July 2025 Newsletter

Perspectives is a monthly newsletter that highlights the accomplishments and latest news from the College of Arts & Sciences community. Learn about unusual courses, student projects, faculty research, alumni careers, and more.

Featured Stories This Month

UW quad with cherry trees blooming

2025 Dean's Medalists, Energized & Inspiring

They worked in research labs, held leadership roles, volunteered in the community, and mentored fellow students. Meet our 2025 Dean’s Medalists.

purple bowl made of blown glass, with a gold-flecked base

A Handcrafted Award for Medalists

Each of the College's 2025 medalists received a special gift — a glass bowl, hand-blown in the UW School of Art + Art History + Design.

Neogothic campus buildings with blooming cherry trees in front and blue sky above.

Meet Our 2025 Graduate Medalists

Contributing to landmark research discoveries and innovating in the classroom, our 2025 Graduate Medalists are scholars to watch.

  • A gold University of Washington medal on a ribbon

    2025 Awards of Excellence

    Learn about Arts & Sciences faculty and staff who have been celebrated with UW Awards of Excellence this spring.

    Perspectives newsletter
  • aerial photo of UW quad

    Honors for Impact, Innovation & More

    From Husky 100 to the National Academy of Sciences, dozens of Arts & Sciences faculty and students have received recent recognition.

    Perspectives newsletter

Opportunities to Explore

  • Two women looking at plants in the greenhouse

    Visit the Biology Greenhouse

    UW Life Sciences Building
    3747 W Stevens Way NE

    The UW Biology Greenhouse, home to more than 4,000 plants from diverse habitats, is open to the public for walk-in browsing on non-holiday Wednesdays (noon - 4 pm) and on the 2nd and 4th Saturdays of each month (10 am - 2 pm). Docent-led tours for 8+ people are also available but must be booked ahead.

  • painting of seated figure

    First Look: Spirit House & Charlene Liu

    Thursday, August 14, 6-8 pm
    Henry Art Gallery

    Celebrate two bold new art experiences at the Henry with music, drinks, and summer vibes! Explore Spirit House and Charlene Liu’s vibrant mural, enjoy ping pong and a feel-good playlist, and linger late in the galleries — open until 8 PM. Free admission. RSVP is encouraged.

  • Close up of Meany Hall facade

    Meany Center: 2025-26 Season

    Subscriptions on sale now
    Single tickets on sale starting August 5

    Meany Center for the Performing Arts presents world-renowned performers in concerts during the academic year through four series: Dance, Chamber Music, Piano, and Crossroads. Ticket subscriptions for all of the 2025-26 series are on sale, with an option to create your series by picking four or more events from the upcoming season. Single tickets go on sale August 5.

  • Ways of Knowing podcast title logo with colorful stripes behind

    Ways of Knowing Podcast, Season Two

    Online
    The “Ways of Knowing” podcast, featuring Arts & Sciences faculty, connects humanities research with current events and issues. In Season 2, faculty explore the digital humanities, ancient languages, mathematics, and more. The podcast is a collaboration between the UW and The World According to Sound. Keep up with new episodes at the link above.

Looking for more events? Visit ArtsUW and the UW Alumni Association website

In The News

  • UW helps bring the cosmos into focus as the Vera C. Rubin Observatory unveils a new glimpse into the solar system

    A new era of astronomy and astrophysics began in June as the first images captured by the Vera C. Rubin Observatory were released, demonstrating the extraordinary capabilities of the new telescope and the world’s largest digital camera.

    UW News
  • 5 dark facts to remember in the face of AI hype

    Emily M. Bender, UW professor of linguistics, and Alex Hanna share five key insights from their new book, "The AI Con: How to Fight Big Tech’s Hype and Create the Future We Want." The book is an exploration of the hype around artificial intelligence, whose interests it serves, and the harm being done under this umbrella.

    Fast Company
  • Meet the artist, promoter and producer who shaped Seattle's cultural landscape: Terry Morgan

    From promoting punk bands to designing light festivals, Terry Morgan has shaped Seattle’s cultural landscape for 50+ years. As an African American studies major at the UW, Morgan, ’76, studied widely outside his major, in areas from video art to electronic music.

    University of Washington Magazine
  • New faculty books: Artificial intelligence, 1990s Russia, song interpretation, and more

    Learn about recently published books by Arts & Sciences faculty, including “The AI Con: How to Fight Big Tech’s Hype and Create the Future We Want,” co-authored by Emily Bender, professor of linguistics; “Moscow 93” and “Tales of Bart: A Novel in Three Acts,” by José Alaniz, professor of Slavic languages and literature; and “Ne me quitte pas: A Song by Jacques Brel and Interpreted by Nina Simone and Others,” by Maya Angela Smith, Arts & Sciences associate dean for equity, justice, and inclusion and professor of French.

    UW News

Editor

Nancy Joseph
nancyj@uw.edu