Category: News

Dr. Charles Burdsal, community psychology Ph.D. coordinator and professor of psychology, passed away on Sept. 10, 2021, in Wichita. He was 77 years old and still actively teaching classes at Wichita State University. Burdsal was born in 1944 in Kansas City, Missouri, and moved to Texas in the 1950s. He earned a bachelor of arts and doctorate from Texas Tech University.

He began teaching at Wichita State in 1972. During the almost 50 years of service to the university, Burdsal worked as department chair in psychology and helped establish the doctoral programs for the department. He was also in charge of the Social Science Research Lab. He loved gardening, traveling, and photography.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Charles and Thaddie Burdsal. Charlie is survived by his wife of 41 years, Jeanne Burdsal; stepdaughter, Kristin Morgan (Craig); granddaughter, Kaitlyn Watson.

What is a first-gen student? A first-generation college student is defined as a student whose parents or legal guardians have not completed a bachelor’s degree and students who are the first person in their immediate families to attend a four-year college or university to attain a bachelor’s degree.

• The First Gen Coordinating Council (FGCC) is happy to introduce The Alpha Alpha Alpha (Tri-Alpha) a first-generation honor society open to all first-generation Wichita State students, faculty, staff and alumni. Tri-Alpha membership is built to support and advocate for the academic excellence of first-generation college students.
• FOCUS ON FIRST-GEN: This week we highlight Cheryl K. Miller, Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Senior Assistant Dean for Academic and Staff Operations.
• F1RST-GEN T-Shirts are available in the RSC Shocker Store for $12.
• If you’re interested in being featured as a first-generation profile, contact fgshockers@wichita.edu.

In this month’s issue of Forward Together, President Rick Muma writes about Digital Transformation and how it’s driving Wichita State University’s research and applied learning initiatives, as well as helping to diversity the Kansas economy. Other topics discussed include the following:

• WSU-NIAR WERX receives 777 aircraft for Kansas Modification Center passenger-to-freighter conversion
• Shocker Promise will cover tuition and fees for eligible Sedgwick County freshmen
• Long-lost sundial finds new home on WSU campus
• T-Mobile internship led to career options for WSU student
• Scholarship aimed at underrepresented students welcomes inaugural class
• NIAR helps South Kansas earn Defense Manufacturing Community designation
• WSU researcher awarded $100K NEH grant for accessibility app
• Wu Crew Reads promotes literacy at Wichita school
• $125K grant will assist WSU in boosting businesses in underserved communities

A new, yearlong, interdisciplinary program focused on developing women leaders with a global, innovative mindset will start this fall at the W. Frank Barton School of Business at Wichita State University. The Widener Global Leaders Program, made possible by a gift from Peri Widener, is designed to create a transformational experience and foster an inclusive community for women majoring in business, communication or fine arts.

“This unique coalition of business, communication and music is an exciting opportunity for our female students and for the university as a whole,” said Dr. Shirley Lefever, interim provost at Wichita State University. “When our different colleges put their resources together in programs like this, our students receive a more versatile, powerful and wholistic experience.”

WERX at Wichita State University’s National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) has received its first Boeing 777-300ER passenger aircraft.

As part of its rapidly growing Maintenance Repair and Overhaul program, WSU-NIAR WERX, in conjunction with the Kansas Modification Center, will convert the passenger aircraft into a freighter that will be transferred to an external client to meet the growing needs of the e-commerce and express cargo market.

Student Perception of Teaching Effectiveness (SPTE) request forms are due to the Social Science Research Lab Sept. 22.

If you do not have a form, you can download a fillable SPTE PDF request form.

Once the form is filled, members can email the form to sandra.ranney@wichita.edu, mail a paper form to campus box 107, or hand carry the form to Lindquist Hall (room 429).

The video for Wichita State’s Academic Convocation 2021 is now available.

The event, which took place Sept. 2, included  presentations from Dr. Richard Muma, Wichita State president; Rija Khan, WSU Student Government Association president; and Dr. Nikki Keene Woods, Department of Public Health Services assistant professor.

The event also included a special virtual keynote address by Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, author of the Common Read “What the Eyes Don’t See.”

The Behavioral Economics Laboratory at Wichita State University is recruiting participants. Participants have a chance to earn the following incentives:

• An unconditional $5 show-up fee: If you show up at the campus lab at the scheduled time, you earn $5.
• Earn between $15-20 per hour: The amount for participating in the games will vary, and will be based on each participant’s decisions. On average, students earn $15-20 per hour.
• Learn more about behavioral science and contribute to university research: Behavioral economics games were originally used by Nobel Prize laureate Vernon Smith, for educational and research purposes. You can help Wichita State professors and students publish their research in high-quality academic journals.

Members of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) recently approached Usha Haley — W. Frank Barton of Distinguished Chair in International Business, director of the Center for International Business Advancement and elected Chair of the World Trade Council of Wichita — for her advice on how to establish the value of scholarly work in business schools.

The AACSG is a major accreditation body for business schools worldwide.

Haley has just published her eighth book on “Impact and the Management Researcher,” drawing on her three-year study of metrics to evaluate research. Haley’s interview is available below.

Student Perception of Teaching Effectiveness (SPTE) Request forms will be distributed in the next couple of days.

To request a SPTE evaluation for your pre-session course, please visit the Social Science Research Lab website to download the form.