Arts & Sciences

William F. Tate, PhD, the Edward Mallinckrodt Distinguished University Professor in Arts & Sciences and chair of the Department of Education at Washington University, has been named the next dean of the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences and vice provost for graduate education.

Groundbreaking neuroscientist Richard Davidson visited campus for two days of lectures, discussing the emotional life of the brain and how well-being can be learned.

Alumna Laura E. Knights has always been driven to help people and serve her community, a lesson instilled first by her parents and reinforced at Washington University, where Knights was an Ervin Scholar and counted the late Dean James E. McLeod among her mentors.

A WUSTL team, consisting of sophomore Anthony Grebe, junior Patrick Lopatto and freshman Jongwhan Park, placed 10th out of 430 teams in the prestigious Lowell Putnam Mathematics Competition. WUSTL students also earned the first perfect score in the Missouri Collegiate Mathematics Competition.

This month marks the 450th anniversary of the birth of William Shakespeare. From April 17-20, WUSTL’s Performing Arts Department in Arts & Sciences will celebrate the Bard with a new production of “Twelfth Night,” one of his most beloved comedies, in the A.E. Hotchner Studio Theatre.

Washington University will conduct a ceremonial groundbreaking ceremony for the Gary M. Sumers Recreation Center at 4 p.m. Friday, April 11.

Anthropologist Tristram Kidder, PhD, was installed April 7 as the Edward S. and Tedi Macias Professor in Arts & Sciences during a ceremony in Holmes Lounge, Ridgley Hall. Kidder has served as chair of the Department of Anthropology since 2008.

In an American Academy of Arts & Sciences report called “The Heart of the Matter,” the academy argues that the humanities and social sciences are necessary for a vibrant, competitive and secure nation. This is not the usual argument for the humanities, and that’s a good thing, according to WUSTL Provost Holden Thorp, PhD. He will give the annual Phi Beta Kappa/Sigma Xi lecture on April 17, titled “From Salesman to Hamletmachine: The Need for the Humanities.”

Celebration Weekend starts today and runs through Saturday, April 12. About 600 students and their families will tour campus, meet current students and faculty, learn more about research and academic opportunities and enjoy performances from a variety of multicultural groups.

On Friday, April 11, Washington University in St. Louis will break ground on the new Gary M. Sumers Recreation Center. The center is part of a $54 million renovation and expansion of the university Athletic Complex — the first significant update since 1985.