Newsroom Stories

Stephanie Kurtzman has been named the Peter Sortino Director of the Gephardt Institute for Civic and Community Engagement at Washington University in St. Louis. The role will be supported through an endowment established in honor of civic leader Peter Sortino, who died in March.

On Earth Day, in honor of the 10th anniversary of the International Center for Advanced Renewable Energy and Sustainability (I-CARES), Washington University in St. Louis will hold a special celebration from 3-5 p.m. Saturday, April 22, at Emerson Auditorium in Knight Hall.

Thousands of revelers will visit Washington University this weekend for Thurtene, the nation’s oldest student-run carnival. Highlights include thrill rides, performances from student a cappella and improv groups and homemade waffle sticks.

A newly-redesigned poverty risk calculator, developed by Mark Rank, the Herbert S. Hadley Professor of Social Welfare at the Brown School, can for the first time determine an American’s expected risk of poverty based on their race, education level, gender, marital status and age.

Washington University in St. Louis will celebrate legendary poet and playwright William Shakespeare’s 453rd birthday with a special event on campus April 23, featuring performances of some of the Bard’s most famous works. Olin Business School is hosting the event.

A team led by Washington University School of Medicine scientists has found a way to measure tau levels in the blood. Damaging tangles of the protein tau dot the brains of people with Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases.

To help people with hearing loss navigate their daily lives, Nancy Tye-Murray and colleagues at the School of Medicine have developed software tools to improve speech recognition. She launched a startup to provide the software to patients and professionals.

Douglas Wiens was installed as the Robert S. Brookings Distinguished Professor in Arts & Sciences at a ceremony held Feb. 21 in Holmes Lounge at Washington University in St. Louis. He is the second faculty member to hold this professorship, which was established in 2006.

“EnviroSLAM: A Showcase of Environment, Energy and Sustainability at Washington University” will be held at 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 19, at the Saint Louis Art Museum.

A rubber tire hangs from the ceiling. A glittering crowd sips champagne. “To minimal art,” a woman toasts, and promptly falls dead. So begins “Gossip,” a satirical who-done-it by Canadian playwright George F. Walker. Washington University’s Performing Arts Department (PAD) in Arts & Sciences will present the sly, noir-inspired comedy April 20-23 in Edison Theatre.