Forward

Doing better and better

It’s a pleasure to bring you this first-in-a-longtime newsletter from the UW Department of Psychology. There’s sure a lot to tell! These are only some of the highlights.

We’ve just completed our 10-year review which included an extensive self-study and an evaluation visit by a panel of nationally prominent faculty. The panel’s report underscores how much we contribute on all fronts: to education, to science, and to service to the University and our local community. We’re proud to have our accomplishments recognized so whole-heartedly Both the self-study and the report are available on our website.

A point made by the features in this issue is that our educational, research, and community-service projects are truly interconnected. Our classes and academic programs equip students to go on to contribute to science and to community service here in the Puget Sound area and beyond. Our research activities contribute to the training of undegraduate and graduate students, provide direct community service, and bring in $7-8 million a year to the local economy.

We aren’t sitting back and resting on our laurels, though. Despite challenging times, with reduced state funding and increased enrollment pressure, we are improving our educational programs and seeking new accomplishments in research and service. In our next issue, we’ll tell you more about improvements in our graduate program and new scientific thrusts, such as our push into the fast-expanding area of cognitive neuroscience.

Our department is truly the bridge that connects the social and biological approaches to the study of behavior here at the UW. Our faculty and students contribute to our knowledge of human and animal behavior and apply this knowledge to human development, health, and mental health issues. I hope that you enjoy reading about some of our activities and accomplishments in this newsletter and will visit our website to learn even more about us.

Ana Mari Cauce

Department Chair

October 2004

What's happening to Guthrie Hall?

“Eh, what’s that you say? It’s a little noisy around here!” Guthrie Hall is now surrounded by scaffolding, as a project continues to replace all the bricks on the outside of the building. The bricks were actually just a decorative shell held to the building’s concrete core by metal brackets, which had weakening from corrosion. In an earthquake, the brackets could fail and the bricks could come tumbling down. New, more decorative bricks and better brackets are now being installed. The $4 million project began in June 2004 and is scheduled for completion in February 2005. See our website for more construction photos.