Campus & Community

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This page is dedicated to stories about Columbia's campus and community. From student, staff, and faculty profiles to interesting events happening on campus and in our surrounding neighborhoods, here is where you can find the latest about what's happening on and around Columbia's campuses. 

Story Highlight

adam blumenberg
This Columbia Toxicologist’s Podcasts Are Perfect for Spooky Season

It’s a perfect fall day in New York City: the air is crisp, the leaves are crunching, and a variety of wild plants are giving it their last go with a final explosion of color before season’s end. But as Adam Blumenberg, Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CUIMC), will tell you, some of those plants deserve a second look before taking them home.

Pokeweed, with its purple berries, can cause gastrointestinal distress. Jimson weed, with its spiky seed pods and white flowers, can cause severe delirium. Ginkgo leaves, when ingested in large amounts, can cause seizures. 

Blumenberg is an emergency physician and board-certified medical toxicologist at CUIMC, where he cares for patients who have been poisoned and teaches the next generation of doctors. He also happens to make two podcasts about poison. We’d say this makes him a pretty good person to interview in this mysterious season. 

Photo of the Week

michael woodford raises a glass
Cheers to Our Newest Nobel Prize Winner!

Congratulations to Professor Michael Woodford, who won a Nobel Prize in Economics this week!

QUIZ

First Day of Classes
The Columbia News Quiz: September 2026

This September, Columbians debuted new music, won awards, and welcomed world leaders to campus. Test your knowledge of the latest news stories across the University!

COLUMBIA HISTORY

A train in the basement of Havemeyer in the early 1900s
The Locomotive Laboratory

Columbia started classes in the new Morningside Heights campus in October 1897. On this brand new campus, the engineering students finally had ample classroom and laboratory space in their two new buildings: the School of Mines (now Lewisohn) and the School of Engineering (now Mathematics). But did you know that there used to be a full-size locomotive engine underneath Havemeyer Hall?
 

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Out and About

More Stories

The program, which will welcome its first cohort in Fall 2027, will support accomplished leaders seeking to pivot from successful careers to meaningful next chapters of their lives.

The newest Bundles Scholars will delve into community wellness, the creative use of technology, literacy, holistic spiritual care, storytelling that centers Black women, and the history of policing in urban communities. 

Data shows less than 2 percent of OIE reports result in a formal investigation. More than 2,200 outdoor events took place last academic year with no Rules violations.   

Elias Gurmu and Sarina Prabasi, the founders behind local gem Buunni Coffee, spill the beans on two new locations on the CUIMC campus and what they are up to next.

The exhibition features the work of famous artists and cartoonists created while they were students at the University.

On Sept. 17, Haven Plaza was filled with over 1,000 local schoolchildren who came to learn about, experience, and enjoy science.

Something magical happens every year when new and returning Columbians flood back to campus at the end of August. This year was no exception.

The results provide insight into how students felt about their connection to the Columbia community during the 2024-25 academic year.

This $5 million gift provides for immediate programmatic enhancements and creates a tutoring space on the third floor of Uris Hall, on the Morningside Campus.

With a $250 million investment, NYC’s first net-zero-carbon, all-electric academic science building doubles research lab space and brings all five experimental science departments under one roof at Barnard College.

The annual community celebration supported by Columbia University provided local youth with the supplies and resources needed for a successful school year.

The project is Low Plaza’s first major, holistic renovation since its construction circa 1897. 

Topics & Resources

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Awards & Milestones

Columbia faculty, students, and staff are on the cutting edge of advancements in all fields. Here, you can find recent accomplishments and milestones.

Rocking the Glass House event at Lerner
Columbia Events

Explore a wide range of academic, cultural, and athletic events happening every day at Columbia. Nearly all events are open to the public, except as noted, and most are free.

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Columbia Dining, Facilities, and Operations News

Whether you need a carpenter, an electrician, a locksmith, housing, lighting, painting, parking, plumbing, recycling, more space, or public safety services, or if you need to eat, plan an event, travel around campus, or mail and printing services—Columbia Facilities and Operations has you covered. 

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Columbia Neighbors

Columbia Neighbors is where the university connects with its local community, its new friends and neighbors, anyone who looks to the diversity of ideas and experiences in our community and sees the possibility for shared growth, being of service, and connection. 

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Photo of the Week

Photo of the Week captures moments from around the University and New York City. The series is curated by University Photographer Eileen Barroso and Jennifer Pellerito.

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University Life

University Life is focused on enhancing the student experience across Columbia’s 17 schools and colleges. It serves as a student life hub for the University and is committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive campus culture where students can thrive in all dimensions of their lives. 

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