This year in the College of Arts and Sciences, students launched bold new ventures, trekked into underground ecosystems, and earned recognition for their scholarship, research, performances, publications, and creative works. Faculty published celebrated books, won national and international awards, pushed the boundaries of AI and the arts, and even created the College’s first podcast!  

Take a look at 25 stories that made 2025 unforgettable at the College.  

Happy New Year from all of us at CAS! 

Award-Winning Books—and a New Podcast  

Health Snaps: New Podcast Delivers Big Health Insights in Two Minutes

AU launches Health Snaps, a podcast that breaks down public health questions into clear, two-minute insights 

The College has launched Health Snaps, a series of mini podcasts created by the Department of Health Studies. Each episode tackles a timely public health topic—such as brain-boosting nutrition, sexual assault prevention, and maternal health—distilling complex research into insights that listeners can absorb fast.  

Nicholas Boggs (MFA ’09) Publishes Landmark James Baldwin Biography

In critically acclaimed New York Times bestselling biography, Boggs traces role of love in Baldwin’s life and writing 

Baldwin: A Love Story (Farrar, Straus and Giroux. 2025) instantly became a New York Times bestseller and one of the year’s most acclaimed works of literary biography. In this interview with Nicholas Boggs ’09, he reflects on his long creative journey, the lessons he learned at AU, and why love is the key to understanding Baldwin. 

Laura Beers’s “Orwell’s Ghosts” Wins LA Times Book Prize 

Book inspired by AU history class wins 45th Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Biography 

Historian and Professor of History Laura Beers received the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Biography for Orwell's Ghosts: Wisdom and Warnings for the Twenty-First Century. Beers, recently named a Guggenheim Fellow, received the award at the University of Southern California. 

Sarai Johnson’s Novel “Grown Women” Published to Literary Acclaim

In debut novel, alumna Sarai Johnson explores four generations of Black women navigating love, loss, and the meaning of happiness  

The roots of Grown Women, the debut novel by Sarai Johnson ’17, trace back to her time among the scholars and creative writers of AU’s Department of Literature. The book has earned wide acclaim, most recently receiving the prestigious NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work and the Zora Award for Debut Fiction.  

AI Robots, Apps, Startups, and More 

Meet Iris: AU Unveils its First Artificial Intelligence (AI) Robot

Aref Zahed launches an advanced AI robot that recognizes faces, speaks in nine languages, and answers complex questions using ChatGPT and Google technology. 

Created by Department of Computer Science Professor Aref Zahed, Iris blends cutting-edge artificial intelligence with natural human interaction. She is Zahed’s third AI project, following his launch of a six-legged "Spidey” robot and an AI-powered teaching assistant named Sarah.  

AU Student Creates Video Game for World’s Largest LEGO Cathedral

Computer Science student Joseph DeNavas turns love of LEGO into game for iconic Washington National Cathedral 

When the Washington National Cathedral set out to build the world’s largest LEGO cathedral, AU student Joseph DeNavas decided to take the project one step further. He created the National Cathedral Game, which blends creativity, learning, and technology in one imaginative companion video game.  

Meet Mozaik: AU Students Create Social App for Life after College

An interview with Mozaik creators Isabelle Ritz, Sophie Carter, and Gray Walsh 

College is filled with friendship and community—but what happens after graduation? How do you build connections in the “real world?” That’s the challenge three AU students took on with Mozaik, a mobile app designed to foster meaningful connections in post-grad life.  

AU Alumni Launch Startup Offering Hope for Critically Ill Patients

FindMyClinicalTrial, a startup launched by recent AU alum, empowers patients to access lifesaving clinical trials 

A group of AU students and alumni launched FindMyClinicalTrial (FMCT), the world’s first user-friendly, AI-powered clinical trial search engine, powered by a simple, intuitive questionnaire, that helps patients connect more easily with the right trials, and in doing so, to increase access to potentially life-saving care.  

CAS Student Life  

As Millions of Birds Pass Through DC, AU is Working to Keep Them Safe

Thanks to student innovation and AU’s commitment to sustainability, the campus is becoming a model for bird-friendly design  

Students, faculty, and staff are turning the Hall of Science into a safe haven for migrating birds. What started as student-led concern over bird strikes—when birds mistake reflective windows for open sky and crash into them—has grown into a project that reflects AU’s values of sustainability, innovation, and civic responsibility.  

The Economics of Baseball, Taylor Swift, and the American Dream

AU’s buzz-worthy student-designed classes use pop culture and current events to teach economics 

What do professional baseball, Taylor Swift’s Eras tour, and US immigration policy have in common? At AU, they’re all been the focus of popular economics classes designed by students. In these courses, students explore economic concepts through real-world topics they care about most.  

“6-7” and the Story of Slang: A CAS Conversation

Linguist Amelia Tseng talks about the slang sweeping across our nation and how it reflects identity and culture 

What exactly does “6–7” mean—and why is everyone saying it? In this CAS Conversation, Spanish and Linguistics Professor Amelia Tseng takes us inside the fast-moving world of slang, unpacking the trendy “6–7” and explaining how words travel, stick, and bring people together.  

Research Breakthroughs 

AU Receives $867K NSF Grant to Advance Wildfire Prediction with AI

Computer Science Professor Leah Ding awarded grant to develop innovative AI and machine learning algorithms to detect and forecast wildfires 

Wildfires are growing faster, fiercer, and harder to predict, but AI may soon tip the balance. Backed by a $867,245 grant from the National Science Foundation, Professor Leah Ding is building an AI system that can detect, forecast, and assess the risk of wildfires in real time with unprecedented precision. 

Mapping the Universe: AU Researchers Contribute to 3D Cosmic Atlas  

Professor Johannes U. Lange and Physics Student Abby Fisher are part of groundbreaking international DESI team research

Thanks to the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) and the work of scholars like astrophysicist and American University Professor Johannes U. Lange and his undergraduate researcher Abby Fisher (BS physics ’26), the most detailed 3D map of the cosmos is now publicly available. 

Across the Arts 

Katzen Arts Center Celebrates 20th Anniversary

#Katzen20: Two decades of artistry, education, and creative impact 

Since 2005, the Katzen has nurtured a generation of actors and dancers, painters and sculptors, singers and songwriters, musicians and producers, arts managers and art historians. Now, this iconic AU landmark is celebrating its 20th birthday with a year of performances, exhibits, and special events.  

Studio Art MFAs Present Thesis Exhibition “TRANSIT” 

On display at the American University Museum 

American University's 2025 Master of Fine Arts Thesis Exhibition TRANSIT presents the culminating works of six graduating artists in the Studio Art MFA program: Phaedra Askarinam, Pooja Campbell, Patricia Edwine Poku, Connor Gagne, Andrés Izquierdo, and Julia Cheng Zhang. 

Disarming Girls: AU Debuts Powerful Play About World War II Resistance

Performance ran at Greenberg Theatre October 16-26 

Disarming Girls, a new play that debuted at AU, tells the true story of three young women who became unexpected heroes of the Dutch resistance in the Nazi-occupied Netherlands. AU students joined the play’s co-authors for a workshop that helped shape the production’s staging and script.  

Faculty On the Move 

Five CAS Faculty Members Named Top 2% Scientists Worldwide in 2024

Stanford-Elsevier Ranking Recognizes Research Impact 

Five CAS faculty members have been recognized among the world's most influential researchers in the 2024 Stanford-Elsevier Top 2% Scientists List. This ranking identifies scientists and social scientists whose work is among the most cited globally, reflecting their profound impact on their respective fields. 

AU Faculty Take Their Research and Creativity around the World

From Casablanca to the Berkshires, it's been a summer of adventure and research for CAS 

From the bustling streets of Bangkok to the quiet mountains of the Berkshires, faculty spent the summer exploring, creating, researching, and sharing their scholarship. They brought AU’s spirit of curiosity to every corner of the globe, discovering new ideas and perspectives to share with their students back home.  

Three New Endowed Chairs: A Milestone for College of Arts and Sciences

Professors Tony Riley, Stefano Costanzi, Jin Park recognized as Endowed Chairs during February 18 ceremony 

The College announced the installation of three endowed faculty chairs, Anthony Riley, Stefano Costanzi, and Jin Y. Park. Spanning disciplines from neuroscience to chemistry and philosophy, these individuals exemplify the depth and diversity of liberal arts scholarship within the College. 

Fulbright Awarded to Nutritional Neuroscientist Kathleen Holton

At France’s University of Montpellier, Holton will explore connections between additives found in ultra-processed foods and mental health 

Kathleen Holton, a nutritional neuroscientist, received a prestigious Fulbright US Scholar Program award from the US Department of State and the Fulbright Scholarship Board to conduct research at the University of Montpellier, exploring how diet, especially food additives found in ultra-processed foods, may influence mental health.  

Fulbright Sends Historian Mary Ellen Curtin to Poznań, Poland

At Adam Mickiewicz University, Curtin taught class on America’s slow and ongoing political transformation after Civil Rights Movement 

When historian Mary Ellen Curtin landed in Poznań, Poland, she brought a deep commitment to sharing the story of democracy. As a Fulbright Distinguished Scholar in the Humanities and Social Sciences at Adam Mickiewicz University, Curtin taught courses, gave public talks, and worked closely with Polish scholars and students.  

Poetry and the Eternal City: David Keplinger Wins Prestigious Rome Prize

As recipient of the 2025 Joseph Brodsky Rome Prize in Literature, Keplinger will spend five months in Rome 

This fall, award-winning poet and literature professor David Keplinger traded campus life at AU for the cobblestoned streets of Trastevere, as he takes up residence at the American Academy in Rome after receiving the Joseph Brodsky Rome Prize, one of the most distinguished fellowships in the arts and humanities.  

Student Research 

Meet the Winners of Record-Breaking Mathias Conference

35th Annual Robyn Rafferty Mathias Student Research Conference was largest-to-date and presented new AI research awards 

With more than 200 participants and two newly introduced award categories focused on artificial intelligence, AU’s 35th Annual Robyn Rafferty Mathias Student Research Conference marked its largest gathering to date. It came on the heels of AU’s newly earned R1 research status. 

HIV Breakthroughs in the Izumi Lab: A CAS Conversation

An interview with undergrads Grace Hillmer, Dacia Marquez, and Hasset Tibebe, most recently published on cover of Viruses journal 

Under the guidance of Professor Taisuke Izumi, three students—Hasset Tibebe, Dacia Marquez, and Grace Hillmer—led HIV-related projects that are making an impact in the scientific community, with published papers, national conference presentations, and a co-authored research study featured on the cover of Viruses journal.  

Into the Darkness: AU Students Track Evolution in Virginia Caves

AU research team is discovering how species may be changing in previously unexplored Virginia caves 

A team of AU researchers worked in dark, muddy caves of southwest Virginia to uncover information about how life evolves in the absence of light. They were exploring how an amphipod (Gammarus minus) may be undergoing a major evolutionary transformation within cave and spring ecosystems.