Author: Moriah Beck

Teaching Matters is hosted by the Retention Faculty Fellows, and runs monthly during the regular semester. The theme for March, “Giving and receiving effective feedback,” will be held at 11:30 a.m. Friday, March 3 in 142 Rhatigan Student Center.

All instructors, teaching faculty, GTAs and students are invited to join the discussion. Lunch will be provided. RSVP by sending an email to karla.jordan@wichita.edu by Tuesday, Feb. 28.

The Retention Fellows will continue hosting its Teaching Matters series this semester. All faculty, instructors, teaching assistants and students are invited to participate in conversations designed to enhance and improve teaching and learning at WSU.

Its first event will be at 11:30 a.m. Friday, Feb. 3 via Zoom, and it will focus on how to support transfer student transitions and success.

Join the Retention Fellows for their third installment of the “Teaching Matters” series, devoted to creating an engaging learning environment for your classes.

Student engagement can take many forms, including an in-person or virtual activity, use of case studies, the Socratic method of questioning students, or integration of relevant examples.

Share your experiments with other passionate teachers, and join the discussion at 11:30 a.m. Friday, Nov. 11, in 231/232 Woolsey Hall.

Wichita State will host its tenth annual Expanding Your Horizons STEM workshop for middle school girls 9 a.m.- 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22 at Hubbard Hall. Volunteers are needed to assist with workshops, photography and will receive a free T-shirt and lunch.

For more information, visit the Expanding Your Horizons page or contact moriah.beck@wichita.edu.

Wichita State’s Retention Fellows will host an event for students, faculty and staff at 11:30 a.m. Friday, Oct. 7 in Room 134 of Woolsey Hall. The event will discuss ideas about how to improve student retention while exploring classroom assessment in several forms including surveys.

Applications to participate in the First Year Research Experience (FYRE) in STEM program are now open. Applications will be accepted now until Oct. 3. The mission of the FYRE program is to introduce research to first-year undergraduates in a practical and accessible way.

Students selected for the FYRE program will be required to enroll in an introductory research seminar course that exposes them to research methods. While there, students will be placed in research positions at Wichita State labs actively involved in scholarly STEM research.

Students can learn more about the First-Year Research Experience (FYRE) in STEM program at an information session led by Moriah Beck at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 13 at the Honors College Seminar Room.

For more information, reach out to FYRE Program Director Dr. Moriah Beck at 316-978-5476 or moriah.beck@wichita.edu.

The Cohen Honors College is seeking faculty mentors to work with students selected to participate in the First-Year Research Experience (FYRE) in STEM. All interested faculty members should apply by Oct. 14, and are also encouraged to nominate graduate students to serve as FYRE mentors.

The mission of this FYRE in STEM program is to build a community of STEM students, faculty and professionals from various STEM backgrounds to support young STEM majors or potential majors as they form identities as members of the scientific community, thus improving the likelihood that they will persist to graduation.

To allow the FYRE in STEM program to be a success, we are looking for dedicated research mentors from across campus who can provide an appropriate short-term STEM research project in the spring 2023 semester.

All mentors will be matched with students based on their interests. For more information, contact Moriah Beck at 316-978-5476 or moriah.beck@wichita.edu.

All first-year undergraduate students who are interested in applying to the FYRE in STEM program should be directed to the  FYRE in STEM Student Application.

Faculty can apply at WSU’s FYRE website below.

The Retention Fellows are sponsoring a lunch beginning at 11: 30 a.m. Sept. 9 at 265 Rhatigan Student Center. The lunch is part of a new series called “Teaching Matters,” and the topic of the September lunch is, “Off to a Good Start.”

Faculty, students and staff are invited to attend the event. Space is limited and registration is required.

The ninth annual Expanding Your Horizons Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Conference for middle school girls will take place 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday, April 23 at Hubbard Hall. Volunteers will assist in hands-on activities, but need no prior experience. All volunteers will receive a free T-shirt and lunch.

Join us for the final day of Women’s History Month at 3 p.m. March 31 for a free movie screening of “Picture of a Scientist” in Hubbard Hall, room 231.

All students, faculty, staff and guests are welcome.

PICTURE A SCIENTIST chronicles the surge of researchers who are writing a new chapter for women scientists. This inspiring documentary features social scientists, neuroscientists, and psychologists who provide new perspectives on how to make science itself more diverse, equitable, and open to all. 

This event is brought to you by WSU’s NSF ADVANCE Project, Office of Diversity and Inclusion, and the Graduate School.