Category: Events and Recreation

Join Women of Wichita State University (WWSU) for a social event beginning at 5 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 29, at Social Tap. Current, new, and prospective members are welcome. WWSU is an organization that serves the interests of the university by providing scholarships to WSU students and fostering a sense of community through the spirit of friendliness and support.

Find WWSU on Facebook by using @womenofwsu or visit www.wichita.edu/wwsu.

Students from the Wichita State Doctor of Physical Therapy program are requesting volunteers for a research study on how ball and balloon exercise variations affect chronic low back pain in adults 18-40 years of age. Participation in this study may help the field of physical therapy to be more effective at understanding and treating chronic low back pain in a simpler, cost-effective way using at-home therapeutic exercises. 

If chosen to participate in our study, volunteers will be asked to complete an eight-week, step-by-step home exercise program that will be monitored via electronic communication in the form of e-mail. The exercise program will not require any external resistance (weights, resistance bands, etc.). It will require a small rubber ball and balloons, which will be provided to the volunteer.

Volunteers will also be asked to fill out two questionnaires before starting the program and two questionnaires at the end of the eight-week program. Volunteers may be chosen to be in a control group, in which case their only responsibility will be to fill out two questionnaires at the beginning and end of the eight weeks. Further instructions will be provided during the study.

To participate volunteers must complete a 10 to 15-minute survey located below. Upon completing the survey, volunteers will receive email with further information. 

Participation is graciously appreciated, voluntary, and all volunteers’ responses will remain confidential. For more information, contact Blanca DeLaTorre at  bpdelatorre@shockers.wichita.edu. 

Interdisciplinary Research Projects leaders will present their highlights beginning at 10 a.m. Sept. 16 at the John Bardo Center lobby.

“These projects intentionally assembled expertise from a range of disciplines to solve problems that are highly challenging, extremely interesting, and whose solution is high impact,” said Andrew Hippisley, dean of the Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. “These are the very problems that a single discipline is not equipped to solve. It will be exciting to hear the highlights and results to date from each of the projects.”

During the vent, lead researchers for Wichita State’s Interdisciplinary Research Projects will provide updates on their efforts to address pressing societal issues with a goal to improve the growth and diversity of Kansas’s economy.

“What has been most rewarding about this initiative was the opportunity for so many researchers from different disciplines across campus to discuss their research and find common interests,” said Coleen Pugh, dean of the graduate school and vice provost for research. “That alone was a success.”

Each project was initially funded in 2020 by a $300,000 grant from the university, distributed over three years. Project groups also have applied for additional external funding.

The projects include:

• The Smart Fusion Material Research Institute has a goal to develop novel computational, material and digital manufacturing approaches to unlock the complex interactions among material, microstructure, processing and mechanical properties involved in additive manufacturing. Lead researcher and presenter will be Gisuk Hwang, associate professor of mechanical engineering.
• The Disaster Resilience Analytics Center has a goal to leverage the university’s expertise in artificial intelligence, deep learning and multiple modes of big data to better predict natural and human- made disasters, and to improve preparedness by creating a new generation of digital platforms and support services. Lead researcher and presenter will be Atri Dutta, associate professor of aerospace engineering.
• The Institute for Health Disparities has a goal to generate new methods to reduce obesity among vulnerable populations and improve health literacy as a mechanism among health care providers for behavior change. Lead researcher and presenter will be Twyla Hill, professor of sociology.
• The Center for Educational Technologies to Assist Refugee Learners has a goal to design innovative solutions to meet the educational needs of the children of the more than 70 million forcibly displaced refugees worldwide. As a result, it will also create innovative pathways and software for educational access to those in our state and nation. Lead researcher and presenter will be Mythili Menon, assistant professor of linguistics.

Please join us for a public lecture by Dr. Sean Curry from Oklahoma State University (OSU). The lecture, titled “The local CR embedding problem,” will take place at 3 p.m., Friday, Oct. 7, 2022 at 372 Jabara Hall. Refreshments will be available at 2:30 p.m. at 353 Jabara Hall.

Campus Activities and Recreation’s annual 5k Pumpkin Run will take place beginning at 9 a.m. Oct. 22 at the Wichita State Campus. Participants will receive an event T-shirt and a finisher medal. Awards will be given to the top age group finishers and overall winners.

Younger children up to 12 years old are also invited to sign up for the Little Pumpkin Run 1k fun run. Participants in the 1k runners will also receive a T-shirt, a finisher medal and a surprise gift.

Participants who can’t make it in person can race with virtually and get the same benefits by registering at the Campus Activities and Recreation Pumpkin Run 5k and 1k website.

One dollar from each registration will go to the Shocker Support Locker, which provides students, faculty and staff access to food, clothing, toiletries and baby and family products.

Students, faculty, staff and campus innovation partners are invited to attend the Purple Mile, an annual memorial walk held for those who have lost their lives to domestic violence beginning at 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 8, at the north patio of the Rhatigan Student Center. The event also serves as an opportunity to increase community networking, resourcing and awareness about the issue of domestic violence. The event is part of Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

Join the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) for a tie dye event 6-7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 14 at the John Bardo Center Courtyard. Participants will receive a free SWE T-shirts to tie dye and yard games will also be available. For more information, contact swe@wichit.edu.

In recognition of 9/11, Wichita State’s Military and Veteran Services is encouraging all to pause in remembrance of the lives lost on this day and attend a 9/11 Memorial Event at 1 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 11, at Rose Hill (421 E. Rocket Drive). There will also be a 9/11 Remembrance Banner available for students, faculty and staff to sign at WSU’s Military and Veteran Services Center all day Sept. 9.

Stop by the Food Truck Plaza for lunch with Brazita Bites and Wheat Street Dogs food truck 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m. today, Sept. 9. Get your meal to go, spread out on the plaza picnic tables or the beautiful green space.

Faculty and staff are invited to the Shocker Career Accelerator’s (SCA) Fine Arts Career Mixer 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 15 at the McKnight Art Center atrium. This event is a networking/mentoring event for students to learn about local artists’ career journeys and opportunities available in their degree paths.

For the event, SCA tracks student attendance and can provide all faculty this information to provide extra credit for their students.