Year in review: ASU's top stories
From poets to pups to peering into the past, Sun Devils have continued to create, discover and help others
As the pandemic nears the end of its sophomore year, it's worth taking a moment to acknowledge the compassion, grit and creativity of the Arizona State University community. Despite the unpredictable challenges of COVID-19, Sun Devils continued to take care of one another and the wider community.
And as effective vaccines became widely available this past year, we were able to come together more often; there is undeniable joy and encouragement in a campus again abuzz with learners. And in spite of the shifting obstacles of the past year, that sense of discovery has never waned — as some of the top stories of the past 12 months can attest.
January
As we thankfully left 2020 behind, the pandemic and political upheaval of the previous year traveled with us into the new one. Through it all, the health and well-being of our communities stayed at the forefront, with Sun Devils continuing to pitch in to help others.
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Faculty members among 1st in new phase of vaccinations
At the new large-scale vaccination site at State Farm Stadium, Arizona officials performed vaccinations Jan. 11 on a group of educators and law enforcement, members of the new 1B eligibility phase. ASU staff and students would also help with vaccine distribution all year.
Photo by Charlie Leight/ASU News
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A dose of facts: Answering questions about the vaccines
In a resource that would be updated throughout the year and shared widely, ASU health experts answered common questions about the COVID-19 vaccines to help inoculate us against misinformation.
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ASU’s unsung heroes
They’re on one of the front lines of the COVID-19 battle, and every day they stepped up to keep ASU's campuses running. They come in the form of custodians, groundskeepers, bus drivers, sign makers, nurses, police officers, IT techs and parking lot attendants. Here we share some of their stories.
Photo by Charlie Leight/ASU News
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Film school named after trailblazing actor Sidney Poitier
ASU announced Jan. 25 that it had renamed its film school after Hollywood icon Sidney Poitier, the first Black man to win the Academy Award for best actor. The move signifies ASU’s commitment to inclusivity and diversity, according to university President Michael Crow.
Photo courtesy of Getty Images
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ASU among top ranked in nation for best online programs
Eleven ASU online undergraduate and graduate degree programs ranked among the top three in their categories in the country by U.S. News & World Report — including the bachelor's degree programs in business, named best in the nation, and psychology, ranked second.
Photo by ASU
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Edson College launches nursing program at ASU at Lake Havasu
The Bachelor of Science in nursing program aims to help keep up with health care demands in Lake Havasu City and in Mohave and La Paz counties, an area that exceeds a population of 200,000.
Photo courtesy of iStock/Getty Images
February
With COVID-19 vaccinations dominating headlines — including the Feb. 1 opening of the state's second COVID-19 drive-thru vaccination site at ASU’s Phoenix Municipal Stadium — people were finding creative ways to support and beautify their communities safely.
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ASU climbs to 6th in research rankings
Building on nearly two decades of unparalleled advancement, ASU moved up to sixth out of 759 universities in the U.S. for total research expenditures among universities without a medical school, according to National Science Foundation Higher Education Research and Development rankings.
Photo by Felipe Esquivel Reed
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Biden, Harris virtually visit Arizona vaccination site
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris virtually toured the State Farm Stadium vaccination site on Feb. 8, praising Arizona State University's efforts to assist the state vaccination drive.
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ASU a top producer of Fulbright awards for both students, faculty
ASU was one of only 10 universities that are top producers for both Fulbright Scholar awards for faculty and Fulbright U.S. student award recipients.
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Forever 21 clothing line features artwork by ASU graphic design alumna
One of Phoenix artist and designer Stormy Nesbit’s sweatshirts for Forever 21 says “Black Women Matter” on the hood, and other items, including crew-neck sweatshirts and T-shirts, include uplifting sayings such as “Your uniqueness is your magic.”
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ASU's biggest virtual campus tour ever on Amazon Prime Video
As COVID-19 made visiting campuses a challenge, ASU took an innovative approach to allow students to tour ASU from the comfort of home: the ASU College Tour, a 60-minute episode about ASU in the new series "The College Tour," streaming on Amazon Prime Video and Roku.
March
Space news was big, along with continued top-10 rankings, workforce efforts to help address a critical skills shortage in the U.S., and the ribbon cutting on a biomedical facility in downtown Phoenix to expand medical education and research in the metro area.
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What it will take to build an antifragile economy in Arizona
An antifragile economy doesn’t just benefit people at the top. The focus on all levels of the economy can mean more educational opportunities, higher wages and more stability for everyone. But what does it take to create an antifragile economy?
Photo by Deanna Dent/ASU News
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Scientists determine origin of strange interstellar object
Two ASU astrophysicists with of the School of Earth and Space Exploration set out to explain the odd features of the interstellar object ‘Oumuamua and have determined that it is likely a piece of a Pluto-like planet from another solar system.
Illustration by William Hartmann
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What COVID-19 means for the future of scholarly research
The pandemic has been a globally disruptive force to our human systems. ASU News interviewed several experts across ASU on the questions they think researchers will be asking about the pandemic in the next few years and beyond.
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Deep-sea exploration breakthrough to guide future space missions
Scientists from ASU who are a part of the Systematic Underwater Biogeochemical Science and Exploration Analog (SUBSEA) program have pioneered a new approach to the scientific process of geochemical exploration for our Earth and beyond.
Photo by Ocean Exploration Trust/Nautilus Live
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Vaccination volunteers: Stories from our front line
ASU News spoke with some vaccination site workers to hear about their choice to volunteer, their struggles during this past year and what working at one of the thousands of vaccination sites nationwide means to them. Hear their stories in their own words.
Photo collage by Deanna Dent/ASU News
April
The encroaching summer heat prompted the state vaccination site that was at Phoenix Municipal Stadium to move indoors at ASU's Desert Financial Arena, and Sun Devils continued to break ground in a number of ways.
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College of Integrative Sciences and Arts to welcome new dean
Joanna Grabski, announced in April as the new dean of the College of Integrative Sciences and Arts starting July 1, discussed her new role and what she hopes to accomplish.
Photo courtesy of Ryan Parra
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Leading-edge tech company plants flag at Polytechnic campus
MECHnano, a manufacturer of advanced chemistry and materials that improve the performance of 3D printing ingredients, was the first company to move to the Polytechnic campus Innovation Zone, one of seven such districts across the Valley.
Photo by Olga Ivanov/MECHnano
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Starbucks, ASU partner on new research and rapid innovation facility
Building on a long-standing partnership, Starbucks and the university are joining forces to create the ASU-Starbucks Center for the Future of People and the Planet – a new facility created to find new ways to design, build and operate Starbucks stores.
Photo by Ashley Quay/ASU
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ASU retains top US spot for efforts toward UN sustainability goals
ASU remains a leader — first in the U.S., tied for ninth in the world — in addressing sustainability when it comes to research, outreach and stewardship, according to annual university rankings from Times Higher Education magazine.
Photo courtesy of iStock/Getty Images
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School district focuses on educational equity with ASU Prep Digital partnership
A partnership with ASU Prep Digital is supporting the Pendergast Elementary School District to offer high school credits to set students up for college enrollment and career and technical education.
May
Health care innovations and more than one snake story kept readers busy this month.
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New urine color chart makes self-assessing hydration easier
In the decades since the first urine color chart was developed to give athletes a quick way to self-assess hydration levels, derivatives of it have resulted in questionable accuracy. College of Health Solutions Assistant Professor Floris Wardenaar saw an opportunity.
Photo courtesy of Pixabay
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The untold origin story of ASU's beloved late rattlesnake Hector
In April 2019, ASU said goodbye to Hector, the 25-year-old albino Western diamondback rattlesnake who had been at the School of Life Sciences for more than two decades. Now, the children of the man who rescued Hector are sharing an untold side of the snake’s story.
Photo by Max Conacher/ASU
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16 W. P. Carey professors named among top 2% worldwide
Professors from ASU’s W. P. Carey School of Business have earned the distinction of being among the top 2% of scientists worldwide as measured by the impact of their research publications.
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Cronkite School names Battinto Batts as dean
Battinto Batts Jr. has held a number of dynamic jobs: award-winning newspaper journalist, lecturer, philanthropist, strategic communications professional, higher ed administrator and nonprofit executive. And now — dean of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
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New Health Futures Center provides fresh intersections with Mayo Clinic to transform health care
The Health Futures Center, home of the Mayo Clinic and ASU Alliance for Health Care, will support interdepartmental research and collaborative programs with Mayo Clinic, establishing a nexus of research, teaching and meeting space.
Photo by Charlie Leight/ASU
June
ASU leaders said hello and goodbye (and goodbye) to new roles this month, Poly got some new feathered friends and Sun Devils got news that Broadway shows were returning to the ASU Gammage stage. Oh, and ASU got its second ever home-grown Pulitzer Prize (find out more in the gallery below).
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The odds for Phoenix Suns in NBA Finals
At the beginning of last season, no one could have predicted the Suns’ amazing run — not even Daniel McIntosh, who worked seven years with the NBA, tracking data protocols and developing a cutting-edge methodology for 15 different teams. Here, he talks about the Suns' spectacular season.
Photo courtesy of iStock/Getty Images
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Do trees provide the best shade for urban environments?
It’s a bright, hot summer day. To cool off, you have the choice of taking shelter under a shade sail, in the shade of a tall building or beneath a leafy tree. Which will you choose? Climate scientists put in the legwork to get the answer — and it might surprise you.
Photo by Chunyip Wong/iStock
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From ASU Online to medical school
Two recent ASU grads are on their way to medical school, thanks to the opportunity to earn bachelor’s degrees through ASU Online. Desiree’ Brionne Dillard will attend Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine in Scottsdale; David Reed, the medical school at Marshall University in West Virginia.
Photo by Jill Richards
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Poet Natalie Diaz wins Pulitzer Prize
Associate Professor Natalie Diaz was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Poetry for her collection “Postcolonial Love Poem.” The honor comes mere months after the MacArthur Fellow made history by becoming the youngest chancellor ever elected to the Academy of American Poets.
Photo by Deanna Dent/ASU News
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Easing your pup into post-pandemic life
As more and more people are returning to work, the thought at the forefront of a lot of dog owners’ minds is the same: How can I help prepare Fido for my absence? Researchers from the Canine Science Collaboratory share some insights and pointers.
Photo by Charlie Leight/ASU News
July
The long-awaited 2020 Summer Olympics kicked off this month, and the ASU community was able to cheer on 20 Sun Devils in competition.
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ASU professor featured in 2 episodes of Shark Week
An internationally recognized marine biologist, James Sulikowski has spent more than 25 years researching aquatic life all over the globe. In this year’s edition of the phenomenally popular Discovery Channel series, Sulikowski was featured in two episodes.
Photo by Tanya Houppermans/Blue Elements Imaging
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When the student becomes the caregiver
After several years at the Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation, Charlotte Thrall never got the chance to see her students in action after they graduated — that is, until her husband suffered a traumatic brain injury and she found herself looking to two former students for support.
Photo courtesy of Pexels.com
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Air Force exoskeleton gets heavy lift from ASU
Although it may not yet be at the level of Iron Man’s exoskeleton, a new power and endurance device from ASU is giving U.S. Air Force aerial porters enhanced levels of safety and strength on the job.
Photo by Charlie Leight/ASU News
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Mayo-ASU dual degree program celebrates 1st Arizona grads
Kent Richter was one of the first to graduate from Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine with an MD and a master’s degree in the science of health care delivery, giving him not only the ability to practice medicine, but to improve the system in which it is delivered.
Photo courtesy of Pexels.com
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ASU Prep network expands reach locally, around the world
Over the past year, ASU Preparatory Academy added grade levels, specialty academies and partnerships to create high-quality digital education that students can access in their classrooms and at home.
Photo by Charlie Leight/ASU News
August
As the Tillman Center turned 10, ASU welcomed a record first-year, on-campus class — including the largest, most diverse and highest credentialed class in ASU Law history.
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The myth of the alpha dog
ASU dog behavioral expert Clive Wynne conducted an extensive review of existing research on dominance in dogs and concludes that yes, they do experience it, but how it plays out among themselves is very different from how it plays out when they live with humans.
Photo by Deanna Dent/ASU News
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Low levels on the Colorado River: What it means for you
Battered by 20 years of drought, flows have been consistently dropping in the Colorado River, a water source that 40 million people depend upon. Life in the Southwest is going to become more complicated.
Photo by Charlie Leight/ASU News
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New research shows how pandemic affected people's sleep around the world
Sleep became elusive for many as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, according to new research from ASU’s Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation.
Photo from Canva
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ASU welcomes Class of 2025 with pep rally
In addition to covering Sun Devil Welcome, ASU News shared resources for student success and hidden gems around campus — aimed at first-year students and sophomores, who were just getting to know ASU in-person.
Photo by Charlie Leight/ASU News
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Martian snow is dusty, could potentially melt, new study shows
Planetary scientists Aditya Khuller and Philip Christensen of ASU, with Stephen Warren, an Earth ice and snow expert from the University of Washington, developed a new approach to determine how dusty Mars ice really is.
Image by NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University
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ASU ranks 4th nationally in undergrad STEM degrees
Arizona State University, an emerging national leader in educating the next generation in engineering and science, ranks fourth in the U.S. for undergraduate degrees in STEM-related fields.
Photo by Connor McKee/ASU
September
The Downtown Phoenix campus marked 15 years of transforming a once-quiet area into a vibrant zone of learning and community connections, and Mirabella senior-living residents — who started moving in at the new year — found many ways to plug into campus life.
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ASU ranked in top 8% of universities worldwide
Times Higher Education rankings place Arizona State University in the top 8% of worldwide universities, and among the top 50 in the United States.
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Walking with coffee a little-understood feat of physics
A paper from an ASU team expands on a groundbreaking study at Northeastern University, using the coffee-cup-holding paradigm and adding a rolling ball, to examine how humans manipulate a complex object. The findings have implications for soft robotics and prosthetic design.
Photo by iStock
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ASU ranks No. 1 in Sierra Club's 'coolest schools'
For the first time, ASU ranked at the top of Sierra magazine's 15th annual "coolest schools" competitive ranking of the most environmentally friendly colleges and universities in North America.
Photo by Ayers Saint Gross
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Our first alum astronaut
ASU has had lots of famous alumni: Pat Tillman, Kate Spade, Nick Nolte, Reggie Jackson, Steve Allen and Barry Bonds. But not any alumni astronauts. Until now. Meet Sian Proctor, civilian astronaut, pilot, geoscientist, educator and Sun Devil.
Photo by Charlie Leight/ASU News
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Most innovative university seven years running
For the seventh year in a row, the university was ranked No. 1 in innovation by U.S. News & World Report, a feat borne of a long history of creative reimagining — along with a healthy dose of tenacity and resilience through a period filled with obstacles and uncertainty.
Photo by Jeff Newton
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Silicon in the Valley: Creating opportunities to benefit Arizonans
ASU is fueling a semiconductor revolution to improve U.S. advanced manufacturing capabilities, generate jobs and strengthen the economy.
Photo by Jared Opperman/ASU
October
People were excited to return to familiar autumn events like Homecoming and Halloween — and to help keep everyone safe, the community kept up its use of ASU's saliva-based COVID-19 test, which passed 1 million tests processed.
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Timing is everything: A study of tooth emergence
Six, 12 and 18 — the ages most people get adult molars, much later than in our closest living relative, the chimpanzee. Paleoanthropologists have wondered how and why humans evolved molars that emerge relatively delayed. Scientists at ASU and UofA may have finally cracked the case.
Image courtesy of H. Glowacka and G.T. Schwartz
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ASU hits milestone of 1 millionth COVID-19 test
ASU completed its 1 millionth COVID-19 test on Oct. 7, a milestone that commemorates the university’s massive effort to marshal all its resources and respond to the pandemic statewide. ASU invented and developed enough tests to administer one to 1 in 7 Arizonans.
Photo by Andy DeLisle/ASU
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ASU at Mesa City Center nears completion
With technology and innovation driving massive changes in consumer demand and behaviors, the new economy is simultaneously on the horizon and already here. Through its partnership with ASU, Mesa is going to be in the center of the action.
Photo by Charlie Leight/ASU News
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Office space: ASU, Blue Origin to create business park in orbit
ASU is partnering with Blue Origin to create Orbital Reef, a mixed-use space station for commerce, research and tourism. (In December, NASA would award the station $130 million.)
Image courtesy of Blue Origin Media
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Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences joins Global Futures Lab
To deepen the understanding of the role the ocean plays in climate science, ASU established a partnership with the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences, one of the longest-serving research institutes dedicated to studying ocean processes in the Western Hemisphere.
Photo courtesy of BIOS
November
At 10 years old, Project Humanities is a spry youngster compared with Sparky, who marked 75 years this month. Here are other notable headlines this month.
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Student startup AirGarage receives $12.5M from venture capitalists
AirGarage, the company born out of parking frustration by three ASU students, received a $12.5 million infusion of cash from Silicon Valley investors. Their plans for the money? Keep building the best possible parking operator in the world.
Photo courtesy of AirGarage
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W. P. Carey School of Business at ASU names new dean
Following an intensive national search process, ASU announced Ohad Kadan as the new dean of the W. P. Carey School of Business, effective July 1. Kadan joins the W. P. Carey School during a crucial period for higher education.
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No. 1 public university chosen by international students
Amidst a challenging year for global education, ASU topped all public universities on influential Institute of International Education rankings. The IIE Open Doors Report is a recognized global leader on the impact that international education has on higher education.
Photo by FJ Gaylor
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Skysong Innovations startups surpass $1B in external funding
ASU passed a milestone with more than $1 billion raised in external funding by the startups in its portfolio at Skysong Innovations, the entity that brings ASU research into the marketplace.
Photo by Deanna Dent/ASU News
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Young teens trade high school for university life
Students find their way to ASU at many points in their lives — some earlier than others. The university has 45 students who are 16 or younger — including the youngest ever ASU Law student — attending on campus or through ASU Online.
Photo by Charlie Leight/ASU News
December
As ASU returned to an in-person commencement — still with pandemic adjustments — the university marks the end of a year of discoveries, service and generosity.
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Scientists examine rare blood clots linked to COVID-19 vaccines
An international team of scientists believe they may have found a molecular mechanism behind the extremely rare blood clots linked to adenovirus COVID-19 vaccines.
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Students create time-travel experience in Dreamscape Learn
A class of students, the first to use the Dreamscape Learn virtual reality platform, unveiled their time-traveling climate-change scenario in a presentation to their peers and visitors, including Walter Parkes, the Hollywood producer who is CEO of Dreamscape Immersive.
Photo by Charlie Leight/ASU News
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A time-honored tradition returns to campus
Thousands of happy graduates and their loved ones filled Sun Devil Stadium at ASU for the first in-person commencement since 2019. “We’ve been wanting to get back here for a long time,” ASU President Michael Crow said.
Photo by Samantha Chow/ASU News
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Lietz named dean of Watts College
Cynthia Lietz, who had been the college’s interim dean since July, has been appointed dean of the Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions, ASU Executive Vice President and Provost Nancy Gonzales has announced.
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Afghan women arrive to begin new life as Sun Devils
Sixty-one young women from Afghanistan arrived at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport on Dec. 15 after fleeing their homeland and waiting months at a military base in Wisconsin to begin their new lives as students at ASU. They join three other women who came separately.
Photo by Samantha Chow/ASU News
Top photo by Charlie Leight/ASU News
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