CAS Story Hub

New research in these interesting times

In March 2020, when the University moved to distance learning to comply with stay-at-home orders, some WSU Vancouver researchers who were unable to pursue their existing projects turned instead to look at how COVID-19 was affecting various communities. The new projects are “a lot broader than what people might expect. We are not looking for […]

Beyond words

WSU Vancouver students are learning how to help Spanish speakers navigate clinical experiences and forming strong partnerships with community health-care providers. As as one of the WSU Center for Civic Engagement’s inaugural Faculty Fellows in 2017, Cassandra Gulam and her colleagues learned how to incorporate the principles of community engagement into their courses. Gulam, clinical […]

Q&A with Yoon-Wha Roh

An active chamber musician and a celebrated piano soloist with philharmonic and symphony orchestras from New York to Saint Petersburg to Seoul, Yoon-Wha (Yuna) Roh is a recent addition to the WSU School of Music. She has presented solo and chamber recitals at venues around the world and appeared in major music festivals such as the […]

A look back: Showcase 2020 honorees

Each year the WSU Showcase awards recognize the outstanding achievements of faculty and staff. Eight CAS faculty were among those honored in the spring of 2020. These individuals stand among the world’s top scholars, the nation’s most effective and beloved instructors, and the University’s most dedicated and visionary professionals. The 2020 CAS honorees are:

Archeologists identify marigold residue in ancient Maya flasks

WSU scientists identified the presence of a non-tobacco plant in ancient Maya drug containers for the first time. “While it has been established that tobacco was commonly used throughout the Americas before and after contact, evidence of other plants used for medicinal or religious purposes has remained largely unexplored,” said anthropology postdoc and research lead […]

Standing by for testing surge

Inside the Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (WADDL) on the WSU Pullman campus, three recent Coug alumae—Victoria Fitzpatrick (biology), Sylena Harper (chemistry and biochemistry), and Hannah Wilson (genetics and cell biology)—are busy providing laboratory results that could save lives. Since last July, the three have been working in shifts to process COVID-19 tests from throughout […]

A natural fit for hands-on, virtual learning

For Fine Arts 331: Art, Science and Technology, the transition to virtual learning for fall 2020 played to the course’s sweet spot. Throughout the course, students bring together what some may consider two sides of a coin – art, and science and technology. But for Peter Christenson, an associate professor of fine arts at WSU […]

Identifying biomarkers linked to autism

Biomarkers in human sperm that can indicate a propensity to father children with autism spectrum disorder have been identified by a team of international researchers led by Michael Skinner, WSU professor of biological sciences. The biomarkers are epigenetic, meaning they involve changes to molecular factors that regulate genome activity such as gene expression independent of […]