Progress made on pedestrian safety
The WSUPD in collaboration with an IELC student, SGA safety walk, and Facility Services, have moved forward on upgrading crosswalks on and off campus.
If you haven’t noticed the yellow flashing lights as you approach several crosswalks on campus, these are all solar powered, and can be moved if there’s a greater need elsewhere. Please note that the red flashing light at Perimeter and Memorial is still on the top of our list, and the WSUPD is still stopping cars regularly for running the stop sign. Use caution and please be a safe driver on our campus.
With the help of our partners at the city of Wichita, and the voicing of concerns by students who cross 17th Street, SGA and WSUPD; the city did a study at 17th and Yale, and realized another marked crosswalk was necessary. It has been completed and in place with proper signage.
Remember: The safety of our pedestrians is a priority on and off campus. Please pay attention to this new crosswalk.
Kansas Secretary of Commerce Hon. David Toland to speak at CIBA / WTCouncil - reservations required
The Center for International Business Advancement (CIBA) and the World Trade Council of Wichita (WTCouncil) cordially invite you to a dinner presentation on “Growing Kansas: A Look at Economic Development” with Secretary of Commerce, the Honorable David Toland, on Thursday, Nov. 21, at the Wichita Mariott Hotel, 9100 Corporate Hills Drive.
The networking reception will begin at 6 p.m., followed by dinner at 7 p.m. A town hall style Q&A with Toland will begin at 8 p.m.
The cost is $40 for WTCouncil members, $60 for non-members. The cost for WSU students is $10, and $15 for other students.
Pre-registration is required and space is strictly limited. Reservations may be made online at www.wichita.edu/wtcouncil.
For more payment information on registration, contact wtcouncil@wichita.edu or call 978-3176.
CIBA is a public-private partnership based in the Barton School of Business. For more information on CIBA, visit https://tinyurl.com/CIBA-WTCouncil; for information on the program, send an email to CIBA Director / WTCouncil Chair Usha Haley at usha.haley@wichita.edu.
Introducing the President’s Convergent Sciences Initiative for WSU faculty
A letter from President-elect Jay Golden, Provost Rick Muma and VP for Research and Economic Development John Tomblin
Monday’s announcement of NetApp’s intention to move onto Innovation Campus signals continued interest by major companies to be part of the excitement we are generating through our emphasis on research and applied learning to grow the Kansas economy. This announcement provides a great opportunity for Wichita State University to expand into new and emerging fields of research and inquiry.
Our society is being reshaped by factors including an aging population, growth of our urban regions, globalization, increased utilization of big data, and environmental and political stressors. At the same time, technology is rapidly advancing in exciting ways we can incorporate in our research and teaching. This includes the emergence of artificial intelligence, the digital transformation, novel health care delivery and development of new modes of mobility, to name a few. As Kansas’ only urban public research university, WSU is uniquely positioned to address many of these issues because of our location and partnerships with industry.
We want WSU to move to the forefront in developing a new generation of researchers and scholars to address the complex challenges and opportunities changing Kansas and the world. Gaining mastery of this knowledge will help make Kansas a leader in this new economy.
It will entail integrating knowledge, methods and expertise from different disciplines and forming novel frameworks to catalyze scientific discovery and innovation and, in the end, will provide unique opportunities for the economic prosperity of our state and career pathways for students.
Today we are asking the deans and faculty to undertake a new initiative: The President’s Convergent Sciences Initiative.
Andrew Hippisley, dean of Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, will be the convener, but every dean and interested faculty member has a role to play in expanding university research and impact.
Through this initiative, we aim to empower our faculty to explore opportunities to bring together colleagues who span the disciplines -- transdisciplinarity, interdisciplinarity and multidisciplinarity -- and form convergent science research clusters to address some of our most pressing and opportunistic challenges.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) describes this approach eloquently by stating:
“The convergence paradigm intentionally brings together intellectually diverse researchers to develop effective ways of communicating across disciplines by adopting common frameworks and a new scientific language, which may, in turn, afford solving the problem that engendered the collaboration, developing novel ways of framing research questions and opening new research vistas.”
Multiple open forums will be scheduled with faculty, staff, students and industry to solicit input in developing a WSU-specific initiative. We have broadly provided the following general themes. It is our intent that this will lead to an official call for proposals in the spring of 2020. The deans, with faculty input, will propose a general framework for the proposals.
Initial Themes
The following themes are intentionally broad to allow our faculty the freedom to define the need, approach and impact.
- Health Disparities and Health Delivery
- Digital Transformation
- Open – For faculty to self-identify
A limited number of proposals will be selected and announced no later than early fall 2020. At a minimum, we will initially seed one cluster in each of the three themes. These initiatives will be in addition to the data science and Latinx clusters we are currently working on.
The President’s Convergent Sciences Initiative will provide each cluster with annual seed funding and will prioritize new faculty hires over a span of multiple years to supplement the research cluster. The resources of the university will also be leveraged and provided to the clusters in an effort to recruit external partners to provide guidance and financial /operational support, as well as our marketing teams to help promote the clusters.
President Golden will work with political, industry and community leaders to discuss how investments in these projects can lead to new jobs and industry growth. We’ll also work with the WSU Foundation to develop external individual, corporate and foundation partners to support this research vision and provide student support in the form of convergent sciences scholarships.
As a long-term goal, we will explore the possibility of co-locating cluster faculty and students to work with industry on the Innovation Campus in a Convergent Sciences building that the faculty, students and industry will help design.
This new effort in Convergent Sciences is intended to further expand the participation of our faculty, staff and students from all disciplines in research and applied learning. We are confident that the results will provide even greater benefits to our university, region and state. Your input and leadership will be essential in realizing this goal.
Thank you for all you do to advance research at WSU.
WSU Symphony performs movie music
A screening of the Charlie Chaplin classic comedy “The Immigrant” will be accompanied by the WSU Symphony Orchestra at 7:30 p.m. today (Tuesday, Nov. 19) in Miller Concert Hall. Mark Laycock conducts the program, which includes selections from several beloved film scores.
Tickets ($12 for general admission with discounts available) may be purchased through the Fine Arts Box Office online at wichita.edu/fineartsboxoffice or call 978-3233. Admission is free for students with a current WSU ID.
Jazz Arts 1 Ensemble and Banda Hispanica to feature special guest artists
Guest artists Adam Larson, tenor saxophone, with Jazz Arts 1and Andy Mill, trumpet, with Banda Hispanica will perform at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 20, in Miller Concert Hall.
The Jazz Arts ensemble traditionally consists of a 19-piece big band. The repertoire of the ensemble consists of high-level arrangements of varying styles.
Banda Hispanica, an 11-piece Latin ensemble features a mix of percussion, horns, vocalists, and rhythm instruments.
The ensemble explores both traditional and contemporary music styles.
For tickets, go to http://www.wichita.edu/fineartsboxoffice or call 978-3233.
WSU students: Request your free ticket here.
Join the fun during International Education Week!
Join the Office of International Education for a week full of fun events during International Education Week from Nov. 18-22. Most of these events are free to attend, though some require registration. Visit www.wichita.edu/ieweek for a full listing of events, times and dates, or find our event on Facebook @WichitaStateInternationalAdmissions. Questions? Contact jessa.roberts@wichita.edu.
Weekly Briefing university update
At last Thursday’s Weekly Briefing, the university update included information about faculty approving changes in General Education courses, campus construction, a visit from Gen. Paul E. Funk II, and the Shocker Locker Support Challenge.
FACULTY APPROVES CHANGE IN GENERAL EDUCATION COURSES
Wichita State’s faculty approved a reduction in mandatory general education courses to 36 hours from 42. The move was approved by a vote of 165-69 at Monday’s General Faculty meeting.
The reduction is meant to bring Wichita State’s requirements more in line with peer institutions and create a more flexible and less complicated general education system. In 2017, the Kansas Board of Regents requested that universities cap degree programs at 120 total credit hours to promote on-time degree completion.
UPDATE ON CAMPUS CONSTRUCTION
The building shell for P3, located near Oliver St. on the Innovation Campus, is complete. Construction is underway on a “shared office space” in a portion of the second floor and its anticipated completion is later this month.
The Advanced Virtual Engineering and Testing Lab, also located near Oliver, is substantially complete. Crash sled equipment is being calibrated and tested. Staff will move into the AVET Lab building in late November.
Construction is underway on the NIAR ATLAS Building, located between NIAR and Wallace Hall, with anticipated completion in January 2020.
The Steve Clark YMCA and Student Wellness Center is scheduled to be completed in mid-December and open in January. The Student Wellness Staff will move in after finals in December.
Woolsey Hall design is underway with the architectural team on site in late October to meet with students, faculty, and staff. The team is working toward a late summer 2020 construction start with the goal of opening for classes in spring of 2022
Journey East restaurant, at Braeburn Square, is scheduled for completion later this month. No opening date has been announced.
In athletics, the Student Athlete Success Center is under construction with anticipated completion in August. Renovation of Koch Arena offices will begin in January. The Eck Stadium Performance Facility is scheduled for complete in January.
GENERAL VISITS WICHITA STATE’S SHOCKER BATTALION
Gen. Paul E. Funk II, Commanding General, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, visited Shocker Battalion at Wichita State on Thursday. This is the first semester for new cadets for Army ROTC, and the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement was honored to host General Funk.
General Funk is responsible for 32 Army schools organized under eight Centers of Excellence that recruit, train and educate more than 500,000 soldiers and service members annually.
SHOCKER LOCKER SUPPORT CHALLENGE
UP and USS Senates challenged Faculty Senate to a friendly competition to see who can collect the most donations for the Shocker Support Locker.
Until Friday, Nov. 22, drop off food items, hygiene products, baby products, etc. in donation boxes around campus. You can also collect items within your department and call Central Services (978-3545) to pick them up. All staff and faculty are encouraged to participate.
The Shocker Support Locker aims to alleviate food insecurity on campus and contribute to the overall health and well-being of our students, faculty and staff, by providing a variety of nutritional and functional resources to Shockers at no cost.
Wichita State Blood Drive on Nov. 20-21 - Free T-shirt and $5 Amazon gift card!
The Red Cross is thankful for the blood donors who play a vital role in supplying the nearly 21 million blood components that are needed each year by hospital patients. Your act of service is life-saving! Thank you.
*Donors will receive a free long sleeve T-shirt & a $5 Amazon e-gift card for donating!
Upcoming Blood Drive: Wichita State University
10 a.m.-4 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 20 and Thursday, Nov. 21, in the Heskett Center lobby
To view available times and to schedule your donation appointment, go to www.redcrossblood.org; enter Sponsor Code: Wichita State or call 1-800-Red-Cross.
Photo ID or Red Cross Donor Card required.
Join us for the annual Christmas Organ Concert in Wiedemann Hall
Please join us for the Annual Christmas Organ Concert of the Wednesdays in Wiedemann with Lynne Davis organ recital series at 5:15 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 26, in Wiedemann Hall.
Come hear festive music for Thanksgiving and sing well-loved Christmas songs and carols with the beautiful Marcussen organ. Free admission.
Please note that this is on Tuesday and not Wednesday because of the Thanksgiving break.
Share feedback and big ideas for Honors
Students, faculty, staff, and friends - we want to hear from you! President-elect Jay Golden has asked us to put together information about Honors, including information about our strengths, weaknesses, and aspirations.
Please take a few minutes to fill out the online survey by Friday, Nov. 22, to give feedback on some of these questions and share your big ideas for the Cohen Honors College.
Arts and Crafts Fair at WSU this week in the RSC
The Rhatigan Student Center will be filled with home-made crafts and collectibles that you will fall in love with from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 20, and Thursday, Nov. 21, on the first floor, RSC! Stop by to browse unique vendors and items you can purchase to your heart's desire. Accepted forms of payment will vary with different vendors. For more information. go to wichita.edu/arts&craftsfair.
Help us reduce WSU’s carbon footprint; we need your help!
As part of the effort in Sustainability Plan at WSU, we are currently researching the amount of CO2 we are emitting on Wichita State University. However, we need to obtain data from everyone on campus. It will only take about five-to-10 minutes to fill out the survey.
If you have question, contact Dakota Blair at drblair@shockers.wichita.edu), or Ikram Ahmed at ikram.ahmed@wichita.edu.
The survey response is anonymous. If you have taken the survey before, we would like to express our gratitude. You don't have to fill out the survey again. Help us out by filling out the survey here.
Save on kids' apparel during Shocker Store Gameday Sale
For every home men’s basketball game, the Shocker Store at Braeburn Square will have a sale all day for Shocker fans! For the game against Gardner-Webb today (Tuesday, Nov. 19) take 20% off all kids’ apparel; Braeburn Square location only. Some exclusions apply. Not valid with other discounts or promotions.
F45 Playoffs Practice Clinic
Want to know what the F45 Playoffs are all about? Join us from noon-1 p.m. or 5-8 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 20, in 141 Heskett Center for the F45 Playoffs Practice Clinic.
We will go over all the moves and the proper way to execute them. The F45 Playoffs are on Friday, Nov. 22. There are slots available from 6 a.m.-8 p.m.
Form a team or compete individually and make your way through 10 F45 stations. Complete the most reps to be crowned the champion.
Registration is $10, this semester all female participants are free thanks to the sponsorship of a donor. Do you think you have what it takes to be crowned the champion? Register today at the Heskett Center Guest Services Desk.
Audiology doctoral students need participants for their research projects
WSU graduate students in the Doctor of Audiology program need participants for their research projects. They are studying clinical techniques in audiology for evaluating function of the ear.
Participants must be between the ages of 18 and 35, have normal hearing, have not had an ear infection in the past three months, nor had symptoms of cold, flu, or nasal allergy in the past two weeks.
Participants will receive a free comprehensive hearing evaluation and ear examination prior to testing. The testing will take about one hour. If you are interested in volunteering, contact Brigid Derby at brderby@shockers.wichita.edu or 816-405-4969, or Professor Xiao-Ming Sun at Xiao-Ming.Sun@wichita.edu.
Ugly sweater tees at the Shocker Store
Get in that festive, Shocker spirit with some Shocker ugly sweater tees from the Shocker Store! There is a different long-sleeve tee option at the RSC location and the Braeburn Square location. All options are available online at shockerstore.com. Sizes are small-3XL. Make sure you are decked out Shocker-style for the holidays!
Sale on professional wear at the Shocker Store
Looking to update your business or interview wardrobe? This week, take 20% off all men’s and women’s professional wear in the Shocker Store, Rhatigan Student Center location only.
Bring your pups to the 7th Annual Puppy Paddle!
Join us at 10 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 14, at the Heskett Center for our 7th Annual Puppy Paddle! Bring your furry friends to this FREE event and take a dip in the pool! You and your puppy can swim together, chase tennis balls or practice jumping in. This event raises money for animals in need through donations and will showcase dogs from the Wichita Animal Action League in need of a fur-ever home.