WashU Expert: R. Kelly had ‘serious problem with power’

Allegations against R. Kelly have finally exploded into the #MeToo era with Lifetime’s “Surviving R. Kelly.” But the singer’s troubling behavior can be traced back decades. “There was a lot of sexual energy around Kelly that we as young people felt was a little bit dark and a little bit inappropriate and a little bit taboo,” says Jeffrey Q. McCune Jr., who studies race, gender and popular culture at Washington University in St. Louis. In the early 1990s, McCune was a student at Kenwood Academy, the Chicago magnet school Kelly had attended just a few years before — and a classmate to one of Kelly’s earliest accusers.

New hope for stem cell approach to treating diabetes

By tweaking the recipe for coaxing human stem cells into insulin-secreting beta cells, a team of researchers at the School of Medicine has shown that the resulting cells are more responsive to fluctuating glucose levels in the blood. The finding may lead to a new approach to treating diabetes.

McBride begins health policy role with HHS

Tim McBride
Tim McBride, the Bernard Becker Professor at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, will begin a part-time contract appointment within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as assistant secretary for planning and evaluation in the Office of Health Policy.

Nominations open for Ethic of Service Award

The Gerry and Bob Virgil Ethic of Service Award recognizes members of the university community who exemplify service and contribution to the St. Louis region. Honorees include alumni, employees, retirees, students and volunteers. The nomination deadline is Feb. 1.