Wichita State Poised For Massive Growth

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Sometimes, small things can lead to bigger things.

KWCH - Building You: Wichita Schools exposing more students to technical education

For the first time, WSU Tech is hosting STEM Camps for roughly 800 students of the Wichita Public School district throughout the month of June.

“Today, kids are doing many different types of play activities to help them engage different areas of their mind, to help them think about what they could do in the future, and I think, it’s amazing,” said Rob Dickson, chief information officer for Wichita Schools.

According to a Kansas Department of Education study, there is an on-going skills gap, especially in the manufacturing industry. It suggests one third of graduating high schools students should go into one of three categories: the workforce, a technical college, or an undergraduate degree program.
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“It’s important for us to expose students at a very young age of what’s happening (at WSU Tech), what the opportunities are, so they don’t grow up thinking one thing, and not knowing that they can do something else,” said Mandy Fouse, director of public relations and marketing for WSU Tech.

WSU Tech provides a top notch service and opportunity to many and will continue to grow in that. Their enrollment is up to about 5,000 and has been on an upward trajectory since they came under the WSU umbrella. I'm not sure what kind of numbers they could potentially handle, but what they do for so many fields in the area is valuable. And with those numbers, WSU as a whole would be around 21k I believe.

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WSU - Patterson Family Foundation awards $100,000 for WSU health professions scholarships

The WSU College of Health Professions was awarded a $100,000 grant from the Patterson Family Foundation to support scholarships for health professions students from rural Kansas counties. The scholarship will be awarded to 10 students during the 2022-23 academic year, helping close the gap of unmet financial needs.

This grant will advance the work of Wichita State to partner with communities, organizations and other universities to offer collaborative solutions to help our students and state thrive. With more than 90% of Kansas counties designated as a Health Professional Shortage Area, the need to support education for CHP students is significant.

“The College of Health Professions is ecstatic to receive this generous grant from the Patterson Family Foundation,” said Dr. Gregory Hand, dean of the college. “It will create a huge impact for health professions majors from rural counties as they pursue degrees at WSU, and we’re excited to build on this relationship as we lead change in healthcare education in Kansas.”

Far more students apply for financial help than can be supported with available resources, and the average gap of unmet financial needs is often higher for CHP students. Need-based scholarships help alleviate economic hardships and create an opportunity for graduates to contribute to their communities without the burden of student loan payments.

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WBJ - Newest building on WSU's Innovation Campus will broaden use of digital transformation

"That's what NIRDT is about — is creating an innovation engine that takes what we've already learned and are driving our core competencies and expanding and providing that same capability to other industries," said Tonya Witherspoon, who is associate vice president of Industry Engagement & Applied Learning at WSU.

The Kansas Board of Regents approved the creation of NIRDT in 2020, but digital transformation, which describes taking physical practices and transferring them to a digital format, is not new to WSU.

At the National Institute for Aviation Research, for example, parts are scanned, digitized and catalogued to help the Air Force and Army repair and sustain older aircraft in a cost-effective manner. The Advanced Virtual Engineering and Testing Lab uses a virtual crash-test dummy to test the safety of an airplane seat, instead of costly physical materials.

Building on WSU's work in aviation manufacturing, NIRDT can tap into agriculture, health care, oil and gas, transportation and logistics, and a number of other sectors.

"Everyone has a place in it," Witherspoon said. "It's not just about developing technology. It's not an engineering-only solution. It's a people and process operations and technology solution."

I didn't realize that NetApp was affiliated with the likes of NVIDIA, Cisco and AWS, all of which will be involved with NIRDT.

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KSN - Cargill donates $400K to WSU Tech culinary program

“Cargill’s donation to the WSU Tech Foundation will be used to outfit NICHE’s culinary theater with professional cookware and equipment and will also, even more importantly, provide scholarship support to students from underrepresented communities who are looking to pursue careers in culinary arts and hospitality,” said Dr. Sheree Utash, President of WSU Tech.

According to a news release from WSU Tech, earlier this year, the school “broke ground” on the new National Institute of Culinary and Hospitality Education (NICHE) campus, a “state-of-the-art culinary school” which will be based out of the historic Henry’s Building downtown. The campus will be the center of learning for the school’s Culinary Arts and Hospitality and Events Management programs, featuring commercial kitchens, classrooms, a demonstration kitchen, and an open-to-the-public food hall.

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I'm no fan of the ATF but...

KSN - ATF opening Crime Gun Intelligence Center of Excellence at Wichita State University

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) announced on Wednesday the establishment of its Crime Gun Intelligence (CGI) Center of Excellence, located on Wichita State University’s Innovation Campus.

The Center of Excellence will be a model for the use of CGI in supporting law enforcement agencies throughout the United States. It will serve as a home for the National Crime Gun Intelligence Governing Board.

Established in 2016, the board leverages the collective experience of local, state and federal experts working in forensics, law enforcement and criminal law to ensure ATF receives valuable input on national programs relating to CGI.

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I'm no fan of the ATF but...

KSN - ATF opening Crime Gun Intelligence Center of Excellence at Wichita State University

Great news. 200-250 new jobs in a field that helps diversify Wichita’s economy is a good thing.

With this announcement, that makes each building occupied or accounted for on the innovation campus. I would suspect if past precedent holds, that we see another “partnership building” be built speculatively in the relatively near future.

Wichita is still in the running for significant grant money from the government for their proposal with the Build Back Better Regional Challenge. Winners will be announced at the end of the summer. Would expect Integra to expand onto WSUs campus if they win the grant. Could happen without it too?

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Here's an impressive article from CompositesWorld about NIAR.

https://www.compositesworld.com/articles/plant-tour-national-institute-for-aviation-research-wichita-kan-us

If your impression of the National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) at Wichita State University (WSU) is that it is a typical but modest composites research lab located at a mid-sized, Midwestern state university in the middle of a mid-sized city, you would be mostly correct... but not about the modesty of the lab.

Over the last 36 years, NIAR has grown into one of the world’s preeminent aerospace research institutions, featuring 22 labs spread out over 1.6 million square feet in six locations in the greater Wichita area. It employs 1,300 people (50% of whom are students) and has research expenditures of over $190 million, funded by industry, state and federal research grants. NIAR has become not just an R&D engine for the Wichita aviation community, but a producer of graduates who have experience solving real-world aerospace challenges working with real-world aerospace manufacturers. CW visited NIAR in early 2022 and found a robust, sprawling, dynamic university R&D institute that is, arguably, one of a kind in the U.S., if not the world.

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That's some high praise!

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Academics at WSU have changed, to say the least. Lol. I just laugh because I majored in criminal justice years ago. My experience wasn’t bad at all, but let’s just say CJ students weren’t taking classes in a on campus law enforcement training center or in a on campus ATF command center.
I could tell the emphasis on their Engineering and CJ programs was there years ago, but I never fathomed WSU bringing what they have to the campus recently. Really cool stuff!

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KWCH - NIAR receives $3M grant for advanced manufacturing

WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) - The National Institute of Aviation Research received a $3 million grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce. U.S Senator Jerry Moran was in Wichita Wednesday morning to announce the grant for advanced manufacturing, specifically additive manufacturing technology to NIAR’s portfolio. The additive technology is 3-D printing and grant money will go toward a large 3-D printer.

“What this funding does is enable us to be able to print a metal part, five feet by five feet by seven feet, which really puts us in a unique position within the United States of America to be able to print a part that large,” said NIAR Executive Director John Tomblin.

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This is kind of cool.

WSU - WSU audio tour features in-depth look at campus history and landmarks

Wichita State University’s 330-acre campus is filled with picturesque buildings and construction projects that will carry the university forward. Works of art, tulips and quiet places to study add to the beauty. Throughout campus, the landmarks carry stories of history and significance.

Who is the pioneering woman who saved one of Wichita State’s enduring scenes from bulldozers? Which educational building on campus has its roots in Baghdad, Iraq?

How did a quiet road through campus turn into “Alumni Walk,” a pedestrian corridor highlighted by interactive stops and art? What is the university's prominent role at the 1936 Berlin Olympics?

Campus visitors can learn these Shocker stories and more with “Explore Wichita State,” a self-guided audio tour of campus.

“Explore Wichita State” is directed by the Wichita State University Placemaking Initiative. Host Carla Eckels of KMUW narrates and brings you the voices and stories that illuminate the tour.

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WSU - Amazon selects Wichita State as an education partner for Career Choice program

More than 1,000 local Amazon employees can now receive tuition assistance at Wichita State University through the Amazon Career Choice program.

Every full-time Amazon employee is now eligible for $5,250 of tuition assistance per calendar year at WSU. Part-time employees are eligible for $2,625 per calendar year. The Amazon Career Choice program is a tuition assistance program for hourly employees who have been employed for 90-plus days

“We’re thrilled to be the only four-year Kansas university partner in Amazon’s Career Choice network,” said Bobby Gandu, Wichita State assistant vice president of strategic enrollment management. “With a vast array of class locations and times — from main campus to satellite campuses to online learning options — we’re excited to meet the needs of the busy schedules of the Amazon team members.”

The money can be used for tuition (credit bearing, undergraduate courses only), fees and books. A designated Wichita State staff member will work with students. Approximately 1,000 local employees are eligible.

“Wichita State has had a long history of being the educational leader for our local adult workforce,” Gandu said. “This new partnership with one of our city’s largest employers strengthens our commitment to the community’s professionals who are looking to advance their careers.”

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KSN - WSU gets $1M to help Wichita small businesses

The $1 million will go toward the Small Business Digital Transformation (SBDT) Program. The program has developed a four-week training for business owners to streamline workflow, focusing on converting to online sales and tracking digital sales and growth.

“We are rethinking nearly every element of instruction to deliver a program that builds business resiliency while connecting and embedding students from across campus into this real-world application with the goal of ultimately filling local job demands,” Patterson said.

Wichita State students hired as digital navigators will help businesses design a digital-integration plan and will help implement specific technology to boost efficiency.

“Long-term, the hope is that it will allow the businesses to be more successful and to grow,” said Troy Tabor, director of the Center for Entrepreneurship. “This is the way for the university to bring these small businesses up to speed – it will raise all ships.”

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WBJ - WSU will use $1M grant to help small businesses build digital platforms

A new program, though, from Wichita State University — funded by a $1 million ARPA grant from the city of Wichita — aims to help those small businesses make that transition.

“If these businesses had access to tech talent and resources to shift to a digital platform, they not only could have survived but possibly thrived and competed against large corporations that had the financial means to pivot to digital quickly,” said Jeremy Patterson, the executive director of WSU's Office of Innovation and New Ventures, in a Thursday news release.

Over the past two years, an Office of Innovation and New Ventures analysis identified access to technology as a core need of many small businesses, according to the news release.

In response to this need, the Small Business Digital Transformation Program was established to provide a four-week training program for business owners designed to streamline workflow. The training will cover issues that emerged from the pandemic, such as conversion to online sales and tracking digital sales and growth.

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I’m wondering how long before WSU passes the mild cats in enrollment