Author: Caelin Bragg

Students may feel anxious about approaching their professors, but despite these reservations, faculty members are often their best resource for academic success and help advise them about career/academic options.

Did you know that there’s not one, not two, but three Starbucks across campus? If you need a pick-me-up between classes, stop by the RSC Starbucks. If you’re driving in and need to make a pitstop, there’s a full Starbucks at Braeburn Square. Finally, if you’re on the Innovation Campus, the NetApp building has its own Starbucks that’s open to the public.

For the Saturday, Feb. 21 Shocker men’s basketball game, a number of lots in the vicinity of Charles Koch Arena will be reserved for Shocker Athletic Scholarship Organization parking beginning at 2 p.m. During this time, signage will be in place alerting drivers of the impending lot assignment changes.

Anyone previously parked in these lots will need to move their cars by 2 p.m. Any unauthorized parking in a game day lot carries a $50 citation fine.

Wichita State Connect and Campus Recreation are hosting over 100 students from around 20 different schools on campus Friday, Feb. 20. This is a first of its kind for campus and is a way to get PreK-12 students engaged with the WSU community.

Over 20 university departments and external organizations will host tables for the evening. Faculty and staff can help visitors who may not be familiar with the Wichita State campus by offering directions to the Heskett Center. A map of campus can be found at wichita.edu/map.

Wichita State has released the list of the over 1,100 Shockers who graduated in fall 2025. View the list of Kansas graduates and the list of national and international graduates.

Overall, graduates completed a total of 1,087 degrees — 856 undergraduate degrees and certificates and 304 graduate degrees and certificates — with 196 honored as cum laude, 190 honored as magna cum laude and 62 honored as summa cum laude.

Additionally, you can see the names of the nearly 4,000 students included in the fall 2025 semester Dean’s Honor Roll list. To be included on the honor roll, students must be a full-time student (at least 12 credit hours) and have at least a 3.5 grade point average on the 4.0 scale.

The HR Total Rewards team reminds staff and faculty that the application window for summer 2026 Tuition Assistance will be open from Sunday, Feb. 15 through April 15.

Just a reminder, Tuition Assistance applications for summer 2026 are submitted through the Online Application Form.

Due to the volume of applications received each semester, requests to submit late applications will be automatically denied. There will be no exceptions.

Full program details can be found at wichita.edu/tuitionassistance.

Questions may be directed to tuitionassistance@wichita.edu.

The Shocker women’s tennis team was ranked No. 24 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) top 75 rankings Feb. 18.

The No. 24 ranking is the highest for the Shockers since March 6, 2018, when the team was ranked No. 23. Wichita State owns wins over two other ranked teams: SMU (No. 23) and Iowa (No. 37).

In addition to the team ranking, Wichita State’s Giorgia Roselli and Xin Tong Wang are ranked No. 9 in doubles, breaking their own record for the highest doubles ranking in program history. 

Wichita State’s College of Engineering has named the latest group of high school seniors to join the Wallace Scholar program.

• Taylor Barringer — Augusta, Kansas
• Genevieve Jensen – Broken Arrow, Oklahoma
• Matilda Olinek – Vancouver, British Columbia (Canada)
• Lane Parthemer – Mount Hope, Kansas
• Hannah Marie Payumo – Omaha, Nebraska
• Rishi Rathi – Edmond, Oklahoma
• Jameson Russell – Wichita
• Kayla Spoors – Charles, Missouri
• Camdyn Sybert – Smithville, Missouri
• Shahrin Tajree – Wichita

Each of the 10 Wallace Scholarship recipients will receive $30,500 to attend WSU in the College of Engineering for four years. Wallace Scholars comprise a community of more than 40 College of Engineering students, representing every class and almost every major in the college. Wallace Scholars are involved in the College of Engineering, across the WSU campus and in the greater Wichita community.

The URCA Hub research grants can be used for travel in direct support of the research project (e.g., books, field sites, museums, historic sites), as well as most materials and equipment. All materials and equipment must stay at WSU once the project is complete. Grants may be used as participant incentives with proof of appropriate IRB approval.

Students who meet the following requirements are eligible to apply:

• Must be a sophomore, junior, or senior (by credit hour)
• Must have at least two semesters remaining at WSU, including the semester in which they apply for the grant (i.e., a senior graduating spring 2024 would be eligible to apply in fall 2023).
• Must have a faculty research mentor who is willing to submit a statement in support of the project
• Has not received funds from this program in the past
• Must present this project at the Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities Forum, held annually in the spring

Note: Preference is given to students whose projects are not currently receiving funding from another source (e.g., faculty mentor grants).

More information:

• Application deadline: March 9 for grants to begin in the fall
• The grant amount is up to $1,500 per application

Learn more about the Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities Grant Program and encourage your students to apply.

On Tuesday, Feb. 17, members of the Barton School of Business visited Belle Plaine High School to surprise senior Alyssa Pace with the 2026 Clay Barton Scholarship. The $50,000 award is one of the largest business scholarships in Kansas and will cover four years of tuition support at Wichita State.

Pace, who will be a first-generation college student, earned the scholarship after advancing through the highly competitive Allen, Gibbs and Houlik Scholarship Competition. She was previously named one of eight finalists for the prestigious award. The remaining seven finalists will each receive $20,000 scholarships in recognition of their achievements.

“I was completely surprised,” Pace said after receiving the news. “This scholarship means everything. I know it sounds cliché but this is truly life changing for myself and my family. This scholarship will give me the ability to live on campus and fully immerse myself in student life and all of the opportunities that accompany a degree at Wichita State.”