Work & Livable Lives Conference Feb. 27 and 28

Washington University in St. Louis will host the “Work & Livable Lives Conference” Feb. 27 and 28 to address current employment-related challenges and how they limit the ability of U.S. households to lead secure and stable lives, raise children successfully, and contribute to the community.  The conference will include panels on household financial fragility, measurement of economic security, the American Dream, labor and employment policy, and health policy and employment. All conference events will be held in the Bryan Cave Moot Courtroom of Anheuser-Busch Hall and are free and open to the public.

Study looks at how kids with autism spend their screen time

Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) tend to be preoccupied with screen-based media. A new study by Paul Shattuck, PhD, assistant professor at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, looks at how children with ASDs spend their screen time. “We found a very high rate of use of solitary screen-based media such as video games and television with a markedly lower rate of use of social interactive media, including email,” Shattuck says.

Sound financial advice

Candace A. Ellison, financial adviser for Wells Fargo, was one of the presenters at the sixth annual “Financial Freedom Seminar: Making Your Money Work for You” Jan. 21 in Brown Hall. The seminar was hosted by the Society of Black Student Social Workers at the Brown School and brought together financial experts and St. Louis community members interested in financial issues.

‘Public Education at a Crossroads’: Brown School, Teach for America co-sponsor panel discussion Jan. 26

Teach For America-St. Louis and the Brown School Policy Forum at Washington University in St. Louis will host a panel discussion on “St. Louis Public Education at a Crossroads: The Outstanding Schools Act, Turner v. Clayton, and the Future,” at 7:30 p.m.  Thursday, Jan. 26 in Brown Hall, Room 100. The event will bring together Missouri legislators and education officials to discuss how Turner v. Clayton is impacting state legislation.

Work, Families and Public Policy series continues Jan. 23

Faculty and graduate students from St. Louis-area universities with an interest in labor, households, health care, law and social welfare are invited to take part in a series of Monday brown-bag luncheon seminars to be held biweekly on the Danforth Campus at Washington University in St. Louis beginning Monday, Jan. 23, through Monday, April 16.The series continues Monday, Jan. 23, with a lecture by Kelly Bishop, PhD, assistant professor of economics at WUSTL, on “Hedonic Prices and Implicit Markets: Estimating Marginal Willingness to Pay for Differentiated Products without Instrumental Variables.”

Nominations sought for Civic Scholars program

The Gephardt Institute for Public Service is accepting nominations for the Civic Scholars program, which recognizes Washington University in St. Louis undergraduate students who exemplify future potential for civic leadership. Nominate a current sophomore by Friday, Feb. 3, by filling out a brief form on https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/CivicScholarsNominationForm.

‘Making Your Money Work for You’ focus of free community seminar Jan. 21

In remembrance of Martin Luther King Jr., the Society of Black Student Social Workers (SBSSW) at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis will host the sixth annual “Financial Freedom Seminar: Making Your Money Work for You,” from 9 a.m.- 3:00 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 21, in Brown and Goldfarb halls. The seminar, free and open to the public, is designed for St. Louis community youth and adults interested in building wealth, repairing and maintaining good credit, purchasing a home or starting and expanding a business.

St. Louis Open Streets set to be model for national movement

Open Streets Initiatives, a movement growing around the United States, open urban spaces normally reserved for cars to people, providing a safe environment for socializing and other activities. The goal of the events is to promote healthy living and community building. Researchers at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, with the support of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, evaluated the 2011 St. Louis Open Streets Initiative to examine participation in the events. “With over 1,800 participants in 2011 and leadership from the mayor’s office, St. Louis has the potential to become a model and leader in the Open Streets movement,” says J. Aaron Hipp, PhD, assistant professor of public health at the Brown School.
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