Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman visited campus in January during the height of the economic crisis and shared his expertise with students before delivering the Atkinson Lecture. Students queried him about everything from the government stimulus plan to his advice for new graduates seeking employment.

Native artists demonstrated their regalia making talents at the Hallie Ford Museum of Art during the unprecedented exhibition The Art of Ceremony. The exhibition allowed the public to view ceremonial regalia from all nine of Oregon’s federally recognized tribes, bringing to light pieces that normally are not seen outside of private tribal events.

The Peace Corps ranked Willamette 10th in the nation among small undergraduate schools producing volunteers. With 18 alumni serving in 15 countries, Willamette was the only small Oregon school in the top 10. Here, Audrey Squires ’07 served as an ecotourism volunteer in Guatemala.

Attorney and environmental advocate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. brought his activist spirit to Willamette in March when he delivered the Dempsey Lecture on Environmental Issues. He also met with a small group of students to discuss the most pressing environmental issues facing our country and the world.

Phil Taylor ’11 met with his mentor, Professor John Peel, shortly after winning a BMI Student Composer Award, one of the most prestigious awards for young composers in the Western Hemisphere. Taylor was one of 13 Willamette students and alumni to win 14 national honors this year. Other awards included three Fulbright Grants and two National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships.

Students cleared invasive plants at Zena Forest, Willamette’s outdoor research station, as part of a Take a Break project during spring break. Students, faculty and staff travel across the country during spring and winter breaks to do service in communities while learning about social justice issues.

The quality of the MBA program at the Atkinson Graduate School of Management was recognized by two national rankings. In March, the Princeton Review named the school one of the top 15 programs for preparing students in marketing, and in August, Forbes magazine placed AGSM on its list of the top 75 business schools in the country.

Every April, students host Wulapalooza, an annual art and music festival that allows them to demonstrate their talents while letting loose as a community before final exams. Initiated by students in 1998 as a creative outlet, the festival now draws nationally recognized musical talent.

Willamette celebrated the Class of 2009 in May with commencement ceremonies for the College of Liberal Arts and the three graduate schools. The graduates headed on to a multitude of paths, including jobs at Biotronik, the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and the Bureau of Land Management; service with Peace Corps and Teach for America; and graduate programs at Cornell, Pepperdine and the University of Southern California.

Athletes in five sports participated in NCAA Division III national championship competition this year: men’s and women’s track, women’s rowing, and men’s and women’s cross country. Multiple athletes also won academic awards, including cross country runner Chris Platano ’10, who earned an Elite 88 Award, given to the athlete at each NCAA national championship event with the highest grade point average.

Chelsea Robinson ’10 performed taiko at Tokyo International University this summer as the Japanese school and Willamette celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Tokyo International University of America campus in Salem. The Willamette-TIU partnership, with its faculty and student exchange programs, allows for diversity and global education at both universities.

The 541 members of the class of 2013 who arrived in August were chosen from among the largest applicant pool in Willamette’s history — 6,024, a 100% increase from to years ago. This also means they made it through a tougher field than ever before — only 59 percent of applicants were admitted.

The Sierra Club recognized Willamette’s sustainability efforts when Sierra magazine named the university one of its top 20 “Cool Schools.” Willamette also was ranked among the top 30 liberal arts colleges by Washington Monthly for excellence in teaching and scholarship, encouraging students’ commitment to work that benefits the larger society, and providing need-based financial aid to high-ability students.

Ford Hall, a new academic building that integrates academics and technology, opened in the fall. The building combines an unusual mix of departments — including rhetoric and media studies, digital art and music, mathematics and computer science — to foster interdisciplinary learning. It also provides more opportunities for students to engage with each other and their professors in hearth spaces surrounded by faculty offices.

The School of Education, known for providing students with many hours of hands-on teaching in the classroom, welcomed a record-sized new MAT class in the fall — 127 students, a 16.5% increase from the previous year. The school also added an M.Ed. degree designed for practitioners or those who have earned initial licensure.

CNN journalist and Newsweek International editor Fareed Zakaria delivered the Atkinson Lecture in October and met with politics students to share his expertise on globalism. The students and Zakaria discussed government policies on Social Security, immigration and health care, among other issues.

The university successfully completed the seven-year Campaign for Willamette in October. The campaign raised $131 million, exceeding its goal of $125 million and showing that tough economic times have not thwarted the aspirations of Willamette supporters. One result was an $18.1 million gift for Kaneko Commons, a residential and dining facility that includes self-governance, a substantial faculty presence and expanded learning opportunities.

For the seventh consecutive year, Willamette University College of Law graduates outperformed their peers on the Oregon State Bar examination. Among those who took the July exam for the first time, 88% of Willamette graduates passed, compared to a 75.1% passage rate at all other law schools. They also surpassed their peers on the Washington State Bar exam, with a 92.3% passage rate, as opposed to 79.1% for first-time takers overall.

Students, with the help of several professors, created a small farm at Willamette’s new Zena Forest research station, located west of Salem. The farm will grow food for the Willamette community and provide space for research into issues of sustainable food production in the Willamette Valley.

Chemistry Professor Andrew Duncan was one of at least 20 Willamette faculty to win $1.2 million in grants this year to support research and curriculum. Duncan earned a $50,000 Undergraduate New Investigator Grant from the American Chemical Society-Petroleum Research Fund to support his work contributing to the field of pharmaceutical synthesis.