MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2018 • VOL. 123, ISS. 6
THESUNFLOWER.COM
WICHITA STATE UNIVERSITY’S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1896.
NEWS IN BRIEF FACULTY SENATE MEETS TOMORROW
The Faculty Senate will meet from 3:305 p.m. Monday, Sept. 10 in 126 Clinton Hall.
DEAN FINALISTS NAMED FOR THE COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING DENNIS LIVESAY Dennis Livesay is currently the dean of the Graduate School and the associate vice president for Research and Technology at Wichita State University. Livesay will host a public forum at 3:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 10 in 107 Devlin Hall. HAMID HEFAZI Hamid Hefazi is a professor and head of the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the Florida Institute of Technology. Hefazi will host a public forum at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 13 in 107 Devlin Hall. JOHN WOOLSCHLAGER John Woolschlager is director of the Emergent Technologies Institute, Backe Chair Eminent Scholar Professor, and director of Engineering Graduate Programs at the Florida Gulf Coast University. Woolschlager will host a public forum at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 25 in 107 Devlin Hall. CHUCK BUNTING Chuck Bunting is the associate dean of research for the College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology at Oklahoma State University. Bunting will host a public forum at 3:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 1 in 107 Devlin Hall.
STUDY ABROAD FAIR COMING TO RSC
Students who have studied abroad will share their experiences at The Office of International Education’s informational fair from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 11 on the first floor of the Rhatigan Student Center. According to wichita.edu, all attendants will receive “a small prize” and will be entered to win one of two prize packages, which include items such as WSU gear, free tickets to Botanica Wichita Gardens, and a gift card to Chipotle Mexican Grill. All students in attendance will also be entered for a chance to win a $500 study abroad scholarship.
Police: ‘No evidence’ of shots fired Saturday morning on campus
BY ANDREW LINNABARY
Wichita State police found no evidence that a Saturday morning report of shots fired and multiple injuries on campus was true. Campus police received the reporting call around 1 a.m. Saturday morning, Sgt. Michael Turenne said. The caller said “it was near a stadium” and that there were multiple shots fired, in addition to multiple injuries, but gave little detail beyond that, Turenne said. The call immediately led to response from campus and Wichita Police Department officers. A large presence of officers could still be seen around campus in the early afternoon Saturday. Police searched all areas that fit the stadium description — Eck Stadium and other sporting event locations like Charles Koch Arena — in addition to a general search of most of campus, Turenne said. “We searched all of the areas where it could have possibly been, plus more, and we couldn’t find anything,” Turenne said. “We did not feel there was any credible threat to the campus community.” Officers on duty when the call was received said they didn’t hear any shots, Turenne said. Police aren’t sure if the call was a prank, or if the caller truly believed
THE SUNFLOWER FILE PHOTO
Former Provost Tony Vizzini is now a faculty member in the College of Engineering. No longer a university administrator, he earns more money than any other faculty in the college.
Vizzini will be paid as much as Mike Pence to teach engineering at WSU
F
BY MATTHEW KELLY
ormer Wichita State provost Tony Vizzini will be paid $243,288 this school year to teach aerospace engineering — making him the highest-paid faculty member in the College of Engineering. Vizzini will make $212 less than Vice President of the United States Mike Pence. The next-highest-paid aerospace engineering educator makes $153,407, and the department average, not counting Vizzini, is $92,584. Vizzini, who left his provost position in January “to focus on his professional goals,” was named a finalist for several chancellor and president positions at other universities last school year, and had been job hunting since at least spring of 2017. While on academic leave,
Vizzini continued to receive his $297,353 salary. “It’s been a while since he’s taught, but you look at his resume and it’s pretty amazing,” Joe Kleinsasser, director of news and media relations at WSU, told The Sunflower in June, before Vizzini’s salary had been set. “Just the fact that he was even considered for president positions at a couple schools says a lot.” Vizzini, an MIT graduate, has been at WSU since 2013. Prior to that, he spent four years as dean of the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Western Michigan University, five years as professor and department head of Aerospace Engineering at Mississippi State, and 17 years as an associate professor at the University of Maryland. “When you have someone in that situation who’s been a provost at a
pretty high salary and his background in academia being what it is in his field, with his level of experience, it wouldn’t surprise me if it’s a higher than average salary,” Kleinsasser said. Vizzini’s salary is fully funded from restricted use sources, meaning it does not come from tuition or the State General Fund. David Miller, WSU budget director, said program fees within the College of Engineering pay Vizzini’s salary. Restricted use sources either fully or partially fund seven other aerospace engineering positions for a total of $312,056. Program fees for the College of Engineering held steady at $50 in WSU’s Fiscal Year 2019 tuition and fees proposal, approved by the Kansas Board of Regents in June. Vizzini declined an interview with The Sunflower.
Record-high homicide rate, violent crimes addressed at community meeting BY TIFFANY TREJO AND JENNA FARHAT
In light of record-high homicide rates in Wichita this year, Wichita State’s Division of Diversity and Community Engagement partnered with a local nonprofit to host a meeting to address violence in the community. Wichita is clocking in at 38 homicides this year, already beating 2017’s tally of 35 and 32 in 2016. Around 150 people and more than a dozen Wichita Police Department officers attended the discussion, which took place Thursday at Iasis Christian Center, near 13th and Grove. Wichita police officers at the meeting reported that there have been 316 rapes, 399 robberies, and 1,674 aggravated assaults so far in 2018. Attendees were asked to discuss and share their answers to three questions: What are the boundaries of your community,
what type of crime are you noticing in your community, and what are some solutions? The WSU division partnered with CORE, a community empowerment nonprofit ran by Wichita City Council member Brandon Johnson and his wife, Danielle. Danielle Johnson is also assistant director of WSU’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion. She said discussions like Thursday’s are important for keeping WSU community members informed. “You hear some of the students talk about hearing gunshots in the community,” Danielle Johnson said. “There’s crimes going on all over the place but we tend to get more sensitive around our students.” Kevin Harrison, community engagement coordinator for the WSU Division of Diversity and Community Engagement, said it’s important for the university to be a part of solutions in the greater Wichita community. “There’s been 38 homicides in
JENNA FARHAT/THE SUNFLOWER
Iasis Christian Center, near 13th and Grove, was the site of a community meeting to address violence in light of a rise in homicides in Wichita over the last few years.
Wichita this year,” Harrison said. “It would be senseless for a university with all the resources that we have to just sit there and not at least try to be part of the solution.” Thursday’s meeting was the first of its kind. Harrison said the plan is to hold the meetings every three months — the next being in December. “Any time when we’re on pace to have record homicides, without a doubt it’s going to create a sense of urgency,” Harrison said. He said he thought the first
meeting was the first step towards a more concrete solution. “Today, I think, was the first step — building trust, getting people comfortable talking to each other,” Harrison said. Danielle Johnson encouraged members of the WSU community to attend future meetings. “If you’re a WSU student or you’re a part of WSU, come out and learn more. It’ll help dispel some of these rumors and these fears that we have,” Johnson said. “Crime isn’t just on the north side.”
INSIDE
BLUEGRASS ARCHIVES
BOHM DROPS BY
LOSING STREAK
This Chris Weitz film dramatizes Nazi capture without cheapening subject mater.
Check out a 1984 article about the annual Walnut Valley Festival, held this week.
Third-round MLB draft pick Alec Bohm practiced alongside former teammates.
Shocker volleyball drops their fourth game in a row.
OPINION • PAGE 2
CULTURE • PAGE 3
SPORTS• PAGE 4
SPORTS • PAGE 4
‘OPERATION FINALE’