Newsroom Stories

A symposium and discussion for faculty, staff and students that addresses how people manage the intersections of their identities through race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation or class will be held from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 10 in the Women’s Building Formal Lounge.

Acclaimed poet and fiction writer Eileen Myles, named by BUST magazine as “the rock star of modern poetry” and author most recently of Inferno (A Poet’s Novel), will present a pair of events as part of the fall Writing Program Reading Series. Myles is the Visiting Fannie Hurst Professor of Creative Literature in the Department of English in Arts & Sciences. 

Shirley H. Perry, a Washington University in St. Louis alumna and author of the recently released After Many Days: My Life as a Spy and Other Grand Adventures, will tell about her days as a CIA operative during the Cold War at a reading and book signing at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 8, in Tisch Commons in the Danforth University Center at Washington University.

Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton talks with WUSTL neighbors at the “Report to the Neighbors” meeting Oct. 27 at the Knight Center. The meeting included a performance by student a cappella group After Dark; a “state of the university” address by Wrighton; a presentation by Victoria May, assistant dean in Arts & Sciences and director of Science Outreach; and a question-and-answer session with a panel of WUSTL administrators.

WUSTL community members looking to give back to the community and have a little fun in the process are encouraged to attend the 2010 St. Louis Area Dance Marathon beginning at 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 6, in the Field House of the Athletic Complex.

Entrepreneurs armed with phone apps, robots and internet-based tools for teaching and organizing are among the semi-finalists in this year’s Olin Cup business plan competition.  Tattoos that fade away after a few months, composting systems and a family-oriented weight loss program are among the innovative ideas vying for investors and prize money. 

Washington University will offer a symposium to discuss and promote mentorship among traditionally underrepresented women of color throughout Washington University’s campuses from 11:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday, Nov. 19. The symposium is free to WUSTL employees. Registration and supervisor approval is required by Friday, Nov. 5.  

In the wake of the 2010 election, Washington University in St. Louis congressional expert Steve Smith looks ahead to the next Congress and how the new majority in the House of Representatives and Republican gains in the Senate will affect President Barack Obama’s legislative agenda.

The John C. Danforth Center on Religion & Politics at Washington University in St. Louis will host a panel discussion on the role religion played in the 2010 midterm elections. The discussion, which features three prominent scholars of religion, will take place at 4 p.m. Monday, Nov. 8, in the Charles F. Knight Executive Education Center, Room 200.

Despite its divisiveness, health reform legislation did not play a major role in the midterm elections. “We are still a 50-50 country more or less on health reform,” says Timothy D. McBride, PhD, professor and associate dean for public health at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis. “About half the country really dislikes the reform law, and those voters were likely to vote Republican in this election. But in all likelihood they would have done so anyway. Similarly, the other half that still favor the legislation would likely have voted for the Democrats anyway.”