In Mental Health, Is ‘Normal’ an Illusion?
During an undergraduate anthropology class, Roy Richard Grinker, professor of anthropology and international affairs, quoted statistics to help his students grasp the worldwide prevalence of mental...
Featured Stories
GW Recognizes Bouchet Graduate Honor Society Nominees
Recognizing Bouchet Graduate Honor Society Nominees
Mission to Mars: Alumna Follows Perseverance into Space
When the NASA rover Perseverance touched down on Mars, Columbian College alumna Pamela Conrad could say she’d been there before.
Magic Trick: Harry Potter Casts Spell on Poli Sci Seminar
Like millions of other people around the world, senior political science major Lauren Wagner has read ever Harry Potter book from cover-to-cover—several times. Her mother...
COVID-19 Memorial Finds Digital Home
CCAS Anthropology researchers teamed with a Washington, D.C., artist to digitize a popular COVID-19 memorial that erected thousands of flags near the U.S. Capitol to commemorate lives lost during the...
Press Pass: Alumnus Journalist is Eyewitness to Congress
In a hallway on the third floor of the Capitol Building, Jake Sherman, BA ’08, heard shattering glass and loud voices. It was January 6 and Sherman, a veteran Congressional...
At the Border, A Washington’s Birthday Bash
American Studies’ Elaine Peña returned to her Texas home to investigate why two towns along the U.S.-Mexico border have held a Washington’s birthday party for more than 100 years.
Uncovering COVID'S Hidden Tolls
In a pair of research initiatives, Sociology’s Antwan Jones is shining a spotlight on the pandemic’s impact on psychological health and housing inequalities.
For Alumnus Author, A Journey into the American Identity
Former journalist, noted author and distinguished educator of journalism Loren...
Shape of Fish Holds Key to Evolutionary Mystery
A research team including Biology’s Guillermo Orti and his former students charted how snapper fish transition and evolve their body shapes for environmental shifts.
CCAS Faculty Support AP Classes with Remote Lectures
Even as they continue adjusting to their own virtual teaching landscapes, four Columbian College faculty members joined...
Digital Collections Keep Student Research Alive
With the onset of COVID-19 and resulting disruptions to hands-on student research, Associate Professor of Biology Carly Jordan has been working on a National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded project...
Teaching Trials: Professor Brings Vaccine Experience to the Classroom
On the first day of this fall’s Research Methods and Applied Statistics class, Professor of Public Policy and Public Administration ...
On Climate, CCAS Scientists See Biden Plans as Fresh Air
As the Biden administration prepares to take office, few policy areas are set for more dramatic shifts than climate change. From one presidential candidate calling global warming a hoax and...
When Hollywood Dreams Dim, Alumna Shines a Light
Caroline Adegun, BA ’12, MA ’16, founded Hollywood Wingwoman Talent, a nonprofit talent development firm that helps artist find shelter, food and resources.
Ghosts of the Coast: Artists and Scientists Bring ‘Ghost Forests’ to Life
For a decade, Assistant Professor of Biology Keryn Gedan has told an ecological ghost story. The...
‘Safety Net’ Required to Slow Biodiversity Decline
Biology’s Amy Zanne worked with an international research team to analyze new global biodiversity goals after decade-long environmental targets for 2020 fell short.
New Mourning: How COVID Is Altering the Way We Grieve
In Indiana, a recently deceased man’s life was celebrated with a parade through his hometown, as fire trucks led lines of cars decked with balloons and banners. In New Jersey, mourners climbed to...
Glamour Shot: Alumnus Photographer Snaps the Stars
From Elizabeth Taylor to Jennifer Lopez, photographer Firooz Zahedi, BFA ’76, is renowned for his portraits of the world’s most glamorous celebrities. In a new book, he reflects on making Hollywood’s...
Troubled Water: A Student’s Crusade to Solve Puerto Rico’s Crisis
Omar Negron-Ocasio, a graduate student, saw the need for a sustainable solution to Puerto Rico's ongoing water crisis and created water filtration company.
Earthquake May Have Destroyed Ancient Canaanite Palace
Professor of Classics and Anthropology Eric Cline co-directed a team of Israeli and American researchers that uncovered evidence of an earthquake that may have destroyed a...
Election Outlook: Alumnus Highlights ‘Good News’
During election season, Joshua Douglas, BA ’02, JD ’07—a nationally renowned expert on election law—finds his inbox crowded with emails from friends, family, students and media...
Changing Landscapes, Changing Diets: How Fossilized Teeth Reveal Dietary Shifts
Enquye Negash, a postdoctoral researcher in the Columbian College’s Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, led a research team that documented dietary shifts in...
Adapting to a Different Kind of Fall Semester
With a limited number of students on campus this fall and all classes taught remotely, CCAS Spotlight asked Columbian College students to share their stories of how they are approaching...
Alumna Journalist Spotlights Cries For Racial Justice
Zinhle Essamuah, BA ’15, MA ’17, has a different take on the axiom that journalists give voice to the voiceless.
Changing Landscapes, Changing Diets: How Fossilized Teeth Reveal Ancient Dietary Shifts
Enquye Negash, a postdoctoral researcher in the Columbian College’s Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, led a new study that documents dietary shifts in herbivores that lived between...
Getting Creative: Student Research in the Virtual Learning Environment
Student research through virtual learning in the COVID-19 pandemic
Managing a Transformed Educational Landscape
When Paul Wahlbeck was named permanent dean of the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences in late July, he faced an educational landscape transformed by the COVID-19 pandemic....
New Faculty Bolsters Columbian College Ranks
Columbian College will welcome 18 new faculty members this fall, bringing the total number of full-time academics to 534, and adding new skills and expertise to disciplines across the sciences,...
Paul Wahlbeck to Serve as Permanent CCAS Dean
Paul Wahlbeck has been appointed dean of the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences (CCAS), where he has served as interim dean since 2018.
“Since joining GW, I have...