WU arranges an international symposium on social policy, engineering, medicine

Washington University arranged an international symposium on social policy, engineering and medicine hosted by the National University of Singapore. Faculty lectures addressed a diverse range of topics about mechanobiology and “inclusive asset building for children in under-served regions.” They also stressed the importance of global collaboration and how technological progress can stimulate social progress. In addition to lectures, the symposium also featured a series of discussions to allow participating figures with a variety of professional backgrounds to address the intersection of their respective fields.

Two faculty members selected as first entrepreneurship fellows

Two Washington University faculty fellows were named inaugural faculty fellows in entrepreneurship. Vijay Ramani—he Roma B. and Raymond H. Witcoff Distinguished University Professor of Environment and Energy—is the faculty fellow to serve the Danforth Campus while Jennifer Silva, associate professor of pediatrics, is the faculty fellow to serve the Medical Campus.
The purpose of the faculty fellows will be to provide support and guidance to Washington University faculty members who are interested in entrepreneurship and other startup opportunities. Ramani and Silva will advise faculty members on how to adhere to the University’s policies and regulations on faculty startups while creating their own companies.
Ramani, whose primary research deals with electrochemical engineering, material science and renewable energy technologies, is an expert in electrochemical conversion and storage and renewable energy integration.
Silva, who joined the Washington University School of Medicine faculty in 2009, is a pediatric cardiologist at the St. Louis Children’s Hospital who specializes in treating children with irregular heartbeats. She co-founded the company SentiAR Inc., which commercializes a procedure to examine irregular heart rhythms.

Board of trustees appoints and promotes faculty members to tenure

During the Washington University board of trustees meeting Oct. 6, faculty members from multiple disciplines were appointed or promoted with tenure. Three faculty were appointed as professors with tenure in the School of Arts & Sciences, one in the School of Engineering & Applied Science and four in the School of Medicine. Nine faculty members were promoted with tenure as associate professors at the School of Medicine.