Speeches & Writings

It’s more important than ever that we make it very clear where we stand, what we stand for, and the value we bring to our nation and the world. At WashU, our focus is squarely on our mission – research, education and patient care. In order to have our greatest impact in each of these areas, we must recommit ourselves to putting these priorities above all else. And we must make our intentions known.

The National Institutes of Health have made cuts to research funding for facilities and administration. We want to assure you that the university’s leadership team is fully activated and closely monitoring the situation to see what these cuts could mean for our mission-critical work, and to ensure that we are prepared to respond as needed on behalf of the institution.

At institutions of distinction like WashU, we value diversity of opinion and we grow in civil debate. We choose WashU because we want to be challenged. And one way we do this is to expose ourselves to ideas that push us out of our intellectual comfort zones. 

As we prepare to step away from our daily routines for the Thanksgiving holiday, I am reflecting upon the role of tradition in our lives. Just like family life, university life is full of traditions. They may change over time, but some, like the alma mater that now rings out from Graham Chapel at noon each day, or the annual wonder of yellow leaves raining down on Ginkgo Allée each November, have been part of the fabric of WashU culture for a century.

The concentric circles model of human behavior was created by the second-century Stoic philosopher Hierocles and further developed by modern psychologists. It depicts a continuum of impact in which the innermost circle ripples out into broader and broader spheres of influence – all of which, of course, are connected at the center.

Welcome, all, to the 2024-2025 academic year at Washington University in St. Louis.

Starting today, you’ll see a new look and refreshed visual identity for the university appearing in many of our physical and digital spaces.

Class of 2024, congratulations. Everyone on this stage — our administrators, faculty leaders and trustees — and everyone who showed up to support you today — all stand in awe of what you’ve overcome as a class to make it to this milestone. Your experience has been uniquely challenging in so many ways. I mean, […]

This has been a tumultuous time for our WashU community. And unfortunately, we know it’s not over.

Saturday was a dark, sad day for WashU. A large group of individuals came to campus intending to disrupt, do harm, and interfere with educational activities and campus life.