Author: Caelin Bragg

Shocker Sports Grill & Lanes in the lower level of the Rhatigan Student Center is the perfect place for you to hang out and dine between your classes. And students with their Shocker IDs get discounted rates at both the bowling alley and at the billiards tables, so grab a bite to eat and play a few games with your classmates.

Send the week off right by wearing your black and yellow gear every Friday for Shocker Pride Fridays. Whether you’re on campus, relaxing at home, hopping on a virtual meeting or out in the community, stay connected to Shocker Nation in style. Now’s the perfect chance to grab gear as campus gets ready for basketball season, so stop by the Shocker Store in the RSC, Charles Koch Arena or at Braeburn Square and find what speaks to you.

The Sunflower student newspaper at Wichita State was awarded three Pacemakers from the Associated Collegiate Press at the National College Media Convention in October.

The team was awarded the Newspaper Pacemaker, Multiplatform Pacemaker and the Innovation Pacemaker. The Sunflower is one of two college newspapers who have been awarded five consecutive Newspaper Pacemaker awards, and this marks the first time the paper has received the Innovation Pacemaker.

The Sunflower was the only college newspaper in Kansas to have been awarded a Pacemaker and was among other prestigious college newspapers from across the United States.

Encourage your students to participate in the annual Innovation Works competition and put their classroom learning into practice Nov. 7-9. Hosted in partnership with Lockheed Martin Skunk Works, Innovation Works is a fast-paced, interdisciplinary hackathon where students apply critical thinking, collaboration and creativity to real-world challenges inspired by space exploration.

This year’s theme asks students to design technologies for a future moon base, developing innovative solutions that enable life and work on the lunar surface, from habitat systems and power generation to mobility and communication. During the 48-hour, in-person event, student teams will brainstorm, prototype and pitch their concepts to judges from Lockheed Martin, WSU and industry partners. It’s an incredible opportunity for students to gain hands-on experience, strengthen teamwork skills and showcase innovation in action.

Teams must include three to four current Wichita State students from any major, and cash prizes will be awarded to the top three teams, including an exclusive Lockheed Martin facility tour with a chance to meet engineers and technologists shaping the future of space exploration for the top team.

Teams must register by Nov. 1. For more information, visit wsuinnovationworks.com or contact Jared Goering, product innovation faculty, at jared.goering@wichita.edu.

Wichita State President Rick Muma talks with Coach Paul Mills about plans for his third season with Shocker men’s basketball.

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

Subscribe to be notified when new episodes are available.

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

• The first column includes the various start/end (part-of-term) dates for fall 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 fall 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.

Course start/end dates	Instructor CES process dates	Student CES access dates
Aug. 4-9	July 28-Aug. 6	Aug. 7-8
Aug. 4-16, Aug. 11-16	Aug. 4-13	Aug. 14-15
Aug. 18-Sept. 20	Aug. 31-Sept. 9	Sept. 10-19
Aug. 22-Sept. 26	Sept. 6-15	Sept. 16-25
Aug. 18-Oct. 8	Sept. 18-27	Sept. 28-Oct. 7
Sept. 22-Oct. 29	Oct. 8-17	Oct. 18-27
Aug. 18-Oct. 29	Oct. 9-18	Oct. 19-28
Sept. 8-Nov. 18	Oct. 29-Nov. 7	Nov. 8-17
Sept. 15-Nov. 25	Nov. 5-14	Nov. 15-24
Aug. 23-Dec. 6	Nov. 10-19	Nov. 20-29
Oct. 9-Dec. 4, Oct. 29-Dec. 4	Nov. 14-23	Nov. 24-Dec. 3
Aug. 18-Dec. 11	Nov. 15-24	Nov. 25-Dec 4
July 28-Dec. 17	Nov. 27-Dec. 6	Dec. 7-16

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 the basic timeline.

• The CES administrator programs the pre-determined dates for each process. This pre-determined schedule cannot be modified.
• The CES tasks are sent at midnight on the scheduled start date and will end at 11:59 p.m. on the scheduled end date.
• The manage course process for instructors: Instructors have 10 days from notification of the opt-out window to delete courses from CES.
• CES evaluations will be open for students for varying lengths of time, depending upon the length of the course term:
  • Fall and spring one-week to four-week courses: Two days
  • Fall and spring five-week to 16+ week courses: 10 days
  • Summer one- and two-week courses: Two days
  • Summer four-week to 10+ week courses: Seven days
• Current CES Results will be available at the end of the semester. Results will continue to remain accessible afterwards.
  • The availability date will be the Friday after grades are due to the Registrar.
• A full timeline with specific dates is on the website. These dates will also appear as separate posts in WSU Today, with emphasis on the most relevant information for a specific date.   
• There is a dedicated CES website that includes additional information.

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

All benefits-eligible state employees must participate in Open Enrollment. Log in to the Member Administration Portal to make your elections.

Virtual and in-person presentations will be offered:

• Oct. 22: Virtual presentation at 3 p.m.
• Oct. 27: Virtual presentation at 10 a.m.

Please take advantage of the scheduled virtual and in-person presentations, as well as on-demand options.  To add meeting reminders to your calendar or for additional information visit the Open Enrollment Website. Any questions should be directed to TotalRewards@wichita.edu.

Halfway through the fall semester, you will notice ongoing and new construction across Wichita State University’s 330 acres and beyond.

Wilkins Stadium

Construction is 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.

Exterior work continues on the north side of the new building where the outdoor batting cages will be relocated in preparation for construction of the softball team and operations building to the south of the new building.

Corbin Education Center

Work is complete in Corbin Education Center – all displaced faculty and staff have moved back into their offices in the building. Classes are scheduled to resume in the building in the spring semester.

Ablah Library

Repairs are complete in the basement of Ablah Library and the space reopens to the public this week.

University Stadium Phase 1A/1B

Construction is underway for Phase 1B of the University Stadium (formerly Cessna Stadium). This phase of construction consists of widening the field to hold a regulation-sized artificial turf soccer field and installing a nine-lane track and internal stadium sidewalks that will connect the east and west sides of the facility inside of the fence.

Improvements to the throwing area south of Charles Koch Arena are also underway. A storage building is under construction. Additions also include a longer javelin runway and warmup lanes. Shot put competition will move to this area from inside the stadium.

Construction is anticipated to continue through the fall semester.

Brennan I, II and III demolitions

Demolition of the three buildings is underway. TRIO/Upward Bound staff have relocated to their new home in Grace Wilkie Hall/Grace Wilkie Annex. The demolition project is anticipated to be complete by the end of November.

Grace Wilkie Hall/Grace Wilkie Annex roof replacement

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

Henrion Hall HVAC improvements Phase 3 and 4

Construction has begun in Henrion Hall for a project to provide air conditioning to the remainder of the building following recent projects in the sculpture and ceramics classroom areas as well as relocating and expanding the wood shop.

The project will be phased to allow the building to remain occupied but will affect building entrances throughout the year. Construction is anticipated to be completed in time for the Fall 2026 semester.

Morrison Hall

Construction is underway in Morrison Hall on a project to replace the elevator and update the finishes/ceiling/lighting on the first floor of the building. The first floor and elevator are anticipated to be open to the public in February 2026.

NIAR Hub for Advanced Manufacturing 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 @Wichita, is under construction. It will house the Forensic Crime Gun Intelligence Laboratory for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). The building is expected to be complete early in spring 2026.

Xin Tong Wang and Giorgia Roselli’s run to the doubles quarterfinals highlighted the week for the Shocker women’s tennis team at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Central Region Championships.

After a first-round bye, Wang and Roselli defeated a pair from Missouri, 8-5, to reach the Round of 16. They then beat a duo from Nebraska, 8-4, to advance to the quarterfinals, where they ultimately fell to the No. 7-seeded team from Oklahoma, 8-2.

In singles, Kudryavtseva and Nikolenko won two qualifying matches each to reach the main draw, putting a total of seven Shockers in the field. Only Kudryavtseva and Wang earned main-draw wins, both in the Round of 64.