Home

10%

The Year in Photos

WashU 2025

By WashU

January 13^th, 2026

This collection of images reflects the moments that shaped the WashU community over the past year. Together, they embody the energy, connections and achievements that defined our university.

A person is seen in the window of Olin Library at dusk. Whitney Curtis/WashU

A student studies in the evening on the South 40. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Students study in McKelvey Hall. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Students gather in Whispers Cafe in Olin Library. Virginia Harold/WashU

Students study in Frick Forum. Virginia Harold/WashU

Law students study in the Janite Lee Reading Room in Anheuser-Busch Hall. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Alex Mouw (left) walks with his son, Ben Mouw, on a snowy day. Joe Angeles/WashU

Graham Chapel is reflected in the windows of Busch Laboratory. Joe Angeles/WashU

Snow blankets the campus at night. Whitney Curtis/WashU

A message of love is left in the snow on the Danforth Campus. Ali Overstreet/WashU

Children sled near Brown Hall. Virginia Harold/WashU

Sledders embraced a snow-day tradition on Art Hill in Forest Park. Whitney Curtis/WashU

The university community comes together in Graham Chapel to honor the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. and the impact he has made. The event included various speakers, student performances and an award ceremony. Danny Reise/WashU

A person walks through the Ridgley Arcade on the first day of classes. Whitney Curtis/WashU

"¿Te puedo contar algo?", celebrates the eighth year of the MFA in Dance final project with choreography by Tess Angelica Losada-Tindall and Lourdes del Mar Santiago Lebrón. Danny Reise/WashU

WashU undergraduates rehearse for — WashU undergraduates rehearse for "Echoes of Her," a Black Anthology production in Edison Theatre. Danny Reise/WashU

WashU undergraduates rehearse for — WashU undergraduates rehearse for "Echoes of Her," a Black Anthology production. Danny Reise/WashU

Students visit under a Japanese flowering crabapple. Virginia Harold/WashU

Daffodils bloom on the east end of the Danforth Campus. Whitney Curtis/WashU

WashU medical students announce their residency placements on Match Day. Matt Miller/WashU Medicine

Coach Preeta George, MD, an associate professor in pediatric anesthesiology, poses with students after the White Coat Ceremony on the Medical Campus. Matt Miller/WashU Medicine

Postdoctoral research associate and RISE fellow Alex Francette talks with his mentor, David Piston, chair of cell biology and physiology. Matt Miller/WashU Medicine

Dan Giammar (left), the Walter E. Browne Professor of Environmental Engineering and director of WashU’s Center for the Environment, talks with PhD students Yihang Yuan and Qi Yang in Giammar's lab. Whitney Curtis/WashU

WashU student Hayden Carlson (left) helps Central Middle School students with an experiment during — WashU student Hayden Carlson (left) helps Central Middle School students with an experiment during "Researcher for a Day" in an engineering lab in Brauer Hall. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Missouri state Rep. Del Taylor (center) speaks with students Megan Manaj (left), Nicole Lukens and Luke Johnston and Tonya Rice (right), assistant vice chancellor for advocacy and engagement, at the Capitol in Jefferson City. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Chancellor Andrew Martin guest teaches Ted Enamorado’s “Quantitative Political Methodology” class. Joe Angeles/WashU

Andrew Knight (center), executive director of the Bauer Leaders Academy, visits with students participating in the academy’s Leader's Cup Challenge. Jerry Naunheim Jr./WashU

Linda Samuels (center), professor and chair of urban design at the Sam Fox School, speaks with graduate students Nayoung Shin (left) and Amanda Kesler. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Senior lecturer Jennifer Ingram (right) assists Julia Yuan as senior fashion design students work on their final projects for the school’s 96th annual Fashion Design Show. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Swarm captain Sebastian Theiler (center) speaks with student members of the WashU Robotics club’s Swarm program as they gather in McKelvey Hall to work on custom-made, small-scale robots capable of cooperative behavior. Sid Hastings/WashU

Accessioning archivist Esther Gabriel looks at slides from the Kartemquin Films documentary “Hoop Dreams” stored at Olin Library. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Project film preservationist Lydia Creech examines a film reel from the Kartemquin Films documentary “Vietnam: Long Time Coming” at the West Campus Library. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Associate Professor Pablo Moyano Fernández shows students his new method for designing and building with concrete to create Avis Spiralis, or spiral bird, a bird blind and observation tower at the Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary. Caitlin Custer/WashU

College of Architecture students prepare for their final reviews in Weil Hall. Caitlin Custer/WashU

Visitors view works on display in the “Dream Machines” exhibition at the Sam Fox School Gallery on the Delmar Loop. Theo R. Welling/WashU

Tiffany Calvert, associate professor and chair of the MFA in Visual Art program, combines cutting-edge artificial intelligence, abstraction and oil painting in her work to critique and magnify the very human biases in datasets. Caitlin Custer/WashU

A visitor at the Kemper Art Museum views artist Mary Weatherford’s largest painting, “Light Falling Like a Broken Chain; Paradise.” The medium is Flashe on linen. Kate Munsch/WashU

A volunteer releases a wood thrush after being processed at Tyson Research Center. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Elizabeth Biro (left), natural resources coordinator and staff scientist at Tyson, observes Valerie Geile as she removes a bird from a mist net. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Samantha Matchefts, bird banding coordinator with World Bird Sanctuary, examines the wings of an indigo bunting for parasites and molt limit. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Maricela J Becerra Garcia (left) and Elizabeth Guevarta Golden attend the Urban Humanities Network’s Global (Un)Conference 2 session, “Politics of Plants,” which involved visits to contrasting landscapes in Bridgeton, Mo. Sid Hastings/WashU

Win Sen Heng (left), a postdoctoral research associate, and Elizabeth Flock, a research technician, plant trees along the St. Vincent Greenway in north St. Louis during a WashU Service Saturday volunteer event. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Undergrad Charlie Rosser collects soil samples for the WashU Public Exchange project, CLEAN STL, in partnership with the nonprofit Better Family Life, in north St. Louis communities affected by the May 2025 tornado. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Students look through a telescope during the “International Observe the Moon Night” event in the Crow Hall Observatory. Theo R. Welling/WashU

Marick Starick, a postdoctoral research associate, works at the research bench in the molecular microbiology lab of Professor Christina Stallings. Matt Miller/WashU Medicine

DBBS graduate student Aishwarya Nambiar works at the bench in Timothy Miller’s lab at the Fort Neuroscience Research Building. Matt Miller/WashU Medicine

Alex Quillin, who was a graduate student in chemist Jen Heemstra's laboratory, has started a new job as an industrial postdoc with MilliporeSigma, where she will work to commercialize some of the technology she developed in the lab. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Jackson Turner, postdoctoral researcher Dobin (Robin) Ju and staff scientist Laura Arnold work in the Ellebedy lab at BJC Institute of Health. Matt Miller/WashU Medicine

Katherine Bligard, MD, clinical nurse coordinator Sarah Smith (far left) and nurse Brittany Brooks work on a fetoscopic surgery in Parkview Tower. Matt Miller/WashU Medicine

Jaylanie Lancello, 11, has an appointment with Mitchell A. Pet, MD, at the Center for Advanced Medicine before heading home to Saint Lucia. Lancello received care for malignant sarcoma and pediatric musculoskeletal oncology surgery. Matt Miller/WashU

Martin Mwita Jr. is discharged after receiving an FDA-approved treatment for sickle cell disease at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. The patient, from Nebraska, came to the hospital for gene therapy, the first offered in the region. Matt Miller/WashU

Eva M. Agüero Benzecri, graduate student, Sam Fox School. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Jay Truel, School of Medicine. Whitney Curtis/WashU

M.J. Brown, undergraduate, Olin Business School. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Joshin Kumar, PhD candidate, McKelvey School of Engineering. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Amelia Letson, undergraduate, Arts & Sciences. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Shana Brooks, undergraduate, CAPS. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Andrew Rudolph, undergraduate, Arts & Sciences. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Emily Culley, graduate student, Arts & Sciences. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Mayah Clayton, graduate student, Brown School. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Justin Xu, undergraduate, Arts & Sciences. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Jason Shefferman, School of Law. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Gaelen Clayton, undergraduate, McKelvey School of Engineering. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Simone Biles delivers the 2025 Commencement address at Francis Olympic Field. Joe Angeles/WashU

Actress, activist and author Jenifer Lewis receives an honorary degree from Chancellor Andrew D. Martin (left) and Grand Marshal Dwight McBride. Virginia Harold/WashU

Rochelle Walensky (center), MD, former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is recognized by Chancellor Andrew D. Martin during Commencement as Grand Marshal Dwight McBride (left) looks on. Joe Angeles/WashU

Arts & Sciences graduates brave the rain as they head to their Commencement ceremony. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Graduates relax in Frick Forum. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Graduates celebrate. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Graduates gathered for the 2025 December Recognition Ceremony at the Field House. Sid Hastings/WashU

Graduate Tatiane Domingues Pinheiro (left) and her husband, Vinicius Pinheiro, kiss at the December Recognition Ceremony. Sid Hastings/WashU

Graduates celebrate during the May ceremony. Carol Green/WashU

Stanley Cook congratulates student speaker Nathan Barry (foreground) after the latter’s address during the CAPS Prison Education Project commencement at the Missouri Eastern Correctional Center. Joe Angeles/WashU

Graduating students at the WashU Medicine MD Commencement recognition ceremony celebrate their achievements at Stifel Theatre. Matt Miller/WashU Medicine

Graduates celebrate in front of Brookings Hall. Carol Green/WashU

WashU Police Department comfort dogs Bear and Brookie pose in their regalia ahead of Commencement. Sherry Haines/WashU

WashU Police Department comfort dog Misty poses in her regalia ahead of Commencement. Sherry Haines/WashU

Senior Marilee Karinshak celebrates the No. 1 WashU women's soccer team's second-straight NCAA Division III national championship on Dec. 6. The Bears beat UAA rival Emory 2-1. Brian Bishop/D3 Photography.com

Ally Lin, now a sophomore, collapses in celebration of the Bears women’s tennis NCAA Division III national championship in May. The team won its first-ever title with a 4-3 win over No. 3 Pomona-Pitzer. Photo by WashU Athletics

The WashU women’s tennis team claimed its first-ever NCAA Division III national championship with a 4-3 win over No. 3 Pomona-Pitzer in the title match in May. Photo by WashU Athletics

The women’s soccer team has won three national championships under coach Jim Conlon. Brian Bishop/D3 Photography.com

The No. 1 WashU women's soccer team won its second-straight NCAA Division III national championship Dec. 6 with a 2-1 win over rival Emory University in December. Brian Bishop/D3 Photography.com

Students destressed before finals with ice skating, hot chocolate and some special guests during Dr. G’s Fun House. Jenny Sinamon/WashU

Students and families enjoyed food, music and activities during the Parent and Family Weekend Dr. G’s Fun House. Jenny Sinamon/WashU

Sam Fox students attend Foxapalooza at the beginning of the fall semester. Caitlin Custer/WashU

Students play Spikeball in Tisch Park. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Students attend the Taylor Family Center's First-Year Kickoff 2025 featuring games, snow cones and an opportunity for students to meet their peer mentors. Rebecca K Clark/WashU

Students play volleyball in Tisch Park. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Students prepare for Thurtene Carnival near Francis Olympic Field. Joe Angeles/WashU

Pop artist Flo Rida headlined the spring WILD concert on Mudd Field. DJ and producer Mustard and WashU student band On Hold with the I.R.S. also performed. Kate Munsch/WashU

The Gephardt Institute hosts The Longest Table, a civic dialogue event featuring guided discucssion and a shared meal. The theme was “Moving Forward Through Uncertain Times. — The Gephardt Institute hosts The Longest Table, a civic dialogue event featuring guided discucssion and a shared meal. The theme was “Moving Forward Through Uncertain Times." Kate Munsch/WashU

The Gephardt Institute hosts The Longest Table, a civic dialogue event featuring guided discucssion and a shared meal. The theme was “Moving Forward Through Uncertain Times. — The Gephardt Institute hosts The Longest Table, a civic dialogue event featuring guided discucssion and a shared meal. The theme was “Moving Forward Through Uncertain Times." Whitney Curtis/WashU

WashU faculty, staff and students attend PrideFest 2025 in downtown St. Louis. JJ Lane/WashU

Students are judged on their work during the second day of the annual Fitzgibbon Charrette in Weil Hall. Virginia Harold/WashU

St. Louis Symphony Orchestra members perform in a small ensemble for students, faculty, staff and community members on the South 40 of the Danforth Campus. Virginia Harold/WashU

The Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian Studies at the Brown School celebrates its 35th annual Buder Center Powwow at the Field House. Jeff Curry/WashU

WashU’s John C. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics hosts — WashU’s John C. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics hosts "A Conversation with Ta-Nehisi Coates" with author Coates (right) and Elizabeth Hinton, Yale professor of history, African American studies and law. Sid Hastings/WashU

Anna Gonzalez (left), vice chancellor for student affairs, and her dog, Yoshi, and Chancellor Andrew Martin (right) pose with students under the South 40 overpass on the first day of classes. Jenny Sinamon/WashU

University leaders officially welcome new students to the WashU community during Convocation. Sid Hastings/WashU

University leaders officially welcome new students to the WashU community during Convocation. Whitney Curtis/WashU

University leaders officially welcome new students to the WashU community during Convocation. Thomas Malkowicz/WashU

Ronné P. Turner (left), vice provost for admissions and financial aid, and Anna Gonzalez, vice chancellor for student affairs, dance on stage during Convocation. Sid Hastings/WashU

University leaders officially welcome new students to the WashU community during Convocation. Whitney Curtis/WashU

WashU cheerleaders celebrate with students during Party in the Park, which included food, festivities and a concert for first-year students. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Students dance during Party in the Park, which included food, festivities and a concert for first-year students. Whitney Curtis/WashU

The WashU hot air balloon is inflated during the Great Forest Park Balloon Glow at Emerson Central Fields. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Undergraduates Anna Siegel (left) and Annie Zhang visit with each other under the ginkgo trees. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Alumnae and a student enjoy time together on Mudd Field. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Undergraduates Kai Lee (left) and Miles Grusin climb a ginkgo tree. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Students enjoy a warm fall day outside Zetcher House on the South 40. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Undergraduates Hali Dib (left) and Ada Emerson relax in Tisch Park. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Undergraduate students Tylond Buchanan (from left to right), Lindsey Morris and Ada Gibson study together in Tisch Park. Whitney Curtis/WashU

Hillman and Brown halls bask in the golden light of dawn. Whitney Curtis/WashU

The sun rises on Tisch Park and Weil Hall. Virginia Harold/WashU

WashU hosted the Urban Humanities Network’s Global (Un)Conference 2, a gathering for academics to share areas in which they have cultivated focused efforts toward urban and public humanities scholarship and practice. Sid Hastings/WashU

WashU’s “In St. Louis, For St. Louis” and Campus Life departments hosted St. Louis Shakespeare Festival’s TourCo production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” Whitney Curtis/WashU

Footnotes

Curated and designed by Whitney Curtis, WashU Senior Photographer & Videographer

FootNotes

Curated and designed by Whitney Curtis, WashU Senior Photographer & Videographer

© 2026 WashU

Loading, please hold on.