Campus & Community

Resident Ruth Groff pets Boo at a pop-up dog park constructed by Washington University staff and student volunteers Sept. 13 for “Rock The Block: A Skinker DeBaliviere Better Block Project.” The event encouraged residents to reimagine their neighborhood through temporary installations such as the dog park and other community activities.

The nip in the air is a reminder not only of the coming autumn but of flu season. And for any Washington University employee who works with or near patients, it means it’s time to get a flu shot.

The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) released a report last week from an advisory group on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the largest offshore oil spill in U.S. history. Barbara A. Schaal, PhD, dean of the faculty of Arts & Sciences, chaired the advisory group that was tasked with creating a strategic vision and guide NAS’ Gulf Research Program.

As part of Washington University Libraries’ ongoing commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Freedom Summer, the Washington University Film & Media Archive will host a Q&A with actor Richard Beymer and a free screening of his film, “A Regular Bouquet.” The event takes place at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Sept. 23, at Steinberg Auditorium on the Danforth Campus.

Joni Westerhouse, a longtime veteran in public affairs at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has been named associate vice chancellor and associate dean for Medical Public Affairs.

A search committee to identify candidates for the position of vice chancellor for students has been appointed by H. Holden Thorp, PhD, provost and executive vice chancellor for academic affairs. Sharon Stahl, PhD, announced last week that she is retiring as vice chancellor at the end of the academic year, June 30.

Jeffrey I. Gordon, MD, has won the 2014 Dickson Prize in Medicine for his pioneering studies demonstrating how the tens of trillions of microbes that live in the gut influence human health.

​​The community is invited to submit photos, videos, stories and other content to a digital archive at Washington University Libraries called “Documenting Ferguson.” Free and accessible to all, the online collection will serve as a lasting source of information regarding the Aug. 9 death of 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., and the ensuing protests and unrest.​

Faculty, staff and students are invited to celebrate the grand opening of the Center for Diversity and Inclusion at Washington University in St. Louis from 4-5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 23, in Olin Library, Room 202. Attendees will be able to tour the space and meet with center staff and advisory board members.

Iver Bernstein, PhD, director of American Culture Studies in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, discusses this fall’s Modern Segregation lecture/workshop series in the context of recent events in Ferguson, Mo., and the “urgent need for the university to be a university.”