The power of storytelling: LeVar Burton to speak April 2 as part of Assembly Series

An entire generation grew up watching the hit PBS show “Reading Rainbow” from 1983-2006, but a new generation of children have vastly different technological skills and habits. Not a problem for LeVar Burton, who has combined the power of storytelling with today’s advancements in technology to boost the “Reading Rainbow” franchise. That will be the subject of his lecture for the Washington University in St. Louis Assembly Series at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 2, in Graham Chapel on the Danforth Campus.

‘For the Sake of All’ project receives $100,000 gift from Wells Fargo

“For the Sake of All,” the multidisciplinary project begun in 2013 that examined and now aims to improve the health and well-being of African Americans in St. Louis, has received a $100,000 gift from Wells Fargo Advisors. The gift will further the project’s reach into the community by facilitating conversations with, and giving voice to, young people in the region.

Radiation oncology directors​​​​ named at Siteman

Siteman Cancer Center’s parent institutions have named two new leaders in radiation oncology. Dan Kinzel is executive director of radiation oncology at Washington University School of Medicine. Sharon Endicott is director of radiation oncology for Barnes-Jewish Hospital.

Sam Fox seniors chosen for illustrators’ exhibition

Three seniors in the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis have been chosen for the Society of Illustrators’ 2015 Student Scholarship Competition exhibition.

Legal scholar: Father’s rights movement led to reform in family law

Little is known about how heterosexual men navigated dramatic changes in the legal regulation of families in the 1980s. A new paper by Deborah Dinner, JD, associate professor of law at Washington University in St. Louis, provides the first legal history of the father’s rights movement, analyzing how middle-class white men responded to rising divorce rates by pursuing reform in both family law and welfare policy.

Is blood really thicker than water?

The outcome of a duel between mathematical models supports the reigning theory of the genetics of altruism. Called inclusive fitness, it says altruism is competitive if it benefits relatives carrying the same gene as the selfless individual. Attacked by a Nature article published in 2010, it is defended by Washington University evolutionary biologist David Queller.

Canceled: Jeff Smith explores ‘Ferguson in Black and White’ March 23

Note: Jeff Smith’s talk has been canceled due to a weather-related travel delay. There are currently no plans to reschedule his presentation. Jeff Smith, an urban policy professor and former Missouri state senator, will discuss “Ferguson in Black and White” at 7 p.m. Monday, March 23, in Anheuser-Busch Hall’s Bryan Cave Moot Courtroom at Washington University in St. Louis.

A legend returns, in spirit

Giordano Dance
St. Louis native Gus Giordano, who died in 2008, is widely considered the father of jazz dance — at once founder, teacher, popularizer and finest exemplar. At 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, April 10 and 11, the company he founded, Giordano Dance Chicago, returns to its roots with two shows in Washington University’s Edison Theatre.