Photo galleries

Fall Commencement 2012

Simon Blackwell, vice president of Technology and Digital Gaming at Wizards of the Coast LLC and an alumnus of Western Washington University, addressed graduates and their families at Western’s fall commencement Saturday, Dec. 15, at 10 a.m. in Carver Gym.

Seattle art patrons Virginia Wright and her husband, the late Bagley Wright, received the President’s Award for their significant contributions to public art in the Pacific Northwest, particularly to Western Washington University and the nationally renowned Outdoor Sculpture Collection.

Reception heralds new art gallery spaces at WWU

Western Washington University celebrated the opening of three new gallery spaces in the Performing Arts Center on Friday, Dec. 14.

Hosted by Western President Bruce Shepard and Dean Dan Guyette from the WWU College of Fine and Performing Arts, the ceremony featured a ribbon cutting and a brief program honoring Virginia Wright, whose generous gift made the renovation of the gallery spaces possible. Members of the Safeco Insurance Co. and the Washington Arts Consortium also were in attendance and recognized for their contributions toward the new galleries.

Three new gallery spaces open today on campus

Western Washington University will celebrate the opening of three new gallery spaces in the Performing Arts Center at 4:15 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 14.

The celebration is free and open to the public.

Faculty, staff enjoy holiday party
Dec. 14 party to celebrate new PAC galleries, art

Western Washington University will celebrate the opening of three new gallery spaces in the Performing Arts Center at 4:15 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 14.

The celebration is free and open to the public.

Giant sequoia lit up for the holidays

Facilities workers worked earlier this week to trim the giant sequoia tree near Edens Hall with lights, an annual event at Western Washington University. The laborious process resulted in 14,000 LED lights along the tree, which is visible from downtown Bellingham.

Western has been lighting the tree since at least 1967. The tree's height was last estimated in 2009 at 131 feet.

Photos by Communications and Marketing interns Maddy Mixter and Sam Heim and Western Today editor Matthew Anderson.

Chem Club named ACS outstanding chapter

Western Washington University’s student chapter of the American Chemical Society is winner of the society's Outstanding Chapter Award.

Of the 1,000-plus student chapters of the ACS, fewer than 50 were recognized with this award. This is the second consecutive year the chapter has received an outstanding award, and it marks the 10th straight year that the Chem Club has been recognized for its efforts with an award from the ACS. In addition to the Outstanding Chapter Award, the Chem Club received an ACS Green Chemistry Award from the national ACS organization.

A few costumes from Halloween 2012
900 youth visit Western for Compass 2 Campus

About 900 fifth graders from Skagit and Whatcom counties visited Western Washington University on Tuesday, Oct. 23, to see firsthand what a university campus is like. The tour kicked off the fourth year of Compass 2 Campus, a proactive effort that sends trained WWU student mentors into schools in order to get more kids to see themselves as future college students.

Zoe's holds viewing parties for presidential debates

A handful of Western Washington University faculty, staff and students gathered in Zoe's Bagelry in Wilson Library on the WWU campus Wednesday night to watch the first of four presidential debates this fall.

The remaining three debates and the election-night returns also will be shown live in the cafe, thanks to a partnership between Western Libraries and University Dining Services.