Category: Kudos

Usha Haley, W. Frank Barton Distinguished Chair in International Business, wrote about the societal implications of her NSF funded research for The Hill in the article, “Chinese Investment in Shale-Gas Technology Is a Threat to US Innovation” April 1.

Besides being the second-most accessed political website after CNN, The Hill describes itself as “read by opinion leaders, including 100 percent of Congressional offices, the White House, political pundits, association executives, lobbyists and corporate leaders.”

Usha Haley, Barton Distinguished Chair in International Business, director of the Center for International Business Advancement and chair of the World Trade Council of Wichita, was quoted in the Wichita Business Journal on considerations regarding a successful acquisition of home-town company Spirit by Boeing in the article, “A Boeing Buyout of Spirit AeroSystems might not mean a ‘deluge of pink slips.’”

The Capitol Graduate Research Summit took place in Topeka March 21. Over 40 graduate students from six Kansas public universities presented their research and how it contributes to the economic development of the state.

Two Wichita State students were awarded at the summit, including Jade Driggs, human factors major, for her poster on the “reverse fundamental attribution error for automated systems: implications for Kansas agricultural operations,” and Jorge de la Hoz, Spanish major, for his poster on “Spanish heritage learners in Kansas: students neglected by the education system.”

Their advisors were Dr. Carryl Baldwin and Dr. Rocío del Águila respectively.

This year, Japanese-language students from Wichita State competed in the annual Heart of America Japan-America Society’s Japanese Contest held March 9 at Johnson County Community College.

The Department of Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures (MCLL) and Japanese program congratulates the winners:

• Caleb Buhler won first prize for the speech competition and second for the JLPT N5 Grammar and Vocabulary Quiz
• Quyen Tran placed first and Sheridan Peterson came in second for their Japanese-language tanka poem
• Eve Moore placed second in the culture quiz
• Julia Gonzalez won first place for her 4-panel manga
• Ricardo Castillo took first place and Sean Hall third in the English-language tanka poetry competition

The MCLL department thanks all of the students who entered and the hard work they put into their entries.

Masud Chand, professor of management, was featured in an article from WalletHub on the best Visa credit cards, providing insights on reasons to get a Visa credit card.

Dr. Rocío Del Águila, chair and associate professor of Spanish in the Department of Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures, received a prestigious award and recognition from the Consulate General of Peru in Dallas, in honor of International Women’s Day.

Her tireless efforts and invaluable contributions have not only improved the lives of the Peruvian community in Kansas but have also strengthened their presence in various facets of society. Her dedication to uplifting vulnerable communities exemplifies the spirit of Women’s Day, inspiring everyone to strive for positive change.

Recovery Connect, the Sedgwick County initiative to help residents, small businesses and nonprofits recover from the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, has achieved its purpose and ended operations. Sedgwick County created the initiative after a public survey was conducted May 2021, and it partnered with the Public Policy and Management Center at WSU to build and execute the program.

In two years, Recovery Connect served many in the community:

• 4,972 individuals
• 2,063 small businesses
• 1,098 nonprofits
• 929 free workshops/meetings on:
  • Small business consulting
  • Child care licensing
  • Nonprofit certification
  • Grant writing

While Recovery Connect has made a difference the Public Policy and Management Center understand many Sedgwick County residents still need assistance. Those seeking assistance from Recovery Connect can contact 211.

Research conducted by Matthew Howland, assistant professor of anthropology and director of the Geospatial Archaeology Laboratory, has been featured in Newsweek.

The research found that over 4,200 archaeological sites in Georgia are at risk of destruction from severe weather, rising sea levels and climate change, significantly more sites than previous models predicted.

The study was made in collaboration with Victor Thompson of the University of Georgia.

In the last three semesters, the College of Health Professions has hosted over 1,000 high school students from over 20 high schools around the state of Kansas. The students have come to tour the Scientific Foundations Division’s state-of-the-art human simulation and human gross anatomy laboratories located in Ahlberg Hall.

During the tours, students are involved in hands-on learning experiences with synthetic cadavers, cardiopulmonary patient simulators and physiological human testing in the Human “Sim Lab.”

The college’s gross anatomy lab, the largest in south-central Kansas, offers high school students an opportunity to view and handle human cadavers and see firsthand how anatomical systems are structured throughout the body.

Also available for high school students are visits to the medical laboratory science labs and a tour of the Nursing Simulation Lab to interact with high fidelity simulated patient manikins.

The tours are designed to help students interested in health professions hone their career choices and learn how the College of Health Professions is leading change in healthcare education.

Ad Astra Kansas Foundation (AAKF) presented information on space education in Kansas at a booth in the Kansas State Capitol Rotunda Feb. 7, and Interstellar Seminar, a course at Wichita State, was featured in the presentation as the first Interstellar University course.

Interstellar Seminar is a non-majors, non-technical course, open for free to the public, which remotely brings to campus world-renown speakers on diverse topics in space science and humanities related to interstellar travel. Learn more through Wichita Space Initiative.

Cosmosphere is the home of AAKF, which brings space science education to the community through events such as their annual Galaxy Forum. One initiative is Interstellar University, a collaboration with Space Age Publishing.