Washington Magazine

For his main dish, alumnus Harley Hammerman is a radiologist and entrepreneur. On the side, he collects historical memorabilia, including of playwright Eugene O’Neill and long-gone beloved restaurants in the St. Louis area.

In studying and teaching American history, Iver Bernstein noticed the prevalence and importance of hope in the American democratic experiment. Nowadays, it may seem that hope is in short supply, but Bernstein says that it continues to be part of America’s foundation and future.

For nearly three decades, the Weltin Lecture Fund has enabled the Religious Studies Program and Assembly Series to bring renowned scholars of religion to the university. In spring 2018, Elaine Pagels delivered the lecture, sharing her riveting discoveries on art and politics in the Book of Revelation.

It began with an essay for an argumentation class; it became a full-blown concert experience and one of the most anticipated student events of any semester. Here is the history of one of WashU’s best traditions, WILD.

Campus life has changed a lot over the years. So we got together alums and current students who whittled down some of the best things to do on campus your first year here. Some of our greatest activities, classes, food and traditions are included.

In the fall of 1968, members of the Association of Black Collegians occupied Brookings Hall for eight days. The sit-in would permanently change Washington University.

The late Edward G. Weltin Sr. was so beloved that that a group of his former students honored him by establishing an endowed lecture fund bearing his name.

Fifty years ago, students across the nation fiercely debated whether the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) programs belonged on college campuses. Today, Washington University in St. Louis Provost Holden Thorp says there is no better place.

Washington University in St. Louis has been around since 1853. With 165 years of history, the institution has seen many changes to student life. How well do you know WashU’s bygone traditions?

In 2015, Washington University re-established the Department of Sociology in Arts & Sciences. Concentrating on the origins and impacts of inequality, faculty and students are investigating some of the nation’s most critical and urgent social challenges.