Newsroom Stories

Photo by David KilperBarbara Feiner, teacher-turned-savvy businesswoman, keeps the University’s finances in order and its operations running smoothly.

Margo Schlanger, J.D., professor of law, testified before the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security Nov. 9. She testified during a hearing titled “Review of the Prison Litigation Reform Act: A Decade of Reform or an Increase in Prison and Abuses?” In her testimony, Schlanger discussed how the Prison Litigation Reform […]

The Center for the Humanities and Program in Film & Media Studies, both in Arts & Sciences, will host the Fourth Annual Children’s Film Symposium Thursday and Saturday, Nov. 15 and 17. Presented in conjunction with Cinema St. Louis, the event will feature a keynote address by Neal Gabler, author of “Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination” and a Q&A with Marion Comer, writer and director of the film “48 Angels” (2006).

Pioneering performance artist Lynn Hershman Leeson and feminist scholar Maria Elena Buszek will join Catharina Manchanda, Ph.D., curator for the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, for a panel discussion at 6 p.m. Friday, Nov. 16, before the opening of “Beauty and the Blonde: An Exploration of American Art and Popular Culture.”

The Department of Music in Arts & Sciences will present two concerts in its newly opened 560 Music Center. Noted pianist Seth Carlin, professor of music, will present a solo piano recital at 8 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 17. In addition, the Washington University Symphony Orchestra will perform works by Schubert, Franck and Britten at 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 18.

AuslanderReports in pediatric clinics across the country indicate dramatic increases in type 2 diabetes mellitus in children and adolescents, particularly among minority populations. According to the CDC, youths with type 2 diabetes have poorer glycemic control, and may therefore be at higher risk for disease-related complications. “We know very little about the psychosocial and family problems and barriers to diabetes management among adolescents with type 2 diabetes,” says Wendy Auslander, Ph.D., professor of social work at Washington University in St. Louis. She is conducting a first of its kind study to identify these issues.

A gene linked to pediatric brain tumors is an essential driver of early brain development, researchers at the School of Medicine have found. The study, published in October in Cell Stem Cell, reveals that the neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1) gene helps push stem cells down separate paths that lead them to become two major types of brain cells: support cells known as astrocytes and brain neurons.

“Maltreatment in childhood is a global issue,” says Melissa Jonson-Reid, Ph.D., a child welfare expert and a professor of social work at Washington University in St. Louis. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, in the U.S. there are about 3 million reports of abuse or neglect each year, and about 60 percent of such reports are deemed to meet states’ criteria for investigation or assessment. Jonson-Reid offers ways to get involved in protecting children from mistreatment.

David Kilper/WUSTL PhotoA math problem review session at the Kumon-Ladue math program on Clayton Road in Ladue.Parents of school-aged children might want to think of giving their children an enduring holiday gift this year: enrollment in a supplemental mathematics program. While it can cost anywhere from $80 to $110 a month, the results of practicing mathematics nearly daily is rewarding to both students and parents. In fact, parents might be even bigger recipients of this gift than their children. While their children gain self-esteem and confidence, the parents very likely will feel a sense of relief and pride in their children’s accomplishment.

In celebration of America Recycles Day, Green Action, a WUSTL student group that seeks to raise environmental awareness on campus and in the community, will be holding its third annual electronics recycling drive Nov. 15 in cooperation with Web Innovations and Technology Services, a local not-for-profit electronics recycler.