WSU Today: Friday, April 7, 2023

Required Training

Mandatory faculty and staff Title IX training due April 7

Faculty and staff at Wichita State University are required to complete mandatory training on preventing harassment and discrimination. The deadline has been extended to Friday, April 7.

This prevention training, which is led through WSU’s Office of Institutional Compliance, is not only important in making our campus a welcoming and equitable environment, but it’s also important for Title IX compliance. If you have completed your training, thank you for helping us make real progress in making our campus safe, inclusive and equitable.

Featured Stories

WSU lab that took off during COVID switches gears to microbiology

With the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic behind us, Wichita State’s Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory will soon be expanding its focus to become a full microbiology laboratory.

The lab’s evolution will give students more opportunities for applied learning, boost research capabilities and help fill a gap for medical testing across the state.

Wichita State earns Voter Friendly designation for second year in a row

For the second consecutive year, Wichita State has been named a Voter Friendly Campus by the Fair Election Center’s Campus Vote Project and the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators.

WSU is among 258 campuses in 38 states to earn the designation. The initiative recognizes institutions that have planned and implemented practices that encourage students to register and vote in the 2022 elections and in coming years.

News

Rhatigan Student Center to close Sunday

The Rhatigan Student Center will be closed on Sunday, April 9. Regular hours will resume on Monday, April 10.

Find the regular operating hours for the RSC

Applications open for Recruitment Faculty Fellows

Faculty members with an interest in recruiting future Shockers should apply to become a Recruitment Faculty Fellow. Applications for the 2023-24 academic year are open through Friday, April 28.

Recruitment Faculty Fellows work in partnership with the Office of Admissions to recruit new students to the university. The Faculty Fellows engage in both in-person and virtual recruitment efforts and serve as an advocate within their college to inform others about admissions activities and operations.

For questions, contact Kayla Jasso, director of communications at Undergraduate Admissions, at kayla.jasso@wichita.edu.

Learn more and apply for the Faculty Fellows

WSU announces 2023 winter closedown schedule

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. 19, 2023, and WSU will reopen the morning of Jan. 3, 2024. The closedown is 10 days, two of which are paid holidays. Classes will not be in session during this period.

Read more of WSU announces 2023 winter closedown schedule

Presentations and Talks

Campus community invited to Corbin Connect Speaker Series

Wichita State alumna Dr. Rae Niles, former professional learning senior manager for Apple, will be the guest speaker for the upcoming Corbin Connect Speaker Series event from noon to 1 p.m. Friday, April 7 in the WSUTV studio in the Media Resources Center.

The presentation will address digital transformation as it relates to teaching and learning. In addition to working for Apple for 15 years, Niles also served as the director of curriculum and technology at USD 439. Corbin Connect is sponsored by Credit Union of America.

Seat reservations are required, and space is limited. The event is free and open to the public. Those interested can RSVP to attend in person or view the presentation via livestream through WSUTV.

As part of the College of Applied Studies, Corbin Connect connects individuals and organizations through development outreach in order to better serve communities. It strives to support innovative ideas and serves to engage stakeholders in a variety of impactful ways.

April’s Science Café will feature biology seminar speaker

The Department of Biological Sciences’ invited seminar speaker, Dr. Walter Meshaka Jr., will also present at Science Café on at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 11 at Social Tap Drinkery in Braeburn Square on the Innovation Campus. Meshaka will give the talk, “Exotic Amphibians and Reptiles of the United States: Colonization Processes and Processes.”

Meshaka is the senior curator of zoology and botany for the State Museum of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg. He has studied amphibians and reptiles across the continent, and is particularly fascinated by the ecological interactions of native and non-native species.

Science Café presents a variety of science related talks oriented towards the general public on the second Tuesday of every month, August through May.

Events

Biweekly legislative update session pushed to April 10

Zach Gearhart, chief of staff, hosts biweekly updates for faculty and staff on legislative issues raised related to Wichita State from the Kansas state government.

This week’s session has been rescheduled for 10 a.m. Monday, April 10 in the Morrison Hall board room.

Attend Sonia Kovalevsky Day events April 8

Sonia Kovalevsky Day is an all day, all women, all math event for middle and high school students and is designed to empower the next generation of women mathematicians, scientists, engineers and innovators. The day is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturday, April 8. There is no registration fee.

The event includes three hands-on workshops on 3D printing, fractals and juggling.

Additionally, there will be a plenary talk given by Dr. Pamela Harris, associate professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, on the mathematics of juggling and a panel discussion.

The event is sponsored by the Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; Department of Mathematics, Statistics and Physics; Department of Aerospace Engineering; and held in cooperation with the Wichita Public Schools Office of Diversity, Equity and Accountability.

Learn more and register for the day

Intervention Services & Leadership in Education to host graduate fair

Intervention Services & Leadership in Education (ISLE) will host a Graduate Program Fair from 4 to 8 p.m. Monday, April 10 in Woolsey Hall. The event aims to inform potential students about ISLE graduate programs and help prepare them for graduate school.

The schedule for the event will be “Why go to grad school & where to apply” from 4 to 5 p.m.; the graduate student panel from 5 to 6 p.m.; and the graduate fair from 6 to 8 p.m. All students considering graduate school are invited to learn more about the graduate programs within ISLE.

For more information or questions, contact Valerie Thompson at valerie.thompson@wichita.edu.

Learn more about ISLE

Attend Pee for Pizza event April 20

Student Health Services (SHS) is back with its Pee for Pizza event. It will take place noon-4 p.m. Thursday, April 20, at the Student Wellness Center in the Steve Clark YMCA. During the event, participants can get tested for gonorrhea and chlamydia by submitting a urine specimen and then receive free pizza.

Pee for Pizza is a sexual health awareness event that allows participants to test for sexually transmitted illnesses such as gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, HIV and hepatitis C and know their status for free.

Co-sponsored by the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, Positive Direction and Shocker Sports Grill and Lanes, Pee for Pizza occurs twice a month through the fall and spring semesters and is by reservation only. No walk-ins will be accepted. Participants must not use the restroom at least one hour before testing.

For more information or to make a reservation, contact SHS at 316-978-4792. Other testing is available upon request.

NetApp e-waste, shredding event scheduled for April 21

Visit NetApp on the Innovation Campus for its quarterly campus-wide e-waste and shredding event from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, April 21 in the NetApp parking lot, lot 44S.

The following are items that can be disposed of during the event:

Personal documents accepted for secure shredding.
All personal electronics accepted, including appliances.
Secure data destruction for e-waste (hard drive shredder).
On-site assistance available for larger loads.

The event is sponsored by the NetApp Green Team.

Registration open for 2023 Lavender Graduation

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion and Spectrum: LGBTQ and Allies will host the ninth annual Lavender Graduation at 7 p.m. May 5 in 233 Rhatigan Student Center.

This is a special ceremony honoring the achievements of graduating lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning (LGBTQ+) students at Wichita State. Students have the option to be recognized openly or privately at the event.

To attend, students should RSVP by 11:59 p.m. May 1 to receive their lavender or rainbow cord.

Learn more and RSVP for the Lavender Graduation

‘Pineapple Street’ is KMUW’s April Literary Feast book pick

KMUW’s monthly book club features selections made by its staff. For April, KMUW is reading “Pineapple Street” by Jenny Jackson.

Participants will meet from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 19 at KMUW for a group discussion over dinner and drinks. Dinner is provided by Public.

Learn more about Jackson and the novel “Pineapple Street” on Marginalia.

Purchase a ticket to the event