Academic Convocation with Bryan Stevenson is today (Thursday, Sept. 20)
Academic Convocation is at 9:30 a.m. today (Thursday, Sept. 20) in Wilner Auditorium. Our keynote speaker is Bryan Stevenson, author of this year's WSU Reads book “Just Mercy,” and he will sign books prior to the event at a light breakfast at 8 a.m. in the Ulrich Museum.
Wilner Auditorium seating will be reserved for WSU students, faculty and staff. All Wichita community members are welcome to remain in the Ulrich Museum or go to the commons area in Wilner to watch the live-streamed event. The convocation will be available at Academic Convocation.
For questions, contact Student Success: First-Year Programs, at 978-5420 or email Caitlin Putnal at caitlin.putnal@wichita.edu.
If you conduct surveys, be sure to use the university's designated software Qualtrics
This is a reminder that for those who use surveys (faculty, staff and students), WSU has a site license for Qualtrics which became the official institutional survey tool for WSU use in 2012. Listed below are some of the benefits related to using Qualtrics for your survey needs. Please contact Charles Burdsal or Sandra Ranney at the Social Science Research Lab at 978-3384 if you have questions.
- Reduces overall cost as the university has a site license for Qualtrics so you do not have to pay a third-party vendor.
- Get help with your survey design, methodology and survey questions.
- Access to on campus survey experts to optimize your survey and response rate.
- Be certain that you are obtaining the best survey sample for your survey.
- Reducing survey fatigue as we can create reduced samples that more approximately target your survey population.
- Ensure that you get accurate email lists of students, staff and faculty for your survey.
- Help protect the emails of faculty, staff and students.
- Know that who answers your survey is who you want answering your survey.
- Provide analytics on your surveys and results.
- Help avoid having the university listed as a spammer by internet service providers.
Help eliminate the security risk of embedded links when sending out emails by having your survey listed on the WSU portal.
Faculty Senate to discuss the issue of diversity and the role of faculty
The Faculty Senate will deliberate the issue of diversity and the role of faculty at the next senate meeting from 3:30-5 p.m. Monday, Sept. 24, in 126 Clinton Hall.
Some of the questions for discussion include:
- Who should review diversity content in the curriculum?
- How can the senate help faculty increase diversity related to hiring faculty? Assist with search committees? Using best practices? T&P? Faculty development?
- What is the faculty role versus an administrative role?
How can we encourage increased diversity in class development; curriculum; programs?
Board of Trustees, Innovation Alliance Board to meet tomorrow (Friday, Sept. 21)
The WSU Board of Trustees (BOT) and the Wichita State Innovation Alliance (WSIA) board meetings will be held tomorrow (Friday, Sept. 21).
The BOT will meet at 8 a.m. and WSIA will meet at 11 a.m. in 164 Experiential Engineering Building. These meetings are open to the public.
Interim Police Chief Bob Hinshaw completes service to WSU
Little did Bob Hinshaw know when he became Interim Police Chief at WSU on Oct. 2, 2017, that he would lead the department for almost a year before stepping down.
His last official day at the university will be tomorrow (Friday, Sept. 21).
“When Chief Morris retired last fall, I reached out to former Sedgwick County Sheriff Bob Hinshaw to see if he would be willing to serve as chief for three-to-six months as we searched for a permanent replacement,” said Troy Bruun, associate vice president and university controller. “I worked with Bob at Sedgwick County and I have the upmost respect for him as a person and admire his leadership abilities. He was a perfect fit for the department and has served this university well, even as the three-to-six months turned into nearly 12 months. Thank you for serving your community once again Chief Hinshaw and enjoy your retirement!”
Here's an abbreviated list of Chief Hinshaw's accomplishments this past year:
- Creation of a mission statement and core values of the agency. These were written by the officers and support staff of WSUPD. No supervisors were involved.
- Implemented policy and the ability of personnel to write traffic citations to hold drivers accountable for unsafe driving behavior.
- Conducted pay studies for all personnel within agency. Pay adjustments made where needed to make sure personnel were being paid appropriately.
- Mandated training for all supervisors in the areas of foundational leadership and supervision; media relations; and conducting administrative investigations.
- Mandated training for all personnel in community policing and for officers, tactical medical training.
- Created an initiative to mandate annual refresher training to all personnel on critical job tasks and officer safety skill-sets.
Corey Herl, operations captain in the WSU Police Department, said: “It has been a pleasure working with Chief Hinshaw the past few months as he brought some wonderful knowledge and experience to share. I can't thank him enough for the positive impact he had on our department. I hope he enjoys his retirement as much as we enjoyed having him here.”
Rodney Clark, a major in the U.S. Army with more than 20 years of law enforcement experience, will become the new University Police Chief. The announcement was made earlier this year. Read more
Open Lab Training for CourseLeaf CAT
Open Lab, CourseLeaf CAT training for those involved in editing / approving the general information sections of the upcoming catalog will take place from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 27, in 122 Jabara Hall.
This come-and-go training is a hands-on opportunity to have questions answered. A short introduction to the software will take place during the first 30 minutes of each session. Registration is not necessary, but can be found at myWSU by clicking on the link to myTraining.
Contact lisa.fleetwood@wichita.edu with questions.
Catch some Shocker volleyball this weekend in Koch Arena!
Wichita State is home at Charles Koch Arena for the first time this season Friday, Sept. 21, and Sunday, Sept. 23.
The Shockers host the Tulane Green Wave in the home opener at 7 p.m. tomorrow (Friday, Sept. 21), before facing Memphis at 1 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 23.
Friday's game is “Jam the Gym” with $3 general admission tickets and postgame autographs.
On Sunday, the first 1,000 fans through the doors will receive a free Wichita State volleyball T-shirt courtesy of Rotek Services.
Wichita State students receive free admission to all home volleyball matches with a valid student ID.
Grant funding opportunity from WSU's Regional Institute on Aging
The Regional Institute on Aging at Wichita State is pleased to announce a new competitive funding opportunity for interdisciplinary faculty research. Two $20,000 grants will be awarded for two interdisciplinary research projects at WSU that contribute to new knowledge and practice related to well-being in older adults.
This funding opportunity advances two goals of the university's strategic plan: Goal 1 - Guarantee an applied learning or research experience for every student by each academic program and Goal 4 - Accelerate the discovery, creation and transfer of new knowledge.
Proposals must actively involve faculty members at WSU from at least two distinct disciplines and more than one college. For more information go to apply here.
Are you 60-plus years of age? Do you want to improve your visual functions?
The Visual Perception & Cognition Lab is looking for participants for research studies that investigate the effects of a visual training program. The research study involves about five one-hour testing or training sessions that will be conducted on the WSU main campus or WSU Shocker Studios on East Harry Street. Participants will be compensated with $110 for completing the study.
Contact Jake at jdellis1@shockers.wichita.edu or 316-285-9575 to learn more about what is involved in this exciting research study!
Seeking participants for a paid study
Participants are sought for a paid study exploring the uses and benefits of using high resolution computer monitors.
Do you use a high resolution computer monitor (e.g., Apple Retina Display, Quad HD, 4k, 5k) to play computer video games, create / edit digital media or animation, design 3D models, buildings, or websites, program or develop software?
We are seeking computer users, 18 or older, to participate in a focus group on high resolution computer monitors.
Focus group sessions will take place in person if you are local, or remotely via video conferencing for non-locals, and last about 90-120 minutes. Participants in the study will earn $25 for their time (paid using cash if local or Paypal or Amazon e-gift card if non-local).
If you are interested in participating, please take a few minutes to take the screening survey -- https://wichitastate.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6XdGBDAwLjIrzrT. If you qualify for the focus group discussion, you will be contacted by the researcher to schedule a time to participate.
Questions can be directed to Christal Haskins at cahaskins@shockers.wichita.edu.
WSU School of Nursing hosts 6th APRN continuing education conference
Wichita State University's School of Nursing is hosting its 6th annual Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) CE Conference. Pre-conference workshops will be held at the Holiday Inn Wichita East I-35 on the afternoon of Thursday, Sept. 27. The general session is all day Friday, Sept. 28.
This unique conference provides APRNs, in both the primary and acute settings, the opportunity to further enhance their ability to assess, diagnose and manage health conditions.
“I am so grateful to WSU for allowing us to put on this conference as it is the only conference in the city for just nurse practitioners,” said Terri Core, conference chair and nursing professor at Wichita State. “It gives ARNPS the opportunity to receive up-to-date information in a convenient location.”
This year's conference also includes a celebrated specialist in the nursing community, Ruth Kleinpell, PhD, RN, FAAN, FAANP, FCCM. Kleinpell is an assistant dean and professor at the Vanderbilt University School of Nursing. She is currently a board member and past president of the Society of Critical Care Medicine, the third nurse to serve in this capacity in the 46 year history of the organization.
Kleinpell is the keynote speaker on Friday morning, Sept. 28, with a presentation titled, “Showcasing APRN Value,” and is additionally offering general sessions on promoting patient and family-centered care.
Interested nurses and exhibitors can register for this conference by visiting nursing conference or by calling 978-6493.
FEMA and FCC to conduct nationwide test and how that may affect you
At 1:18 p.m. CDT on either Sept. 20 or Oct. 3, FEMA and the FCC will conduct a nationwide test of both WEA and EAS to assess the operational readiness of the infrastructure for distribution of national emergency or disaster messages and determine whether technological improvements are needed.
This is the first national WEA test to cell phones. The message will be Presidential Alert and will read “THIS IS A TEST of the National Wireless Emergency Alert System. No action is needed.
Constitution Day returns to WSU today (Thursday, Sept. 20)
The Kansas Court of Appeals will return to campus today (Thursday, Sept. 20) in recognition of Constitution Day. A three-judge panel of the state appellate court will hear oral arguments in appeals for five cases from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Sept. 20, in the CAC Theater. Cases will be heard consecutively beginning at 9 a.m. After a recess for lunch, the court will reconvene at 1:30 p.m.
In 2014, West Virginia Senator Robert Byrd made an amendment to the Omnibus Spending Bill requiring all government-funded schools and federal agencies to provide educational programming on the United States Constitution.
Here are the case summaries to be heard at WSU.
Learn how officiating can be a lucrative business
As a Wichita State alumnus, John Blazek got his start in officiating through WSU intramurals. He is currently the NCAA Division II National Coordinator of Men's Basketball Officials and the Supervisor of Officials for the KCAC and KJCCC.
Blazek will discuss that officiating is a business, not a hobby, and that the business is entirely centered around people. Learn all about how to make officiating a lucrative business from 6-7:30 p.m. today (Thursday, Sept. 20) in 105 Heskett Center.
WSU Night at the Alley on Sept. 29
Looking for a Wichita hangout to spend time with family in town for Family Weekend? We've got you covered! We rented out The Ally, 11413 East 13th Street N., from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 29, and you and your family are all invited. Two hours of unlimited bowling and go-karts is the perfect way to spend your evening in the ICT. Pre-registration for this event is available through the Family Weekend page at wichita.edu/familyweekend.
Wu's Big Event IX (Saturday, Oct. 6)
Join Community Service Board in a day of service at Wu's Big Event IX on Saturday, Oct. 6. Wu's Big Event is a bi-annual service event geared toward students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends of the university passionate about volunteering.
Volunteers will begin the day with a kick-off breakfast and keynote speaker. After opening events, volunteers will be bussed to one of seven service sites and perform three hours of community service with fellow Shockers. Upon return, volunteers will take part in reflection activities and receive a boxed lunch.
Come join Community Service Board in a fun-filled day of service to the Wichita community! Pre-registration is required at Wu's Big Event.