WSU News - All Stories

Oct. 20, 2020 — The Kansas Legislature in 2011 made a commitment to invest $105 million statewide over the next decade with the purpose of increasing the number of engineers available to industry. For its $35 million share of that money – granted under the University Engineering Initiative Act (UEIA) – Wichita State College of Engineering pledged to double the number of bachelor’s degrees it awarded annually. The aggressive goal was surpassed this past academic year as the college awarded 380 bachelor’s degrees.

Sept. 30, 2020 - The annual ceremony of remembrance for those who died in the 1970 Wichita State University plane crash will be held at 9 a.m. Friday, Oct. 2, at Cessna Stadium. There will be a reception immediately following the remembrance on the Cessna Stadium concourse. Enhancements have been made to Memorial ’70, located near the 18th Street and Hillside entrance to the university. Those additions to Memorial ’70 will be officially be revealed on Oct. 2.

Sept. 30, 2020 — Over the years, many hikers have trekked to the crash site of the plane that claimed the lives of 31 souls — including 14 members of the Wichita State University football team, 14 staff and boosters, and three crew members.

Sept. 30, 2020 - Wichita State athletic trainer Tom Reeves was known as a man devoted to his athletes on the football team. His sense of humor and caring touch helped them through injuries and difficulties. On Oct. 2, 1970, he helped survivors escape the wreckage of the Martin 404 after it crashed in Colorado. Badly burned, Reeves got them away from the plane and down the mountain to help before he fell unconscious. Reeves died on Oct. 5 in a Denver hospital.

Sept. 28, 2020 - A new sculpture recognizes the survivors of the crash at Memorial '70 at Wichita State University. The names of teammates who landed safely in Utah that day are a fitting addition to the existing upright Memorial ’70 monument. “One of the main reasons we did what we did, was so the future generations would know that there were survivors,” architect Randy Phillips said. “And how their lives were impacted, especially since they lived when so many didn’t. Most, if not all, suffered greatly in silence.” The desire to honor teammates by telling the story of the crash motivated Phillips, as it has driven so many connected to Oct. 2, 1970 near Silver Plume, Colo.

Sept. 23, 2020 - Darren Defrain is the social professor of English and director of the writing program at Wichita State. Defrain has written novels, memoirs and essays, created a graphic novel, teaches on graphic novels/storytelling and is actively working on a graphic novel app.

Sept. 23, 2020 - Bill Burch played linebacker for the Shockers in 1970 as a senior. As fate would have it, a knee injury kept him from traveling to Utah State on Oct. 2. He had expected to travel with the team, but instead was forced to stay home and heal. On that day, the Martin 4-0-4 airliner that carried the Shocker starters crashed near Silver Plume, Colorado, killing 31 people – 14 student-athletes, 14 staff and boosters, and three crew members.

Sept. 16, 2020 - Deja Young is a returning Paralympian in track and a Wichita State alumna. Casey Ralzlaff is a first-time Paralympic hopeful in wheelchair tennis and current student at Wichita State. Both of their sports are cancelled due to COVID-19.

Sept. 14, 2020 -- Wichita State University’s Advanced Center for Virtual Engineering and Testing will soon have a new name. The building’s renaming is a tribute to Kansas Sen. Jerry Moran’s commitment to provide vital resources and connections that help Wichita State offer impactful student experiences to drive prosperity for the city, region and state.

Aug. 26, 2020 — Wichita State University has been named a founding member of a newly formed AI Institute for Foundations of Machine Learning (IFML), established by a $20 million grant from the National Science Foundation.

Kansas Jason Sudeikis writes and stars in the Apple TV+ series “Ted Lasso,”  which begins streaming Friday (Aug. 14). In the show, Lasso is a fictional former Wichita State University football coach who moves to coach fictional British soccer club AFC Richmond in the Premier League. Lasso's former life as Shocker coach is featured in the first two episodes.

Aug. 5, 2020 - Wichita State Athletics will introduce mobile ticketing for the 2020-21 season for the sports of volleyball, men's and women's basketball, baseball and softball. The move to mobile ticketing will provide greater convenience and a safer environment for fans. It will offer a contactless entry into athletic venues and the ability to transfer tickets electronically, eliminating physical touching concerns prevalent during this time. Mobile ticketing will also provide an added layer of security, guarding against the production of fraudulent and counterfeit tickets.

Aug. 3, 2020 — If necessity is the mother of invention, it may also be the source of new patents: The story of how Dr. Ali Eslami became the holder of US Patent 10,689,898 – his first – begins with a local company asking for an invention to save it money.

July 16, 2020 — The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded more than $1.1 million to Dr. Vinod Namboodiri, professor of electrical engineering and computer science at Wichita State University, and his team to create a community-wide wayfinding system for people with disabilities.

July 8, 2020 — Wichita State’s National Institute for Aviation Research's Digital Twin program uses insights gained through the digital assembly of aging aircraft to provide valuable data to those who might work to maintain and repair similar aircraft in the future.