Multicultural geology

Multicultural geology

This spring, theory-heavy Washington University in St. Louis geology students went on a field trip to southeastern Spain with field-trained students from Trinity College, Dublin. What they learned from each other transcended earth — and time.

Washington University School of Law launches national semester-in-practice externship

Beginning in fall 2013, Washington University School of Law will offer the Semester-in-Practice Externship, an innovative program that empowers second- and third-year law students to gain hands-on professional experience anywhere in the country. Through the externship program, students will earn academic credit by spending a semester working full time for a nonprofit, government, or in-house corporate law office in the location of their choice.

Service learning under fire outside of the classroom

Students in various disciplines throughout universities receive hands-on training through service-learning programs such as law school clinics. But that type of academic training is under attack from both big business and legislative bodies, say two professors from the Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. “Recent legislative and corporate efforts to interfere in the operations of law clinics indicate that academic freedom is at risk when hands-on student learning bumps up against ‘real-world’ disputes,” write Robert Kuehn, JD, and Peter Joy, JD, in “‘Kneecapping’ Academic Freedom,” the recent lead article for “The Conflicted University,” a special edition of Academe, the publication of the American Association of University Professors. 

Business school students work out plan for biofuels in undeveloped countries

Photo courtesy R. K. Henning and D1 Oils; www.jatropha.orgJatropha plantsDuring a practicum for the World Agricultural Forum, Washington University M.B.A. students realized that using ethanol as an alternative fuel in developing countries isn’t cost effective. Instead, they stumbled upon the jatropha plant, a hardy shrub with seeds that can easily produce oil to power basic generators. The students’ work demonstrated the potential for economic stability that jatropha could offer small villages. More…