Author: Susan Killenberg McGinn

Leigh E. Schmidt, PhD, was installed as the Edward Mallinckrodt Distinguished University Professor during a Sept. 3 ceremony in Holmes Lounge, Ridgley Hall. Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton places a medallion on Schmidt, who delivered a talk, titled “Mystics, Cranks, and William James.” A historian of American religion, Schmidt joined the John C. Danforth Center on Religion & Politics in 2011.

This fall, Hold That Thought, a weekly podcast series from Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, will continue to delve into current academic research by teaming up with WUSTL’s American Culture Studies program. Together, they are exploring the question of what it means to be an American, today and throughout the country’s history.

Kent D. Syverud, JD, dean of Washington University’s School of Law and the Ethan A.H. Shepley Distinguished University Professor since 2006, has been selected as the 12th chancellor and president of Syracuse University. He will begin his tenure as chancellor Jan. 13.

A search committee to identify candidates for the position of director of WUSTL’s prestigious John B. Ervin Scholars Program has been appointed by Sharon Stahl, PhD, vice chancellor for students. The late James E. McLeod, beloved vice chancellor for students and dean of the College of Arts & Sciences, was the only person to have served as director of the Ervin Program from its inception in 1986 until his death Sept. 6, 2011.

Washington University in St. Louis once again has strong representation in the prestigious Fulbright program, with 12 current or recent students receiving Fulbright U.S. Student Program scholarships to teach English or to conduct research abroad during the 2013-14 academic year. The students share their thoughts and plans, in their own words.

WUSTL community members can help the United Way of Greater St. Louis support local organizations by contributing to the university’s 2013 United Way campaign, which began Aug. 29 with a kickoff breakfast at the Whittemore House. The university’s United Way campaign goal is $700,000 to support nearly 170 United Way of Greater St. Louis agencies.

Helen Power, PhD, who made an indelible mark on the women’s studies program at Washington University in St. Louis, died Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2013. Power, who was 77, suffered a heart attack at her home in St. Louis. A memorial service was held on campus Sunday, Sept. 8.

Washington University faculty and administrators with ideas for improving the campus environment for women, members of underrepresented minority groups, and other diverse groups are encouraged to apply for a Diversity and Inclusion Grant. The deadline is Oct. 29. Professor Gerald Early (right) speaks at a discussion on the “Delmar Divide,” one of the winning Diversity and Inclusion Grant proposals last year.

Helen Power, PhD, whose career as a lecturer of English and of women’s studies, both in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, spanned more than 30 years, died Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2013, after suffering a heart attack at her home in St. Louis. She was 77. A memorial service will be held at 4 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 8, in Hurst Lounge, Duncker Hall.

To read the joint letter that WUSTL Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton and Timothy M. Wolfe, president of the University of Missouri System, sent last month to the 10 members of Missouri’s congressional delegation, including U.S. Rep. William L. Clay, urging their support in helping close the innovation gap, visit here.