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WashU Pledge scholarships, first announced in 2019, provide free undergraduate education to all incoming, full-time students from Missouri and southern Illinois whose families make $75,000 or less. Gateway to Success, announced two years later, is a $1 billion investment in student financial aid and support that has allowed WashU to adopt need-blind admissions, meaning that an applicant’s financial situation no longer factors into admission decisions.

At a critical juncture for agriculture and public health, Washington University in St. Louis is launching the Food and Agriculture Research Mission (FARM), an ambitious initiative that aims to address challenges in agricultural production, food distribution and access to nutritious foods by developing practical, scalable solutions for global impact. “The urgency of this moment cannot be overstated,” said WashU Chancellor Andrew D. Martin, who has long advocated for this initiative. “Hunger, malnutrition and environmental degradation are not distant threats — they are present crises demanding immediate, coordinated action. “We have the opportunity to interrupt these consequences by applying innovative solutions to seemingly intractable problems,” he added. “Together, with our partners in St. Louis and beyond, we will transform how we grow food, nourish communities and sustain the environment — because the health of regional, national and global populations depends on it.”

A new Washington University program seeks to use business principles to improve health care systems and operations, and spur new innovations. Launched late last year, the Business of Health initiative leans on research originating at WashU’s Olin Business School to solve industry challenges, help students launch careers on the business side of the health care field, and turn fresh ideas into real-world solutions.

WashU Advocates are raising awareness about WashU’s mission with government officials, communicating how the university works to solve societal challenges and improve lives in the region and beyond.

Researchers from the Brown School’s Evaluation Center and Center for Social Development (CSD) will assess the impact of a new financial initiative aimed at closing the racial wealth gap in St. Louis.

Yixin Chen, professor of computer science & engineering in the McKelvey School of Engineering, was given the St. Louis Innovator Award by the Bar Association of Metropolitan Saint Louis at its inaugural Spirit of Innovation Awards Jan. 23, 2025. Chen was selected his contributions and dedication to fostering innovation and entrepreneurship in our region, specifically, in AI and large-language models and their applications in health care and legal practices.

Washington University’s Olin School of Business is trying to streamline communication between people who specialize in health business and medical professionals. The university last week announced a new “Business of Health” initiative, which the head of the program says will “improve individual and societal well-being” through communication.

WashU has evolved dramatically on Andrew Martin’s watch, and its School of Continuing & Professional Studies is a prime example. By reimagining the school to allow for an easier entry point, WashU hopes to provide direct paths to higher-paying careers, while also helping companies across the region develop and retain talent in some of the most high-demand sectors. All told, Martin believes it’s an exciting time to work in higher education. “There’s so much potential to build upon and expand on long-standing partnerships, establish new ones, and activate the talents of our students and faculty in service to and alongside our region,” he says.

The Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis Undiagnosed Diseases Network (UDN) Diagnostic Center of Excellence was established in 2019 to solve the trickiest medical mysteries in Missouri and nearby states. Now, the center is expanding. Buoyed by the renewal of the center’s five-year, $3.8 million grant, the UDN leadership team plans to increase outreach to medically underserved communities and increase capacity from 30 to 50 patients a year. The center has established a collaboration with the St. Louis Integrated Health Network, an organization dedicated to improving the quality, accessibility and affordability of health care.

Members of the WashU and St. Louis communities may now recycle their glass in the Ripple Glass depository in the West Campus parking lot. Ripple Glass is a Missouri business offering circular solutions to keep glass out of landfills. By separating out glass at the source, Ripple Glass’ collection method has a 98% recovery rate – the remaining 2% is just the caps, labels, lids and corks.