Author: Abigail Klein

All Wichita State Students are invited to a town hall with President Rick Muma beginning at 2 p.m. tomorrow, Feb. 22 at the Rhatigan Student Center Sante Fe Room. Interim Executive Vice President and Provost Shirley Lefever will also be a featured guest.

The Center for Entrepreneurship at Wichita State University has hired Troy Tabor as its new director, effective Jan. 23. Tabor has experience as a serial entrepreneur and business owner with a strong technical background.

As a young boy growing up in Oklahoma City Nicolas Reyes loved to hear the hum of the fighter jets from the nearby Tinker Air Force Base. Nicolas Reyes — a junior studying electrical engineering in Wichita State’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering — has always wanted to work in the aviation industry. He finally got his chance this past summer when he completed a virtual internship with Lockheed Martin. While there, Nicolas worked on the F-35 Lightning II for their location in Fort Worth.

The W. Frank Barton School of Business at Wichita State University has named Jon Rolph, president and CEO of Thrive Restaurant Group and a member of the Kansas Board of Regents, its Executive-in-Residence for the spring 2022 semester.

The Executive-in-Residence program was established last year to provide Barton School students, faculty and the Wichita community with vital perspectives and knowledge from industry leaders. Tom Gentile, president and CEO of Spirit AeroSystems, served as the program’s first resident during the fall 2021 semester.

The members of the Molecular Diagnostics Lab (MDL) received cookies as part of the Rick Rewards Presentation on Thursday, Feb. 10.

Rick Rewards is a program by President Rick Muma that launched in December 2021. The program allows President Muma to show his appreciation for the efforts of a member, or members, of the campus community.

The MDL was recognized for their efforts during the pandemic. At the beginning of the pandemic, there was an extremely limited supply for COVID testing. The MDL’s researchers, staff and students came together to solve this problem and now the Wichita community has access to highly accurate and 24-hour turnaround testing that allows the region to stay healthy and open. 

For the February episode of “Forward Together,” President Rick Muma, Shocker head basketball coach Isaac Brown, and Chamber of Wichita chief executive officer John Rolfe as they discuss making higher education more accessible.

Muma hosts “Forward Together” each month during the fall and spring semesters.

The “Forward Together” podcast celebrates the vision and mission of Wichita State University. In each episode, President Muma will talk with guests from throughout Shocker Nation to highlight the people and priorities that guide WSU on its road to becoming an essential educational, cultural and economic driver for Kansas and the greater good. 

Ella Tucker, senior at Epic Charter Schools in Tulsa, Oklahoma, has been awarded the 2022 Wichita State University Clay Barton Scholarship. She will receive $12,500 a year for four years to attend Wichita State. The $50,000 Barton Scholarship is one of the largest business scholarships in Kansas.

Due to unexpected circumstances, the Human Resources (HR) Office front lobby will close through the end of business day for non-scheduled walk-in traffic today, Feb. 4.

If you have a scheduled appointment with an HR team member, they will meet you in the HR vestibule at the scheduled time.

If you need to schedule an appointment during this time, please contact 316-978-3065 or email the HR Service Center. The HR Office front lobby will reopen and resume normal business hours Monday, Feb. 7.

Thank you for registering for the sixth annual Strategic Communications marketing and communications seminar for WSU faculty and staff to be held from 10:30 a.m. to noon, today, Feb. 3, via Zoom.

Here are a few things you need to know:

• The keynote speaker is Misty Bruckner, director for the Public Policy Management Center. Bruckner will provide an overview of Market Research and outline future research on the I-70 and I-35 corridors
• Choose to attend three of five sessions.
• The web session, “Let’s get personal,” will be recorded and available later
  
  If you have not yet RSVP’d and would like to attend, reach out to Carmen Hytche at carmen.hytche@wichta.edu.

The Promise Bridge is seen as a connection between Wichita State University’s Innovation Campus and the main campus.

GoCreate, a Koch Collaborative, is strengthening that connection with its role in building the 300-foot-long pedestrian bridge that will span over a water feature south of the future Wayne and Kay Woolsey Hall. Woolsey Hall is the future home of the W. Frank Barton School of Business.