Author: Caelin Bragg

Isely Lane will be closed part of Wednesday, Feb. 11 to move equipment from McKinley Hall. The closure is expected to take four to five hours.

Following Shocker men’s basketball’s win against Tulane Feb. 8 in New Orleans, the team is in the running for taking the first place slot in the American Conference. To help keep the momentum going, Shocker Athletics is offering a special deal on tickets to the next two home games in Charles Koch Arena, at just $25 total:

• The team is looking for a repeat against South Florida at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 11
• Help men’s basketball take revenge on Tulsa at 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 14

Currently, South Florida and Tulsa are tied for first place in the American, so a win against both teams will give WSU a dominant lead in the conference. Grab your tickets before they sell out through goshockers.evenue.net.

Wichita State has been awarded a $2.5 million grant from the Mellon Foundation to create the Wichita HIREs program: Humanities Internships Reward Employers, an initiative designed to expand applied learning opportunities for students pursuing humanities degrees. This transformative grant includes a $1 million matching funds requirement to build a long-term endowment to sustain the program beyond the five-year grant period.

Beginning in the 2026 spring semester, Wichita HIREs will leverage WSU’s established leadership in applied learning to create increased opportunities for humanities students. While Wichita State students collectively work in more than 12,000 paid positions per academic year, humanities majors account for only 0.5% of those opportunities. This program will directly address this gap by creating paid internships for approximately 300 humanities students over the life of the grant.

“We are proud to receive this grant from the Mellon Foundation to expand paid applied learning in ways that advance WSU’s mission and directly benefit our community,” said Wichita State President Richard Muma. “This program will showcase to employers across Kansas the tremendous value humanities students can offer.”

Periodically, information will be posted regarding Watermark’s Course Evaluations & Surveys (CES) tool to help users better understand Wichita State’s course evaluation tool.

Today’s focus is on emails.

• CES uses email communication to send out information regarding the evaluation process. 
• Emails will come from WSU Evaluations (evaluations@ces.wichita.edu).
• Emails are sent according to a specific timeline. CES operates from the course’s part-of-term, meaning the course start and end dates will determine when emails are sent out.
• If you teach courses that are in different terms, you will receive duplicate emails. These emails provide information that pertains to that part-of-term.
• The emails will also inform instructors if they need to take any specific actions regarding their course(s) within CES. 
• Students will receive an email certificate once an evaluation is submitted.
• There is a dedicated CES website that includes additional information.

For questions, contact Sandra Ranney at evaluations@ces.wichita.edu.

Nominations are now being accepted for two university-wide at-large seats for the Faculty Senate to serve a two-year term starting in the 2026-27 academic year. University-wide at-large senators represent the faculty of the entire university, not just a specific college or division. The Faculty Senate meets twice-a-month during the regular academic year from 3:30 to 5 p.m. on the second and fourth Mondays of the month.

All faculty are eligible for nominations including current senators whose term expires this year. Use the Qualtrics survey sent earlier this week or submit your nomination directly to Roy Myose, Faculty Senate vice president, at roy.myose@wichita.edu before 5 p.m. Friday, Feb. 13. Self-nominations are strongly encouraged. Your participation is essential to a fair and inclusive process of shared governance.

Wichita State President Rick Muma sits down with softball coach Kristi Bredbenner and baseball coach Brian Green for a candid conversation about their seasons, their student‑athletes and what it truly means to compete as part of Shocker Athletics.

Watch the episode on YouTube or listen on Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts or Apple Podcasts.

Subscribe to be notified when new episodes are available.

Following Shocker men’s basketball’s win against Tulane Feb. 8 in New Orleans, the team is in the running for taking the first place slot in the American Conference. To help keep the momentum going, Shocker Athletics is offering $10 tickets to Wichita State faculty and staff to the next two home games in Charles Koch Arena:

• The team is looking for a repeat against South Florida at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 11
• Help men’s basketball take revenge on Tulsa at 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 14

Currently, South Florida and Tulsa are tied for first place in the American, so a win against both teams will give WSU a dominant lead in the conference. Grab your $10 tickets before they sell out through goshockers.evenue.net.

The Wichita State University Police Department, and the Faculty Senate and Staff Senate, are calling on Shocker Nation to help spread the love for Valentine’s Day this year by stocking the Kiah Duggins Shocker Support Locker.

Now through Valentine’s Day, Feb. 14, UPD is stuffing a squad car at the University Police Department building at Mid Campus Drive and Research Place, where you can drop off your donations for the locker.

Additionally, faculty and staff can drop donations off as part of the Faculty Senate and Staff Senate Love on the Locker initiative at the University Police Department or at any of the following collection locations, or they can make a monetary donation to the locker:

• Student Engagement & Belonging in 216 Rhatigan Student Center
• Business Student Success Center in 129 Woolsey Hall
• Financial Aid or OneStop in Jardine Hall
• College of Health Professions Dean’s Office on the fourth floor of Ahlberg Hall
• Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Dean’s Office on the second floor of Lindquist Hall
• College of Applied Studies Deans Office in Corbin Education Center
• College of Engineering Dean’s Office in Partnership Building 2
• Fine Arts Advising Center on the third floor of the McKnight Arts Center
• Ablah Library Circulation Desk
• Student Government Association in 219 RSC
• Hughes Metropolitan Complex
• First floor of Wallace Hall
• WSU Old Town

Don’t know what to donate? The following are common, in-demand items at the locker:

• Canned foods and other easy instant meals
• Fruit products like applesauce and juice, vegetables, and cooking sauces like spaghetti and tomato sauce
• Grains and pasta, such as granola bars, rice, macaroni and bread
• Health and hygiene products such as bandages, deodorant, soaps, toothpaste, tampons and pads
• Baby products like wipes, diapers and formula

A multi-disciplinary group of faculty published in “Where Honors Education and Faculty Development Meet” and the Journal of Leadership Education.

Chelsea Redger-Marquardt, Doug Stucky, Cindi Mason, Bobby Berry and Samantha Gregus published “Reflections from the road: exploring student outcomes and perceptions of an undergraduate Honors Leadership Academy” in Journal of Leadership Education on May 19, 2025.

Chelsea Redger-Marquardt, Doug Stucky, Cindi Mason, Bobby Berry, Samantha Gregus and Kimberly Engber published “Leadership Academy: Fostering Honors Faculty Growth through Peer-to-Peer Learning” in the National Collegiate Honors Council Monograph Series entitled “Where Honors Education and Faculty Development Meet” on July 16, 2025.

Natalie Delacruz — Ph.D., RDH, FADHA, associate professor and assistant director of BSDH Degree Completion Program in the Department of Dental Hygiene — received two accolades from the American Dental Hygienists’ Association and Kansas Dental Hygienists Association.

Delacruz was appointed as vice president, Kansas Dental Hygienists Association.

Details: Appointed to serve as the Vice President of the Kansas Dental Hygienists’ Association, contributing to leadership, member engagement, statewide advocacy initiatives, and the planning and coordination of annual continuing education events for dental hygiene professionals. Additionally serves at the national level as an alternate delegate to the American Dental Hygienists’ Association House of Delegates, representing Kansas in national discussions and policy review.

Delacruz was recognized as an American Dental Hygienists’ Association Fellow.

Details: The American Dental Hygienists’ Association is the national association that represents the dental hygiene profession. The Certificate of Fellowship indicates that the recipient has fulfilled all ADHA requirements and has demonstrated significant contributions to the advancement of the science and art of dental hygiene.