Campus & Community

Washington University’s 156th Commencement is at 8:30 a.m. Friday, May 19, in Brookings Quadrangle. The university will award 3,251 degrees to 3,095 undergraduate, graduate and professional students. The university also will bestow honorary degrees on six individuals.

Joshua Jackson has been installed as the Saul and Louise Rosenzweig Associate Professor of Personality Science at Washington University in St. Louis. A ceremony and reception were held March 21 in Holmes Lounge in Ridgley Hall to celebrate the occasion.

Bradley Schlaggar, MD, PhD, a pediatric neurologist, studies brain development at the School of Medicine. And he has a lot of empathy for patients and their families. A series of medical challenges his own family has endured in recent years deepened his understanding of what it means to be a doctor.

Robert C. Drews, MD, a professor emeritus of clinical ophthalmology at the School of Medicine, died May 9 at his home in St. Louis, following a stroke. He was 86. Drews was also an alumnus and a former member of the Board of Trustees.

Senior Class President Reid Petty has spent his time at Washington University making sure his classmates enjoy their experience. The Olin student will address fellow graduates at Commencement on Friday, May 19, sharing about what made this place special for him.

More than a dozen distinguished speakers will take part in Commencement-related events for Class of 2017 graduates and their families and guests this week at Washington University in St. Louis.

Images from in and around the Washington University campuses.

With a master’s degree in statistics, a PhD in chemical engineering, an MBA and, soon, a JD from Washington University School of Law, Wei Zhu is clearly brilliant. But also, perhaps, a little crazy? “Oh yes,” Zhu said with a laugh. “I am definitely crazy.” She will serve as the graduate student speaker at Commencement on May 19.

Washington University in St. Louis is embarking on a major transformation of the east end of its Danforth Campus. A ceremonial groundbreaking was held May 5 to recognize the generous donors who made the project possible and to mark the planned start of construction May 22.

Jean Holowach Thurston, MD, a pioneering pediatric neurologist at the School of Medicine, died April 29. She was 99. Thurston’s influential research served as a guide for colleagues in treating childhood seizure disorders.