Campus & Community

Washington University in St. Louis welcomed 54 students from the St. Louis region Feb. 25 for the first in-person St. Louis Area Brain Bee since the COVID-19 pandemic. Sanjay Adireddi of Ladue Horton Watkins High School won this year’s competition and will compete in the U.S. National Brain Bee in April.

Large-scale redevelopment is often pitched as a strategy for reviving struggling downtowns. Yet such projects — with their acres of asphalt and tenuous connections to surrounding environs — are usually poor substitutes for the organic neighborhoods they displace, argues Patty Heyda, an associate professor of urban design at the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts.

St. Louis City SC will stand out in Major League Soccer for its gameday experience, top-of-the-line technology and commitment to sustainability, says Olin Business School sports economist Patrick Rishe. But how much of an impact will the new team have on downtown St. Louis and the economy?

The Washington University community is invited to purchase tickets for WashU Night with St. Louis City SC, the area’s new Major League Soccer team, June 3 and WashU Night at the Ballpark Sept. 15.

Harvey Fields, associate dean for diversity, equity and inclusion at Washington University in St. Louis, has been named the inaugural dean of the College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics at Harris-Stowe State University.

Outcomes of a two-year STEM learning pilot program that the Institute for School Partnership at Washington University in St. Louis completed in partnership with St. Louis Public Schools and The Little Bit Foundation are encouraging. 

Two of WashU’s largest student groups are led by one very busy junior: John Jachimiak. As co-president of Heart for the Unhoused, Jachimiak travels to shelters across the region to conduct health screenings. And as president of the campus QuestBridge chapter, Jachimiak gives scholars resources, a voice and, most importantly, a community. 

Shantay Bolton, executive vice chancellor and chief administrative officer, was selected for the 2023 St. Louis Titan 100 cohort.

Lisa Weingarth, vice president of external affairs at the St. Louis-based nonprofit Rung for Women, has been named to the newly created role of senior adviser for St. Louis initiatives in the Office of the Chancellor. Her appointment is effective Feb. 20.

Kelvin Adams, who retired in December as superintendent of St. Louis Public Schools, and Deidra Thomas-Murray, the district’s students in transition coordinator and foster care liaison, will be honored at the 36th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration at 2 p.m. Monday, Jan. 16, in Graham Chapel on the Danforth Campus.