Campus & Community

The year 2019 marks 400 years since the first documented arrival of Africans in the United States. In alignment with a national agenda to recognize the significance of this anniversary, Washington University in St. Louis will host a series of three events throughout the year, beginning Sunday, Feb. 10.

Tim Portlock, associate professor in the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis, has won a 2019 Artists Fellowship from the Regional Arts Commission. Two alumni, Margaret Keller (MFA ‘89) and William Morris (BFA ‘85), are also among the honorees.

As part of Washington University in St. Louis’ ongoing efforts to address sexual assault and misconduct, an advisory group of students, faculty and staff will meet this semester to explore ways to strengthen the Title IX process, policies and practices. The 12-member committee will be chaired by Nicole Hudson, assistant vice chancellor for the Academy for Diversity and Inclusion.

Images from in and around the Washington University campuses.

Washington University’s Lifelong Learning Institute, which offers academic courses to learners 50 and over, has become the newest member of the national network of Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes, thanks to funding from the Bernard Osher Foundation.

The School of Engineering & Applied Science will be renamed the James McKelvey School of Engineering, in honor of trustee and distinguished alumnus Jim McKelvey Jr., who has made an unprecedented and transformative investment in the school.

Virtuoso pianist Nikolai Lugansky, praised for his “plush sound and plenty impetuosity” by The New York Times, will open Washington University’s third Great Artists Series Feb. 10 with works by Claude Debussy, Alexander Scriabin and Sergei Rachmaninoff.

Bob Smith was a Renaissance man — a talented painter, designer and bookmaker who trained generations of students while earning national renown for his sculptural fountain designs. In “Robert C. Smith: An Eclectic Studio & A Remarkable Career,” the Sam Fox School will showcase more than 100 works by the longtime professor, who died last fall at the age of 92.

Cindy Brantmeier, professor of applied linguistics and education, has designed a social reading program that employs online games to help adolescent refugees and immigrants. The results are promising — test scores have improved along with student confidence.