Wichita State University Student Affairs Connecting Every Student Department Highlight, Learn More: Wichita.edu/studentaffairs

Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) is dedicated to making sure Shockers are heard, seen and understood while attending Wichita State. CAPS is located in located in the Student Wellness Center inside the Steve Clark YMCA, and counselors are available in person and virtually. Appointments can be scheduled by calling 316-978-4792 (4SWC). Don’t wait until the end of the semester to schedule an appointment. Keep up with what CAPS’s counselors are doing at @ShockersCAPS on Facebook, Instagram and X.

CAPS offers low cost, confidential mental health services from licensed providers. Individual, couples and group counseling options are also available. CAPS providers also co-facilitate several support groups, including Healing from Trauma as well as an LGBTQ+ group. CAPS is offering a total of eight therapy/supports groups to students on campus this fall at no additional charge. More information can be found on the CAPS website. Spring groups will start in February.

CAPS works with HOPE Services to provide outreach to the WSU community, including the weekly Mindfulness and Meditation sessions offered either online or in-person. Training and education resources centered on health and wellness for students, staff and faculty can be requested on the HOPE Services website.

CAPS is training 12 students this year. Partnering with Wichita State (ISLE, Social Work and Psychology departments), Emporia State University and Wichita Collaborative Psychology Internship Program.

Crisis appointments are available during the regular business hours from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Other crisis resources include the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-8255 or text the Crisis Text Line at 741-741. For emergencies, dial 911.

Stock the Shocker Support Locker 2023 Faculty and Staff Challenge Now Through November 10!

The fifth annual Stock the Shocker Support Locker challenge between faculty and staff is off and running. This friendly competition, co-sponsored by the Faculty and Staff Senates, challenges all university employees to help raise needed items for the Shocker Support Locker.

The group that raises the most items, faculty or staff, will be declared the winner. Drop off non-perishable food items at any of the locations below by Friday, Nov. 10.

  • Morrison Hall – Post office
  • Woolsey Hall – Business Student Success Center
  • Jardine Hall – OneStop
  • Elliott Hall – Main level
  • Ahlberg Hall – Dean’s office, fourth floor
  • Lindquist Hall – Dean’s office, second floor
  • Corbin Education Center – Dean’s office
  • Partnership 2 Building – Dean’s office (engineering)
  • McKnight Arts Center – Fine Arts Advising Center, third floor
  • Wallace Hall – Biomedical engineering office, first floor
  • Ablah Library – Circulation desk
  • Rhatigan Student Center – Student Government Association office, second floor
  • Metroplex – Office for Workforce, Professional and Community Education
  • WSU West Campus

To help faculty and staff plan their time off and work schedules throughout the year, Wichita State shares the winter closedown period schedule that has been approved for this year.

The closedown will commence at the end of the day on Dec. 18, 2023, and WSU will reopen the morning of Jan. 2, 2024. The closedown is 10 days, two of which are paid holidays and four are paid days so you will not be required to use accrued leave for those six days. Classes will not be in session during this period.

Employees who would normally be scheduled to work the days may use accumulated vacation leave or their 2023 discretionary day* during the winter closedown. Non-exempt employees can also use accumulated compensatory time off during the winter closedown.

If your role requires you to work during the winter closedown it must be approved in advance by your immediate supervisor. For those that are required to work during the winter closedown, we appreciate your dedication and service to the university.

Schedule of winter closedown:

  • Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023
  • Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023
  • Thursday, Dec. 21, 2023
  • Friday, Dec. 22, 2023
  • Monday, Dec. 25, 2023 (Paid Holiday)
  • Tuesday, Dec. 26, 2023 (Paid Day)
  • Wednesday, Dec. 27, 2023 (Paid Day)
  • Thursday, Dec. 28, 2023 (Paid Day)
  • Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 (Paid Day)
  • Monday Jan. 1, 2024 (Paid Holiday)

An employee must be in pay status the entire workday before and the entire workday after state holidays to receive holiday pay. The official state holidays are Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

Please refer to these frequently asked questions for more information on your leave days and what to do if you work during the winter closedown.

*The discretionary day for 2023 must be used on or before Dec. 23, 2023.

Kim Moore, executive director of the Office for Workforce, Professional and Community Education, has joined other senior leaders from higher education, edtech suppliers and K-12 districts to help realize the full potential of microcredentials to benefit learners, educators and employers.

The resulting framework is designed to set a standard for the information that digital credentials need to contain in terms of transparency with respect to the skills, knowledge, and abilities achieved, as well as the interoperability of the credentials.

“Wichita State University is proud to work towards an articulated, interoperable and sustainable ecosystem, which adheres to a common standards framework, and which will guide issuers on the best ways to maximize the benefits of their badges for learners and employers” Moore said.

The framework is expected to be released at 1EdTech’s Digital Credentials Summit, March 4-6, 2024 in New Orleans, where President Rick Muma is a featured speaker.

Marie Bukowski, dean, College of Fine Arts, was elected by the membership at large to serve a three-year term on the Commission on Accreditation for the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD).

Commissions of elected peer representatives of member institutions meet twice a year to review application materials including self-studies, visitors’ reports and optional responses to visitors’ reports. Commission action is the culminating synthesis function in the accreditation process. As such, the commission applies the standards of the association to institutional programs in art/design in a manner that preserves their uniqueness and supports their development, and makes recommendations that will help the institution develop its own best future for art and design.

This work is critical as it is responsible for affirming quality based on standards and for protecting institutional autonomy, programmatic innovation, artistic and academic freedom, and the mobility of credits and credentials. Bukowski’s three-year term starts in April 2024.

Pumpkin Decorating Contest! Vote for your favorite in three categories: Overall Favorite, Most Original, Scary/Gruesome. Use the link below to vote

Financial Operations and the Office of Research Post-Award are holding a vote for their decorated pumpkins.

Vote online or stop by 201 Jardine Hall to vote in-person. Voting ends at 3 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 31 and is open to current WSU students, faculty and staff. One vote per person.

Members from WSU and the Innovation Campus mingle at the College of Fine Arts/Innovation Campus mixer

Faculty from the College of Fine Arts at Wichita State University and WSU’s Innovation Campus partners assembled for an hour of networking and making connections Oct. 25.

Featured faculty from each school in the College of Fine Arts shared a sample of scholarly and creative activities to Innovation Campus partners and other faculty from across campus. 

The mixer was part of a series of networking opportunities facilitated by WSU to encourage knowledge sharing and establish relationships among faculty and Innovation Campus partners. The College of Applied Studies was the featured college for the spring mixer.

Wichita State University Student Affairs Connecting Every Student Department Highlight, Learn More: Wichita.edu/studentaffairs

The Wichita State Child Development Center (CDC) is dedicated to serving the needs of young children by providing a high-quality, culturally diverse early childhood program within a safe nurturing environment.

The CDC encourages the physical, social, emotional, creative and cognitive development of each child using developmentally appropriate practices and is also dedicated to serving the needs of WSU students.

The CDC provide employment opportunities as well as applied learning, life skills and educational training for students. It offers these to students to introduce them to early childhood education and related degrees. It is the philosophy of the CDC and its staff that children, their families and society benefit from high-quality early childhood programs and believe that there is a critical link between a child’s early experiences and later success in life and that one cannot separate childcare and education; children learn best through their play, interactions and experiences.

The learning environment at the CDC is structured in such a way as to give children an opportunity to independently explore, select, create and problem-solve. Classrooms are organized around interest centers and play areas that include art, math, science, language arts, blocks, dramatic play, cooking and nutrition. CDC staff plan and facilitate these experiences for the total development of children in the center. Each classroom promotes the physical, social, emotional, intellectual and creative well-being of the children.

Image contains two photos, one of the First Americans Museum and the other of a young male dressed in his tribal regalia at a pow wow

The Student Activities Council and Indigenous Student Collective are hosting a road trip to the First Americans Museum Saturday, Nov. 11 in Oklahoma City.

In one place, visitors experience the collective histories of 39 distinctive First American nations in Oklahoma today. The First Americans Museum shares the cultural diversity, history and contributions of the First Americans.

This experience includes transportation to and from Oklahoma City, admission to the First Americans Museum and time in Bricktown located in downtown Oklahoma City. The participant registration fee includes museum admission and transportation. All meals and souvenirs are at the expense of the individual.

The registration fee is $20 per student and $30 per faculty or staff. All participants must be ages 18 and older, and no general public may attend. The deadline to register is Sunday, Nov. 5 or when all available spots have been filled. Refund requests will not be accepted after the deadline.

On Tuesday, Oct. 31, WSU Information Technology Services (ITS) will roll out Microsoft’s Multi-factor Authentication (MFA) for currently enrolled students.

Microsoft’s MFA enhances security by requiring the use of a secondary device at login to verify your identity. This will ensure that others cannot access your account by obtaining your password.

What can you do to prepare for the implementation of MFA? Please download the Microsoft Authentication App. Information about Microsoft’s MFA Application and download instructions can be found on the Microsoft website.

Additional information on what to expect and how to set up your Multi-factor Authentication can also be found on the ITS webpage.

For questions, contact the ITS Help Desk at 316-978-4357, Option 1 or email helpdesk@wichita.edu.