Welcome President Jones!

The Board of Regents named Robert J. Jones the 34th President of the UW. Jones visited campus a few days later and talked about his excitement to join the University.

鈥淚 am honored to be joining the 91探花 and excited to lead this extraordinary public university in its mission serving students, families and communities across Washington and beyond,鈥� Dr. Robert J. Jones said.

Media assets:

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

Snow days on campus

Students took advantage of a delayed start at the 91探花in Seattle.

Snow day in Seattle! 鉂勶笍 Stay safe everyone. @uofwa.bsky.social campus is on a delayed start until 10 a.m. today.

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91探花researchers shared their love stories

For Valentine鈥檚 Day, 91探花News asked 12 91探花researchers to share what made them fall in love with their work.

For Valentine鈥檚 Day, 91探花News asked 12 @uofwa.bsky.social researchers to share their love stories: What made them decide to pursue their career paths? 馃У 1/3Their stories: bit.ly/4kcgPFt

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Cherry blossoms

Everyone’s favorite: cherry blossom season! Thousands of people flocked to campus to see the blooming trees.

Bloom check 馃尭It's a beautiful spring day in Seattle, the sun is out and the blossoms are emerging on the cherry trees in the Quad. @uofwa.bsky.social bit.ly/4l7z5QO

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National Library Week

In honor of National Library Week, 91探花News spoke with Julie Tanaka, associate dean for Distinctive Collections, about the library’s unique 1544 edition of Dante Alighieri’s “Divine Comedy.”

馃摎 In honor of National Library Week we spoke with Julie Tanaka, associate dean for Distinctive Collections at @uofwa.bsky.social Libraries, about the library's unique 1544 edition of Dante Alighieri's "Divine Comedy."More: https://bit.ly/42h0Xu1x

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Season 2 of “Ways of Knowing”

The 91探花News office and the College of Arts & Sciences released the second season of their podcast “Ways of Knowing.”

The podcast "Ways of Knowing鈥� highlights how the humanities can reflect everyday life. In S2 Ep1, Anna Preus @uwartsci.bsky.social discusses how she digitally streamlines the documentation of historical text.More: www.washington.edu/news/2025/05…

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2025 Commencement

In June, more than 7,000 members of the 91探花Class of 2025 participated in commencement ceremonies at Husky Stadium.

More than 7,400 @uofwa.bsky.social graduates of the Class of 2025 participated in Saturday's commencement ceremony at Husky Stadium. Media assets: drive.google.com/file/d/1qXI3…

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More than 7,400 @uofwa.bsky.social graduates of the Class of 2025 鈥� the most ever to pre-register 鈥� plan to participate in the June 14 ceremony.More: www.washington.edu/news/2025/06…

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Vera C. Rubin Observatory unveils a new glimpse into the solar system

A new era of astronomy and astrophysics began when the first images captured by the NSF鈥揇OE Vera C. Rubin Observatory were released, demonstrating the extraordinary capabilities of the telescope and the world鈥檚 largest digital camera.

A new era of astronomy and astrophysics began Monday when the first images captured by the were released, demonstrating the extraordinary capabilities of the new telescope and the world鈥檚 largest digital camera.
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— 91探花News (@uwnews)

President Jones officially starts

President Jones was welcomed as the UW’s 34th president ahead of fall quarter.

Let's give a warm Husky welcome to the UW's 34th President, Robert J. Jones!President Jones will hold a faculty appointment in the Department of Biology in @uwartsci.bsky.social, and is a distinguished scholar whose research focuses on crop physiology.www.washington.edu/president/bi…

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Story pole installed on campus

A story pole, created by three Coast Salish carvers, was installed on campus outside of Denny Hall.

Sven Haakanson, a 91探花professor of anthropology, worked with three Coast Salish carvers to install a story pole on campus. Story poles are created to share and teach Coast Salish legends, histories and stories. A celebration will be held by the carvers on Thursday.www.washington.edu/news/2025/09…

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Welcome back, Huskies!

Welcome, Huskies! Thousands of incoming @uofwa.bsky.social students gathered for an annual 'W' formation today after kicking off the school year with a convocation ceremony. #newhuskies2025 #uwdawgdazeMedia assets: drive.google.com/drive/folder…

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Welcome back to class today, Huskies!

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91探花alum wins Nobel Prize

Mary Brunkow graduated from the 91探花with a bachelor鈥檚 degree in molecular & cellular biology and currently works at the Institute for Systems Biology in Seattle.

91探花alum Mary Brunkow, 鈥�83, won the Nobel Prize in Medicine this morning.This photo was taken while she was on the phone with the Nobel Committee in Sweden. Mary said she initially missed the call because a strange number popped up on her phone 鈥� she thought it might be spam.1/3

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Tuition funded

Just before the holidays, an estimated $50 million gift from an anonymous donor was given to cover tuition for the senior-year clinical rotations of all undergraduate students enrolled in the Medical Laboratory Science Program.

A heartfelt thank you to an anonymous donor for funding tuition for senior-year clinical rotations for @uofwa.bsky.social Medical Laboratory Science seniors 鈥� now and for decades to come. The educational program, which awards a Bachelor of Science degree, is offered by the @uwsom-wwami.bsky.social.

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National Championship Game

2024 started off with the NCAA National Championship game between the Washington Huskies and the Michigan Wolverines. 91探花News was there while fans in Houston, Texas cheered on the Huskies and we spoke with 91探花professors about the impact the game had on the players and the community.

Despite a loss to Michigan for the national title, the Pac-12 Champion Huskies gave fans a dream season.

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

鈥淎s a Black historian and avid sports fan, I am struck by the historical significance of what a Michael Penix-led victory on Monday night would mean," says Chris Tounsel associate professor of history at the UW. 馃У 1/3

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

Connection to a sports team is the basis for a sense of social connection, says sociology professor Kyle Crowder, and sports teams can represent a link to our community.

Crowder is teaching a class this winter called The Sociology of Sport. 馃У 1/4

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

Freezing temperatures

Then a cold front hit the Pacific Northwest bringing below-freezing temperatures to Seattle for several days.

Drumheller fountain after a weekend of below freezing temperatures 馃ザ

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

Cherry blossoms

A couple of months later temperatures warmed up and the cherry blossoms on campus reached peak bloom. Thousands of people flocked to campus to see the blooming trees despite the rain.

If you haven't seen the cherry trees yet, you have a few days left. Peak bloom is set to continue at least through this weekend, according to arborist Sara Shores.

More:

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

A cloudy solar eclipse

And in true Seattle fashion, the gloomy weather held up for another weather-dependent event. Cloud cover obscured the solar eclipse, but it didn’t stop people from having a viewing party.

People gathered in the courtyard of the Physics-Astronomy Building on the Seattle campus Monday to try and watch the solar eclipse. But in true Seattle fashion the sun did not make an appearance.

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

2024 Commencement

In June, more than 7,000 members of the 91探花Class of 2024 participated in commencement ceremonies at Husky Stadium.

More than 7,000 graduates of the Class of 2024 participated in Saturday's commencement ceremony at Husky Stadium. Media assets:

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

Congrats to all the 2024 graduates! 馃帗

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

91探花ranks high among global universities

Over the course of the year, the 91探花received several accolades including making the list of best global universities.

The tied for No. 7 on the U.S. News & World Report鈥檚 Best Global Universities rankings, released on Tuesday. The 91探花maintained its No. 2 ranking among U.S. public institutions.
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— 91探花News (@uwnews)

The is among the best universities in the world, according to the 2025 World University Rankings published Wednesday by .
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— 91探花News (@uwnews)

Move-in days

Students began moving in on campus ahead of classes starting and then gathered on the field in Husky Stadium for the annual “W” formation.

It鈥檚 once again mini fridge season at the as students move into campus housing and prepare for the new academic year. 馃挏馃挍

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

Thousands of incoming students participated in the annual 鈥榃鈥� formation Sunday at Husky Stadium after kicking off the school year with a convocation ceremony.

More:

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

David Baker wins Nobel Prize

Just as the fall quarter was kicking off, 91探花 biochemist David Baker won the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

"Joining the ranks of Nobel Laureates is a testament to David Baker's dedication and innovation. The 91探花is proud to be a place that fosters groundbreaking and impactful research, and extends its heartfelt congratulations to David on this remarkable recognition." 鈥�

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

Economic Impact Report

And a report found that the 91探花generated a total impact on the state鈥檚 economy of $20.9 billion in fiscal year 2023 and supported or sustained 111,951 jobs statewide.

Across its three campuses, the generated a total impact on the state鈥檚 economy of $20.9 billion in fiscal year 2023 and supported or sustained 111,951 jobs statewide, according to an economic contribution analysis.
Report:

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

Zombies, werewolves, demons and countless other monsters have been part of society for as long as humanity has existed. In medieval times, they appeared in almost every church in Europe, from artwork to stained glass to sculptures. These monsters also decorated the margins of manuscripts, sometimes even appearing as the main characters. In modern society, monsters appear in movies, books and television shows. These monsters are more than just a part of the story鈥檚 narrative 鈥� they can give us a glimpse into the norms and beliefs of society at that time.

, 91探花 teaching professor of history, studies monsters and monstrosities in medieval European chronicles and recently published a book, One of her focuses is the purpose monsters served for medieval Europeans and what we can learn about medieval European society by looking at the monsters these people created, which served as vehicles for expressing their anxieties and fears.

鈥淭here were a lot of different things in both the ancient and medieval worlds that defined a monster,鈥� Urbanski said. 鈥淪ome of them were physical 鈥� like excess, deficiency, deformity, hybridity. And then there were a whole host of cultural or behavioral attributes that could also be defined as monstrous. These sort of were set against what was considered to be civilized.鈥�

Urbanski鈥檚 favorite monsters are dragons, werewolves and revenants 鈥� the undead ancestors of modern-day vampires and zombies 鈥� because they have been carried over for centuries from medieval Europe to modern society.

鈥淭his idea of the undead, people who bodily returned from the dead for one reason or another, must just appeal to some profoundly dark aspect of the human psyche: This fear that the dead are going to return,鈥� Urbanski said. 鈥淭hat is definitely one of the things that just seems to cut across cultures and across time periods.鈥�

Stories about werewolves have also withstood the test of time, Urbanski says.聽Werewolves in the Middle Ages were knights who, after returning home from war, would take off their clothing and go live like wolves in the woods, killing humans and animals. When a wife would go looking for her husband, she would find his clothing and take it, trapping him in wolf form.

鈥淭he anxieties expressed in these tales really have to do with the knights themselves,鈥� Urbanski said. 鈥淭heir primary function in society is warfare. They go and engage in what could be considered bestial acts on a regular basis, killing other people.鈥�

These transformations of the knight into the werewolf were voluntary, she said. The man would take off his clothing or put on a ring and transform into a wolf. In modern werewolf stories, however, the transformation is usually involuntary. The person is often bitten and turned into a werewolf during a full moon.

The wife is often seen as the monster in the medieval versions, Urbanski said, because she would find a new lover once she had trapped her husband in wolf form. In these stories, the werewolf would befriend the king and show he is still noble, honorable and rational. The wife would eventually be questioned. After revealing that she trapped her husband in wolf form and ran off with another knight, the wife would be punished.

鈥淚 think that humans can’t really live without monsters on some level, because they’re just so helpful to us in so many ways, whether it’s helping us define what makes us human or, again, sort of policing boundaries,鈥� Urbanski said. 鈥淭hey’re just too useful. If they didn’t exist, we’d have to invent them.鈥�

For more information, contact Urbanski at鈥�urbanski@uw.edu.

The film version of 鈥淭he Boys in the Boat,鈥� released on Dec. 25, was inspired by the鈥�91探花 men鈥檚 rowing team鈥痶hat won a gold medal at the 1936 Olympics. It鈥檚 based on the 2013 book by Daniel James Brown.

But there is more to the story than the improbable victory by 91探花student-athletes from small towns and working-class backgrounds. The 1936 Olympics were held in Berlin, following a failed movement in the United States and Europe to boycott the games in protest of the oppression and persecution of German Jews and other communities.

, professor of history at the UW, studies Weimar and Nazi Germany with a focus on queer and trans people. Germany was named the host of the 1936 Olympics before the Nazis came to power, Marhoefer said, and the Games were supposed to serve as part of the country鈥檚 rehabilitation after World War I. Instead, they became known as the Nazi Olympics.

鈥淚n 1936, Adolf Hitler had been in power for three years and the Nazi dictatorship was well-established,鈥� Marhoefer said. 鈥淎ll of the things you associate with Nazism were already in place and already a lot of the alarming levels of racism and violence that later get much more pronounced and ends in the Holocaust were apparent.鈥�

91探花News sat down with Marhoefer to discuss the state of Germany at the time, the push for a boycott, and how 鈥� despite the fact that Olympics gold medals by Jesse Owens and the 91探花Men’s Rowing team, among others, undermined some of Hitler’s claims 鈥� the 1936 Olympic Games cemented Hitler’s status as a leader among Germans, which in part led to the Holocaust and World War II.

For more information, contact Marhoefer at marl@uw.edu.

These included stories about new biodegradable plastics that break down at the same rate as a banana and efforts to make technology more accessible.

We use plastics in almost every aspect of our lives. These materials are cheap to make and incredibly stable. The problem comes when we鈥檙e done using something plastic 鈥� it can persist in the environment for years. 馃У 1/3

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— 91探花News (@uwnews)

A team led by researchers at the and has created A11yBoard for Google Slides, a browser extension and phone or tablet app that allows blind users to navigate through complex slide layouts, objects, images and text.

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

And announcements of recognition on the work being done by 91探花researchers and on the University itself.

@UWlinguistics was included on 100 AI of 2023.

"Her gimlet-eyed research on the dangers of large language models and her withering cross-examinations of the AI hype cycle have made her one of the industry鈥檚 most formidable critics."

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

. was included on 's list TIME100 AI of 2023. "Choi鈥檚 research focuses on the many ways in which human intelligence differs from that of AIs like ChatGPT."

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

The is No. 18 in the world 鈥� and No. 3 among U.S. public universities 鈥� on the 2023 Academic Ranking of World Universities, released Aug. 15.

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

91探花News used social media to highlight important events on campus including graduation, the start of a new school year, and cherry blossom season.

Welcome, Huskies! Thousands of incoming students gathered at Husky Stadium for an annual 鈥榃鈥� formation today after kicking off the school year with a convocation ceremony. More media assets:

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

Good luck on your rainy first day of school, Huskies! 鈽�

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

Wishing we could slow down time to make season last longer 馃尭

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

We showcased the inspiring work being done by educators across Washington state.

All students have the right to be included in academic opportunities, not separated from peers based on disability or learning differences. The 's Haring Center for Inclusive Education is helping reimagine special education in ways that uplift all.

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

We shared tips from a professor of public policy to help voters ensure their ballots weren’t rejected ahead of Election Day.

Washington state ballots have been mailed to voters ahead of Election Day next week. A new study by the Evans School of Public Policy & Governance at the has been examining why ballots are rejected to improve the voter experience.

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— 91探花News (@uwnews)

Also this year 91探花News, along with the College of Arts & Sciences, collaborated on an eight-episode podcast, “Ways of Knowing,” which focuses on faculty research in the humanities.

Season 1 of 鈥淲ays of Knowing鈥� shows how contemporary humanities research and thought provide novel ways of understanding our contemporary world and the history that got us here. Each episode features a professor from .
More:

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

Before we empathized with the Thing, comic books were filled with white, chiseled heroes battling swarthy, impaired villains. Jos茅 Alaniz discusses in "Ways of Knowing" ep 5.

Full episode:

— 91探花News (@uwnews)

This year, 91探花News shared a total of 344 posts on X with more than 720,000 impressions.

In 2023, 91探花News also relaunched its . A total of 202 posts were shared on Facebook with more than 515,000 impressions.