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Chonnor Ludolph

May 5, 2022 — Chonnor Ludolph was named Mr. Shocker at the athletic department’s Gold Carpet Awards in April, given to a senior who displays excellence in athletics, academics, character, service, and personal development. Ludolph finished third in the American Athletic Conference decathlon in 2021. Chonnor is one of more than 2,400 students eligible for spring 2022 graduation. Learn more about his time at Wichita State and what is next for the grad.

A rendering of Fly Your Own Wheels Suites

April 7, 2022 — A team from Wichita State University’s National Institute for Aviation Research has received international recognition for a design that would allow WC19 certified manual and power wheelchairs to be used as a seat on board commercial airlines.

Vivian and Jian stand in front of the crystal X-ray diffractometer to visualize the atoms.

April 1, 2022 — What do you picture when you think of lasers? Laser pointers? Perhaps laser eye surgery or barcode scanners? Turns out there’s more to lasers than most people realize, and a Wichita State University chemistry team recently discovered a new series of laser material with potential commercial use.

Engineering student working on machinery

March 29, 2022 — In the latest U.S. News and World Report rankings of universities offering a Ph.D. in engineering, the College of Engineering at Wichita State University once again was ranked in the top 100 engineering graduate programs in the country and the only institution in Kansas to make it in the top 100.

Forward Together graphic

March 10, 2022 — Wichita State University President Rick Muma has launched a new podcast, called “Forward Together,” where the president speaks with guests from throughout Shocker Nation to highlight the people and priorities that guide WSU. The podcast drops monthly, with the March edition releasing March 9. Some of the guests so far include Hollywood director Dean Hargrove, WSU basketball coach Isaac Brown and WSU research vice president Coleen Pugh.

B1B in a Wichita State parking lot

On March 9, 2022, the B-1 System Program Office (SPO), Tinker AFB, OK awarded a six-year, $100 million follow-on contract to Wichita State University’s National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) to continue the B-1’s Digital Engineering (DE) transformation. The National Center for Manufacturing Sciences (NCMS) helped form the strategic partnership and created a flexible contract structure, which allows NIAR and the B-1 SPO to adapt requirements real-time to meet critical warfighter needs.

A heat map from the study shows where the participants’ eyes tend to look with the red indicating more gazing in that area and the blue indicating less gazing.

March 8, 2022 — Ever wonder what other people are looking at during Zoom or WebEx meetings? Dr. Akmal Mirsadikov, who specializes in deception detection and eye tracking at Wichita State University’s W. Frank Barton School of Business, recently ran an exploratory study about how people interact on Zoom.

Volunteers collect litter at a Wichita park.

Feb. 22, 2022 — The Wichita Litter Study was borne from community concern about the number of single-use plastic bags floating throughout the city. The study focused on 12 small sites within Wichita municipal parks — two parks within each city council district; and the data, while concerning, was not altogether a surprise for the research team.

Darren DeFrain holding up phone with Vizling app

Jan. 20, 2022 — The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation has awarded a grant of $243,922 to a Wichita State University researcher for his work on an app that will allow people who are visually impaired to read comic books, graphic novels and other digitized graphic materials on their devices.

Lillian Nieman plans to apply to several different areas of medical devices to put her degree in biomedical engineering to use.

Dec. 6, 2021—Lillian Nieman learned how to find confidence and advocate for herself while attaining a degree in biomedical engineering from Wichita State University. Nieman is one of more than 1,100 students eligible for fall 2021 graduation.

Picture of Dr. Nickolas Solomey.

Nov. 4, 2021 – Reaching for the stars and beyond, a CubeSat Mission Patch contest sponsored by Wichita State University and the Ad Astra Foundation aims to highlight WSU’s science and research programs to prospective students.

Today, Spirit AeroSystems Inc. held a grand opening event and ribbon cutting ceremony for its National Defense Prototype Center (NDPC), a joint project with Wichita State University’s National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR).

Oct. 15, 2021 – Today, Spirit AeroSystems Inc. held a grand opening event and ribbon cutting ceremony for its National Defense Prototype Center (NDPC), a joint project with Wichita State University’s National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR). This new research center will significantly expand Spirit’s capabilities and production efficiencies in the defense and space market.

WSU campus

Oct. 13, 2021 — Kansas home prices will rise by 7.6% next year, according to the 2022 Kansas Housing Markets Forecast series published by the Wichita State University Center for Real Estate.

City of Wichita

Oct. 13, 2021— Wichita State University's Center for Economic Development and Business Research has released an updated Kansas, Wichita, Kansas City and Topeka Employment Forecast.

additive manufacturing image

Oct. 7, 2021 — The Federal Aviation Administration recently awarded $7.3 million to Wichita State University’s National Institute for Aviation Research for advanced materials research, providing significant funding for additive and other advanced manufacturing research programs, ranging from qualification and characterization to specialized programs that address specific technical challenges.