2025 Wichita State Annual Report: Research and Scholarship

Wichita State advances research and scholarship by driving discovery, innovation, and real-world impact across disciplines, showcasing the work of faculty and students who expand knowledge and solve emerging challenges. The newly installed Scholars Walk highlights faculty excellence in research, creativity, and scholarly contributions across all academic colleges, reinforcing WSU’s role as a catalyst for advancing human understanding. Through statewide recognition from the Kansas Board of Regents, WSU researchers and educators are honored for impactful work in areas ranging from communication and public health to applied sciences, underscoring the university’s leadership in knowledge generation and innovation-driven teaching. Wichita State’s focus on applied research that addresses real-world problems — such as the development of a low cost geriatric simulation suit used to study empathy and improve training for future health professionals — demonstrates Wichita State’s commitment to tackling emerging societal needs through inventive, evidence-based solutions. Supported by strong growth in externally funded sponsored awards, robust research and development expenditures, industry collaborations through the Kansas Small Business Development Center, and graduate student stipends that fuel advanced inquiry, Wichita State continues to build an innovation ecosystem that accelerates discovery; strengthens the state’s knowledge economy by expanding research activity, developing skilled talent, and generating new ideas and technologies that drive economic growth; and advances research with meaningful local, national, and global impact.

• New Scholars Walk honors faculty excellence
• Four Wichita State faculty and staff honored as Kansas Board of Regents awardees
• Aging-simulation suit puts WSU physical therapy students into patients' shoes
• Wichita State leads the way in microcredential accountability
• New data literacy curriculum, developed as part of WSU professor's NSF grant, empowers high schoolers to think like scientists