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Kaitlyn Larsen

November 6, 2020 - Kaitlyn Larsen, from Haysville, chose a career that makes her essential to the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Rathman is one of more than 1,200 students eligible for fall 2020 graduation. Learn more about her time at Wichita State and what is next for the grad.

Brandyn Rathman

Nov. 3, 2020 -- Brandyn Rathman, from Sioux City, Iowa, is excited to start his career in the medical field after graduation. He said he believes his experience at Wichita State University will help him help his patients lead healthy lives. Rathman is one of more than 1,200 students eligible for fall 2020 graduation. Learn more about her time at Wichita State and what is next for the grad.

Rachit Rajput

Rachit Rajput, from Shimla, India, came to Wichita State in 2015 on faith in the engineering program. He leaves with a master’s degree in industrial engineering. Rachit is one of more than 1,200 students eligible for fall 2020 graduation. Learn more about her time at Wichita State and what is next for the grad.

Woolsey Hall

Oct. 29, 2020 - Campus construction continues and new partners continue to join Wichita State University. An update on progress around campus includes Woolsey Hall, new home to W. Frank Barton School of Business, Hyatt Place and The Smart Factory @ Wichita.

WuShock Doc

Oct. 28, 2020 - Tyler Pennick, director of videography for Wichita State’s Office of Strategic Communications, created a documentary about WuShock in bronze. After two years of development, the documentary was accepted into the Tallgrass Film Festival and awarded for its success.

Graphic of two student interns

Oct. 27, 2020 -- Wichita State University students Jessica Sharp, a junior accounting major, and Marissa Sanders, a senior human resources management major, are applying their education to hands-on experience in their internships at Allen, Gibbs & Houlik.

Inneke Vargas

Inneke Vargas, from Houston, appreciates the interdisciplinary approach of her liberal arts degree from Wichita State University. After graduate school, she wants to work on policy changes to help eliminate health disparities. “My research broadly focuses on the effects of mental health stigma, particularly among African Americans, across the lifespan,” she wrote. “More narrowly, I am currently interested in the ways mental health care inequities disproportionately affect minority men during adolescence and very late adulthood.”

Hyatt Place at Wichita State

Oct. 26, 2020 — Hyatt Place at Wichita State University, the first Hyatt Place in Wichita, is officially open, expanding the Hyatt Place brand’s footprint globally in markets that matter most to guests and World of Hyatt members.

Molecular Diagnostics Lab

Oct. 19, 2020 — Wichita and southcentral Kansas' only high-volume test lab opened at Wichita State University. The Molecular Diagnostics Lab can test up to 4,500 tests per day at its full capacity.

Molecular Diagnostics Lab

Oct. 15, 2020 — Wichita State University will celebrate the opening of its Molecular Diagnostics Lab (MDL) at 10:45 a.m. Monday, Oct. 19, at the John Bardo Center on WSU’s Innovation Campus.

Memorial '70 ceremony

Sept. 30, 2020 - The annual ceremony of remembrance for those who died in the 1970 Wichita State University plane crash will be held at 9 a.m. Friday, Oct. 2, at Cessna Stadium. There will be a reception immediately following the remembrance on the Cessna Stadium concourse. Enhancements have been made to Memorial ’70, located near the 18th Street and Hillside entrance to the university. Those additions to Memorial ’70 will be officially be revealed on Oct. 2.

Memorial '70 memorial

Sept. 30, 2020 — Over the years, many hikers have trekked to the crash site of the plane that claimed the lives of 31 souls — including 14 members of the Wichita State University football team, 14 staff and boosters, and three crew members.

Memorial '70 monument

Sept. 30, 2020 - Wichita State athletic trainer Tom Reeves was known as a man devoted to his athletes on the football team. His sense of humor and caring touch helped them through injuries and difficulties. On Oct. 2, 1970, he helped survivors escape the wreckage of the Martin 404 after it crashed in Colorado. Badly burned, Reeves got them away from the plane and down the mountain to help before he fell unconscious. Reeves died on Oct. 5 in a Denver hospital.

Memorial '70 tribute to survivors

Sept. 28, 2020 - A new sculpture recognizes the survivors of the crash at Memorial '70 at Wichita State University. The names of teammates who landed safely in Utah that day are a fitting addition to the existing upright Memorial ’70 monument. “One of the main reasons we did what we did, was so the future generations would know that there were survivors,” architect Randy Phillips said. “And how their lives were impacted, especially since they lived when so many didn’t. Most, if not all, suffered greatly in silence.” The desire to honor teammates by telling the story of the crash motivated Phillips, as it has driven so many connected to Oct. 2, 1970 near Silver Plume, Colo.

Darren Defrain

Sept. 23, 2020 - Darren Defrain is the social professor of English and director of the writing program at Wichita State. Defrain has written novels, memoirs and essays, created a graphic novel, teaches on graphic novels/storytelling and is actively working on a graphic novel app.