Giving from the heart
Mandee Polonsky, AB ’00, and her husband, Jonathan Polonsky, AB ’98, are both proud Chicago natives with deep family roots in the Windy City. Their story, however, begins in a different Midwestern city: St. Louis, and at WashU, specifically, where the two met at a fraternity party through Jonathan’s identical twin brother Daniel Polonsky, AB ’98. They were both students in Arts & Sciences — Mandee was studying political science and anthropology, and Jonathan, economics.
At the intersection of data, climate, and human health
In 2024, Bo Li joined Arts & Sciences as the Stanley A. Sawyer Professor in Statistics and Data Science. Her professorship — coming soon after the department’s formation — signals WashU’s deepening commitment to high-impact, transdisciplinary scholarship.
Internships shape a career path
Ariel Nochez came to WashU in August 2022 with a passion for technology. Since then, through studies on the Danforth Campus and far beyond it, he has been layering on new interests, forging a service-oriented career path that bridges disciplines. A student in the McKelvey School of Engineering, he is majoring in data science and linguistics with a minor in speech and hearing sciences.
Movement as medicine
At age 88, Professor Emerita of Physical Therapy Shirley Sahrmann, BS ’58, MA ’71, PhD ’73, PT, FAPTA, is still as passionate about advancing the field as she was when she joined the WashU faculty in 1961. Now retired, the revered educator of more than five decades — whose scholarship has shaped what it means to practice physical therapy today — continues to advocate for the role of movement in preventing illness and fostering healthier lives.
Seizing opportunity, advocating for change
Melanie Goldring, AB ’17, MSP ’19, MSW ’19, has always been driven and tenacious. Throughout her life and career, she has found ways to make productive use of challenges, leaning into the experiences that present themselves and maximizing their inherent opportunities for personal and professional growth.
Leading through connection: From research to advocacy
Tiffany Zhu, Class of 2026, is the first in her family to attend college. Well into her fourth year, she is still drawing deeply on the opportunities that WashU provides. In doing so, she is positioning herself to become a leading public health physician, committed to creating a system of holistic care so that more people feel connected to healthcare.
Grounded in global community
Claudia Romeu, AB ’08, grew up in Puerto Rico, where she was raised with strong values, including a deep sense of social responsibility toward others. At the same time, her upbringing was shaped by a relative lack of cultural diversity. Studying social anthropology at WashU helped open her eyes to other ways of living and the breadth of human experience.
Expert hands, timely hope
WashU Medicine’s Taylor Family Department of Neurosurgery is home to the latest innovations in neurosurgery and neurotechnology to address complex brain tumors. Eric C. Leuthardt, MD, performed a groundbreaking, minimally invasive procedure in 2010.
From Buder scholarship to community champion
Kerry Bird, MSW ’98, applied for a scholarship to study at the Brown School almost by chance — and last minute. Inspired by the possibility of making a meaningful impact in his community, he rushed out of the meeting, found a pay phone, and called the recruiter. A month later, he was enrolled at Brown on a Buder Scholarship. That call set him on a leadership path. Today, he serves as the director of the North Carolina American Indian Heritage Commission.
Cohen scholarship creates opportunities for families of educators
When Steve Cohen, BSBA ’89, and his wife, Jocelyn, established a scholarship at WashU in 2012, the gift was about more than supporting the university — it also had personal significance. In honor of Steve’s mother, who was a teacher, they set up the scholarship to benefit students who had educators in their families.