Social Security recipients will receive a cost of living adjustment (COLA) of 3.6 percent beginning in 2012, the first increase since 2009. “COLA is welcome but will not fully maintain beneficiary purchasing power,” says Merton C. Bernstein, LLB, a nationally recognized expert on Social Security and the Walter D. Coles Professor Emeritus at Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. “The formula setting that rate does not meet fully the needs of Social Security recipients, especially when considering medical costs.”
WUSTL geophysicist Michael Wysession is leading a team of scholars who are helping the nation’s top science agencies develop national standards for K-12 science education. The core disciplines covered by the new standards include engineering and Earth and planetary sciences, which have never before been a standard part of the K-12 curriculum. Wysession currently co-leads the team writing the Earth and planetary standards, and a key focus of his mission is ensuring that students gain a solid grasp of the Anthropocene, loosely defined as the period in Earth’s history during which human activities have had a significant impact on Earth systems.
The Department of Cell Biology and Physiology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis marks its 100th anniversary this month with a series of events, including lectures and a symposium featuring some of today’s most visionary scientific thinkers.
University College in Arts & Sciences alumnae Rebecca Dirks (left) and Emily Hills catch up during the fourth annual University College M.I.L.D. (Mosey In, Lie Down) celebration at WUSTL’s Holmes Lounge on the Danforth Campus Oct. 13. The event gives UCollege students, faculty, staff, alumni and others an opportunity to enjoy a relaxing evening of socializing, refreshments and live music.
The football team snapped a three-game losing streak with a 24-20 win over the College of Wooster Oct. 15, at Francis Field. Updates also included on volleyball, cross country, men’s and women’s soccer and men’s tennis.
Patrick Henry Academy is an historic elementary school located in St. Louis’ Columbus Square neighborhood. Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church and School is a longtime Hyde Park anchor. Last summer, students and faculty in the Sam Fox School completed design/build projects at both locations under the auspices of CityStudioSTL, a new program offering community engagement and architectural outreach projects throughout the St. Louis area. On Oct. 19, visiting artist Theaster Gates Jr., who led the Hyde Park project, will discuss his work in a public lecture.
For the first time, the Department of History in Arts & Sciences is hosting a major, three-day conference organized entirely by graduate students. “History of the Body,” set for Thursday-Saturday, Oct. 20-22, is drawing interdisciplinary graduate student presenters from across the country.
Amy Kweskin regularly engages in what Barbara Feiner, the university’s CFO, calls “a balancing act.” As university treasurer, Kweskin works to ensure the university has enough liquidity to manage its day-to-day operations. But she also has to make sure the university is not keeping too much extra cash around, missing investment opportunities for longer-term gains. It’s a process that is “critical to the smooth running of our operations,” Feiner says.
Julie Andrews versus The Jackson 5? Bluegrass on the Swiss Alps? Led Zeppelin meets “The Lonely Goatherd”? Whatever has happened to “My Favorite Things”? Brooklyn Rundfunk Orkestrata, that’s what. On Oct. 28, this cutting-edge New York ensemble will make its St. Louis debut with The Hills Are Alive, a genre-bending adaptation of songs from Rodgers and Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music.
Plan to visit this fall’s Health Happening health and wellness fair, titled “Walk this Way.” The fair will be held from 7:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Oct. 28 in the McDonnell Pediatric Research Building atrium. It is open to university faculty, staff and students.
