News

Missouri Botanical Garden has named Lúcia Lohmann as its next president, effective Jan. 2. Lohmann, who will also serve as director and George Engelmann professor of botany at Washington University in St. Louis, is the eighth president in MoBot’s history and its first woman president, officials said.

Washington University and BioSTL are hoping to transform St. Louis into a global neuroscience leader through its NEURO360 initiative. BioSTL’s CEO Donn Rubin tells Anthony Morabith that big things are in store for the future of St. Louis.

Lisa Weingarth, senior advisor for St. Louis initiatives at WashU, has been appointed to the board of the United Way of Greater St. Louis. She is serving a three-year term on the board of directors and a one-year term on the executive committee.

St. Louis Inno is highlighting eight people, all under 25, all entrepreneurs, most of them connected in some way to Washington University, St. Louis’ magnet for the talented and driven, who have created a business that will likely be neither their last nor only venture of their lifetimes.

Neuro360, a coalition of post-secondary institutions, local and state institutions, businesses, health care and trade groups led by Washington University and nonprofit innovation hub BioSTL, is bidding for up to $160 million in funding from the U.S. National Science Foundation. The coalition is aimed at advancing neuroscience research and commercialization in the St. Louis region

Washington University in St. Louis has launched a new partnership with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Missouri to support high school students in the organization’s Big Futures college readiness initiative. Starting this fall, WashU Undergraduate Admissions will work with students and their families to demystify the college application and financial aid processes.

Though students had yet to return to campus, WashU’s on-campus polling place saw nearly double the voter turnout in the Missouri Primary Election this month, compared to April’s Municipal Election. Though the two elections are very different in scope, races and initiatives, the steady turnout at the WashU polling place, hosted by the Gephardt Institute and the St. Louis County Board of Elections, was a welcome sight for the university. 

A new funding program for Washington University in St. Louis-affiliated startups focuses on strengthening the St. Louis region. The WashU Venture Network Follow-on Investments is a joint effort between WashU’s Skandalaris Center for Interdisciplinary Innovation and Entrepreneurship and the “In St. Louis, For St. Louis” initiative. It will award up to $150,000 each year to companies with WashU ties that previously have been awarded funding through Arch Grants, the local nonprofit that awards equity-free grants to startups. The goal is to support startups with a high probability of remaining in St. Louis after the grant period is complete.

When a WashU student becomes a St. Louis Fellow, they make a commitment to serve St. Louis effectively and responsibly, immersing themselves in the community and finding ways to contribute to positive progress in the region. As part of this commitment, St. Louis Fellows participate in Engage STL Days, during which they visit local neighborhoods and engage with community members.  

As part of the St. Louis Fellows Program, Harlem Taylor ‘27 and Daniel Niu ’26 worked at Cortex Innnovation Community this summer, supporting the organization’s mission to “accelerate inclusive economic growth in St. Louis.”