Holden Thorp

​A new report from a universitywide socioeconomic advisory group provides Washington University in St. Louis a roadmap to better serve its growing number of low-income and first-generation students. Recommendations include helping students better transition to college life, providing the resources students need to engage  in academic and campus life and creating a university culture that welcomes and values every student.

A committee of campus leaders is investigating the best ways to serve an anticipated increase in Pell Grant-eligible students at Washington University in St. Louis next fall and in future years. Harvey R. Fields Jr., PhD, assistant director for academic programs at Cornerstone, the Center for Advanced Learning, is leading the group.

University Provost H. Holden Thorp, PhD, dons safety glasses during a new faculty orientation Aug. 19 in Umrath Hall Lounge. Thorp says the university has an obligation to instill a culture that promotes safety.

Provost Holden Thorp, PhD, discusses the important role of the humanities in American higher education in delivering the Phi Beta Kappa/Sigma Xi Lecture for the Assembly Series earlier this month. Held annually, the lecture is part of the Phi Beta Kappa initiation ceremony. This year, 81 students were inducted into the prestigious honor society.

In an American Academy of Arts & Sciences report called “The Heart of the Matter,” the academy argues that the humanities and social sciences are necessary for a vibrant, competitive and secure nation. This is not the usual argument for the humanities, and that’s a good thing, according to WUSTL Provost Holden Thorp, PhD. He will give the annual Phi Beta Kappa/Sigma Xi lecture on April 17, titled “From Salesman to Hamletmachine: The Need for the Humanities.”

The Mosaic Project will host a forum to introduce the Bias Report and Support System and to share updates about other projects, including efforts to a create a center for diversity and inclusion. The forum will be 4 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 22, in Umrath Hall Lounge.

The board of trustees of the National Humanities Center recently elected Holden Thorp, PhD, Washington University in St. Louis provost and executive vice chancellor for academic affairs, as one of its three new members.

Washington University in St. Louis’ Olin Business School and School of Engineering & Applied Science have announced a partnership with the startup-focused news organization Techli to promote the growing entrepreneurship community in and around St. Louis.

​Created 60 years ago, the Assembly Series is Washington University’s premiere lecture series. Its chief mission is to present interesting and important voices, and it is designed to spark meaningful discussion and lead to greater understanding of our world today. Assembly Series programs are free and open to the public. The fall 2013 schedule, below, opens with First Year Reading Program author Eula Biss on September 9.​​​

Kevin Hays is considered one of the globe’s best Rubik’s Cube solvers, but he’s not the only Rubik’s Cube master on the Washington University in St. Louis campus. Provost Holden Thorp also won Rubik’s Cube competitions as a teenager.