Author: Sara Ornelas

Thousands of students, alumni, families and community members filled campus with excitement and Shocker Pride during last week’s Shocktoberfest, which welcomed new traditions like the bonfire and Entrepreneur Market, as well as continued traditions like the parade and Shocker Madness.

Shocker royalty: Two students were named as Shocker royalty from a court of 12 candidates: Riley McMillan — junior biological sciences with a pre-dental track from Concordia, Kansas — said “I am forever grateful for my choice to be a part of Shocker Nation, and will cherish my time here for the rest of my life.” And Matthew Phan — a senior in mechanical engineering from Wichita — said “Community service is incredibly important for me, and I have done my best to advocate for students and people within the local community through volunteering and outreach events.”

Spirit awards: Teams competed throughout the week for points and a chance at $1,000. Our spirit competition winners:

• First place: WSU Cheer
• Second place: Sigma Alpha Epsilon
• Third place: Sigma Phi Epsilon

Among the many events were individual and group competitions.

Individual and department award recipients

• Banner competition: WSU Cheer
• Departmental door decorating competition: Office of Instructional Resources
• Pickleball tournament: men’s tennis coaches
• RSO Attendance Competition: Life of Christ student organization

Parade winners

• Wu’s Winner – Sigma Phi Epsilon
• Most Creative – Ulrich Museum of Art
• People’s Choice – WSU Tennis Teams

Thank you to everyone who made this year’s Shocktoberfest a success. We can’t wait to do it again next year.

Dear faculty, staff and students –  

Today, a media article raised misrepresentations about the academic integrity of my 2004 dissertation, alleging that certain portions were plagiarized. These allegations are not only deeply personal, but also quite serious, and I want to address them with you directly. To be clear, I attributed and cited all sources in my dissertation, and I have complete confidence in the integrity and originality of my research. These are technical oversights where text was reused, and those attributions did not have quotation marks, and I am taking steps to make corrections.   

Four weeks ago, I became aware that there was a general concern surrounding my dissertation from two decades ago. The reporter refused to share specific allegations until publishing his article today. Given the seriousness of the allegations, I requested that the university conduct an inquiry to determine if a violation of policy had occurred.  

As required by policy, this inquiry was conducted by the Executive Vice President and Provost, in consultation with the university’s Research Officer. The inquiry was comprehensive and included both an internal review and an external independent review of my dissertation by a leading expert in plagiarism, who is unaffiliated with the university.  While all sources referenced in my dissertation were attributed and cited, there were instances, primarily in the literature review section, where this attribution should have included the use of quotation marks around reuse of text. I was advised that the amount of affected text consists of less than 5% of my entire dissertation. The facts led to a determination that these were technical omissions that did not rise to the level of misconduct, and the matter was closed. 

Again, I am taking steps to make these corrections. These technical oversights do not change the outcome or validity of my research.  

As I have shared with others in recent days, it is important to me to be transparent, open and honest, which is why I am sharing this message with you today. I trust that the entirety of my work and my words and actions over the years remain the true measure of my integrity.    

Sincerely, 

President Rick Muma  

Four Wichita State students presented their research at the National Geological Society of America meeting Sept. 22-25 in Anaheim, California.

• Mitch Baker, graduate student in earth, environmental and physical science
• Jack Dalton, graduate student in earth, environmental and physical science
• Ricky Nichols, senior in geology and secondary education in earth and space science
• Makenna Roths, senior in geology and honors baccalaureate

The students were accompanied by faculty researchers Dr. Will Parcell, chair and associate professor of geology, and Julia Schwartz, assistant educator in geology.

The group presented the following publications (* indicates student):

• Parcell, W., Baker, M.*, Dalton, J*., Nichols, J*., Schwartz, J., 2024, Influence of paleotopography and active basement structures on depositional patterns, Middle to Late Jurassic, Bighorn Basin, Wyoming. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol 54.
• Schwartz, J., Baker, M.*, Dalton, J*., Nichols, J*., Parcell, W., 2024, Stratigraphic analysis of the cretaceous eagle coal in Elk Basin Wyoming with XRD and XRF. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol 54.
• Roths, M.*, Parcell, 2024, Analysis of geoscience education techniques within the National Park Service. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol 54.
• Nichols, J*., Parcell, Schwartz, J., 2024, The search for rare earth elements (REES) in lignite coal seams with X-ray diffraction (XRD): A case study from the Cretaceous Eagle Formation, Elk Basin, Park County, Wyoming, USA. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol 54.
• Dalton, J*., Baker, M.*, Nichols, J*., Parcell, W., Schwartz, J., 2024, Stratigraphic significance of a bentonite unit in the upper Jurassic Morrison Formation, northeastern Bighorn Basin, Wyoming. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol 54.
• Baker, M.*, Parcell, W., 2024, Convergent philosophies: using geology and biology to describe microbialite paleoenvironments. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol 54. 
• Baker, M.*, Dalton, J*., Nichols, J*., Parcell, W., Schwartz, J., 2024, Microbialite mystery: characterizing development of microbialites in the Jurassic strata of Wyoming. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol 54.

Join the Military and Veteran Center from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sept. 18 to celebrate the 77th anniversary of the U.S. Air Force. The Veteran Center will host an all-day come-and-go event in room 318 of the Shocker Success Center to honor those who have served and those currently serving in the Air Force. The Air Force was established on Sept. 18, 1947, under the National Security Act of 1947. The mission of the United States Air Force is to fly, fight and win — airpower anytime, anywhere.

In preparation for our WuHire transition, the HR Talent Acquisition team will implement the following deadlines related to the hiring of all positions (excluding Division of Industry and Defense Programs). These deadlines will assist us in transitioning from PeopleAdmin to WuHire and provide a more positive experience for candidates.

Posting of benefit-eligible positions

• PAR forms: Fully approved forms will be accepted by employment@wichita.edu through Friday, Sept. 20.
• Intake meetings: The last day to complete this process is Friday, Sept. 20.
• Job posting language: The last day for the hiring manager to approve the job posting language is the end of the day on Monday, Sept. 23.
• Posting of jobs: The last date to post jobs in PeopleAdmin will be Monday, Sept. 23. Jobs must be fully processed, including intake consultation, to be posted by this date.
• Any PAR that is fully approved, but not yet posted by Monday, Sept. 23 will be held and posted in WuHire beginning Friday, Oct. 4
• PAR forms: No PAR forms will be accepted after Friday, Sept. 20. Any requisitions for new positions will be created and processed in WuHire beginning Monday, Oct. 7.

Current benefit-eligible posted positions in PeopleAdmin

• If involved in an active search process (have interacted with applicants and have a viable candidate pool), the position will be fully hired and on-boarded in the PeopleAdmin system.
• If a position is not in an active search process (no interaction with applicants or there is not a viable candidate pool), the positions will be closed in PeopleAdmin and re-opened in WuHire. (Note: Applicants will have to reapply to the new posting.)
• The last day applicants can apply in PeopleAdmin is Tuesday, Oct. 1.
• All positions in PeopleAdmin will close on Tuesday, Oct. 1.

Hiring non-benefit-eligible (NBE) positions (i.e., student/grad, lecturer, temp):

• NBE hire requests: The last day to submit forms to employment@wichita.edu is noon on Friday, Sept. 27.
• After noon on Friday, Sept. 27, non-benefit eligible positions will need to be created in WuHire beginning Monday, Oct. 7.
• Any NBE hire requests received by noon on Friday, Sept. 27will be processed and completed using current practices with ePAF and PeopleAdmin onboarding.     

Onboarding of new hires (Both benefit-eligible and non-benefit-eligible)

• For candidates hired in PeopleAdmin, onboarding will continue in PeopleAdmin until Friday, Dec. 13.

If you have any questions, email with subject line “WuHire” to employment@wichita.edu.

Wichita State’s Office of Human Resources will operate remotely on Friday, July 5. The physical office on campus will not be open. However, should you need to reach HR, call 316-978-3065 or email HR.ServiceCenter@wichita.edu. It will resume normal business hours starting Monday, July 8.

The Office of Strategic Communications and Marketing is looking to hire a marketing coordinator to join its team. This position will play an integral part in supporting various projects, demonstrating a versatile skill set and a proactive approach. Contributions will have the potential to impact a wide range of initiatives, spanning from website development and content generation to marketing and advertising.

Wichita State University’s National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) will receive more than $10 million from NASA for research related to the development and implementation of advanced materials for hypersonic applications.

The funding will enable continued research aimed at developing and maturing high temperature advanced materials for use in hot structures and thermal protection systems for hypersonic vehicles.

Development of advanced materials and structures that meet these requirements is a key driver in advancing the hypersonic systems industry. There are currently several technological gaps for novel high-speed materials and structures, including the selection of materials that are capable of withstanding extreme temperatures and extended flight times, as well as the development of reliable design databases.

The Kansas State Legislature has approved $1.69 million for our FY25 compensation plan, 50% less than was originally proposed. Therefore, on May 3, Wichita State’s divisional officers approved a 1% across-the-board pay increase, totaling $1 million for all benefits-eligible employees participating in the market-based compensation program. The remaining funds will go toward market-based compensation adjustments for staff and faculty.

The changes will take effect on June 9 and will be reflected in your July 5 paycheck Or, for those on a 9/10 appointment, the change will take effect on Aug. 4 and will be reflected in the Aug. 30 paycheck.

Please note that the university is working with limited resources, and this small increase doesn’t begin to reflect the tremendous value each member of our faculty and staff brings to this institution. We appreciate your dedication and hard work, and we’re committed to continue working with the Kansas Board of Regents, the governor and Legislature in striving to provide fair, market-based compensation within our means.

Due to scheduled maintenance and repairs, Jabara Hall will be without water for the whole day on Friday, Dec. 8.