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Students walking with masks on campus

Oct. 12, 2020 -- Wichita State University is offering a new line of defense against COVID-19 with the launch of its COVID-19 Voluntary Asymptomatic Surveillance Testing Program. Voluntary surveillance testing is part of the university’s multi-pronged strategy to monitor and mitigate the spread of COVID-19 on campus.

Cindy Graves

Oct. 9, 2020 — Thousands of school principals are faced with a challenge no other living school leader has faced: leading their schools through a pandemic. We're featuring two principals with roots in Shocker Nation.

Commencement ceremony

Oct. 6, 2020 -- Students who graduated from Wichita State University this past spring and summer will finally get their chance to walk across the stage to be recognized in a formal commencement ceremony at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 10, in Charles Koch Arena.

Shocker Nation graphic

Oct. 1, 2020 -- Enrollment for fall 2020 at Wichita State University and WSU Tech is down, following record years of enrollment growth. Despite the decline, caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the loss of thousands of local jobs, the percentage drop in full-time equivalency (FTE) at the institutions is better than the average decline for Kansas Board of Regents institutions, which is 3.6% for state universities and 8.7% for technical colleges.

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.

Paralympic wheelchair tennis team

Sept. 16, 2020 - Deja Young is a returning Paralympian in track and a Wichita State alumna. Casey Ralzlaff is a first-time Paralympic hopeful in wheelchair tennis and current student at Wichita State. Both of their sports are cancelled due to COVID-19.

WuShock sculpture

Sept. 16, 2020 -- A first-of-its-kind WuShock sculpture was unveiled and dedicated Tuesday at the entry plaza of the Steve Clark YMCA and Student Wellness Center.

Peri Widener

Sept. 21, 2020 -- Saying she wants to help build a new generation of business leaders with a world view, Wichita State alumna Peri Widener has pledged $275,000 to her alma mater. A portion of the gift will launch a program to help develop students into global business leaders.

Rodney Miller

Sept. 21, 2020 — A panelist of performing artists, moderated by Rodney Miller, dean of the College of Fine Arts, will discuss the disproportionate effect of COVID-19 on the events industry at 4 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 23.

Emily Christensen

Sept. 18, 2020 - In July, Emily Christensen spent five days on Zoom participating in the National Critics Institute, a program of the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center in Waterford, Conn. Christensen, coordinator of external affairs for Wichita State University’s School of Art, Design and Creative Industries, wrote about food, plays, movies and dance. She, and 16 others in her group, listened to and received critiques from people such as such as Chicago Tribune theater critic Chris Jones, who directs the program, and Helen Shaw of New York Magazine.

Convergence sciences awards

Sept. 18, 2020 -- Wichita State University today announced the inaugural awardees of the highly competitive President’s Convergence Sciences Research Initiative. The initiative brings together the intellectual curiosity and strengths of faculty and students from a range of disciplines and gives them the support to develop research programs that drive the diversity and growth of the Kansas economy while addressing global challenges.

Blue-green algae samples taken from Marion Lake.

Sept. 16, 2020 — A team of researchers from Wichita State University is investigating blue-green algae in Marion Reservoir and its toxic, and sometimes deadly, dangers to wildlife, pets and people.

Air travel

Sept. 15, 2020 -- With holiday travel season on the horizon, a just-released annual forecast from Dean Headley, co-author of the Airline Quality Rating and associate professor emeritus at Wichita State University, offers new insights into making travel plans in these extraordinary times.

Moran Center

Sept. 14, 2020 -- Wichita State University’s Advanced Center for Virtual Engineering and Testing will soon have a new name. The building’s renaming is a tribute to Kansas Sen. Jerry Moran’s commitment to provide vital resources and connections that help Wichita State offer impactful student experiences to drive prosperity for the city, region and state.

Exterior rendering of Deloitte Smart Factory building

Sept. 10, 2020 -- Deloitte and Wichita State University today announced the launch of The Smart Factory @ Wichita, a groundbreaking and immersive experiential learning environment that will accelerate the future of manufacturing as innovation and new technologies continue to reshape operations and the modern enterprise.