Aira Access provides free, on-campus visual aid to blind and low-vision Shockers
Blind and low-vision Shockers and campus visitors now have a high-tech option for free visual aid on campus offered through an Aira Access agreement with the Wichita State Office of Disability Services.
Aira is a mobile service that allows blind or low-vision people to use their smart phones or special glasses to get verbal, on-demand descriptions of anything around them from Aira agents. Its purpose is to enhance everyday efficiency, engagement and autonomy for the visually-impaired.
Read the full Aira Access article
Wind, solar-powered sculptures installed on Innovation Campus
Levente Sulyok, associate professor of painting and drawing in the School of Art, Design and Creative Industries, installed two temporary sculptures on Wichita State’s Innovation Campus. One sculpture includes a solar-powered street light that, at dusk, illuminates the Victorian-era iron street lamp below it. The other is composed of plastic pinwheels that imitate the movements found in the Flint Hills of Kansas.
“We don’t want to make fixed objects necessarily. It’s the Innovation Campus, after all,” said Sulyok. “I knew I wanted to use the elements to make something that wasn’t static.”
The College of Fine Arts supported the project by underwriting the cost of materials for the sculptures. Every two years, new installations will be installed, serving as a research opportunity for students and faculty.
Sulyok is the first artist to use the new sculpture pads along Oliver. In collaboration with WSU’s College of Fine Arts, the city of Wichita installed the two brick pedestals to bring visual interest to the Innovation Campus.
Learn more about the project here.
Institute of Innovation to host professional workshop
The Institute of Innovation is hosting a professional workshop April 16-17 that consists of two days of interactive and hands-on Design Thinking training. You will learn to how discover insights that can lead to new product or service opportunities, align teams around user’s needs, and ideate to solve defined problems. Plus, you will learn how to bring this process direct to your department or team.
The cost of admission is $550. Early-bird pricing ends Thursday, Feb. 27.
Find more information about this workshop, go to Wichita.edu/designthinking.
ISME Colloquium on Collaborative Robotics by Curtis Richardson
Curtis Richardson
Curtis Richardson, Technical Fellow, Spirit Aerosystems, will present “The Future of Robotics is Collaborative” at the ISME Colloquium from 11 a.m.-noon Friday, Feb. 21, in 211 Engineering Building.
Even conventional robotic automation is relatively new to aircraft manufacturing. After a slow introduction into production use throughout the late 1980s and 1990s, the 2000s saw a proverbial explosion of robotic deployments in the aerospace industry: Spirit went from using six industrial robots throughout its operations 2000, to now having more than a hundred. But what’s stopping aerospace manufacturers from deploying robots on the scale of the automotive industry?
Bio: A Technical Fellow, Curtis Richardson is Spirit’s enterprise leader for automation technology development. He also leads the broader Smart Manufacturing segment of Spirit’s Distinctive Capability corporate strategy for investment in research, technology, and capital as well as mergers and acquisitions. In his 23 years of industry experience, he has founded a regional robotics advocacy group bringing together broad stakeholder collaboration, served on the Robotic Industries Association’s Board of Directors for eight years, and been an active voice in the Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing (ARM) Institute (a DoD-funded Manufacturing USA Institute) as a member of its Stakeholder Executive Council.
KMUW to host Wichitalks; taking applications for speakers now
KMUW is hosting Wichitalks on Saturday, March 21, at the Crown Uptown, and we’re currently taking applications for speakers. Speakers will give a 5-minute presentation (20 slides, auto-advancing every 15 seconds) about something they’re passionate about.
The deadline to apply is Friday, Feb. 21. More information about Wichitalks can be found on our website. We’re also selling tickets to the event; those can be found on the website as well.
Best President of WSU Debate
Come nominate your choice for the WSU President (who served at least 30 years ago) who made the biggest positive impact on students, Wichita, and the world, or just listen to the debate. Anyone can attend, and there will a vote at the end.
The debate will be held from 11 a.m.-12:15 p.m. tomorrow (Wednesday, Feb. 19) in 200 Ahlberg Hall, and is sponsored by the Department of Political Science.
Contact Neal Allen, chair of Political Science, with any questions at neal.allen@wichita.edu or 978-7133.
Volunteer as a conversation leader at the Intensive English Center
If you enjoy learning about other cultures and meeting people from around the world, volunteer as a conversation leader at the Intensive English Language Center.
Conversation outings are Wednesdays from 10-11:30 a.m. or 12:30-2 p.m.
Spring 2020 conversation dates are Feb. 19, 26, March 4, April 8, 15, 22, 29, and May 6.
For more information, contact volunteer coordinator Aimee Leisy at aimee.leisy@wichita.edu, leave a message at the Intensive English Language Center front desk at 978-6040, or stop by the Intensive English Center at 1741 N. Hillside.
The Lecture Series in the Mathematical Sciences presents Weizhang Huang, University of Kansas
Please join us for a public lecture by Weizhang Huang from the University of Kansas, titled "Phase-field modeling of brittle fracture and its moving mesh finite element computation" at 3 p.m. Friday, Feb. 21, in 372 Jabara Hall.
Refreshments will be served before the lecture at 2:30 p.m. in 353 Jabara Hall.
Click here for an abstract and list of upcoming lectures.
Savvy Scholar workshops feature ‘Hidden Gems in the Library’
Savvy Scholar workshops round-out February with a drop-in clinic from 4-5 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 19, "Hidden Gems in the Library," followed by "Discovering Search Engine Bias" noon-1 p.m. Friday, Feb. 21, all in Ablah Library.
Honors works to expand applied learning opportunities
The Cohen Honors College is excited to announce that Mariem Berrada has joined us as our Applied Honors Graduate Assistant. Mariem will work closely with the Office of Applied and Experiential Learning to cultivate internships and cooperative education opportunities for Cohen Honors students.
Not only will Mariem help students with the internship process at the university, but she will also work one-on-one with Cohen Honors students to interface with the community to find those opportunities for them.
She will be available for appointments in both the Cohen Honors College and the John Bardo Center.
Email AppliedHonors@wichita.edu
Tilford Symposium welcomes Delia Garcia as one of its keynote speakers
Delia Garcia
The 2020 Tilford Symposium is excited to announce Honorable Delia Garcia as one of its keynote speakers from 2-2:45 p.m. Friday, Feb. 28, in the Shirley Beggs Ballroom, third floor, RSC.
Delía García serves as the Secretary for the Kansas Department of Labor, confirmed by the Senate on May 3, 2019. She returned to Kansas after serving eight years in executive, senior leadership in the national organizations ReflectUS, National Migrant Seasonal Head Start Association, and the National Education Association in Washington, D.C. In 2004, she was elected to the Kansas House of Representatives, where she served six years and served on the Commerce and Labor Committee at her request. Delía made Kansas history by becoming the first Latina and the youngest female to serve in the Kansas Legislature in 2004. She is using her business, policy, national management, and advocacy expertise to serve hard-working Kansans and their families.
Delía received her Master’s Degree in Political Science, with an emphasis in Public Administration from St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, Texas, and her Bachelor of Arts degree from Wichita State University. She is also a graduate of the Harvard University Executive Leadership Program, the Aspen Executive Leadership Institute and the Kansas Leadership Center. Delía received numerous recognitions for her leadership and community service, including a permanent exhibition in the State of Kansas Historical Society Museum as the first Latina elected in Kansas.
The Tilford Symposium is open to all faculty, staff, students and community members. Registration is now open, and space is limited.
University Update at Weekly Briefing
Read what was shared during the University Update at last Thursday's Weekly Briefing.
WSU TECH OFFERS FREE TUITION
WSU Tech will offer scholarships to workers laid off because of the grounding of the Boeing 737 Max.
The "Wichita Promise Scholarship" will pay tuition and fees for eligible classes and programs for training or to help employees finish their associate degrees. Career coaching by WSU Tech’s Career Services department is also available.
Classes at WSU Tech are six to eight weeks long, and a new session starts in March. Some of the subjects being taught include machining basics, aerospace paint, composite fabrication, electrical assembly and welding.
The program is funded by WSU Tech and community donations.
BACK WITH THE BAND
For a second straight year, WSU Tech will receive Metallica Scholars Grant Money from the All Within My Hands Foundation. WSU Tech is one of 15 schools receiving $100,000 toward programs designed to support students training to enter the workforce.
CALL FOR STARTUPS IN WICHITA
NXTUS, a partner in Wichita State’s innovation ecosystem, is looking for startups to help with its NXTSTAGE Pilot Competition.
The Pilot Competition is open for applications at www.f6s.com/nxtstage.
NXTSTAGE is aimed at propelling startups that have gotten off the ground, with deployable products in market, to their next stage of growth, by connecting them to mature businesses and regional partners looking to become customers for their innovations. The program will curate engagement between corporate partners and startups and end with an innovation showcase in the spring.
NXTUS, formerly e2e Accelerator, is led by president and CEO Josh Oeding, who earned his degree in entrepreneurship from Wichita State.
NXTSTAGE is aimed at propelling startups that have gotten off the ground, with deployable products in market, to their next stage of growth, by connecting them to mature businesses and regional partners looking to become customers for their innovations. The program will curate engagement between corporate partners and startups and end with an innovation showcase in the spring.
Applications for the competition are accepted online at www.f6s.com/nxtstage.
NXTUS, formerly e2e Accelerator, is led by president and CEO Josh Oeding, who earned his degree in entrepreneurship from Wichita State.
INNOVATION COMPETITION AT BARDO CENTER
Registration is open until Friday for the Institute for Innovation’s Invent for the Planet innovation competition, sponsored by Airbus. The competition takes place beginning Friday at the John Bardo Center lobby
Invent for the Planet (IFTP) challenges students to solve real-world problems. Teams of 3-5 students will work to design and prototype a solution for a wide range of global concerns. Students from across the globe will also work on the problems, allowing for collaboration.
Mentors will be available and the teams will present their solutions to judges for a chance to win more than $500 worth in prizes.
E-LAUNCH TAKES OFF NEXT WEEK
Spring E-Launch at the Center for Entrepreneurship begins on Feb. 20.
The Center for Entrepreneurship wants to nurture and support ideas/concepts/products that you would like to pursue moving into the marketplace.
E-Launch fosters entrepreneurial activity, leading to the commercialization of ideas. Through an interactive process, participants will learn to clearly conceptualize how the product or service can provide real value to customers. Participants will be shown how to validate their value proposition with customers and other stakeholders.
E-Launch meets for six Thursdays this spring in Devlin Hall.
Register now for E-Launch Spring 2020
E-Launch fosters entrepreneurial activity, leading to the commercialization of ideas. Through an interactive process, participants will learn to clearly conceptualize how the product or service can provide real value to customers. Participants will be shown how to validate their value proposition with customers and other stakeholders
Gridiron fundraiser offers group ticket rate to WSU faculty and staff
Wichita State University faculty and staff may purchase discounted tickets to the 52nd annual Gridiron variety show and Randy Brown Curtail Call afterparty when they buy a block of eight tickets. The show runs March 26 and 27 at the Orpheum Theatre.
The Randy Brown Curtain Call afterparty directly follows the March 27 show on Friday, and features drink tickets, food, music and a silent auction. Show tickets in blocks of eight are discounted to $250 instead of $304 — or $31.25 each instead of $38.
Gridiron is Wichita’s longest-running sketch comedy show, poking fun at local news and newsmakers and written by and starring local media professionals including Suzanne Perez-Tobias, Bonnie Bing, Bucky Walters, Sierra Scott, Bud Norman and others. The annual show helps raise scholarship money for Kansas journalism students including Wichita State students. The Randy Brown Curtain Call party is an additional fundraiser held after Friday's show, which funds a scholarship named for Randy Brown, a former Elliott School of Communication journalism faculty member, who died in 2014.
Ticket information
WSU faculty and staff may also purchase packaged Friday Gridiron tickets + Randy Brown Curtain Call tickets in blocks of eight, discounted to $500 — or $62.50 each instead of $75.
To purchase Gridiron variety show tickets or Gridiron show tickets packaged with Randy Brown Curtain Call tickets at a group rate, contact Gridiron director/producer and WSU theater instructor Rick Bumgardner, 913-484-7425 or email him at rick1108@me.com .
Single Gridiron show tickets are available through Select-A-Seat. Single Randy Brown Curtain Call tickets are available through cast, crew and SPJ board members without handling fees at $50 each. Contact Elliott School of Communication faculty, Madeline McCullough at madeline.mccullough@wichita.edu or 978-6062 to purchase Randy Brown Curtain Call tickets on campus.
Faculty in the Elliott School of Communication at WSU serve on the board of the Kansas Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists — the nonprofit organization sponsoring the Gridiron fundraiser. Funds raised during Gridiron and the Randy Brown Curtain Call party are distributed as scholarships to students in universities across Kansas, including Wichita State University.
Ulrich's ‘Solving for X' provides unique platform for WSU political scientist's anti-gerrymandering work
Prof. Brian Amos will deliver two talks at the Ulrich in the coming weeks:
10:30 a.m. Wednesday, Feb. 19, Senior Wednesday
5:30 P.M., Tuesday, March 3, League of Women Voters event
Both events are free and open to the public
Brian Amos laughs when asked if he ever imagined his work would be on display in an art museum.
“No, that’s not something I ever thought would happen,” said Amos, an assistant professor of Political Science at Wichita State University.
Yet, that’s precisely where his research is currently showcased, thanks to the Solving for X exhibition series at WSU’s Ulrich Museum of Art. The series is organized by the Ulrich in collaboration with university scholars in all disciplines across campus. The objective is to work with them to create visualizations of their research, and to explore the ways the Museum can help make that fascinating and important research more accessible to the public.
In Amos’s case, that meant visualizing his research on preventing “gerrymandering”—the practice of redrawing political districts for the benefit of the people drawing the maps. Amos’s work seeks to improve the computer algorithms used to redraw the maps by identifying bias in existing approaches that might skew measurements, and by incorporating Voting Rights Act protections into those algorithms to ensure racial and ethnic minority groups are represented properly.
For the exhibition, titled Solving for X=Representation: Slaying the Gerrymander, district maps were blown up to wall-sized proportions, so you can clearly see the shapes and patterns within them, almost like a Rorschach Test. Video clips of news coverage and political satire on the topic, and a video interview with Amos himself were also added to create a multimedia experience.
The result is an exhibition that encourages viewers think about gerrymandering beyond just lines on a map. As part of the programming for his exhibition, Amos will deliver two talks at the Ulrich in the coming weeks. He will present at the Senior Wednesday program at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, February 19, and he will also speak at a League of Women Voters event at the Museum at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 3. Both events are free and open to the public.
Ulrich Director Leslie Brothers said the timeliness and importance of Amos’s research made him a perfect fit for the exhibition series.
“Solving for X seeks to showcase WSU’s most innovative research,” Brothers said. “Brian’s work is right up there. As this election cycle heats up, it will be even more important for people to understand the challenges we face preventing gerrymandering. This is exhibition gives Brian a platform to make that vital information accessible to the public.”
Amos, meanwhile, said he was grateful for the opportunity to reach new audiences through the Museum.
“A lot of us love to talk about what we research—and we get to do that at academic conferences with our peers,” he said. “But this is an entirely different audience; you have to take a step back and think of how to explain what it is you do.”
Once the 2020 Census data is collected and analyzed, political districts across the nation will once again be redrawn to reflect the shifts in populations, and Amos’s work will likely be in high demand to ensure those lines are redrawn fairly. In the meantime, the Solving for X exhibition gives him a chance to introduce his work to the WSU and Wichita communities—and it has encouraged him to think of the many different ways he can reach the public.
“I would definitely recommend that other WSU researchers try to participate in the Solving for X series,” he said. “It made me really think about the fundamentals of what I do.”
Solving for X=Representation: Slaying the Gerrymander will be on display at the Ulrich until June 28. WSU researchers interested in having their work considered for future exhibitions should email Ulrich Director Leslie Brothers at Leslie.brothers@wichita.edu.
Galyn Vesey to present ‘People, Pride, and Promie: The Story of the Dockum Sit-In’
Galyn Vesey will present the story of a powerful and successful civil rights event that took place in Wichita - the Dockum Sit-In. The talk will begin at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 26, with an exhibit and reception. Remarks will begin 1:30 p.m. The event will be held in the lower level of Ablah Library. It is free and open to the public.
WSU Esports vs. Andover Esports – WSUTech Esports exhibition
In October 2019, we helped the WSU and WSUTech Esports teams in rounds against local high schools, including Andover High School, at the opening of the WSUTech Esports program at WSU South Campus. Check out the video above.
WSU LaunchPrep program helps entrepreneur open winery
While Wichita has plenty of local breweries, one amenity lacking has been a local winery. For Wichitan Jennifer Dawn, her passion for growing grapes and creating wine inspired a new business that customers are now flocking to. And, she says, it’s all thanks to what she learned through LaunchPrep, a partnership between Wichita State University’s Center for Entrepreneurship and the e2e Accelerator.
Read complete story on entrepreneur.
Volunteers needed for a research study
Research Topic / Purpose of the study: Biometric-based Person Identification using Face and Eye identifiers. The purpose of this research is to reduce the error rates of the existing biometric systems based on scanning face and eye regions.
Procedures: Participants will be asked to provide their face and eye region data for research study in the field of biometrics for person identification.
Time: Participation is expected to last about 1 hour. The data will be collected in two visits 2-4 weeks apart.
Inclusion / Exclusion Criteria:
- Participants must be age 18 - 65
Location: Wichita State University 325 lab in Wallace Hall
Contact: If you are interested in participating in this study, contact PI Dr. Ajita Rattani at ajita.rattani@wichita.edu.
Volunteers needed for research study
Study name: Effects of Lower Extremity Blood Flow Restriction Exercise on Strength Generation and Interleukin 6 Levels in the Elderly
Research Topic/Purpose of the study: To determine whether Blood Flow Restriction therapy during moderate exercise by people 55 years of age or older results in improved functional activity and health outcomes. Such findings may provide a new approach to promoting health through moderate exercise.
Procedures: Participants will pedal an exercise bike with or without Blood Flow Restriction therapy for approximately 30-minutes, three times per week over a 12-week period. At the beginning of the study and every two weeks, blood samples will be collected and tested for proteins related to exercise and a 30-second sit-to-stand activity will be performed to assess exercise functional outcomes.
Time: Participation is expected to last about 45 minutes. Inclusion / Exclusion Criteria:
- Participants must be age 55 or older
- No known muscular disorders
- No known neurological disorders
- No known cardiopulmonary disorders
- No use of nicotine products
- Not have diabetes
- Not be in an active exercise program
Location: Wichita State University Heskett Center Cycling Studio
Contact: If you are interested in participating in this study, contact: Dr. Nils Hakansson at nils.hakansson@wichita.edu or call 316-978-5909, Chris Deck, PT, at cdeck@providence.org, or Dr. Heidi Bell at Heidi.bell@wichita.edu.
Official Pink Tee for Breast Cancer Awareness basketball game
The Shocker Store is home to the official pink tee for the Breast Cancer Awareness game for the men’s basketball team on Thursday, Feb. 20, against USF. The shirt is just $12, and is available in the RSC, Braeburn Square and Koch Arena Shocker Store locations, and online at shockerstore.com. Grab your tee and wear pink for the cause!
Fitness in 45 minutes with Campus Recreation
Did you know your Campus Recreation membership includes unlimited F45 classes? A value of $169/month in a private studio.
F45 is the fastest growing company in the fitness industry with over 1750 location worldwide. WSU houses the only studio in Kansas with the next closest being over 100 miles away. Faculty & staff membership is as little as $6.57/paycheck with payroll deduction. Take advantage!
Our students host 21 classes a week, so come support them and get a great workout. See you in the studio,
Campus Recreation Shocker Fit Schedule
Craft Corner: DIY face masks
Artista or nah? No worries, we’ll show you how it’s done! Stop by between classes and be creative with SAC between 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Tuesday, March 3, on the first floor, RSC. The first Tuesday of every month, we will have hands on DIY crafts projects for you to make and take to decorate your space, de-stress and just have fun all for free!
Come be crafty and hang out with Student Activities Council. For more information about SAC-sponsored events, go to wichita.edu/sac or contact us at sac@wichita.edu.
2nd Annual Cops for Shocks Food Drive now to March 31
The WSUPD challenges departments all across campus as we did last year to help stock the Shocker Support Locker.
Donations are accepted at the Police Department lobby from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday. We will be glad to pick up and deliver for you, or give your donation to any WSUPD officer until March 31.
Donate shelf stable pantry items, baby food and diapers, hygiene products and bottled water.
Avoid canned green beans, corn, high sugar foods and food past the expiration date.
Shocker Baseball Home Run Discount
Save at the Shocker Store with your Shocker Baseball ticket stubs! Each time the Shockers hit a home run in a home game, bring your ticket stub to the Shocker Store (Braeburn Square location) the next day and receive 10% off one WSU imprinted item, up to 30% off for 3 or more home runs. May not be combined with any other discount or promotion. Some exclusions apply.
Hit those home runs, Shockers!