Washington University

As the Oct. 8 presidential debate looms closer, many in the University community are hard at work preparing for its arrival. The University will host the debate scheduled for 8 p.m. Oct. 8 in the Athletic Complex. This is the fourth consecutive time the University has been selected by the Commission on Presidential Debates, the event’s sponsor, to serve as a host.

Continuing Washington University’s yearlong Sesquicentennial Environmental Initiative, the final set of colloquia will cover significant issues such as tackling childhood lead poisoning, building a sustainable environment in plant sciences, understanding the effect of aerosols in our air; creating ecological and economically viable structures; and understanding how research universities can impact environmental education and public policy.

A bequest from the estate of Isidore and Edith Silver will establish the Isidore and Edith Silver Washington University Fellowship Fund, it was announced by Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton. The Silvers bequeathed more than $1 million in support of fellowships for doctoral students of French Renaissance in the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures in Arts & Sciences, the department where Silver taught from 1957 until his retirement in 1975.

Each month, the series, sponsored by Alumni & Development Programs, presents a different film by an acclaimed international travel expert. From the magic of Malaysia to the fabled city of Shangri-La, let St. Louis’ oldest and best-known travel lecture series take you on a world tour no tourist could ever see alone.

A grant for $550,000 from the MacArthur Foundation will allow the MacArthur Network on the Family and the Economy to finish its long term research project which investigates the dynamics of family functioning and the well-being of children born to unmarried parents. Robert Pollak, Ph.D., Hernreich Distinguished Professor of Economics in arts & sciences and the John M. Olin School of Business, co-directs the Network, which brings together 13 scholars in economics, sociology, developmental psychology and public policy to advance understanding of the connections between families, labor markets and the economy as a whole.

Harvard’s chaplain, the Rev. Peter J. Gomes, will deliver the Assembly Series lecture at 11 a.m. Wed., Oct. 15. The talk will be based on his most recent book, The Good Life: Truths that Last in Times of Need, and is sponsored by Washington University’s Campus Y. All Assembly Series lectures are free and open to the public and held in Graham Chapel, located just north of Mallinckrodt Center (6445 Forsyth Blvd.) on the university’s main campus.