Join us in recognizing the achievements and memories of faculty members who are closing out their careers in Arts & Sciences.
John Bleeke
Department of Chemistry
Since joining the WashU Department of Chemistry in Fall 1981, John Bleeke has seen a welcome transformation of the student body. “Students now hail from every state and many foreign countries, and they come from different educational and economic backgrounds,” he said. “This is a great strength of our university.”
Wherever they come from, WashU students were a pleasure to teach: “The students here are smart, motivated, and courteous,” Bleeke said. By his count, he taught thousands of students in his favorite course, “General Chemistry II” (Chem 112). He also enjoyed teaching upper-level courses in his specialties of inorganic and organometallic chemistry.
He especially appreciated his lasting and meaningful relationships with the graduate students who joined his group. “Twenty-four outstanding students obtained their PhDs under my guidance,” he said. “While research results matter, students are the most important legacy.”
In retirement, he and his wife look forward to spending time at their vacation home on Lake Michigan and traveling during the academic year, when tourist crowds are typically smaller.
Jody Doran
Department of Romance Languages and Literatures
Jody Doran joined the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures in 2008, one year after returning to St. Louis following a 25-year stint in Madrid, Spain.
At WashU, Doran served as assistant director of undergraduate studies in Spanish and managed the department’s tutoring program. Her publications include an English translation of selected works by Spanish philosopher Javier Muguerza, a Spanish translation of the mathematics textbook “For All Practical Purposes,” and an English translation of Pedro Sempere's award-winning novel “Fritzcollage.”
Her favorite course to teach was “Language and Culture for Heritage Speakers of Spanish” (Spanish 3021), which was geared toward students who’ve been exposed to the language but have never formally studied it. “Having the opportunity to get to know some of these outstanding students, many of whom are the first in their families to attend college, has been enriching and gratifying,” she said.
Doran has big plans for her retirement: “I hope to travel extensively, spend more time with the grandkids, take up yoga, and get back to playing my long-abandoned flute!”
John Heil
Department of Philosophy
When John Heil joined WashU more than 20 years ago, he could hardly have anticipated the university’s transformations, many of them reflected in the campus itself. During his tenure, parking lots that once dominated the view of campus from Skinker Boulevard were replaced by a striking university entrance. “As new buildings went up, many of my colleagues shared my concern that philosophy and its sister disciplines would be left by the wayside,” Heil said. “In fact, enrollment and support for the Department of Philosophy have remained strong throughout my years on the faculty.”
Two of Heil’s favorite courses to teach were a “first order” logic class and graduate-level metaphysics seminar, which left him impressed with the academic caliber of WashU students. “WashU students tend to be very good with a formal subject like logic, and the kind of naturalistic metaphysics and philosophy of mind I advocate,” he said.
He enjoyed collaboration and camaraderie with colleagues, in the philosophy department and throughout the university. Between 2006 and 2013, Heil led three National Endowment for the Humanities summer seminars on campus, attracting philosophers from across the country and fostering longtime professional connections. He believes philosophy is best pursued face-to-face and highly values the relationships he has built with philosophy scholars at WashU, other St. Louis institutions, and worldwide.
Heil is grateful for his time at WashU and sees a bright future for the university. “It is an honor to have been a part of this academic community as the university has gained stature and taken its place on the leading edge of higher education here and abroad,” he said. “WashU is well-positioned to hold firm against the ebb and flow of financial and cultural currents that challenge its commitment to ‘per veritatem vis,’ or strength through truth.”
In retirement, Heil looks forward to having more time to read and write, noting that his philosophical work is far from over. He is optimistic that some of his best work lies ahead.
Bradley Jolliff
Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences
Bradley L. Jolliff, the Scott Rudolph Professor of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences and the director of the McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences, is retiring after 38 years at WashU.
Jolliff’s research at WashU has focused on the geology and materials of the Earth, Moon, and Mars. He studied lunar samples collected by the Apollo missions and lunar meteorites found on Earth, worked with the Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity, was principal investigator of a New Frontiers mission concept named MoonRise.
He served as a co-investigator of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) science team, served on the NASA Advisory Council and led the science and exploration report on Science Associated with the Lunar Exploration Architecture, and led the scientific initiative New Views of the Moon. In 2023, he was selected to be part of the geology team for Artemis III, the first mission to return astronauts to the Moon since Apollo.
Of the courses he has taught, he’s particularly fond of “Minerals, Rocks, Resources, and the Environment” (EEPS 340), which focuses on the role that minerals play in the natural world. “The students always exceed my expectations,” he said.
Jolliff became the director of the McDonnell Center in 2019. “The center comprises many brilliant scientists, research staff, postdocs, and graduate students,” he said. “This has been a capstone experience for me, and I will always be grateful for the opportunity.”
In retirement, he will continue working with LROC, with the ICE Five-O SSERVI team (led by Jeffrey Gillis at WashU), and with the Artemis III Science Team until that mission lands on the Moon and returns samples to Earth. He also looks forward to spending more time with his wife and grandchildren.
Dewey Holten and Christine Kirmaier
Department of Chemistry
Dewey Holten and Christine Kirmaier, a married couple, joined the Department of Chemistry together in 1980. They immediately got to work studying the photophysics of photosynthesis and related natural and synthetic pigments. “We really enjoyed doing research together,” Kirmaier said.
Holten and Kirmaier have many shared memories of scientific successes. They recall a day in the mid-1990s when Kirmaier excitedly walked into Holten’s office with data showing electron transfer going “the wrong way” for the first time in a bacterial photosynthetic reaction.
For Holten, AB ’73, the move to WashU was a homecoming. He remembers taking chemistry lab classes in Busch Hall at the north side of the Quad. As a professor, he appreciated the chance to teach many outstanding undergraduate students. His favorite course to teach was “Instrumental Methods: Physical Chemistry” (Chem 445). “That course allowed me to work closely with students as they gained hands-on experience with physical chemistry,” Holten said.
In retirement, they are looking forward to gardening together. Holten will also enjoy finishing projects around their house, and Kirmaier will continue to volunteer with the Bring Conservation Home program of the St. Louis Audubon Society.
Kathleen McDermott
Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences
Kathleen McDermott began her tenure-track position at WashU in 2001. She is world-renowned for her seminal contributions to the study of false memory, the role of memory in future-oriented cognition, and the cognitive and neural mechanisms that support learning and memory. In recognition of her many contributions to the science of memory, McDermott received the F.J. McGuigan Young Investigator Prize from the American Psychological Association in 2005, the Rising Star Award from the Association for Psychological Science in 2007, and the Mid-Career Award from the Psychonomic Society in 2019.
McDermott is perhaps best known for her work on false memory. In collaboration with Henry “Roddy” Roediger III, McDermott developed a list learning paradigm inspired by earlier research by James Deese showing that learning a list of words that are each semantically related to a non-presented associate can result in high rates of false memory for the non-presented word. This simple yet striking demonstration of how easy it is to evoke false memories in the laboratory set the stage for decades of research focusing on the cognitive and neural mechanisms of this phenomenon using what came to be known as the Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) paradigm. Upon Kathleen’s retirement, the original DRM paper was cited over 5,000 times (Google Scholar) and continues to be a fixture in the study of human memory among cognitive psychologists and neuroscientists around the world.
Following retirement, Kathleen plans to turn her attention to traveling, picking up new activities such as pickleball, hiking, and sailing, and is generally excited to discover what her new but still unfamiliar phase of life will bring.
Read more on the Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences website.
John Nachbar
Department of Economics
After earning a bachelor’s degree at Yale, working for two years at Bank of America in Tokyo, obtaining a PhD at Harvard, and then spending two years with the RAND Corporation, John Nachbar found his permanent professional home with WashU’s Department of Economics.
Since joining the WashU faculty in 1990, Nachbar has had a tremendous impact both on the university and on his field of microeconomic theory.
Nachbar is a fellow of The Econometric Society, a prestigious honor, and has served on the editorial boards of a number of journals, including Games and Economic Behavior. Nachbar was associate department chair from 2005 to 2012 and department chair from 2012 to 2018. He is currently the director of undergraduate studies. He has been deeply committed throughout his WashU career to teaching the next generation of economists. “Seeing my undergraduate and graduate students succeed has been my greatest pleasure at WashU,” he said.
Michael C. Ogilvie
Department of Physics
The basic approach to physics has changed since Michael C. Ogilvie joined WashU’s Department of Physics almost 40 years ago. “I think I was the first faculty member in our department to use a computer as a primary tool for doing theoretical physics,” he said. “In the last decade particularly, we’ve all recognized the power of modern data science.”
Ogilvie appreciated the camaraderie of colleagues and the drive of WashU students, but he was especially impressed by the university staff, the people who help keep the institution running. “They’re kind, they’re smart, and they’re self-starters,” he said. “They make the university special.”
Of all of the courses he taught, his favorite was “Introduction to Quantum Physics” (Physics 217). “It’s usually the first course that shows physics majors and minors the power and elegance of modern physics.”
Many of those students carried a love of physics throughout their careers. “It’s always a treat to see former students and catch up with them and their lives.”
Ogilvie believes in the power of higher education. “Universities have proven themselves as essential institutions for preserving, transmitting, and creating knowledge,” he said. “I’m proud of the work we do here at WashU to continue that tradition.”
In retirement, Ogilvie looks forward to seeing more of the United States, especially the national parks.
Henry “Roddy” Roediger
Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences
Like other retiring faculty members before him, Henry “Roddy” Roediger III, the James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor of Psychological & Brain Sciences, has many fond memories of his time at WashU. He also happens to have expert insight into how those mental images were created and stored.
Roediger built a remarkable career studying the psychology of memory, the fragile mental impressions we gather, cultivate, and discard throughout our lives. Over the decades, he propelled the field of cognition forward while helping develop WashU’s Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, one of the most productive and vibrant psychology departments in the country.
The department hit its stride after Roediger became chair in 1996. During his eight years in the role, the faculty nearly doubled in size and their research expanded into new fields, including brain imaging. “It was a time when other psychology departments were shrinking, but we were able to hire some top talent,” Roediger said. “We really made a splash.”
The momentum has continued and, nearly 30 years after Roediger arrived, psychological and brain sciences has fully lived up to his original expectations. “Roddy’s tenure as chair was truly transformative,” said Jeff Zacks, the Edgar James Swift Professor in Arts & Sciences and current department chair. “He hired a lot of great people and provided exceptional mentorship to junior faculty. He also led by example, continuing his highly impactful research career while taking on major leadership and editorial roles in the field.”
Read more in the Spring 2025 issue of Ampersand magazine.
Andrew Sobel
Global Studies and Department of Political Science
Andrew Sobel first came to WashU as a fellow at the Center in Political Economy in 1989 and then joined the Department of Political Science, later moving to Global Studies after 20 years.
During his career, Sobel studied international political economics with a focus on domestic explanations of international behavior; specifically the political economy of global finance, globalization, and development.
Among his most significant contributions is the work he did as director of Global Studies. During that tenure, he streamlined the program’s academic pathways, creating the popular development and international affairs concentrations. Together, the two concentrations make up 80% of Global Studies graduates.
Sobel has loved working with undergraduate and graduate students, and he remains in touch with many of them. He fondly remembers students’ comments in his class — some of them insightful and others incredibly funny.
“I don’t have a particular favorite course as all the material is pretty irresistible once students engage with it,” he said.
In retirement, Sobel looks forward to traveling, visiting with friends and family, and diving into a huge stack of books.
Harriet Stone
Department of Romance Languages and Literatures, Comparative Literature and Thought
Harriet Stone’s research interests focus on 17th-century French court culture, including interdisciplinary studies on art and literature, science and literature, and the formation of knowledge.
Stone taught courses in both French and comparative literature. The stand-out course was “Paris and New York: The Art of the City” (Lit 385). She enjoyed sharing her two favorite cities with students. “By focusing on two of the world’s greatest cultural capitals, students developed an understanding of the past and the value of traditions,” she said. “They identified contributions that individuals have made to society, and they came to appreciate how the arts foster lifelong curiosity.”
Now she’s anticipating her retirement: “It’s been a good, long run, and I’m looking forward to the next chapter.”
Akiko Tsuchiya
Department of Romance Languages and Literatures; Department of Women, Gender & Sexuality Studies
Since joining the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures in 1992, Akiko Tsuchiya has seen an explosion in opportunities for cross-disciplinary work. “Since I arrived, Women, Gender & Sexuality Studies became a department, and the university established new interdisciplinary centers, such as the Center for the Humanities and the Center for the Study of Race, Ethnicity & Equity, from which I personally benefited.”
Tsuchiya’s areas of specialization include gender studies as well as 19th- and 20th-century Spanish literature and culture. In addition to writing several books, she has penned more than 50 conference papers and delivered lectures in the United States and abroad.
She treasured her time in the classroom, engaging students in high-level conversations, and insists that WashU students “are getting better by the year.” Her favorite course to teach was “Feminist Literary and Cultural Theory” (WGSS 419), which she led nearly every year since coming to WashU.
She’s been recognized as a mentor, twice receiving accolades from the Graduate Student Senate with a certificate of special recognition for Excellence in Mentoring in 2007 and the Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award in 2017. Indeed, her favorite memories at WashU have to do with her graduate students’ accomplishments. “When they defend their dissertations, get an article published, or land their first job, I feel their excitement as if it were my own,” she said.
She published her most recent book, “Cultural Legacies of Slavery in Modern Spain,” in January 2025. She and her co-editor Aurélie Vialette held a book launch event on campus as a part of her retirement celebration.
In retirement, Tsuchiya looks forward to being able to devote more time to reading, writing, and finishing up several scholarly projects. She plans to move back to her hometown of San Diego. “I am looking forward to hiking all year round in the beautiful parks and mountains of California.”
