UW and the Community

A&S alumni and siblings Gary and Carver Gayton have led extraordinary lives, following in the footsteps of their great grandfather Lewis Clarke, who escaped slavery to become a well-known abolitionist.

It began as a modest resource to address students' frequently asked questions, but Professor Quintard Taylor's BlackPast.org website now attracts 2.8 million visitors a year with its trusted information about African American history.

The new Dean of  the College of Arts and Sciences shares his thoughts about his role, the value of the liberal arts, and the state of higher education.

Graham Pruss knows a thing or two about being homeless, having lived through some tough times on the streets as a teen. So when he noticed a growing number of people living in their vehicles in his Seattle neighborhood, he was determined to help.

As Washington voters consider numerous hot button issues this election season, many are turning to the Living Voters Guide, an interactive online resource developed by UW students and faculty in conjunction with Seattle CityClub.

Making Connections, a program of the UW Women's Center, helps first-generation, low-income high school girls achieve their dream of going to college. For the past five years, the program has had a 100 percent success rate.

Math Circles, led weekly by UW students, introduce middle school students to the joys of mathematics. "You have captured the fire in my child!" comments one parent, impressed by the program.

A seminar course developed by and for graduate students aims to improve scientists' ability to explain their research to the public. Now participants will use their newfound skills as they speak at an upcoming public lecture series. 

When 50,000 visitors descended on New York's Central Park for Ultimate Block Party, an event celebrating the importance of play for children’s developing brains, a team from the UW’s Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences was there.

Albert von Keller's early 20th century paintings, on view at the Frye Art Museum, explore the occult. To place his work in context, the Frye and the UW Department of Germanics are presenting a three-lecture series, “Connections and Contexts: Evenings on German Art and Culture.”

For 15 years, Jana Mohr-Lone (PhD, '96) has guided philosophical discussions of everything from art to happiness in K-12 classrooms. Now the rest of us can hear one of those discussions on Philosophy Talk, an hour-long radio program.

Liliana Lengua, professor of psychology, is studying the impacts of economic disadvantage and parenting in the development of "effortful control," the ability to regulate one's responses to external stimuli.

Women gained voting rights in Washington State 100 years ago. To commemorate this momentous event, the Women’s Center will host a November 6 gala honoring 100 women who were the first to break the barriers in various fields. 

A year-long cultural exchange between the indigenous Ainu community of Japan and several Washington State tribal groups, organized by the Burke Museum, culminated with a memorable canoe journey.