WSU News - All Stories

Jan. 30, 2026 — Wichita State University has selected the 2026 recipients of the $64,000 Harry Gore Memorial Scholarships: Mackenzie Bucl, Kayden Lankford and Samantha McClintock.

Jan. 26, 2026 — Wichita State University is proud to announce a transformative $1 million gift from an anonymous 1958 graduate of the University of Wichita to support need-based scholarships in the W. Frank Barton School of Business.

Jan. 16, 2026 — Wichita State University has selected the top 12 finalists in the annual Distinguished Scholarship Invitational.

Dec. 10, 2025 — Xavier Westbrook came to Wichita State from Canton, Kansas, to pursue a degree in elementary education. He hopes that his student and substitute teaching experiences will turn into a full-time career with Wichita Public Schools.

Dec. 2, 2025 - The impact of the Shocker Success Center is seen in the increased traffic and in how the convenience encourages staff members to work together while helping students. The Shocker Success Center brings 18 campus resources, previously housed in 12 buildings, into one building.

Oct. 1, 2025 — Wichita State University and the Wichita State University Campus of Applied Sciences and Technology (WSU Tech) are celebrating record-breaking enrollment this fall, continuing a decade of extraordinary growth. Over the past 10 years, WSU has grown 27.3% and WSU Tech 101.5%. That momentum is reflected in this fall’s historic headcount of 25,147 students — the highest in university history.

Aug. 27, 2025 — Several groundbreaking manufacturing research programs from Wichita State University’s National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) have been named finalists for the industry’s top honors by the Composites and Advanced Materials Expo (CAMX) and the American Composites Manufacturers Association’s (ACMA) Awards for Composites Excellence (ACE).

July 31, 2025 — Wichita State and Groover Labs received a state grant to boost student innovation and help bring Kansas ideas to market. The funding expands hands-on learning, prototyping and outreach across the state.

July 31, 2025 — Wichita State University is one of the recipients of a renewed $20 million grant as part of the AI Institute for Foundations of Machine Learning (IFML), of which WSU is a founding member.

July 14, 2025 — Wichita State University has been named a partner in the National Science Foundation’s I-Corps Great Plains Hub — a $14 million initiative that equips researchers, students and entrepreneurs with the tools to move ideas from the lab to the marketplace. The first WSU-led cohort begins Sept. 15 and will further strengthen the university’s innovation ecosystem.

June 18, 2025 — Hexcel Corp., a global leader in advanced composites technology, is expanding its long-standing partnership with Wichita State University’s National Institute for Aviation Research by establishing a Hexcel Application Center inside NIAR’s Advanced Technologies Lab for Aerospace Systems.

June 12, 2025 — Wichita State’s National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) has received a patent for VISION, an AI-powered composite inspection robot designed to detect and repair damage on aircraft parts autonomously. Developed at NIAR’s Automation Research Center and recently installed at a U.S. Army facility, the system uses machine learning to analyze inspection images and speed up aircraft maintenance.

June 9, 2025 — Shocker Composites, founded by Wichita State alum Vamsidhar Patlolla, transforms carbon fiber waste into high-performance, sustainable materials using a recycling method he developed during his graduate research. With support from Wichita State’s NIAR and Innovation Campus, the company is scaling up its impact and demonstrating how university-backed startups can drive real-world innovation and sustainability.

May 8, 2025 — Natasha Seneviratne found her place at Wichita State through family ties, supportive scholarships and hands-on experiences that helped her grow into a confident engineer.

May 8, 2025 — Yumi Kikuchi first came to Wichita State University as part of an exchange program and decided she wanted to pursue her graduate studies at the College of Innovation and Design. Her advice to other students? “Take chances. Life is an experiment, and college is the perfect time to explore, get involved and discover what truly excites you.”