Chancellor Kristin Sobolik used her annual State of the University Address to highlight ways UMSL is adapting to meet the changing needs of the community.
Stories by Steve Walentik
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Recent graduate Elijah Braswell serving as Valley Park alderman while eyeing law school
Braswell, who completed his bachelor’s degree in history in May, is one of two representatives of Ward 4 and is serving on the Police Committee and Public Works Committee.
Fall semester opening at UMSL with 25 new faculty members
Keeta Holmes and Alice Hall helped new faculty members get acclimated to the UMSL community during orientation last Tuesday.
Proud to be an American: Vice Chancellor Chris Spilling becomes naturalized citizen after more than 30 years at UMSL
Spilling recited the Oath of Allegiance at a naturalization ceremony on Aug. 11 at the Thomas F. Eagleton United States Courthouse.
New CCJ graduate Myranda Hogg settling into role at Federal Public Defender’s Office
Hogg began working as a legal administrative assistant in May and completed her master’s degree in criminology and criminal justice this month.
James S. McDonnell Foundation awards $2.4 million grant to help St. Louis Anchor Action Network continue its work and expand its impact
The three-year grant will allow for additional staffing and programming to support network members.
Patricia Zahn helps strengthen connections between UMSL, wider community
Zahn is in her 13th year at UMSL and serves as the director of community outreach and engagement and legislative liaison while supporting the Des Lee Collaborative Vision.
UMSL criminologists behind new report showing declines in violent crime across US
Curators’ Distinguished Professor Emeritus Richard Rosenfeld and doctoral candidates Ernesto Lopez and Bobby Boxerman co-authored the report for the Council on Criminal Justice.
Criminologist Lee Slocum researching ideas about community safety across different regions, including in St. Louis County
Slocum is surveying residents of St. Louis County; Mecklenburg County, North Carolina; and Missoula County, Montana, in a project sponsored by the MacArthur Foundation.
UMSL Athletics celebrates another banner year in sports and academics
The Tritons celebrated two regional titles, had three Great Lakes Valley Conference players of the year and saw a record 174 student-athletes earn Academic All-GLVC honors.
CLIMB marks nine years helping area high school students gain lab experience through paid internships
Eight young women from the Hazelwood, Jennings and University City school districts took part in the six-week program this summer.
Gov. Mike Parson signs budget directing $20 million to Transform UMSL alongside an increase in core funding
The FY24 funding follows $40 million in ARPA funding the state directed to the university last year to kickstart UMSL’s first steps in realizing its Campus Master Plan.
Pressing the start button: UMSL prepares to launch new esports program this fall
Bovey Zhang is serving as the inaugural director of the program after previous stints at Cottey College and Saint Leo University.
Biology doctoral student Ketra Oketcho aims to improve global food security through research at Danforth Plant Science Center
Oketcho is trying to understand the mechanisms behind native resistance to cassava mosaic virus, which impacts cassava, a tuberous root plant that is a staple crop in much of Africa.
UMSL Addiction Science Team hosts roundtable with Assistant Secretary for Health Admiral Rachel Levine
The meeting focused on ways to increase access to naloxone for people impacted by addiction in low-income housing.
50 area high school students attend UMSL’s inaugural geospatial summer camp
The four-day camp provided students with an introduction to geospatial science and gave them a chance to work with GIS tools such as ArcGIS to investigate policy problems.
Ask an expert: Criminologist Richard Rosenfeld studies the impact the opioid epidemic has had on homicides
The Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation recently published a report from Rosenfeld and colleagues Joel Wallman and Randolph Roth showing a link between opioids and homicide.
UMSL welcomes new Commissioner Bennett Boggs, members of Missouri Coordinating Board for Higher Education
The board held the first quarterly meeting of Boggs’ tenure leading the Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development at the Touhill.
SGA President Sydney Stark bound for law school in New England
Stark graduated magna cum laude with degrees in criminology and criminal justice and Spanish and a certificate from the Pierre Laclede Honors College.
Alumnus Marco Cheatham designs soccer ball commemorating Juneteenth for St. Louis CITY SC’s match against LA Galaxy
UMSL served as the presenting partner for the match, and the first 10,000 fans through the gates received a ball.
Chancellor Kristin Sobolik receives Good Scout Award from BSA’s Greater St. Louis Area Council
Sobolik joined a group of prominent area leaders to receive the award, including Rick Stevens, Dennis Gipson, Ed Monser and prominent UMSL alumni Art McCoy and the late Kirk Richter.
University of Missouri–St. Louis breaks ground on new Richter Family Welcome and Alumni Center
The new 31,000-square-foot center will serve as a gateway for prospective students while also providing a permanent home for the university’s more than 112,000 alumni.
Workshop helps teachers learn ways to bring geospatial technology into classrooms
More than two dozen teachers took part in Friday’s workshop, held in conjunction with the Geography 2050 STL: Feeding Our Future Planet symposium.
UMSL partners with American Geographical Society to host Geography 2050 STL
Thursday’s symposium had the theme “Feeding Our Future Planet” and covered issues at the intersection of geospatial technology and agriculture. It also included a teacher workshop on Friday.
New graduate Natalie Krauss set to pursue PhD in Medieval European History
Krauss’ first time in college ended in failure, but she returned more than a decade later with a renewed focus and graduated summa cum laude with degrees in English and history.
UMSL research jump starting movement to improve home repair system in St. Louis
Professor Todd Swanstrom and colleagues from the Community Innovation and Action Center discussed their recent study and potential policy reforms with local officials on Thursday.
Criminology and criminal justice graduate Hayden Steingruby hopes to enter St. Louis Police Academy
Steingruby graduated summa cum laude with both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees and also earned a bachelor’s degree in anthropology.
UMSL volleyball standout Charlotte Richards named 2023 GLVC Richard F. Scharf Paragon Award recipient
Richards is only the second UMSL athlete – and first female – to receive the award.
Former UMSL golfer Michael Block becomes feel-good story of 2023 PGA Championship
Block, who played for UMSL in the 1996-97 season, finished as the low club professional in the tournament and capped his weekend with a final-round ace on the par-3 15th.
Badri Adhikari develops new online tool to help writers and coders gain insight into their writing process
Process Feedback provides users analysis in charts and graphs to help them better visualize and understand the process they use to produce their work.
Adam Presswood helps fans connect with the St. Louis Cardinals from a new perspective
Presswood, who earned a graduate degree in museum studies, now serves as the supervisor of stadium tours and museum operations for the St. Louis Cardinals.
Math graduate Edmaelle Augustin joining J.P. Morgan’s Chase Leadership Development Program
Augustin is moving to Columbus, Ohio, and will begin the two-year program in July, working as an analyst through three eight-month rotations to learn about the company.
Richard B. Primack highlights how climate change is hitting famed Walden Pond during Jane and Whitney Harris Lecture
The Boston University professor delivered last week’s lecture, presented by UMSL’s Whitney R. Harris World Ecology Center, at the Saint Louis Zoo.
University of Missouri–St. Louis names Andrew Balkansky new dean of the College of Arts and Sciences
Balkansky, a longtime faculty member and administrator at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, will assume his new position on July 1.
UMSL launching competition for new alma mater, taking nominations for 60 alumni spotlights ahead of 60th anniversary celebration
Students, alumni, faculty, staff and friends of the university are encouraged to enter the alma mater competition or nominate successful alumni through the 60th anniversary website.
UMSL students take turn investigating financial crime in IRS Criminal Investigation’s Citizen Academy
The Citizen Academy was created to expose students to the work of IRS-CI and financial crime investigations so they might consider it as a possible career.
Psychology graduate Sejla Muslic aims to support mental health among Bosnian community
Muslic, who came to the United States as a refugee from the Balkans when she was 7 months old, is also earning a certificate in children’s advocacy studies.
Friends, supporters gather to celebrate upcoming renovation of University Libraries
The $12.1 million renovation project will open the building to the Quad, revitalize the interior and help better showcase the St. Louis Mercantile Library collections.
Inaugural cohort celebrates completion of UMSL Emerging Leaders Program
A total of 21 faculty and staff members from across campus made up the inaugural cohort and took part in four daylong retreats throughout the academic year.
Alumnus Dan Lauer leaves a legacy of success as founding executive director of UMSL Accelerate
Lauer led the creation of the Ameren Accelerator and Anchor Accelerator as well as helping weave entrepreneurship into the curriculum in the College of Business Administration.
Children’s Advocacy Services of Greater St. Louis commemorates Child Abuse Prevention Month with open house, pinwheel garden at UMSL
St. Louis County Executive Dr. Sam Page attended the event and shared a resolution declaring April Child Abuse Prevention Month in St. Louis County.
UMSL honors faculty for research excellence at annual Research and Innovation reception
Vijay Anand, Xuemin “Sam” Wang, Ryan Carpenter, Natalie Bolton, Phyllis Balcerzak, Chanua Ross and Haitao Li were recognized for their research work.
St. Louis Anchor Action Network wins Business Journal’s Innovation in Philanthropy Award
The network, co-led by UMSL and Edward Jones, is focused on increasing hiring, purchasing and community investment in parts of the region that have faced disinvestment.
Ask an expert: Max Gillman discusses the causes of and fallout from high inflation
Gillman recently authored a book titled “The Spectre of Price Inflation,” published by Columbia University Press.
Six faculty members granted sabbaticals for research and other creative works
Deborah Cohen, Lea-Rachel Kosnik, Nathan Muchhala, Rebecca Rogers, Eric Wiland and Gaiyan Zhang will spend either a semester or one full academic year on sabbatical.
Author and educator Kimberly N. Parker headlines Gateway Writing Project’s spring conference
The event attracted an audience of about 75 educators from across the St. Louis region to the Millennium Student Center.
Information systems major Georgeann McLemore broadens horizons during time at UMSL
McLemore was one of 15 recipients of the AGA National Collegiate Leadership Scholarship and had the opportunity to network at AGA’s annual National Leadership Training in Washington, D.C.
Founders show off their companies’ growth during Anchor Accelerator Demo Day
The event celebrated the success of the six companies that made up the Anchor Accelerator’s third cohort and offered networking opportunities.
UMSL recognized as a ‘Voter Friendly Campus’ for fourth time
Fair Elections Center’s Campus Vote Project and NASPA recognized 258 campuses in 38 states and the District of Columbia on the 2023-24 list.
Professor Michael Cosmopoulos joining ‘Immortals’ in Academy of Athens
Cosmopoulos is a Greek-born archaeologist who studies the Bronze Age and is known for his contributions to the excavations of Eleusis and Iklaina.