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The latest news and updates from Arts & Sciences

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Faculty, Humanities, Awards & Notables

Derick Mattern wins inaugural Mary Jo Bang Award for Poetry Translation

The prize is named for Bang, whose translation work in recent years has been recognized alongside her impressive accomplishments as a poet.

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Awards & Notables, Campus & Community

Carrying the banner: Meet the 2025 student marshals

At the university-wide Commencement ceremony on May 12, three students will represent Arts & Sciences by carrying banners for the College and the Office of Graduate Studies.

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Awards & Notables, Campus & Community, Alumni

Yeldham, Green to address undergraduate Class of 2025

Graduating senior John Yeldham will address the Class of 2025 during the Arts & Sciences Recognition Ceremony on May 11. He will be joined by alumnus John R. Green, AB ’90.

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Awards & Notables, Alumni

Introducing the speakers honoring 2025 doctoral, master’s degree recipients

During the Arts & Sciences Graduate Studies Hooding and Recognition Ceremony on May 9, students Jennifer Beatty and Ellen Schaaf will join alumnus Darrell L. Williams, MA ’86, PhD ’91, in addressing the Class of 2025.

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Faculty, Natural Sciences & Math, Research

Tropical bounty: How forests can turn into chemical factories

A team led by researchers at WashU and the Missouri Botanical Garden uncovered the ecological forces that drive remarkable chemical diversity of trees in the Andes Mountains.

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Social Sciences, Awards & Notables

Psychological & Brain Sciences named top 10 graduate program by U.S. News & World Report

U.S. News & World Report has named WashU’s Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences one of the top 10 psychology graduate programs in the nation — a significant milestone for the department and Arts & Sciences.

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Faculty, Humanities, Research

The power of motivated mistranslation

Did Indigenous translators intentionally mistranslate to disrupt colonization? Two WashU scholars explore this question and the crucial role of language in history.

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Arts & Sciences in the News:

William J. Maxwell installed as the Fannie Hurst Professor of Creative Literature

Can mindfulness combat anxiety?

Eating disorders: The hidden health crisis on college campuses

Elizabeth Hunter makes the smartphone a stage

Yajie Yuan takes a computer-powered approach to the cosmos

Christopher Lucas examines disinformation by the numbers

Robert Wexler tests chemistry at the computer

Raven Maragh-Lloyd puts digital culture under the microscope

McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences celebrates 50 years of science and exploration

Graduate student Matthew Moore shares his personal take on public scholarship

How an AFAS alumna is improving birth outcomes for all

Betsy Sinclair installed as the Thomas F. Eagleton University Professor of Public Affairs and Political Science

Meet the undergrad who discovered St. Louis County’s first longhorned tick

Why might women not pursue a career in STEM?

Cognitive scientist Henry “Roddy” Roediger’s memorable career

Recognizing outstanding staff

Featured Podcast:

The PAD Podcast Episode 4: Tijuana Ricks⁠

On this episode of the ⁠PAD podcast⁠, Rob chats with actor/director/writer/producer ⁠Tijuana Ricks⁠ about her fantastic and varied career post-graduation.

Robert Mark Morgan · 04: Tijuana Ricks

Paul Laurence Dunbar, "We Wear The Mask"

Rafia Zafar joins the Poetry for All podcast to discuss "We Wear the Mask" by the great poet and writer Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872-1906). Zafar leads us in a discussion of Dunbar's fame and influence while opening up broader themes of African American history and literature

Influencing democracy

The fifth episode of the American Democracy Lab podcast features author, lecturer, and journalist Anne Nelson discussing the eroding trust in our democracy.

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The Ampersand Magazine

Spring 2025 issue

Ampersand magazine shares stories of incredible people, research, and ideas in Arts & Sciences. Our latest issue features stories on a one-of-a-kind partnership to protect plants and animals, the research lab of the future, public scholarship, and more.

Subscribe to Print EditionSee Magazine

news and events from Arts & Sciences / WashU

Reawakening ‘sleeping’ crops to combat today’s climate crisis

Schoolchildren in America learn the story of the “three...

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Commencement vlog: Simone, smiles and flying mortar boards

Nearly four years ago, Will Smith made his first trip...

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Mrozinski wins Calibre Essay Prize

Jeanette Mrozinski, a master of fine arts candidate in...

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River flowing over rocks and Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park

A river runs through it

Scientists at Washington University in St. Louis are using state-of-the-art geospatial technologies to study bedrock river erosion at Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park, located about two hours southwest of the Danforth Campus.
Aerial shot of Tyson Research Center in the fall

Our world by degrees: In search of refuge

Researchers look at whether Ozark oases at Tyson Research Center — climate change refugia — could help species persist in spite of rising temperatures.

Rediscovering the humanities through data science

Junior Zeina Daboul shares how a comparative literature course redefined how she approaches problems — and her own varying interests.

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The research lab of the future: How WashU faculty are transforming their fields of study

Digital tools have significantly reshaped the academic landscape. To take advantage of these once-in-a-generation developments, Arts & Sciences launched a digital transformation initiative to recruit some of the brightest minds in nearly every field.

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Elijah Darden blends his passions for music and science

The multifaceted senior is a psychological and brain sciences major, music minor, skilled trombonist, and a member of WashU’s Emergency Support Team. Next up: the University of Cambridge.

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Global biodiversity begins at home with the Living Earth Collaborative

Combining the forces of WashU, the Missouri Botanical Garden, and the Saint Louis Zoo, the Living Earth Collaborative works to protect the plants and animals of the world — for their sake and ours.

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