News Director Sarah Tschiggfrie Shares Observations of a First-Time Voter in Staunton News Leader Op/Ed
The Following Op/Ed from W&L News Director Sarah Tschiggfrie Appeared in the Staunton News Leader on Saturday, Nov. 1

Journalism Professor Discusses Newspaper's Decision to Abandon Print
The announcement this week that the Christian Science Monitor was ceasing publication of a daily print edition and would appear online only did not surprise Brian Richardson, head of the Department of Journalism and Mass Communications at Washington and Lee University.

Professor Mark Rush on WVTF Public Radio on Election Night
Mark Rush, professor of politics at W&L, will join a team of political analysts on election night. WVTF Public Radio will begin broadcasting election coverage after the polls close in Virginia at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 4 and continue overnight until Morning Edition, which begins at 5 a.m. the following day.

Professor's Research Warns of Psychological Effects of Unemployment
As the current economic crisis and pending recession lead to rising unemployment, research by Arthur H. Goldsmith, the Jackson T. Stephens Professor of Economics at Washington and Lee University, warns of the devastating, and possibly permanent, psychological effects of joblessness.

Strict Enforcement of State Electioneering Laws Problematic
Election officials who interpret their state's prohibitions against electioneering as prohibiting voters from wearing campaign buttons or T-shirts into the polling places on Election Day may be strictly within the law, but a Washington and Lee University expert on the First Amendment believes the interpretation would be unconstitutional.

Greer Examines Climate Change and Coral Reefs
When Lisa Greer, assistant professor of geology, traveled to Houston, Texas, in early October, the impact of Hurricane Ike was still being felt in the region where the storm caused an estimated $31.5 billion in damage.

W&L Editor Wins Virginia Poetry Book of the Year Award
Washington and Lee University's R.T. Smith, editor of Shenandoah: The Washington and Lee University Review, has won the 2008 Library of Virginia Poetry Book of the Year prize. The award was presented Oct. 18 at a gala ceremony at the Library of Virginia in Richmond.

W&L Transnational Law Institute Produces Guidelines on Treatment of Detainees
The Lexington Principles on the Rights of Detainees proposes a body of international guidelines intended to help guide legislators in the United States and abroad in developing due process standards to govern the treatment of detainees.

W&L Commemorates 138th Anniversary of Lee's Death
Washington and Lee University observed the 138th anniversary of Robert E. Lee’s death on Monday, Oct. 13, with a recognition ceremony for donors to the Campaign for Lee Chapel and Museum and a speech by Civil War scholar and author Ken Masterson Brown.

W&L Rector Childress Makes $5 Million Gift to the University
J. Donald Childress of Atlanta, Ga., rector of Washington and Lee University’s Board of Trustees, has made a $5 million gift to the University.

Kahn Participates in Landmark Study on Deforestation in Amazonas
James R. Kahn, the John F. Hendon professor of economics and director of the environmental studies program at Washington and Lee University, was a participant in a landmark study that concluded that economic incentives for manufacturing have been responsible for the low rate of deforestation in the State of Amazonas in Brazil.

First-Year Seminar Focuses on the Presidential Campaign
When Washington and Lee University politics professor Robert Strong decided to create a first-year seminar based on the presidential election of 2008, he figured that the topic would be a draw. He was right.

W&L's Lee Chapel and Museum Presents Remembering Robert E. Lee
The Lee Chapel and Museum at Washington and Lee University presents Remembering Robert E. Lee, a program commemorating the 138th anniversary of his death, on Monday, Oct. 13. The program, a speech by Kent Masterson Brown, a Civil War scholar and author, will be at 12:15 p.m. in Lee Chapel.

Law Professor Offers Advice to Parents on Connecting with Their Children in Virtual Worlds
The old model and perception is that children play video games by themselves. But there is a new generation of virtual worlds where both children and parents are playing together on sites ranging from World of Warcraft to Club Penguin and Webkinz.

Business Journalism Expert Gives High Marks to Crisis Reporting
As the biggest financial story in United States history has unfolded in recent days, financial journalists have done a generally solid job of reporting in spite of the fact that recent layoffs at major newspapers have left many newsrooms depleted. That is the assessment of Pamela Luecke, the Donald W. Reynolds Professor of Business Journalism at Washington and Lee University.

Washington Post's Nationally Syndicated Personal Finance Columnist to Speak at W&L
Nationally synidicated personal finance columnist for the Washington Post Michelle Singletary will speak in the Stackhouse Theater at Washington and Lee University on Tuesday, Oct. 14. Her subject is "Borrowed Out and Flat Broke: What Now for America?" Her talk, beginning at 4:30 p.m., is free and open to the public.

Michelle Obama Biographer Liza Mundy Discusses her Book at W&L
Liza Mundy, an award-winning journalist for The Washington Post and author of "Michelle: A Biography" about Michelle Obama, will speak at Washington and Lee University on Tuesday, Oct. 7, at 3:30 p.m. in Room 345 of the University Commons.

Scientific Evidence and the Courts: Solving a Puzzle
For Rebecca Harris, the puzzle begged an answer. Why, she wondered, was scientific evidence, ranging from DNA to lie detectors, admitted by the courts in some states and not others?

Carey Receives NSF Grant to Study Natural Disasters and Climate Change
Between 1941 and 1970, retreating glaciers in the Peruvian Andes caused three floods and two avalanches that resulted in the deaths of about 30,000 people.

Mahon Draws Distinction Between Lies and Exaggerations in Political Campaigns
Charging political candidates with lying is an extremely serious charge, and judging them to be telling lies rather than exaggerating requires meeting a very high standard, according to a Washington and Lee University philosophy professor who has defined lying for the "Encyclopedia of Philosophy."

Author Richard Brookhiser to Speak at W&L
Visit Sponsored by Johnson Program in Leadership and Integrity
Richard Brookhiser, author and senior editor with the National Review, will speak at Washington and Lee University on Thursday, Sept. 18, at 7:30 p.m. in Lee Chapel. He is the first speaker sponsored by W&L's Johnson Program in Leadership and Integrity.

W&L Opens 259th Academic Year with Reminder of the Power of Words
Addressing the annual Fall Convocation at Washington and Lee University on Wednesday, Sept. 3, Suzanne Parker Keen, the Thomas H. Broadus Professor of English at W&L, reminded members of the community that their words carry both power and responsibility.