Newsroom Stories

Defining Moments, an innovative course offered at Olin Business School, allows students to interact with top leaders in the corporate world who exemplify integrity and excellence. The course engages students to think about how they can achieve success without sacrificing character.

A low-cost medical device targeted at improving world health has taken home the top prize in Washington University School of Engineering & Applied Science’s inaugural Discovery Competition. Sparo Labs took the largest prize of $25,000. The company’s plan stems from an award-winning project to develop a low-cost, pocket-sized spirometer, which measures lung function.

Timothy Eberlein, chairman of the Department of Surgery, has been named the inaugural winner of the Pillar of Support Award. The award was created by the Academic Women’s Network at the School of Medicine to recognize outstanding support of female faculty.

The Brown School held its second annual Research Without Walls student research symposium April 25 in the hallways of Brown and Goldfarb Halls on the Danforth Campus. The symposium gives students practice in presenting their research to peers, professors and the public in a relaxed, informal setting.

Members of the WU Racing Team revealed the 2013 race car April 25 in the Danforth University Center. The team and car will travel to Michigan International Speedway next month to participate in the Formula Society of Automotive Engineers competition.

The Women’s Society of Washington University handed out awards at its annual meeting April 17. Harriet Switzer, center, visits with the two seniors who received a leadership award named in her honor. They are Jennifer Head, far left, and Melany Lopez.

The annual Freshman Finale celebration was held on Tuesday, April 23 in College Hall on the South 40. Sponsored by the First Year Center and Freshman Class Council, the event included remarks from College of Arts & Sciences Dean Jennifer R. Smith, PhD, and a representative of the freshman class, as well as student performances. Awards were presented to outstanding members of the Washington University community who have had a positive impact on new students in their first year.

The School of Engineering & Applied Science celebrated five of its top alumni during the 2013 Alumni Achievement Awards dinner April 18 at the Coronado Ballroom in St. Louis. The school presented four Alumni Achievement Awards, one Young Alumni Award and the Dean’s Award.

St. Louis is becoming widely recognized as a hub for entrepreneurship, and WUSTL students are taking advantage of the close proximity to great resources by starting their own business ventures — with the help of a groundbreaking class. The Hatchery, offered by Olin Business School but open to all university undergraduate students, is one of the university’s capstone entrepreneurship courses. Here, students hold the Olin Cup, the top prize in the top commercial entrepreneurship competition on campus.

This year the Spector Prize has been awarded to two students, Megan Kelly and Jennifer Stevens.The prize, given by the Department of Biology in memory of a 1938 WUSTL graduate, recognizes outstanding undergraduate achievement in research. Kelly did research on the chemical signals used by malaria parasites and Stevens on evolutionary trade-offs in weakly electric fish.