Members of the media are invited to Woolsey Hall on Aug. 22, the first day of classes. WuShock will welcome students to the building from 10:30-11:30 a.m. that day. Please contact Lainie Mazzullo-Hart at 316-978-3409 or lainie.mazzullo@wichita.edu to RSVP and for more details.
Wayne and Kay Woolsey Hall, the state-of-the-art facility that will be home to the W. Frank Barton School of Business at Wichita State University, is set to open for classes Aug. 22.
While faculty and staff are already at work in Woolsey Hall in preparation for the fall semester, finishing touches inside the building and landscaping work remain in progress.
Woolsey Hall is focused on creating an environment for students and faculty that inspires collaboration, innovation and an entrepreneurial mindset. Its location on the Innovation Campus will nurture applied learning experiences with partners and businesses active there. It is anticipated that the 125,000-square-foot building will be certified with a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver rating, the most widely used green building rating system.
Key features of Woolsey Hall include a social staircase, a curated art collection including both outdoor sculptures and interior pieces, ample study rooms and collaborative spaces, state-of-the-art classrooms with flexible learning environments, the Cargill Café, Fidelity Bank Ballroom and the Frank A. Boettger Auditorium, which seats 300 people. All of these amenities are available to the Wichita State community.
At the October 2020 groundbreaking ceremony for the building, Barton School Dean Larisa Genin told students the facility will be a place “where you will explore your full potential and ambitions.”
“Whether it’s launching a career, starting your own business or working to solve problems in our world, Woolsey Hall will be your lab, your sandbox, your incubator, your oyster to create amazing pearls. I can’t wait to see what you accomplish,” Genin said.
Woolsey Hall is named for the Wichita couple who provided the lead gift to the WSU Foundation’s fundraising campaign. In May, the Woolsey family made an additional gift from their trust to Wayne and Kay Woolsey Hall. A portion of the gift will be used to create the Kay Woolsey Garden, with the remainder going toward the Woolsey Hall Technology Fund.
FileConstruction continues on the Promise Bridge, a 300-foot-long pedestrian bridge spanning across the water feature south of Woolsey Hall. The intent of the bridge is to provide a literal and symbolic connection between Wichita State’s main campus and Innovation Campus.
The building will replace Clinton Hall, built in 1970, as the home of the Barton School. Starting in September, Clinton Hall will change into the Shocker Success Center.
The Shocker Success Center will house 17 student services that are currently scattered across campus in 10 buildings: the Office of Adult Learning, CARE Team, Career Closet, Military and Veteran Services, Office of Disability Services, OneStop Student Services, Shocker Support Locker, Office of Student Success, Tech Help, Testing Services, TRIO Disability Services, TRIO Student Support Services, Writing Center, Math Lab, Supplemental Instruction, Physics Lab, and the Shocker Learning Center.
About Wichita State University
Wichita State University serves as the Kansas urban-based research university, enrolling more than 16,000 students from every state in the U.S. and more than 100 countries. Wichita State and WSU Tech are recognized for being student centered and innovation driven.
Located in the largest city in the state with one of the highest concentrations in the United States of jobs involving science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), Wichita State University provides uniquely distinctive and innovative pathways of applied learning, applied research and career opportunities for all of our students.
The Innovation Campus, which is a physical extension of the Wichita State University main campus, is one of the nation’s largest and fastest-growing research/innovation parks, encompassing over 120 acres and is home to a number of global companies and organizations.
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About the W. Frank Barton School of Business
Located in Kansas’ business hub and with significant ties to the business community, the W. Frank Barton School of Business provides extensive applied learning opportunities. With in-person and online options, Barton School undergraduate and graduate programs are tailored to transform the lives of its students. It also holds a double AACSB accreditation for business and accounting, which puts it in the top 1% of business schools worldwide. The Barton School was established as the university’s College of Business Administration and Industry in 1926 and has thousands of graduates around the world.