Category: Presentations and Talks

Haley Kottler, Thriving and Integrated Voter Engagement Director at Kansas Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, will talk about the organization’s work and community impact at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 26 in the Beren Gallery at the Ulrich Museum of Art. A reception will be held at 5:30 p.m.

Kansas Appleseed works with community partners to understand the root causes of problems, supports strong grassroots coalitions and advocates for comprehensive solutions so all Kansans can reach their full potential. When necessary, Kansas Appleseed pursues impact litigation to protect Kansans’ rights and well being.

The talk is presented in conjunction with the exhibition, “Lesley Dill | Wilderness: Light Sizzles Around Me,” on display in the Polk/Wilson Gallery August 5 through December 2.

The Department of Biological Sciences’ fall 2023 seminar series continues from 4 to 5 p.m. Monday, Sept. 25 in 218 Hubbard Hall. Join Dr. Christianna Howard-Smith, Ph.D., from Langston University for her talk, “Large success with little beginnings at a small HBCU institution.”

Seminars are open to the public and undergraduates are encouraged to attend.

Become a fluent and productive writer through easy-to-follow steps by attending a session from Dr. Peg Boyle Single, who will present her streamlined system for academic writing from 3 to 4 p.m. Friday, Sept. 29 via Zoom.

Learn how complete your paper, thesis or dissertation using proven techniques such as interactive reading and citable notes.

The College of Health Professions is pleased to host Drs. Brett Grizzell and Bassem Chehab with Ascension Via Christi for the presentation “Medicine in the Age of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Transformation” at 2 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27 at the CAC Theater. The event is open to everyone at no additional charge.

Drs. Grizzell and Chehab are nationally renowned experts in heart surgery and are founding members of the Structural Heart program at Ascension Via Christi. Learn more about the exciting new technologies that are transforming medicine and healthcare.

Brett Grizzell, MD, with Wichita Surgical Specialists, is a board-certified cardiothoracic surgeon, skilled in minimally invasive surgery and transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). He is a founding member of the nearly 10-year-old Structural Heart team at Ascension Via Christi St. Francis, where he also serves as medical director of its Lung Cancer Screening program. Dr. Grizzell was raised in Wichita and in 2004 received his Doctor of Medicine from the University of Kansas School of Medicine, where he did his residency in general surgery. He completed his fellowship in cardiothoracic surgery at Washington University/Barnes-Jewish Medical Center in 2011.

Bassem Chehab, MD, with Cardiovascular Consultants of Kansas, is board-certified in internal and cardiovascular medicine and specializes in complex coronary interventions and structural cardiology interventions. Dr. Chehab received his medical degree from Lebanon University in Beirut. He completed his residency in internal medicine at the University of Kansas School of Medicine; in 2012, he completed his fellowship in interventional cardiology and cardiovascular medicine at the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City. During his training, he developed an extensive background in research, having worked on multiple pivotal clinical trials and research projects and being involved in pioneering work on TAVR and other minimally invasive procedures. Dr. Chehab was recruited to Wichita by CCK and Ascension Via Christi to join Dr. Grizzell in the development of a multidisciplinary Structural Heart program at St. Francis, where he now serves as medical director for the hospital’s Heart Valve Clinic and Structural Heart program.

Bureau of Alcohol, Tabacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Special Agent and Certified Fire Investigator Aaron Chaffee will be a guest speaker for the School of Criminal Justice and the student Forensic Science Society at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 21 in 337 Law Enforcement Training Center as part this week’s National Forensic Science Week.

He will provide an overview of ATF’s Fire and Explosive investigative program to include how forensic resources of the ATF Laboratories, Fire Research Laboratory and National Center for Explosives and Training Research are used to assist investigators.

Five distinguished scientists will be visiting Wichita State this academic year as part of Fairmount College’s Watkins Visiting Professor lecture series. The scientists’ visits and their subject disciplines are:

• Greg Fuchs, Cornell University, physics, Oct. 3-4
• Vamsi Mootha, Harvard University, chemistry, Oct. 26-27
• Sarah Hart, University of London, interdisciplinary (mathematics, literature and art), Nov. 8-9
• Doug Emlen, University of Montana, biology, Feb. 12-13
• Bill DeGrado, UC, San Francisco, chemistry, April 15-16

Visiting scientists give lectures, demonstrations or other presentations about their research, which furthers the science education of our students and scientific research of our faculty. The professorship series was created in 1974 by the Watkins Foundation. This grant is now provided through the Watkins fund, a part of the Wichita State University Foundation’s endowment. All lectures are open to the public.

More information about each visiting professor may be found online. Look for updates in the newsletter and on Fairmount College’s social media:

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In conjunction with ”Where We Belong: Refugee Stories from Wichita,” Mythili Menon, co-curator and Center for Educational Technologies to Assist Refugee Learners (CETARL) director, will speak about the work she’s leading to help refugee learners integrate and thrive in Wichita schools.

The program, “Bringing Research into the Community: the Work of the Center for Educational Technologies to Assist Refugee Learners” is open to everyone at no additional charge and starts at 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 21 in the Beren Gallery at the Ulrich Museum of Art. A reception will start at 5:30 p.m.

Join the Department of Physics for its next physics seminar at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 20 in 226 Jabara Hall and via Zoom.

The seminar features John Stroud from the University of Washington, titled “Dark Matter Admixed Neutron Stars.”

Join the Ulrich Museum of Art for a talk “Social Justice in Our Community: Pauline Sharp,” at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 19 in the Beren Gallery of the Ulrich Museum. A reception starts at 5:30 p.m.

Pauline Sharp, a citizen of the Kaw Nation and past vice-president of the Kaw Nation Cultural Committee, will discuss the Iⁿ‘zhúje‘waxóbe/Sacred Red Rock Project, focused on the return and relocation of Iⁿ‘zhúje‘waxóbe, the red Siouxan quartzite boulder currently located in Robinson Park in Lawrence to the Kaw Nation.

The talk is presented in conjunction with the exhibition, Lesley Dill | Wilderness: Light Sizzles Around Me, on display in the Polk/Wilson Gallery Aug. 5 through Dec. 2.

The Department of Biological Sciences’ Seminar Series continues from 4 to 5 p.m. Monday, Sept. 18 in 218 Hubbard Hall, with Dr. Christopher Schalk—United States Forest Service, Southern Research Station—with his talk “Ecological and conservation challenges behind the pine curtain of the southeastern United States.”

Seminars are open to the public and undergraduates are encouraged to attend.