Students in the Pierre Laclede Honors College participate in the college’s annual Paint-A-Palooza. The event is an annual tradition that marks the beginning of the school year. (Photos by Derik Holtmann)
Over the past month, students, faculty and staff at the University of Missouri–St. Louis enjoyed an eventful start to the 2025-26 school year. Inside and outside of the classroom, the campus community connected over everything from a dry paint fight to making ice cream with liquid nitrogen to students earning their white coats.
Campus photographer Derik Holtmann was out and about throughout the month to capture it all. Here are a few highlights from the first weeks of the school year.
View more UMSL photos by visiting the UMSL Flickr and Instagram accounts.
The Pierre Laclede Honors College Student Association hosted its annual welcome event, Paint-A-Palooza, on Aug. 28. Students participated in a dry paint fight outside of the Honors College on South Campus.
UMSL goalkeeper Allysa Wolf prevents a shot from a University of Wisconsin–Parkside player during a match on Sept. 2. The No. 25 women’s soccer team defeated Parkside 2-1 for its first win of the season.
Jesse Bier, president of the UMSL Physics and Astronomy Club, uses liquid nitrogen to make ice cream for the group during a recent club meeting on Sept. 4.
UMSL students listen to representatives from St. Louis-area accounting firms during the UMSL Accounting Club‘s Launch Your Career event on Sept. 15. The event offered students the opportunity to meet professionals from some of the area’s leading public accounting firms and find out what they do, what opportunities they offer students and what it’s really like to start a career in public accounting.
A nursing student receives her white coat during the Lighting the Path Ceremony held in the MSC on Sept. 23.
Members of UMSL’s University Singers perform during the Acappellooza Fall festival held in the Blanche M. Touhill Performing Arts Center on Sept. 23.
