Pac-12 students launch esports organization

January 31, 2018

The University of Utah’s esports program along with student video game clubs from 10 other Pac-12 universities have formed a new unofficial esports organization to compete in multiplayer video games including the popular titles “League of Legends,” “Overwatch” and “Hearthstone.” The new organization, The Pacific Alliance of Collegiate Gamers (PACG), will involve multiple, semester-long leagues. […]



UMFA and library receive prestigious grant to collaborate on Intermountain West initiative

January 30, 2018

The J. Willard Marriott Library and the Utah Museum of Fine Arts at the University of Utah have been awarded a $500,000 grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The grant will provide partial funding for a four-year collaborative project that will establish the U as a global resource hub for artists and scholars studying […]



University of Utah emphasizes safety for international students on campus

January 29, 2018

Note: The following statement was released to Chinese media summarizing the events surrounding the death of student ChenWei Guo. An English translation follows below. The University of Utah is committed to the safety of all of its students, visitors, faculty and staff.   留学安全问题慎重对待,犹他大学多措施确保校园安全 刚刚过去的2017年,世界范围内的留学安全事件时有发生,留学安全问题引发了国内社会的持续关注。近期发布的《中国留学发展报告(2017)》就指出,随着当前留学生低龄化趋势日渐凸显和种族歧视依然存在,留学安全问题需要慎重对待。很多媒体在2017留学领域的年终盘点时,也把“留学安全”作为重要关键词之一,并对2017年部分留学安全事件进行了回顾,其中美国犹他大学校园附近的枪击事件备受瞩目。 2017年10月30日晚,23岁的犹他大学中国留学生郭宸玮事件发生后,校方于30日当晚向全校师生发布了警报,并在31日发表声明宣布当天停课,以悼念郭宸玮。据了解,嫌疑人已于2017年10月31日被抓获,目前已被谋杀、抢劫和其他十余项罪名起诉,如果谋杀罪名成立,嫌疑人最高可被判处死刑。 根据事后了解,郭宸玮并非因其民族或族裔而成为目标。他的不幸是由于一起随机的、愚蠢的暴力行为所致。 犹他大学副校长兼学生主任 Lori McDonald博士表示,“对学生来说,犹他大学仍然是非常安全的地方。 事实上,近些年犹他大学一直在校园安全方面加大投入,建立了完备的校园安全机制。“在枪击事件发生后,学校的校园警报系统第一时间通过短信、电子邮件和社交媒体等渠道向全体学生和教职员工进行通知。校园每年全天候24小时都有大学公共安全部的人员巡视。整个公共安全队伍包括70多人,而且都是资质过关的犹他州警察。除了监控和响应警报、控制大学设施门禁以及巡视校园外,该部门还提供全天候的安全护送服务。必要时,盐湖城警察局、犹他州高速公路巡逻队和盐湖城警长办公室也为犹他大学提供必要的支援。 按照联邦政府的国家规定,犹他大学每年都会发布校园犯罪方面的统计数据。与美国的大多数大学一样,校园内的大多数犯罪活动基本都是涉及盗窃和违反本州的酒精管制法律,任何形式的暴力袭击实为罕见。需要指出的是,美国大学校园是严格限制枪支的,警察是校园里唯一允许公开携带武器的人,而且学生宿舍楼不允许藏有枪支。如果想在犹他州购买枪支或获得隐藏武器许可,需年满21岁且没有任何犯罪记录。而要获得隐藏武器许可还需要接受额外的培训。 “在校园安全方面,犹他大学还面向全体学生(包括留学生)提供众多支持服务,如个人咨询(支持大多数语言)、警察教授的安全培训和课程等等。在枪击事件之后,学校对校园安全将更加重视。“Lori McDonald女士表示,“郭宸玮同学的离世给犹他大学的每个人都带来了影响,但这起事件也让学校上下更加团结一心。” 为悼念郭宸玮,犹他大学在10月31日全校停课,而后又举办了两场悼念仪式,师生们在FACEBOOK上也纷纷表达了对郭宸玮的哀悼。郭宸玮父母给犹他大学的电邮中写道的:“对于曾认识他的师生所发表的感言我们都很感动。很显然,郭宸玮在过去的两年给大家带来了很大的影响。” […]



Author and producer Ben Nemtin to speak at U’s 2018 commencement

January 29, 2018

The University of Utah today announced that Ben Nemtin, No. 1 New York Times best-selling author and star of MTV’s “The Buried Life,” will deliver the 2018 commencement address on Thursday, May 3, 2018. Nemtin’s journey began 10 years ago when he and his friends set out on a two-week road trip with a camera […]



Deciding to Stay or Go: Making a Difference Matters

January 25, 2018

A study by the Utah Education Policy Center, UEPC, in the College of Education at the University of Utah, found that choosing to make a difference isn’t just a reason for becoming a teacher. As it turns out, teachers report that making a difference in the lives of children and young adults, and contributing to […]



Dust on snow controls springtime river rise in West

January 25, 2018

A new study has found that dust, not spring warmth, controls the pace of spring snowmelt that feeds the headwaters of the Colorado River. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the amount of dust on the mountain snowpack controls how fast the Colorado Basin’s rivers rise in the spring regardless of air temperature, with more dust correlated […]



Reaching the breaking point

January 23, 2018

To better understand why many elderly people are prone to break a bone in a fall (known as bone fragility fractures), perhaps doctors and researchers should look at the human skeleton in much the same way civil engineers analyze buildings and bridges, according to a new study from a University of Utah mechanical engineering professor. […]



Sorenson Impact Center hosts Winter Innovation Summit

January 22, 2018

Can investors help people recover from natural disasters faster? Does being bolder in philanthropy lift up more people than playing it conservatively? Does a new age of populism help or harm cities? These are just a few of the many social impact topics that the fourth annual Winter Innovation Summit will discuss from Jan. 24-26, […]



Ruth W. Watkins

Ruth V. Watkins named 16th president of the University of Utah

January 18, 2018

The Utah State Board of Regents has selected Ruth V. Watkins as the 16th president of the University of Utah. Watkins is the first woman to lead the University of Utah — the state’s oldest, largest and only Research 1 higher education institution — in its 168-year history. (Jerilyn S. McIntyre served as interim president […]



Climate change and snowmelt – turn up the heat, but what about humidity?

January 17, 2018

  It’s said on sticky summer days: “It’s not the heat, it’s the humidity.” That holds true in the winter too, and could hold the key to the future of snowpack and water resources in the American West. In a new study published today in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, University of Utah […]