will be among WUSTL’s inaugural class of environmental biology graduates when she received her degree May. 18. Narla, one of the Record’s Outstanding Graduates from the College of Arts & Sciences, plans to seek her medical degree but first will spend two years on a Navajo reservation teaching high school students science and health through the Teach for America program.

The baseball team was one of 56 teams selected to compete in the 2012 NCAA Division III baseball championship, and will travel to Millington, Tenn., to compete in regional play Wednesday through Sunday, May 16-20. Updates also included on women’s golf, men’s and women’s tennis and track & field.

Commencement week begins Monday, May 14, with a variety of celebrations and ceremonies designed to warmly send Washington University in St. Louis’ Class of 2012 out into the world. The week begins with the Chancellor’s Dinner to Honor Graduating Seniors at 6 p.m. Monday, May 14 and culminates with the 151st Commencement Friday May 18.