Record

The St. Louis Rams have selected Virginia Braxs, senior lecturer in Romance languages and literatures in Arts & Sciences, as a recipient of the NFL Hispanic Heritage Leadership Award.

Raj Jain, PhD, professor of computer science and engineering in the School of Engineering & Applied Science, was selected to receive a Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Alumni Association, among other honors.

A cancer odyssey​ Inspired by his childhood physicians, Ramaswamy Govindan, MD, knew at a young age what he wanted to become. Along the way, he has journeyed from his native India to the U.S. and helped to navigate the frontiers of cancer care.

The nip in the air is a reminder not only of the coming autumn but of flu season. And for any Washington University employee who works with or near patients, it means it’s time to get a flu shot.

The intersection of Duncan and Boyle avenues closed Sept. 15 for the Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD) project to upgrade the Duncan Avenue storm sewer. The closure has resulted in a number of employees using the CORTEX parking lot as a detour, even though the lot has not been designated as one. Employees are encouraged to use Newstead or Taylor avenues instead of Boyle Avenue and the CORTEX lot to access parking garages and lots.

A search committee to identify candidates for the position of vice chancellor for students has been appointed by H. Holden Thorp, PhD, provost and executive vice chancellor for academic affairs. Sharon Stahl, PhD, announced last week that she is retiring as vice chancellor at the end of the academic year, June 30.

The U.S. Department of Education has increased its contribution to the federal work-study program, making hiring a qualified student even more affordable for university departments. The U.S. Department of Education now covers 50 percent of a student’s pay, up from 45 percent. The university department pays the rest.

Ross C. Brownson, PhD, professor at the Brown School and at the School of Medicine, has been awarded a $365,600 grant from the National Institutes of Health’s National Cancer Institute for his project “A Cross-country Comparison of Evidence-based Prevention of Cancer.”

Faculty, staff and students are invited to celebrate the grand opening of the Center for Diversity and Inclusion at Washington University in St. Louis from 4-5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 23, in Olin Library, Room 202. Attendees will be able to tour the space and meet with center staff and advisory board members.

Kelli VanDussen, PhD, a postdoctoral researcher in the (Thaddeus) Stappenbeck Lab, has received a three-year, $174,750 grant from the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America for research titled “Defining The Basis of Epithelial Defects in Crohn’s Disease Patients.”