A&S Innovates

A&S Innovates engages our community through signature events, new experiences, and unique opportunities that expand the transformative impact of cross-field collaboration and demonstrate what the leading edge of the liberal arts at a research university can achieve.

Signature Events

In Arts & Sciences, we innovate across the most expansive group of knowledge areas at WashU. From classics to chemistry, philosophy to physics, global cultures to data science, our faculty and students bring expertise, curiosity, and creativity to their research and learning.

Teaching Innovation Showcase

Next Teaching Innovation Showcase: Thursday, October 22 at 4:00 pm in the Clark-Fox Forum.

At the Teaching Innovation Showcase, attendees get a first look at the creative approaches that are changing the way courses are taught in Arts & Sciences. In 3-minute lightning pitches, A&S faculty present on their teaching innovations that are transforming the classroom for students and faculty alike. The event's succinct format pushes faculty to practice communicating broadly about the far-reaching, positive impacts their pedagogy has in the daily lives of WashU students. To that end, the audience for the showcase is intentionally broad and includes faculty, students, and staff; marketing and communications colleagues; university partners; and external organizations, among others. 

Research Innovation Showcase

Next Research Innovation Showcase: Spring 2027, Date TBD.

The Research Innovation Showcase is an opportunity to see how bold ideas are making a real-world impact. It is a dynamic event where A&S faculty make 3-minute lightning pitches on their bold, creative ideas that are driving innovation on campus -- and far beyond.

This fast-paced competition is a unique opportunity for faculty to:

  • Translate research for a variety of audiences
  • Generate enthusiasm across our school and university community about research impact and enterprising possibilities
  • Build connections with potential collaborators, sponsors, and funders
  • Enhance visibility of research
  • Shape storytelling about research endeavors
  • Think big about possible interventions, innovations, and impacts
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Research Innovation Showcase

See what happens when A&S faculty members are given just 3 minutes to present their bold and creative inquiries into a range of topics, including smart textiles and ChatGPT.

Past Showcases

2026 Research Innovation Showcase

Winning presentations:

  • Yan Yu, Art Krieg Professor of Chemistry | Precision Nanomaterials to Awaken Immunity Against Hard-to-Treat Cancers
  • E.A. Quinn, Associate Professor of Anthropology | Creating a Point of Care Test for Subclinical Mastitis to Improve Health in Infants and Lactating Persons
  • Steven Frankel, Associate Professor of Mathematics | A Curve at the End of the Universe

All presentations:

  • Vladimir Birman, Associate Professor of Chemistry | New Fluorescent Dyes for Near Infrared Bioimaging
  • David Carter, Professor of Political Science | Seeing Like a Citizen: Individuals and Territorial Threats
  • Elizabeth Hunter, Assistant Professor of Drama | VISIBLE: Right-sizing history with mobile AR and genAI
  • Xinyi Liu, Professor of Anthropology | The Grand Challenge of Globalization
  • Raven Lloyd, Associate Professor of African and African American Studies and Film and Media Studies | Information Overload? How Black Women Inform a Responsible Online Ecosystem 
  • Robert Wexler, Assistant Professor of Chemistry | Between a Rock and a Soft Place: Illuminating How Atoms Organize Where Materials Meet

Highlights from the 2026 Research Innovation Showcase

2025 Inaugural Teaching Innovation Showcase

Winning presentations:

  • Jacob Montgomery, Professor of Political Science | Incorporating Technologies to Enrich Learning Experiences and Outcomes
  • Kate Wilson, Senior Lecturer in Classics | Integrating Experiential Elements that Facilitate New Skills Development
  • Scott Krummenacher, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Studies | Incorporating Cross-departmental/transdisciplinary opportunities or Literacies for Life and Career

All presentations:

  • Dan Butler, Professor of Political Science | The Poli-Sci LEGO Guy for WashU and Beyond
  • Liz Chiarello, Associate Professor of Sociology | WashU on Wheels
  • Mimi Kim, Teaching Professor of Korean Language | From Classroom to Culture: A Language Lab for the Real World
  • Ben Mansfeld, Assistant Professor of Biology | Real Research, Real Learning: Next-Gen Genetics
  • Ally Milner, Lecturer in Spanish | Oh Yes! They're Using AI on their Assignments!
  • Rachel Penczykowski, Associate Professor of Biology | Math is the CURE: Mathematical Modeling of Disease Dynamics in a Changing World, Through a Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience
  • Sean Savoie, Teaching Professor of Design | Retina Burn: The Technology of Concerts
  • Robert Wexler, Assistant Professor of Chemistry | Partnering with AI to Build Problem Solvers

Highlights from the Inaugural Teaching Showcase

2025 Inaugural Research Innovation Showcase

Winning presentations:

  • Gabi Kirilloff, Assistant Professor of English | Almost Human: ChatGPT, Writing Style, and Cultural Bias
  • Keith Hengen, Assistant Professor of Biology | Maximizing Brain Potential: Enhancing Learning through Sleep and Criticality
  • Clarissa Hayward, Professor of Political Science | Take Back the Night! A Story of Institutional Change

All presentations:

  • Jon Brestoff, Associate Professor of Pathology and Immunology | Why are Cells so Hot? Research at the Interface of Quantum Mechanics, Thermodynamics, and Diabetes
  • Tansu Daylan, Assistant Professor of Physics | Witnessing the Next Decade of Cosmology in Your Kitchen Glassware
  • AJ Jones, Assistant Professor of Anthropology | Visualize Your Xs and Os
  • Andrew Jordan, Assistant Professor of Economics | Unlocking Police Body-Worn Camera Footage
  • Chenfeng Ke, Associate Professor of Chemistry | Smart Textiles that Strengthen with Wear
  • Christopher Lucas, Associate Professor of Political Science | Unlocking Police Body-Worn Camera Footage
  • Zhao Ma, Associate Professor of Modern Chinese History and Culture | China Watching Then and Now: Understanding China through the Information Fog
  • Shankar Mukherji, Assistant Professor of Physics | Why are Cells so Hot? Research at the Interface of Quantum Mechanics, Thermodynamics, and Diabetes
  • Claudia Swan, Mark Steinberg Weil Professor of Art History & Archaeology | The Imagination: A Field Guide
  • Chong Zu, Assistant Professor of Physics | Why are Cells so Hot? Research at the Interface of Quantum Mechanics, Thermodynamics, and Diabetes

Highlights from the Inaugural Research Showcase

The Research Innovation Showcase challenged me to communicate my work in a clear, accessible way—something that’s hard when you’re used to technical detail. But doing so feels more important than ever. We’re at a pivotal moment, and sharing our research with the broader public helps illustrate the real public good universities provide. Research has transformed our quality of life and being part of an event that highlights that impact was truly humbling.

― Keith Hengen, Associate Professor of Biology Finalist at Inaugural Research Innovation Showcase

Questions?

Please reach out to William Acree, Vice Dean of Interdisciplinary Initiatives and Innovation, with questions about or suggestions for A&S Innovates.