Featured Stories

The web of a Laminacauda rubens spider

Return to Spider Island

May 09, 2018

On a remote volcanic island in the South Pacific, Biology’s Gustavo Hormiga hikes forests and scales mountains to find rare spiders. On each return trip, he’s helped define an evolutionary legacy and preserve an ecological landscape. 

BA Neuroscience (Stock Photo)

New Interdisciplinary BA and BS Programs in Neuroscience Launched

April 11, 2018

Neuroscience is uncovering new insights into the biological basis of behavior and thought. With the new BA in cognitive neuroscience and BS in neuroscience, CCAS students are on the forefront of an emerging field.

Paul Wahlbeck

Paul Wahlbeck Named CCAS Interim Dean

April 11, 2018
Paul Wahlbeck, CCAS vice dean for programs and research and professor of political science, will serve as interim dean of the college following the departure of Dean Ben Vinson in July.
A painting of a sea turtle by Assistant Professor of Chemistry Erik Rodriguez made entirely from bacteria-expressing fluorescent

Living Art: When a Chemistry Lab Doubles as an Art Studio

April 11, 2018

Chemistry’s Erik Rodriguez uses fluorescent proteins to unlock cellular secrets. But he’s also found another use for the multi-colored microbes: paint for creating his own protein portraits from living material.

Luther Rice Fellow Eva Gustafson (far left) prepares student dancer Annie Mancuso (far right) for her upcoming production.

Art + Science = A Hybrid Project Combining Politics and Dance

April 11, 2018

Political science and dance major Eva Gustafson combined her fields of study into a Luther Rice Undergraduate Fellowship dance production that celebrates the journey of American women through the eyes of Eleanor Roosevelt and Hillary Clinton.

Dean Ben Vinson

Dean Vinson Departing CCAS to Become Provost of Case Western Reserve University

March 14, 2018
Ben Vinson will be leaving his role as dean of the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences to serve as the next provost and executive vice president of Case Western Reserve University. He will begin his new position on July 2.
: Sophomores Maggie Moss (left) and Margaret Perron in Geography Professor Elizabeth Chacko’s Migrants and the City class.

In Engaged Liberal Arts Classes, Students Combine Scholarship With Professional Development

March 14, 2018
A new series of "Engaged Liberal Arts" courses offer Columbian College students the opportunity to pursue their academic interests while honing their professional development skills, preparing them for success in the classroom and the workplace.
Christopher Cahill (left) in his Science and Engineering Hall lab with PhD chemistry student researcher August Ridenour

Exploring the Frontier of the Periodic Table

March 14, 2018
Chemistry’s Christopher Cahill has focused his research on some of the least-studied—and most dangerous—elements on the Periodic Table. It’s taken him from chemistry classrooms to nuclear science labs to the heart of government policy-making.
Detective Edward Gillespie, BA ’92, uses humanities lessons to train Baltimore police.

Plato and Policing: Alumnus’ Unique Class for Cops

February 14, 2018
Whether policing Baltimore’s streets or teaching cops in the classroom, Detective Edward Gillespie, BA ’92, emphasizes the lessons he’s learned from literature, history and philosophy. As a police instructor, his training seminar offers as much Dostoevsky as detective work.
Sara Wagner

MIA: Chronicling the Long Journey Home

February 14, 2018
Anthropology Professor and Guggenheim Fellow Sarah Wagner’s research on the recovery and identification of MIA service members has taken her from Vietnam battlefields to forensic science labs to the living rooms of reunited families.
From left: Hana Springer, I-Fen Tung and Marlee Grant after rehearsals.

From Taiwan, Dance Students Look to the Future

February 14, 2018
At an international dance festival in Taiwan, seniors Marlee Grant and Hana Springer became cultural arts ambassadors. Back in D.C., they are using the lessons learned abroad to vault their professional goals.
Professor of English Ayanna Thompson. (Photo: Laura McKenzie/Bryan-College Station Eagle)

Is Shakespeare Colorblind?

January 10, 2018
From Latino Othellos to African Macbeths, theaters around the world are presenting diversity-rich Shakespeare performances. As a Phi Beta Kappa visiting scholar, English’s Ayanna Thompson is using the Bard to spark dialogues on race.
Associate Professor of Economics Joann Weiner with Dean Ben Vinson

Economics in the Real World

January 10, 2018
Economics' Joann Weiner shares her thoughts on tax policy, global markets, the ride-share economy and inspiring her students to think like economists in an insightful conversation with Dean Ben Vinson.
Flag of the United States meshed with flag of North Korea

Understanding North Korea

January 10, 2018
Benjamin R. Young, a Korean history PhD candidate and recent Fulbright scholar in Seoul, discusses the escalating tensions between the U.S. and North Korea and averting a nuclear collision course.
Junior Japanese literature major Yi Zhao won first prize at the 2017 J.LIVE Talk competition.

Japanese Language Competition Sharpens Students’ Speech

December 12, 2017
Junior Yi Zhao won the third annual J.LIVE Talk Japanese speech contest, competing against 30 students from 13 universities across the country.

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