As we close the academic year: highlights and thanks from CAS Dean Meehan
May 15, 2026
Dear CAS alumni, friends, and supporters,
I recently received a note from university leadership sharing a letter from a family who had visited campus. During their time here, one of our faculty members took the lead in meeting with them, walking them through our spaces, and taking the time to answer questions and make a connection.
What stood out in the note was not just appreciation for the visit – it was how deeply the visit resonated. The family described feeling welcomed and genuinely excited about what their student could become here. They spoke about the care and intention behind the experience, and how that single interaction shaped their entire perception of the university.
It was a simple moment, but an important one. It reflected what we do every day across this college. Our faculty show up for students, share their expertise, and create spaces where people can see themselves belonging and succeeding.
I share this because it captures something core to who we are as a college. While awards and recognition are important, our impact is just as often shaped in the individual moments of connection that are carried beyond campus. The highlights below offer a snapshot of that work in action:
Research, Scholarship, and Creative Excellence
- Matthew A. Sutton’s new book continues to receive national attention, including reviews in The New York Times, The Atlantic, and The Wall Street Journal. Sutton was also recently named a 2026 Carnegie Fellow.
- Jesse Spohnholz was awarded a Spring 2027 residential fellowship at the prestigious Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton.
- Jiemei Lin recently collaborated with IA Interior Architects and Arm Seattle on a public art project featuring murals and paintings inspired by Washington’s cherry industry. The work highlights the stories of scholars, fruit pickers, migrant workers, and the broader history of Washington cherries, including references to Ah Bing, the Chinese immigrant horticulturist connected to the development of the Bing cherry.
- Linda Russo celebrated the launch of Plant Companion Field Guide: A New(Old) Way to Know the Plants of the Palouse, an interdisciplinary collaboration bringing together poetry, visual art, design, and environmental humanities. The event featured readings, botanical artwork, and printed broadsides that encouraged reflection on relationships between people, plants, and the Palouse landscape, the traditional homelands of the Nimíipuu and Pelúuc peoples. Supported through the David G. Pollart Center for Arts and Humanities Faculty Fellowship, the project highlights the creative and collaborative scholarship taking place across CAS.
- Chemistry researchers at WSU recently published collaborative work advancing the understanding of uranium(III) bonding and electronic structure, contributing new insight into the behavior of complex actinide systems. Combining experimental and computational approaches, the research helps deepen scientific understanding in areas connected to nuclear chemistry and advanced materials science while highlighting the interdisciplinary research and graduate student contributions taking place across CAS.
Student Success
Meet This Year’s Top Ten Seniors
Each year, Washington State University Alumni Association recognizes ten outstanding seniors who exemplify excellence in academics, leadership, service, athletics, and the arts. This year, CAS students distinguished themselves and achieved a unique milestone – nine of the ten WSU students are affiliated with the College of Arts and Sciences.
Hoover Institution Indigenous Student Seminar
Tucker Senter, a junior majoring in social studies, has been selected to participate in the Hoover Institution Indigenous Student Seminar at Stanford University this summer. He will join students from across the country to study Native policy and engage with Indigenous entrepreneurs, scholars, and community leaders. According to history professor Ryan Booth, this is the first time a Native student from WSU has received this invitation.
Smithsonian Institution’s Summer Institute
Sumanta Roy, PhD candidate in the Department of Anthropology, has been selected for the prestigious Smithsonian Institution’s Summer Institute in Museum Anthropology (SIMA) at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. The SIMA research internships provide graduate students with an immersive four-week training program at the Smithsonian Institution, the world’s largest museum, education, and research complex.
Community Engagement
New Leadership at the Pollart Center for Arts and Humanities
Joe Hedges has been named Interim Director of the David G. Pollart Center for Arts and Humanities for a one-year term. In his current role as Assistant Director, Joe has helped support programming and engagement efforts across campus and the broader community. In this new leadership role, he will help guide the Center’s continued work connecting the arts, humanities, and public engagement at WSU.
U.S. 250th Anniversary Program
Lawrence Hatter’s history lectures around the state for the US 250th
anniversary, A Longer Look, Washington State Magazine.
A Look Inside This Year’s MFA Thesis Exhibition
Each spring, the Master of Fine Arts Thesis Exhibition at the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art WSU offers a glimpse into the next generation of artists and creative thinkers emerging from WSU. This year’s exhibition features the culminating work of MFA candidates Keegan Baatz, S. Camille Comer, and Kahyun (Kate) Uhm. It’s a powerful reminder of the role the arts play in helping students develop their voice, challenge perspectives, and engage deeply with the world around them.
We are grateful to have you alongside us as we continue this work. Your support helps make these experiences, and their lasting impact, possible for our students and community. We hope you find time to relax, recharge, and enjoy the summer season ahead.
Sincerely,
Courtney Meehan
Dean