Author: Neil Schoenherr

A bipartisan groups of United States senators announced Oct. 1 legislation that would overhaul the country’s criminal justice system, giving judges more leeway in sentencing and reducing sentences for some nonviolent offenders. A move in the right direction, said Carrie Pettus-Davis, PhD, an expert on criminal justice system reform at the Brown School, but the bill doesn’t go far enough.

The Center for Dissemination and Implementation at the Institute for Public Health at Washington University in St. Louis kicks off its 2015-16 speaker series Sept. 30 with talk from Ross A. Hammond, PhD, senior fellow in economic studies at the Brookings Institution, on policy factors that influence health.

Pope Francis is widely expected to address a range of issues when he visits the United States Sept. 22-27, including the crisis of mass incarceration in the US criminal justice system. The attention is needed and welcome, said a criminal justice reform expert Carrie Pettus-Davis, PhD, assistant professor at the Brown School.

Exercise. Eat right. Make time to relax. Most of us know what it takes to keep our bodies healthy. But what makes a building healthy? Amy Eyler, PhD, assistant professor at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, wants to find out. Using the Brown School’s new Hillman Hall as a laboratory, Eyler […]

The Supreme Court decision that the Constitution requires that gay couples be allowed to marry no matter where they live has caused many religious conservatives to feel that the tax-exempt status of religious institutions is under threat. There is a fundamental reason we should protect religious organizations — even those we disagree with, said John Inazu, JD, associate professor of law at Washington University in St. Louis.

The number of uninsured people in America dropped by 8.8 million in 2014, according to a report released Sept. 16 from the U.S. Census Bureau. This number is significant because it is the first Census Bureau report since the widespread implementation of the Affordable Care Act, said a health economist at Washington University in St. Louis. “This is a big deal,” said Timothy McBride, PhD, professor at the Brown School and noted health policy analyst.

The fall lineup of the 18th annual Public Interest Law & Policy Speakers Series, sponsored by the School of Law at Washington University in St. Louis, kicks off with two lectures Sept. 16-17. The yearlong series brings to the university nationally and internationally prominent experts from law and related fields to address issues of access to justice. Melvin Oliver, PhD, opens the series at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 16 Anheuser-Busch Hall’s Bryan Cave Moot Courtroom.

A national conference held at Washington University in St. Louis Sept. 24-27 will begin a conversation on finding a lasting solution to America’s incarceration problem. Organized by Carrie Pettus-Davis, PhD, assistant professor at the Brown School, the conference will discuss and evaluate proposals for sustainable and effective decarceration of America’s jails and prisons.

Nancy Staudt, JD, PhD, dean of the School of Law and the Howard & Caroline Cayne Professor of Law, talks about her return to Washington University, her collaborative work around campus and her vision for the law school.

Provost Holden Thorp, PhD, has appointed an eight-member committee to identify candidates for the position of dean of the Brown School. Eddie Lawlor, PhD, the William E. Gordon Distinguished Professor, announced he will step down as dean at the end of the academic year, June 30, 2016.