A flyer shows images of faculty sitting at tables typing on computer and talking at the last Writing Sprint. Text reads Faculty Research and Writing Sprint, May 19-21 at Wichita State Connect Building, sponsored by FARE (Faculty Advancement, Retention, and Excellence).

The Office of Faculty Advancement, Retention, and Excellence (FARE) is hosting another Faculty Research & Writing Sprint from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 19-21 at Wichita State Connect. Start your summer off strong by making progress on your research or creative activity agenda. There will also be another room available to participate in whatever ARC sessions you’d like.

  • FARE will provide the caffeine, snacks and lunch for the first day, not to mention the positive peer pressure to work on your writing goals
  • The Wichita State Connect building is across the parking lot from Ablah Library, next door to the parking office.
  • Choose from a half-day or whole-day option.

Email Dr. Debby Hinsdale at fare@wichita.edu with any questions.

Our Kansas Board of Regents 403(b) retirement plan providers, TIAA and VOYA, are offering several webinar learning opportunities in May. See below for registration details:

TIAA:

  • 11 a.m. Thursday, May 7: Money Psychology: Beyond the Numbers – Explore how emotions and habits shape money choices—and how to align them with your goals.
  • Noon Tuesday, May 19: Finance for New Grads – Build smart money habits early. Learn to budget wisely, manage benefits and plan for long-term success.

VOYA Financial:

  • 10 a.m./2 p.m. Tuesday, May 12: Retirement goals under 40 – Think about your future. Some things may seem far away, like retirement, but the sooner you start the better. Learn how you can create a plan to help achieve your goals.
  • Noon/3 p.m. Tuesday, May 12: Personal finances – Discover how to organize and manage your personal finances, including key topics like budgeting, emergency funds, debt management and investing basics.
  • Noon/3 p.m. Thursday, May 28: Retirement goals under 40 – Think about your future. Some things may seem far away, like retirement, but the sooner you start the better. Learn how you can create a plan to help achieve your goals.

KPERS 457 is offering several webinar learning opportunities in May. The next session is on “Nearing Retirement – Are you ready but your finances are not?” at noon, Tuesday, May 5.

Topics covered:

  • KPERS 457 steps to consider before retirement
  • Income replacement and income needs in retirement
  • How to continue KPERS 457 benefits in retirement

Periodically, information will be posted regarding Watermark’s Course Evaluations & Surveys (CES) tool to help users better understand Wichita State’s course evaluation tool.

Today’s focus is on results.

  • Results will only be available at the end of the completed semester. It does not matter when your course took place during the semester. Holding results until the end of the semester complies with KBOR policy and allows for accurate norming.
  • Results will become available the Friday after grades are due to the Registrar’s Office.
  • The electronic results can be found through the Instructor Dashboard under Project Results.
  • There are restrictions on results. If the response rate is 0% or if the number of respondents is lower than four, then there will be no results. This restriction includes both statistics and comments.
  • Results will include the mean, standard deviation and median for the course. Reports will also show these statistics by university and division benchmarks. This benchmark data will be from the same semester as the evaluation and will not include any other data.
  • The report option called “Results Home” incorporates all the report options under one roof. It also provides a quick glance at the results without creating a report. 
  • Also included is a table of the “Mean of Means” by course and instructor questions. 
  • There is a dedicated CES website that includes additional information.

For questions, contact Sandra Ranney at evaluations@ces.wichita.edu.

Tuition Assistance application for the next academic year (2026-27) will be available May 1. The priority deadline for fall 2026 applications is July 1. The final deadline for fall 2026 applications is Aug. 4. Applications are submitted through the online application form.

Applications for multiple semesters within the same academic year can be submitted with one application, however assistance is awarded per semester based on eligibility and availability of funding. Due to the volume of applications received each semester, requests to submit late applications will be automatically denied without exception.

Full program details can be found at wichita.edu/tuitionassistance. Questions may be directed to tuitionassistance@wichita.edu.

Informational flyer shows decorative image of computer servers. Text reads: BeoShock has grown! WSU now has NVIDIA H200 GPU systems

Wichita State has expanded its high‑performance computing capabilities with the addition of NVIDIA H200 GPU systems to the BeoShock High‑Performance Computing (HPC) environment. The addition of NVIDIA H200 GPUs represents a significant investment in WSU’s research computing infrastructure. These state‑of‑the‑art accelerators are now available to support advanced research, scholarly computing and emerging workloads across disciplines.

The NVIDIA H200 GPU is designed for performance‑intensive applications such as large‑scale simulation, artificial intelligence and machine learning, data analytics and accelerated scientific computing. BeoShock HPC users are encouraged to take advantage of these new capabilities and explore how GPU‑accelerated computing can advance their research goals.

Learn more about the H200 platform available from NVIDIA.

Accessing BeoShock HPC:

BeoShock HPC can be accessed through Open OnDemand, a web‑based graphical interface that provides an intuitive pathway to compute resources without requiring command‑line expertise. Users can launch jobs, manage files and monitor workloads directly through a browser.

Documentation and usage instructions are available in the BeoShock HPC users guide.

All eligible faculty, staff and students are encouraged to explore how these new GPU resources can enhance their research productivity and enable new computational approaches.

Requesting access to H200 GPU resources:

Due to export compliance requirements, all users requesting access to the H200 GPUs must complete the “Export Compliance Computing – Access Request” using Wichita State’s TeamDynamix system. The request form and supporting documentation can be found at:

As part of this process, an automated approval request will be routed to the requester’s supervisor (department chair, division director or unit manager).

Important requirements and policies:

Users should note the following requirements before requesting H200 GPU access:

  • An active BeoShock HPC account is required
    Users who do not yet have an account may submit a BeoShock HPC user access request
  • The BeoShock HPC User Access Policy should be reviewed to ensure the system is an appropriate fit for the intended research or scholarly activity
  • Supervisor approval is required before access to the H200 GPU resources can be granted
  • All requests and approvals are handled through wichita.teamdynamix.com
  • Approval emails include a direct link to the approve/deny form, where supervisors may provide comments
  • If required export compliance training has not yet been completed, Export Compliance will contact the requester directly with instructions

Once all approvals and any required training are completed, users will be notified via email when their H200 GPU access on BeoShock has been enabled.

 

 

Take a free anonymous mental health screening. wichita.edu/freescreen

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. HOPE Service encourages you check in with yourself and access resources using the free, anonymous mental health screening tool at wichita.edu/freescreen.

Periodically, information will be posted regarding Watermark’s Course Evaluations & Surveys (CES) tool to help users better understand Wichita State’s course evaluation tool.

Today’s focus is on response rate.

  • A response rate widget will appear on the instructor’s dashboard when the semester’s project starts. However, data for a course may not appear until that course evaluation is available to the students.
  • In the list below, there are some suggestions to potentially increase response rates and receive useful and constructive feedback.
    • Designate time in class for students to complete evaluations.
    • Add a blurb about course evaluations in the syllabus.
    • Let students know that you value their honest and constructive feedback and tell them how you use their feedback.
    • When evaluations open for the course, remind students that they are available.
    • Remind students that evaluations are completely anonymous, and results are not available until after grades are turned in to the Registrar’s office.
    • It is best to complete the evaluations sooner in the evaluation period rather than later. Blackboard will be affected if the student has not taken some action regarding the evaluation towards the end of the administration period.
  • There is a dedicated CES website that includes additional information.

For questions, contact Sandra Ranney at evaluations@ces.wichita.edu.

The Faculty Research Collaborative, Featuring presentations by three 2025 FARE Mutual Mentoring Grant awardees, April 29, 2026, 2-3 PM, 262 RSC, Herrman Room. Sponsored by the Office of Faculty Advancement, Retention, and Excellence. The event will be followed by a presentation on book publishing by the University Press of Kansas, 3-4 pm

The monthly Faculty Research Collaborative will be from 2 to 3 p.m. Wednesday, April 29 in 262 Rhatigan Student Center, Herrman Room. The event will feature short presentations by three teams awarded 2025 Mutual Mentoring Grants from the Office of Faculty Advancement, Retention, and Excellence, followed by free time to connect among colleagues. Drinks and snacks are provided by FARE.

The Faculty Research Collaborative is a research-oriented faculty club that creates space for faculty to share brief presentations on research projects in their early stages as a way to recruit collaborators or solicit feedback in a low-stakes, collegial environment. This year has been spearheaded by faculty members Susan Castro, Nils Hakansson, Irma Püskarević and Twyla Hill.

The Research Collaborative on April 29 will be immediately followed by a presentation by the University Press of Kansas from 3 to 4 p.m. on how to go from an idea to a published book or edited volume. That event is open to all members of the WSU community.

Contact fare@wichita.edu with questions about either event.

Leo Wetta, investment adviser representative with Voya Financial, will be available for in-person meetings at Wichita State Wednesday, April 22. Faculty and staff can get one-on-one advising and review their Voya Financial accounts as part of their KBOR retirement plan, or new employees can receive assistance in enrolling in their KBOR plan.

There is a weekly Thursday option to meet if all meeting times on April 22 are taken. You can select a time and a place of your choosing for the meeting.

If you are interested in meeting with Leo, you can schedule a time to meet and select the “Wichita State University – Rhatigan Student Center Room 313 (Prairie Room)” location. Time slots are limited, so reserve a time soon. For questions, you can call Voya Financial Advisors at 316-686-2428.