UW News

UW News blog


March 9, 2016

Quintard Taylor’s BlackPast.org history site gets redesign, first executive director

Chieko Phillips

BlackPast.org, the online reference guide to African-American history started by University of Washington history professor Quintard Taylor, is getting an executive director — Chieko Phillips — and a website redesign.


March 8, 2016

Evans School, Ruckelshaus Center featured when public policy administrators gather in Seattle March 17-22

The evolving nature of the public sector will be the topic when professionals and scholars from the UW’s Evans School for Public Policy & Governance and around the world gather in Seattle March 17-22 for the 77th annual conference of the American Society for Public Administration.


March 4, 2016

UW video on clingfish takes top prize at Ocean 180 competition

Northern clingfish.

A University of Washington team won first place in a science communication video contest that culminated during the recent Ocean Sciences Meeting.


March 3, 2016

Record percentage of women students in Informatics Program helps iSchool narrow the gender gap

Christina Xiao, left, and Amber Amin graduated in June 2015 with degrees in informatics from the UW Information School. This year's cohort in Informatics is the largest yet, a record 40 percent of them women.

The UW Information School’s 2015-16 undergraduate cohort in informatics is not only the school’s largest yet with 210 students, it also includes more women students than ever before — about 40 percent.


$750,000 Mellon Foundation grant will fund research, collaboration in arts

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has awarded the University of Washington a three-year, $750,000 grant to support guest artists in developing new works, and to better integrate arts disciplines into the broader university curriculum.

The grant will support a Creative Fellowships Initiative, under which guest performing artist fellows will be recruited from around the world for one- to three-year residencies in dance, music and theater.


March 2, 2016

UW aids city of Seattle on open data initiative

If people find it easier to get data from the city of Seattle going forward, they can in part thank the University of Washington. A team of UW faculty members and doctoral students spent the past six months working with the city on a new open data policy unveiled last week by Mayor Ed Murray….


March 1, 2016

The Animals to Hendrix: Authors discuss soundtrack of Vietnam War at March 7 event

For soldiers serving in the Vietnam War, music was a salve, a connection to home and a temporary respite from the horrors of combat. In “We Gotta Get Out of This Place,” Rolling Stone’s #1 Best Music Book of 2015, Doug Bradley and Craig Werner explore the importance of music to U.S. troops in Vietnam,…


Ice cores, polar bears and whale sounds at 11th Polar Science Weekend

poster showing helicopter on ice

Investigate a real ice core from Greenland, survey microbes from the coldest parts of the world, explore an Arctic ice camp and meet with polar scientists – many of whom are from the University of Washington. It’s all part of Polar Science Weekend, returning to Seattle’s Pacific Science Center March 4-6. The three-day event features…


February 29, 2016

University Book Store to relocate South Campus Store’s services and products to flagship store

University Book Store announced Thursday that it has opted to close its store in the University’s South Campus building and move its products and services to the flagship store on University Way Northeast. Though the relocation date has yet to be determined, University Book Store is planning for sometime before June. “Our lease was up for…


UW ranks No. 7 on Business First’s top 10 list

The University of Washington was ranked No. 7 by Business First, a Buffalo-based publication, for America’s top 10 best public colleges and universities, the publication released Tuesday, Feb. 23. Business First, owned by American City Business Journals, used a 20-part formula based on academic excellence, prestige, affordability, diversity and economic strength to calculate each of the 477 participating…


February 26, 2016

2016 UW cherry blossom watch: 100 percent in bloom

Cherry trees in the Quad, March 10, 2016.

The cherry trees in the Quad at UW will likely be in full bloom the week of March 14.


February 24, 2016

Employee open forum March 2 for UW HR/Payroll Integrated Service Center

A sculpture of the University of Washington W logo

UW employees are invited to attend an open forum March 2 to learn more about the university’s plans to create an HR/Payroll Integrated Service Center.


February 22, 2016

University of Washington named a ‘top producer’ of Fulbright students

The University of Washington is one of the top producers of Fulbright students for 2015-16, according to lists released Monday in the Chronicle of Higher Education.


February 19, 2016

Dangerous fishing may be endangered, new study finds

Fishermen place Sablefish pots off the coast of Half Moon Bay, California

A new study of fishing practices found that the “risky” behavior that makes fishing one of the most dangerous lines of work dropped sharply following the adoption of catch shares management in the West Coast fixed gear sablefish fishery.


February 9, 2016

UW’s Professional & Organizational Development team wins national leadership award

If you are a University of Washington supervisor, you have probably participated in the Strategic Leadership Program — a customized training program enhancing communication and managerial skill. Developed and taught by University of Washington Professional & Organizational Development, the program has graduated over 4000 supervisors since it launched almost 16 years ago. On Feb. 4,…


February 8, 2016

Intellectual House, Odegaard Library welcome new works of public art

"Welcoming Figures" at wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ - Intellectual House was designed by Ruth and Andy Peterson of the by Skykomish Tribe and carved by Andrea Wilbur-Sigo of the Squaxin Island and Skykomish tribes. Sigo is at center, her daughter Florence Sigo is at left, her husband Steve Sigo at right and son Robert Sigo in front.

The University of Washington campus already is home to a lot of great public art. Now there are two additions to the campus collection — one at the Odegaard Undergraduate Library and the other at wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ – Intellectual House.


UW’s Tom Anderson elected to National Academy of Engineering

Tom Anderson, a University of Washington professor of computer science and engineering and alumnus, has been elected to the National Academy of Engineering. Also elected are UW civil engineering alumnus Jon Magnusson and computer science alumnus Albert Greenberg.


February 2, 2016

Reflections on the habitability of — Planet Earth

Astronomers at the UW-based Virtual Planetary Laboratory have created an index to rank the habitability of exoplanets, or those outside the solar system.

We know the Earth is habitable because — well, here we are. But would it look like a good candidate for life from hundreds of light-years away?


February 1, 2016

UW seismologist speaking at White House earthquake preparedness summit

map with concentric circles

UW seismologist John Vidale will participate in a White House summit focusing on national earthquake preparedness.


UW hosts daylong public ‘teach-in’ on mass incarceration

The acclaimed 2012 book “The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness” is the foundation for a daylong “teach-in” at the University of Washington Feb. 9. The event is titled “Perpetual Displacement and Bondage: Understanding Historical and Contemporary Intersections of Mass Incarceration, Racism, and Health.” It’s free and open to the public,…


January 22, 2016

UW joins effort to rethink admissions criteria, developing new scholarship

The UW has signed on to a new report and initiative encouraging changes to the college admissions process to promote greater ethical and intellectual engagement on the part of prospective students.


January 20, 2016

UW-designed climate change games honored this week in Washington, D.C.

people playing a board game

Two University of Washington teams claimed top prizes in a national competition to design a game about climate adaptation.


What’s the name of that tree? New interactive plant map for arboretum

sample maps

First-time visitors and regulars to Washington Park Arboretum can now learn the names and origins of plants as well as save favorites while strolling through the grounds.


January 19, 2016

Helen Garrett named new registrar for the University of Washington

Helen Garrett has been selected as the University of Washington’s new university registrar and chief officer for enrollment information services. “Helen emerged as the top candidate from a very deep pool of applicants. Her substantial experience in enrollment management combined with her wealth of knowledge regarding data and student information services were exactly what the…


January 11, 2016

New master of applied bioengineering to prepare students for translational research

Bioengineering student project.

In December, the University of Washington’s Department of Bioengineering began accepting applications for its newest graduate degree program, the Master of Applied Bioengineering. The one-year, full-time program begins in August, and will train students to apply engineering design and entrepreneurship skills to address unmet clinical needs and to transform biomedical research into technologies for improving health care. The degree will position graduates to respond to market-based demands of industry, medicine and translational research.


January 8, 2016

UW law school Dean Kellye Y. Testy to serve as national group president

Kellye Y. Testy, dean of the University of Washington’s law school, will give her inaugural address as president of the Association of American Law Schools tomorrow night in Washington, D.C. Testy previously served on the association‘s executive committee and was voted in as its president in October 2014. She takes over from 2015 president Blake Morant,…


Quiet quasar has apparently eaten its fill

quasar and spectrum

Astronomers with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) announced that a distant quasar ran out of gas. Their conclusions, reported Jan. 8 at the American Astronomical Society meeting in Kissimmee, Florida, clarify why quasar SDSS J1011+5442 changed so dramatically in the handful of years between observations.


January 6, 2016

UW faculty members join Inslee in gun violence announcement

Two University of Washington faculty members joined Washington Gov. Jay Inslee Wednesday as he announced a new initiative to reduce gun-related deaths by strengthening background checks and implementing a statewide suicide prevention plan. Jennifer Stuber, an associate professor at the UW School of Social Work, and Monica Vavilala, director of the Harborview Injury Prevention and…


UW climate scientists to give free talks at Mt. Baker Ski Area

poster with mountains and speakers' photos

UW scientists will give free talks on climate change for three consecutive Saturdays at Mt. Baker Ski Area.


DO-IT looking for high school student scholars

DO-IT, a University of Washington program, is looking for high school students with disabilities to apply to be program scholars. Applicants must be a current high school sophomore or junior in Washington, have an aptitude and interest in attending college, have any disability, and must be motivated to participate and interested in interacting with other…


January 5, 2016

Study: College graduates often challenged with life skills, motivation for ongoing learning

Today’s college graduates tend to be highly trained and employable but often lack a key skill needed for post-college life: how to identify and ask their own questions, according to a new study.


December 30, 2015

UW astronomer Eric Agol honored by Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics

Eric Agol, a University of Washington professor of astronomy, will receive the 2016 Lecar Prize from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. The award, now in its third year, recognizes exceptional contributions to the study of exoplanets — those beyond our solar system — and theoretical astrophysics. It is named for Myron S. “Mike” Lecar, who…


December 15, 2015

Study: Reason, not disruption, rules when growing a social movement

When campaigning for social change, disruptive protests may win a few battles but education is more likely to win the war, according to research by Abhinav Gupta, an assistant professor of strategic management at the University of Washington Foster School of Business. Gupta and co-authors studied “Rein in Russell,” a 2009 campaign by United Students…


December 9, 2015

Design meets health: UW College of Built Environments, School of Public Health chosen for national architect association’s design and research consortium

The University of Washington College of Built Environments and School of Public Health have been selected as part of a national initiative seeking to translate research on how design impacts public health into architectural practice. The two UW schools have been selected to join the American Institute of Architects’ multi-school Design & Health Research Consortium….


December 8, 2015

Hour of Code: UW President Ana Mari Cauce gets schooled in coding

University of Washington President Ana Mari Cauce joined a small group of UW students Monday morning to get a crash course in coding as part of Code.org‘s Hour of Code event during Computer Science Education Week. Cauce worked with Sukhdeep Singh, a freshman at UW who hopes to double major in business and computer science, in the Hour of Code Monday….


December 4, 2015

UW Sephardic Studies Program holds third annual Ladino Day festivities Dec. 6

The University of Washington Sephardic Studies Program will host its third annual International Ladino Day, celebrating Sephardic language and culture, in a free event at 4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 6, in Room 130 of Kane Hall. The event will be followed by a kosher reception. This year’s featured speakers are members of Los Ladineros, a…


December 3, 2015

Award honors hundreds of citizen scientists who search for Washington’s rarest plants

Each year, hundreds of volunteers spread across Washington’s forests and grasslands to look for the state’s rarest, most sensitive plant species. Many of these endangered populations live in remote valleys or along unseen slopes and haven’t been seen in a decade or more. That’s where the University of Washington’s Rare Plant Care and Conservation program…


December 2, 2015

Book by UW’s Jackson School faculty among New York Times 100 most notable of 2015

The New York Times has named a recent book by two faculty members in the UW’s Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies to its list of 100 Most Notable Books of 2015. “The Shape of the New: Four Big Ideas and How They Built the Modern World,” by Scott L. Montgomery and Daniel Chirot…


November 30, 2015

UW sociology professors part of White House, DOJ events on criminal justice reform

President Obama has been leading the charge for criminal justice reform in recent months, calling for sweeping changes to reduce mass incarceration and commuting sentences for non-violent offenders. This week, the White House and Department of Justice are bringing together researchers, legal system practitioners and advocacy organizations at events focused on criminal justice system reform…


November 25, 2015

UW law student researches industry gender inequity, calls for reforms

Women routinely outperform men in university classrooms across the United States and are invited more often than men to join student honors societies — yet women continue to be paid far less than similarly qualified male colleagues. Adding to that inequity, women also fare poorly when suing to recover damages for workplace sex and gender…



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