University Staff Senate

Tuesday, October 20, 2026 | 3:30 - 5 p.m. | Shocker Studios

 

Shocker Studios Visit: Staff Senators will assemble at 3pm to head to Shocker Studios for a tour with Justin Rorabaugh.

  1. Attendance 
    1. Fonseca, Mendez, Mathews, Smetak, Mata, Blackerby, Keckeisen, Henry, Nweke, Archambeau, Nguyen, Pierpoint, Johnson, Pletcher, Schroeder, Roberts, Sandlin, Burger, Bruner, Garrison, Marzolf, Abente, Steele, Asbridge, Hendrich, Austin, Nolen, Bergkamp, Brown, Leonard, Ludlow 
  2. Call to Order 
  3. Approval of Minutes
    1. Action Requested: Approval of September 15th Minutes
  4. Guest Presenter
    1. Diana Austin, Director, Culture and Talent 
  5. Informal Statements
    1. Floor is open for Senators to bring forward comments that they would like to make or areas of concern they would like to make the full Senate aware of 
  6. President’s Report
    1. Department Restructuring Process Update
    2. President’s Executive Team, Dean and Constituency Heads
    3. Budget Committee 
    4. Human Resources
    5. Legislative Affairs 
  7. New Business and Discussion
    1. Police Chief Search – Katie Austin 
  8. Old Business
    1. Staff Town Hall Feedback and Check In
    2. Listening Sessions
    3. Discussion Items for KBOR Breakfast w. KBOR Staff Senate Presidents 
  9. Senate Committee Updates
    1. Executive Committee
    2. Awards and Recognition:
      1. The committee met to review and update the nomination process for the 2027 Staff Senate Awards.
      2. Nominations will be accepted from November 9, 2026, through February 5, 2027.  This year, nominations will be collected through Qualtrics. Both letters of recommendation will be submitted as attachments within the Qualtrics nomination form. 
      3. 2027 Awards Timeline
        1. November 9, 2026 – February 5, 2027: Nominations accepted; February nominations reviewed; March nominees notified and invited to attend STRIVE; nominees for the President’s Award and Carlisle Award will be notified and invited to Shocker Pride Celebration.  The committee is planning to present plaques to the recipients.
    3. Communications and Website
      1. The committee didn’t meet this month due to Kendra being out of the office.
      2. Caitlin created graphics and scheduled WSU today posts for the upcoming town hall.
      3. The committee has been updating the website as information is sent their way.
      4. We will be rolling out the process for staff senate highlights soon.
    4. Elections 
    5. Policy Review 
      1. No new updates at this time as no additional policies have been forwarded by General Counsel for review/feedback.
    6. Professional Development and Service 
      1. Save the Date! Nov 18th Departmental Walking Tour from 1:30-3pm. Flyer and announcement to come with more information. Places visiting: Shocker Locker (basement of SSC); Campus Police; Student Wellness Center-CAPS Clinic; Physical Plant.
    7. Scholarship
      1. Scholarships for Spring ‘27 are now open for applicants to apply. Deadline to apply is Nov. 14th. 
    8. Shocker STRIVE:
      1. First planning committee meeting next week will discuss a feedback survey to send out for topic suggestions and finalize timing of the 2027 conference (likely moving to half day schedule).
    9. Admins Coming Together: 
      1. The first meeting was well attended and discussed future meeting topics; our meeting was after myGoals came out so we briefly chatted about them. Someone familiar with myGoals commented on how it had worked in a previous job she held and that it worked well. Concerns were how will the merit raises be funded?
  10. University Updates
    1. Parking & Traffic Appeals 
    2. Rhatigan Student Center Board of Directors
    3. SGA Police Advisory Board
    4. Kansas Board of Regents
    5. Kansas Board of Regents Staff Council 
  11. Adjourn/Upcoming Meetings and Events/Shoutouts
    1. Service Recognitions: Oct. 27th AND Oct. 28th 
    2. October Meeting: Tuesday, November 17, 2026, | 3:30PM  
    3. STRIVE Conference 2027: March 26, 2027 | 8:30AM
    4. Check the Events Calendar for upcoming events on campus