Category: News

Do you know a WSU employee who deserves special recognition for their contributions to Wichita State? The Staff Senate invites the WSU community to submit nominations between Nov. 1-Jan. 28 for outstanding Unclassified Professional (UP) and University Support Staff (USS) employees for the President’s Award for Distinguished Service.

These awards recognize the dedication and excellence of WSU employees who have provided exemplary, dedicated and caring service to the WSU community that is beyond the expectations of the duties and responsibilities of their position. Selected honorees are recognized at the annual Shocker Pride Celebration in spring 2022.

Nominations will be accepted until 5 p.m. Jan. 28. For more information or to submit a nomination, contact amy.belden@wichita.edu.

Beginning Nov. 1, a number of lots in the vicinity of Koch Arena will be reserved for Shocker Athletic Scholarship Organization parking three hours before Wichita State men’s basketball games. Anyone previously parked in these lots will need to move their cars at that time. Signage will be in place alerting drivers of the impending lot assignment changes.

The Human Resources front office lobby will temporarily close to all non-scheduled walk-in traffic Monday-Tuesday, Nov. 1-2. Customers who have a scheduled appointment with an HR team member will be met in the  HR vestibule at their scheduled time.

To make an in-person appointment with an HR team member, please contact HR.ServiceCenter@wichita.edu.

The Medical Laboratory Sciences department at Wichita State University has received a $280,000 endowed scholarship gift from Southcentral Pathology.

Dr. Joel Alderson, president of Southcentral Pathology in Wichita, KS, established this fund to provide two full-ride scholarships each year in WSU’s Medical Laboratory Sciences program. Recipients are chosen based on merit and financial need, and each student receives an equal amount of funds. This is the largest scholarship donation ever made to the program. 

As part of the Office of Engagement’s Volunteer Appreciation Week Oct. 25-29, the office would like to celebrate the volunteers that have helped them reach more than 500 hours of community service in the Shocker Neighborhood.

The winners for most volunteer hours are:

• Colby Hall
• Jacob Jindra
• Brend Le
• Stacey Le

For more information about future volunteer opportunities, follow the Volunteer ICT page. 

The latest issue of Horizon, Wichita State University Foundation’s monthly newsletter, is now online. This issue includes a feature discussing how need-based scholarships are vital to help students graduate and start meaningful careers. It also includes an update on the Shocker Success Center project and a feature on a generous donor whose recent gift will help launch a new lecture series at WSU.

Beginning Nov. 1, several parking lots on the north and west side of campus will be restricted as basketball-only parking three hours before the start of the game. Members of the campus community who usually park in  these lots will need to plan a head and park in another lot or leave by the posted time.

For more information, please visit the athletics parking a map of lot closures.

Wichita State University’s Environmental Finance Center will help create WaterCorps, a project to connect students to applied learning opportunities in the water workforce.

Wichita State is one of 10 organizations selected to receive part of a $3.8 million grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The new program will help build the water workforce by connecting individuals to internships in the drinking water and wastewater utility sectors and expanding public awareness about the benefits of careers providing vital water services.

The Environmental Finance Centers at the University of New Mexico and Syracuse University will join WSU on the project.

Wichita State’s project description states that funding will be used for WaterCorps, a nationwide network of high school and post-secondary students along with school counselors and water utility professionals, who will connect the students to water utility internship experiences, educational resources, guidance from field experts, and facility tours. Students participating in the WaterCorps program will have the added support of a peer network, providing enhanced learning, shared experiences and broad engagement with water professionals.

“We hope to recruit WaterCorps members from geographically diverse and tribal communities so that the students are able to learn from peers and professionals from a wide variety of community water systems across the United States. As the WaterCorps members share experiences with others beyond their own community they will build a strong connection to the water industry,” said Tonya Bronleewe, director of WSU Environmental Finance Center. “We will share our methods, resources, educational materials, and toolkits in the Environment-Focused Learning Academy online portal. We want what we develop through this project to be available to any school, utility, organization or individual who has an interest in helping young people to find their careers in water.”

The water industry is facing widespread shortages of qualified workers, due to expected retirements, new investments in the nation’s physical infrastructure, and new technical and scientific skill sets required to operate and maintain these systems. These grants will expand public awareness about job opportunities in the drinking water and wastewater utility sector and will address the workforce needs of drinking water and wastewater utilities.

About WSU Environmental Finance Center

Across the country, the costs of environmental services, programs, and infrastructure continue to rise. At the same time, the individuals, communities, and governments tasked with paying for environmental protection are experiencing significant financial burdens. The WSU Environmental Finance Center helps solve the issue of how to pay for environmental protection.

Wichita State will feature a YouTube livestream of the inauguration ceremony for Dr. Richard Muma at 2:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 29 at the Hughes Metropolitan Complex. Members who wished to attend the event in person should have reserved their spot by Oct. 15.

Dr. Richard Muma was selected as 15th president of Wichita State University in May. Muma had been serving as interim president of Wichita State since September 2020.

For more information, call 316-978-3258 or email inauguration@wichita.edu.

Presenters in the “Legacies of Racism in American Culture” series will give their perspectives on religion, immigration, business, supremacist thought and labor economics. Andrew Hippisley, dean, Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, will host the series.

Presentations will be delivered at 3 p.m. Nov. 3, Nov. 17, Dec. 1 and Dec. 8 via Zoom. Login information will be the same for each talk (Meeting ID: 998 4330 8081, Passcode: 441316).

The series includes:

Nov. 3  “The Bible and Race in American Christian Cultures,” by Rannfrid Lasine Thelle, associate professor of religion

Nov. 17  “Who Can Become an American? U.S. Immigration Policy, Racism, and Civil Rights Struggle in the 20th Century,” by Laila Ballout, assistant professor of history

Dec. 1 “‘Jim Crow’ in the Business World: The Birth, Growth, and Disappearance of Black-Owned Insurance Companies,” by Robert E. Weems, Jr., Willard W. Garvey Distinguished Professor of Business History

Dec. 8  “Labor Economies in the Forces of Insurrection,” by Chuck Koeber, associate professor of sociology

Videos of the previous Perspectives series are archived on the Fairmount College YouTube channel.