Author: Lainie Mazzullo

Wichita State will introduce Paul Mills as its 27th head men’s basketball coach at 3:30 p.m. Thursday inside Charles Koch Arena. This event is free and open to the public, with streaming available live and on-demand via ESPN+.

“My family and I are extremely excited about being a part of Wichita State University,” Mills said. “The rich history, winning tradition and unbelievable community support will keep us working on behalf of the greatest fans in all of college basketball. We can’t wait!”

Mills has spent the past six years rebuilding the program at Oral Roberts (2017-23), earning bids to two of the past three NCAA tournaments.

In 2021 Mills became just the second coach in history to guide a No. 15 seed to the Sweet 16, upsetting Ohio State and Florida in the first two rounds.

This past season he coached ORU to a 30-5 record, an undefeated run through the Summit League (18-0) and a No. 12 seed in the Big Dance.

Mills is currently a finalist for the Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year award as well as the NABC’s Skip Prosser Man of the Year honor, presented annually to a coach who achieves success on the basketball court and displays moral integrity off of it.

“Paul Mills’ heart for people, passion for life and approach to the development of young people and programs is energizing,” WSU Director of Athletics Kevin Saal said. “He aligns with Shocker Athletics’ core values, facilitates a first-class student-athlete experience and fuels broad-based competitive excellence. We are thrilled to welcome the Mills family – Paul, Wendy, Audrey and Abbey – to Wichita, Wichita State University and Shocker Nation!”

“We are looking forward to the next chapter of WSU basketball under Paul Mills’ leadership,” WSU President Dr. Richard Muma said. “He’s fully aligned with our priorities, which includes creating success for our student athletes and a winning culture for all of Shocker Nation.”

Mills’ teams play an exciting brand of basketball, annually ranking among the NCAA leaders in scoring and three-point field goals while playing tough, gritty defense.

Over the years Mills has also demonstrated a knack for finding and developing talent. His greatest success story is 6-foot guard Max Abmas, an overlooked recruit, turned NBA prospect who scored more than 2,500 career points in Mills’ system and was twice named Summit League Player of the Year.

Prior to ORU, Mills spent 14 seasons on staff at Baylor under head coach Scott Drew, the last eight as assistant coach during which he helped the Bears to six NCAA tournaments, tallying four Sweet 16 and two Elite Eight appearances, as well as the 2013 NIT title.

Mills, age 50, graduated from Texas A&M in 1996 with a degree in finance and completed a Master of Biblical and Theological Studies from Dallas Theological Seminary in the summer of 2020.

WSU’s Shocker Success Center — opening fall 2024 — is gaining national attention for its focus on a seamless student experience, combining 17 crucial student services into one spot.

Inside Higher Ed recently published a story where Provost Shirley Lefever and Vice President of Student Affairs Teri Hall were interviewed about the Shocker Success Center and how it will help students for years to come.

Weather safety is a priority at Wichita State. Please take a few moments to read through the information below regarding how we will keep you informed of weather-related activity.

• We strongly encourage you to sign up for the Shocker Alert System, which will send weather and class alerts to your phone and or email.
• The Wichita State website will be updated with a warning message during a tornado warning or weather situation that impacts classes or activities on campus.
• WSU’s official WSU Facebook and Twitter pages will be updated with pertinent information.
• You can call the Activity Line / Weather and Class Status at 316-978-6633, option 2.
• See a list of tornado shelters for each building on campus.

For more information about the weather outlook, consult the National Weather Service forecast for Wichita.

COVID-19 Pfizer original series vaccines and bivalent booster shots are available at no additional charge to the Wichita State campus community.

The walk-in vaccinations are available in the Student Wellness Center.

The Office of Strategic Communications is seeking applicants for its social media manager position.

The social media manager will be responsible for monitoring WSU’s main social media channels, providing overall strategy for the university’s social media presence, and creating and sharing content that promotes the university’s brand, mission and values.

The Jan. 23 Faculty Senate meeting provided updated information on the academic portfolio and workload review from rpk Group that was commissioned by the Kansas Board of Regents last spring.

Faculty, staff or administration still wanting to provide feedback on the final report (academic portfolio review section — pages 5-11) can do so by completing this online form or speaking with your dean. Feedback will be accepted until 5 p.m. Feb. 17. *

You can view the data here. Scroll down and click on “KBOR rpk WSU data as of December 1, 2022 (1/23/23).”

The final report can be seen on the WSU Faculty Senate website.

KBOR will discuss taking action on the recommendations made in the academic portfolio review section of the final written report at its March 22 meeting. 

If you have any additional questions or concerns, please reach out to your division chair or dean.

* This feedback is limited to the academic portfolio review section because the board will not take action on the teaching workload section of the final written report (pages 12-16). The teaching workload section is for campus review only.

The applied learning model at Wichita State is a win-win for the businesses community and Shocker students.

One example is Dassault Systemes’ 3DEXPERIENCE Center at NIAR. This partnership gives engineering students experience with additive manufacturing, reverse engineering and robotics through 3D design software. Students employ it in real-life projects.

As Dassault’s Bill DeVries says, these students gaining hands-on experience through applied learning will graduate “ready for anything.”

Where is cutting-edge engineering research being conducted in the U.S.? Right here at Wichita State, according to the latest Higher Education Research and Development (HERD) Survey, released in December.

According to the newest numbers, Wichita State ranks No. 20 in the United States for engineering research and development (R&D) funding, at $157.43 million in 2021, the most recent numbers available.

And in the subfield of aerospace, aeronautical and astronautical engineering, Wichita State ranks third highest in the country, at $153.492 million — behind only Georgia Tech and Utah State.

After five years of dedicated service impacting countless lives at WSU, Dr. Aaron Austin, associate vice president and dean of students, has accepted a position at TNG as a behavioral intervention team/threat assessment consultant.

His last day at WSU will be Friday, Jan. 6.

The Shocker community is invited to a farewell event to thank and honor Dr. Austin from 4 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 5 in 266 RSC.

Each week, Shocker Athletics provides an update on the latest results, upcoming events and notable moments in WSU sports history.