Arts & Sciences

While Pope Francis’ whirlwind tour of the United States might seem like a politicized poke-in-the-eye to some conservative American Catholics, his itinerary and social justice talking points closely mirror core Catholic beliefs detailed in church scripture since Matthew wrote his gospel, suggests a historian of Christianity at Washington University in St. Louis.

Todd Decker, PhD, chair of music in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, spoke this month about musical film star Fred Astaire at a study day titled “Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers: A London Celebration” at the Victoria and Albert Museum.

James V. Wertsch, PhD, founding director of one of the most successful and innovative global scholarship programs in the world, has been named the inaugural David R. Francis Distinguished Professor at Washington University in St. Louis. Wertsch is vice chancellor for international affairs and director of the McDonnell International Scholars Academy.

In “The Divine Buoyancy of Being,” Cary Simowitz explores what happens when youthful dreams collide with economic reality, entry-level positions and the unintended consequences of a governmental shutdown.

“Sexual Discretion: Black Masculinity and the Politics of Passing” (2014), by Washington University in St. Louis associate professor Jeffrey McCune, PhD, has been named Book of the Year by the National Communications Association’s GLBTQ Communications Studies Division and Caucus on GLBTQ Concerns.

In response to the Syrian crisis, many in St. Louis have called for the city to increase its acceptance of refugees. Architectural historian Michael Allen says existing housing stock could easily accommodate thousands of new residents.

Saul Noam Zaritt, PhD, the Friedman Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Jewish, Islamic, and Near Eastern Languages and Cultures in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, has launched a new digital journal of Yiddish studies.

Social problems linked to America’s growing disparities in income and wealth will be a major focus of the re-launched Department of Sociology in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, including its first co-sponsored public lecture of the fall semester. ​

A play is a text but also a performance. Dance is a discipline but also a communication. To be truly understood, both must be experienced live. For its 2015-16 season, the Performing Arts Department will present classic comedy and contemporary drama as well as original works by faculty and students.

Several Washington University in St. Louis faculty and staff members have received collaborative awards through The Divided City, an urban humanities initiative organized by the Center for the Humanities in Arts & Sciences and the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts’ College of Architecture and Graduate School of Architecture & Urban Design.