Author: Caelin Bragg

Dr. Teri Hall, vice president for Student Affairs, has announced her intention to retire at the end of the fall 2025 semester. The university will conduct a national search for her replacement.

Hall has been at WSU since 2017. She came here from Towson University and in her time at Wichita State has been a staunch advocate for WSU’s 17,000-plus students, growing mental health and wrap-around services, increasing housing options and expanding student leadership opportunities.

“Dr. Hall has been an exceptional servant leader, dedicated to fostering a campus environment where every student feels connected and supported,” said Dr. Monica Lounsbery, senior executive vice president and provost. “Her unwavering advocacy has helped shape a culture of inclusivity and belonging, ensuring that the student experience and well-being remains a top priority. Her contributions to advancing mental health support and care on our campus are both invaluable and deeply appreciated.”

Updates on the search process and a retirement celebration will be communicated in the coming months.

“Serving our students at Wichita State has been the honor of my life, and though I will no longer be here on campus, I will always be a Shocker,” Hall said.

A second-floor study room in Wayne and Kay Woolsey Hall is where Ridge Estes goes when he is serious about concentration. Working there eliminates the distractions of studying at home.

“Put yourself in a spot where you’re forced to lock in and use that time wisely,” he said. “My favorite study spot is one of the private rooms in Woolsey Hall. In a good three or four hour session, I can knock out quite a bit.”

Estes, from Bucklin, used his study time and his athletic time wisely during his Wichita State career. He majored in exercise science with minors in health science and entrepreneurship and graduated earlier this month with a 3.473 grade-point average.

High schoolers don’t often get to see what real science is being done every day by researchers. Worst case scenario is that they are dealing with abstract numbers that don’t have any real-world parallels.

But with the help of Dr. Thomas Luhring, assistant professor of biological sciences at Wichita State, students will not only get to work with active data acquired by a real scientist, but the data will also have implications in their neighborhoods.

The opportunity comes through Galactic Polymath — a platform developed by Dr. Matt Wilkins in 2021 to help bridge the gap between scientists with classrooms — and Luhring’s NSF CAREER grant. The platform is now home to a module, free for all teachers to use in their curriculum, on data literacy, which allows students to explore and analyze real datasets to practice their skills.

Dr. Michael Birzer built his first career in law enforcement, rising through the ranks of the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Department while quietly discovering a deeper passion for research and education. That unexpected interest helped him launch a second career shaped by a relentless drive to understand and improve the relationship between law enforcement and the communities they serve.

“I realized I loved college, and when I started getting involved in research, everything just clicked,” said Birzer, a professor in Wichita State’s Cohen Honors College and the School of Criminal Justice.

That realization led him to pursue a doctoral degree in Oklahoma while working full-time in law enforcement, commuting several times a week to complete his studies. Eventually, Birzer made the leap into higher education, joining Wichita State in 2004.

Anyone on campus this week will notice a large influx of visitors for events this weekend. Scheduled this weekend are:

• 5A state baseball, softball and track May 29-31 at Eck Stadium, Wilkins Stadium and University Stadium (volunteer opportunities are still available)
• Sedgwick County Extension Office Master Garden Tour May 30 at Woolsey Hall and the President’s Residence
• Fifth annual Plein Art competition, part of Riverfest, May 31 at the Ulrich Museum of Art
• Brass Institutes of America May 25-31 throughout Duerksen Fine Arts Center

These events are expected to bring a combined total of over 30,000 visitors to campus. Some events will have volunteers helping visitors around campus, but anyone who sees someone looking lost or needing directions can use the campus map (wichita.edu/map) to help guide them to their destinations.

Direct map links to each location:

• Eck Stadium, Wilkins Stadium, University Stadium
• Woolsey Hall, President’s Residence
• Ulrich Museum of Art
• Duerksen Fine Arts Center

Faculty, staff, students and partners are encouraged to plan accordingly and arrive early if they come to campus during these events.

The Wichita State episode of “The College Tour,” an Amazon Prime original series, is now streaming on Prime Video.

The episode offers a unique opportunity to experience campus through the eyes of Wichita State students, highlighting WSU’s student-centered, innovation-driven mindset. Share it with prospective students, families, alumni and anyone interested in life at WSU to give them a glimpse of what it means to be part of Shocker Nation.

In addition to watching on Prime Video, you can also access the episode or explore the 20 individual segments at wichita.edu/thecollegetour.

For campus marketers, a SharePoint toolkit is available with everything needed to promote the episode and individual segments, including social media and newsletter copy, downloadable segments and more.

Wichita State thanks everyone who helped make this project a success including our featured students and alumni who brought Shocker Nation to life on screen.

The elevator in Duerksen Fine Arts Center is back in operation after it was temporarily out of commission for part of the spring semester.

As we head into the summer season, you’ll notice ongoing and new construction across Wichita State’s 330 acres and beyond.

Corbin Education Center

The phased move back into Corbin Education Center has begun.

Esports, College of Applied Studies Advising, faculty and staff are back in the building.

Classrooms will remain closed throughout the summer and the building is anticipated to be fully occupied in the fall. The building has been under repair following a chilled water line break in the basement mechanical room in 2024.

University Stadium Phase 1A/1B

Construction is wrapping up on Phase 1A on the east side of University Stadium (formerly Cessna Stadium) in time for Wichita State to host the 2025 KSHSAA State Track and Field Championship May 30-31.

This first phase of construction includes bleacher seating, a pavilion building with ticketing, restrooms and concessions as well as a plaza and parking lot between the stadium and Devlin Hall.

Phase 1B will begin in June and will consist of widening the field to hold a regulation-sized artificial turf soccer field and installing a nine-lane track.

Wilkins Stadium

Construction is almost complete on the indoor softball practice facility adjacent to Wilkins Stadium. Inside the building is a netted softball infield that is divisible into batting and pitching practice areas.

McKnight Art Center

Construction is underway for ventilation upgrades on the second floor of McKnight North. Work is scheduled to finish by the fall of 2025.

Brennan I, II and III demolitions

Demolition of the three buildings is planned for summer 2025. TRIO/Upward Bound staff are in the process of moving to their new home in Grace Wilkie Hall/Grace Wilkie Annex.

Parking lot/sidewalk/Parking Garage maintenance

Maintenance and repairs are planned for multiple parking lots/sidewalks throughout campus over the summer as well as scheduled maintenance for the parking garage south of the RSC. Specific closure dates will be posted in WSU Today.

Ablah Library

Repairs are underway on the basement level to replace flooring damaged by the flooding in the spring. Look for announcements from the library on the status of the project.

Grace Wilkie Hall/Grace Wilkie Annex roof replacement

A roof replacement project is scheduled for the summer of 2025. Fencing will be installed around the perimeter of the building as work progresses.

RSC bowling remodel

Construction is underway in the basement of the RSC to create offices and a team room for the women’s bowling team. The project is anticipated to be complete by the end of the summer.

Shocker Studios expansion

Construction is underway for an expansion for Shocker Studios located at WSU South on Harry Street. The project will create four new classrooms and additional office space for the growing SODA program. The project will be complete in time for fall classes.

NIAR Hub for Advanced Manufacturing and Research

Construction on the NIAR HAMR building continues to progress. Construction is expected to be complete by the end of 2025.

The 170,000-square-foot building is partly funded by an EDA grant and will house advanced manufacturing research labs and associated offices.

The building is located on Innovation Boulevard between the Partnership Building 1 and The Suites. The first floor is primarily labs with offices on the second floor.

Partnership Building 3B

P3B, located between Partnership Building 3 and The Smart Factory by Deloitte @Wichita, is under construction. It will house the Forensic Crime Gun Intelligence Laboratory for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

The following table is to assist instructors with certain dates regarding CES. The dates shown below are for the summer 2025 semester.

• The first column includes the various start/end (part-of-term) dates for summer semester courses that start in June.
• The second column includes dates meant for instructors. This is the timeframe when instructors will receive emails about the CES process and procedures that they should complete. Instructors will receive additional emails during and after the student CES access dates.
• The last column includes the dates that CES will be available for the students to complete course evaluations.

CES summer 2025 – Courses with June start dates:

Course start/end dates	Instructor CES process dates	Student CES access dates
June 2 – June 7	May 21 – June 4	June 5 – June 6
June 2 – June 14	May 28 – June 11	June 12 – June 13
June 2 – June 28	June 6 – June 20	June 21 – June 27
June 2 – July 19	June 27 – July 11	July 12 – July 18
June 2 – July 25	July 3 – July 17	July 18 – July 24
June 9 – June 14	May 28 – June 11	June 12 – June 13
June 16 – June 21	June 4 – June 18	June 19 – June 20
June 16 – June 28	June 11 – June 25	June 26 – June 27
June 16 – July 12	June 20 – July 4	July 5 – July 11
June 23 – June 28	June 11 – June 25	June 26 – June 27
June 30 – July 5	June 18 – July 2	July 3 – July 4
June 30 – July 12	June 25 – July 9	July 10 – July 11
June 23 – July 19	June 27 – July 11	July 12 – July 18
June 30 – July 25	July 3 – July 17	July 18 – July 24

The table below is to assist instructors with certain dates regarding CES. The dates shown are for the spring 2025 semester.

• The first column includes the various start/end (part-of-term) dates for spring semester courses.
• The second column includes dates meant for instructors. This is the timeframe when instructors will receive emails about the CES process and procedures that they should complete. Instructors will receive additional emails during and after the student CES access dates.
• The last column includes the dates that CES will be available for the students to complete course evaluations.

If your course is in bold, then your spring 2025 CES evaluation process will start soon. Review the start/end dates in each column so you know when your access to the CES system will start and end.