K-State Current - September 22, 2021
K-State Current is a weekly news update for the Kansas Board of Regents to apprise the Regents on a few of the many successes and achievements made by K-State faculty, staff and students.
K-State News
Best of the best: K-State among top LGBTQ-friendly colleges and universities
Kansas State University is among the top 30 campuses in six regions selected for its institutional support and commitment to LGBTQ inclusion in policy, program and practice.
For the fifth consecutive year, Campus Pride lists Kansas State University as one of its Best of the Best LGBTQ-friendly colleges and universities. The university is the only school in Kansas to be included in the listing and is one of the more than 435 campuses that are part of the Campus Pride index.
"It is a tremendous honor for K-State to continue to be nationally recognized for being a university where our LGBTQ+ students can thrive as their authentic selves," said Thomas Lane, vice president for student life and dean of students. "Though this recognition is a result of many supportive faculty, staff, administrators, students and alumni, I am especially grateful for Dr. Brandon Haddock’s leadership of the LGBT Resource Center and the impactful efforts of our LGBTQ+ student leaders in helping our university be a more inclusive and affirming campus for all."
In addition to the ranking, the university earned the highest rating of five stars on the Campus Pride index because it meets LGBTQ-inclusive benchmarks regarding policy inclusion, support and institutional commitment, academic life, student life, housing and residence life, campus safety, counseling and health, and recruitment and retention efforts. Noted in the listing is the university's LGBT Resource Center, which promotes equity, respect and social justice through programs, outreach and education.
"It is always an honor to be recognized by peers and organizations as a leader in providing an open and affirming campus community. The students, faculty, staff and administration all contribute to the success of the LGBT Resource Center and the success of our LGBTQ students," said Brandon Haddock, LGBT Resource Center coordinator. "I especially want to recognize our Sexuality and Gender Alliance, Gender Collective, and oSTEM organizations as leaders of change for our campus."
Read more about K-State's LGBT Resource Center.
Kansas State University Aerospace and Technology Campus gets new fleet with help from donors
John and Kim Vanier, Salina, Kansas, have given funds to help K-State Aerospace and Technology Campus in Salina acquire new airplanes to update the fleet.
The Vaniers’ gift, combined with other funds, will enable the Aerospace and Technology Campus to purchase and maintain 15 new planes in the first phase of updating the 30-plane fleet. The fleet is a combination of single engine and multi-engine planes. A composite aircraft is also included in the new fleet, giving students the experience of flying a plane made of different materials than metal. The fleet will have planes from two manufacturers, so students can diversify their training experience, which better prepares them for future careers. The Vaniers’ gift also funds the renovation of the hangars.
John Vanier graduated from K-State in 1981 with a degree in agricultural economics. He developed his love of flying while in college under the tutelage of the chief pilot for his grandfather’s company, ADM Milling. As residents of Salina, John and Kim support K-State Salina because of their love for the community and appreciation for what the campus contributes to the Salina community.
“K-State is committed to having a state-of-the-art aviation program,” Vanier said. “Everywhere you turn, there’s a coming pilot shortage. If you’re going to train pilots for airlines, which is most of the students’ aspiration, you have to prepare them for it. When students visit to see if they want to enroll in our program, they need to see a good-looking hanger and aircraft that have state-of-the-art avionics. If we aren’t continually improving, we’re going to be left behind and I don’t want to see that happen.”
The updated fleet and improved facilities are a boon to the Aerospace and Technology Campus and to the future pilots trained there.
“The new, modern flight-training fleet provides the diversity of experience employers are looking for from students coming out of a collegiate aviation program,” said Alysia Starkey, dean and CEO of Kansas State University Aerospace and Technology Campus. “The gift of an updated fleet means we can provide a consistent student training experience across all aircraft in our flight training program. This enables us to train our pilots to be able to walk into whatever career is waiting for them prepared to work right away.”
As Kansas State University’s strategic partner for philanthropy, the KSU Foundation inspires and guides philanthropy toward university priorities to boldly advance K-State family. Visit www.ksufoundation.org for more information.
K-State Faculty Highlights
The Department of Diversity and Multicultural Student Affairs in the Division of Student Life announces Kevin Santos Flores has been hired as the director of diversity and multicultural student life. In this role, he will oversee the Morris Family Multicultural Student Center and help promote student engagement on our campus.
Flores has served as an assistant director at the Diversity and Cultural Engagement Center at Oregon State University Corvallis. In this universitywide role, he advised and collaborated with student organizations on cultural, educational and social programs. To meet the center's mission and goals, he worked closely with the Office of Admissions, the Educational Opportunities Program, and the Distinguished Scholars Initiative to help improve the recruitment, retention and graduation rates of first-generation, historically underrepresented, and/or low-income undergraduate students.
"I am excited to have a new member join DMSA, and particularly that Kevin is coming to K-State with previous experience leading various Cultural Centers," said Mirta Chavez, interim associate vice president for student life of diversity and multicultural student affairs and director of multicultural programs and services. "Now that we are back on campus, I am looking forward to Kevin implementing some creative engagement programs that were discussed during his interview with our student groups."
Flores also served as director and academic advisor to the Talent Search Trio at Humboldt State University in Arcata, California. In this role, he led and managed the administration, curriculum development and the delivery of services at 12 districtwide schools in Humboldt County.
Flores also has experienced the academic affairs side of the university. At Humboldt State, he taught Global Economics and Politics. The topics in the course included the theories of International Political Economy, the socioeconomic issues facing developing countries, trade and currency policies, and the international knowledge structures. Flores also taught International Relations, U.S.-Latin American Foreign Relations, and Middle Eastern Politics at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland.
He received his Bachelor of Arts in political science and Latin American studies from California State University, Fullerton and Master of Arts in international affairs from Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. Santos is fluent in Spanish, as well as also certified in Portuguese language from the Centro Universitário UNA Belo Horizonte, in Brasil.
Flores officially began his new role on Sept. 13.
Lei awarded NSF grant to develop all-optical fabrication of waveguides in silicon
Shuting Lei, Carl R. and Mary T. Ice industrial engineering professor in the Carl R. Ice College of Engineering at Kansas State University, has received a National Science Foundation grant to develop a direct laser writing method to produce 3D optical waveguides embedded inside silicon with low propagation loss.
Lei will lead K-State's portion of the nearly $500,000 three-year project, "Collaborative Research: All-Optical Fabrication of Low-Loss, High-Index Contrast, Silicon-in-Silicon Waveguides," alongside his colleague from the University of Central Florida, Xiaoming Yu. Funding was awarded through the NSF Division of Electrical Communications and Cyber Systems and will be split as two collaborative NSF grants, one for each institution.
Lei said while low-loss 3D waveguides have been demonstrated inside glass, the typical loss for waveguides written inside silicon so far is more than one order of magnitude higher. The project will face two main challenges in dealing with insufficient energy deposition and random material change inside silicon, which will be tackled through novel beam delivery and fundamental understanding of material response under intense laser irradiation.
"This project will generate fundamental knowledge on laser-matter interaction in bulk silicon, aiming at creating low-loss and 3D waveguides deep inside silicon," Lei said. "If successful, this direct laser writing method will simplify fabrication procedures for silicon photonic devices, increase communication bandwidth, facilitate device miniaturization and significantly enhance on-chip and chip-to-chip data processing capabilities."
K-State Student News
Landscape architecture student earns two Landscape Architecture Foundation scholarships
Ayana Belk, a fifth-year student in landscape architecture and regional & community planning in the College of Architecture, Planning & Design, was recognized with two scholarships from the Landscape Architecture Foundation, or LAF. Belk won the LAF Honor Scholarship for Inclusive Community Design and the first runner-up for the Daniel Zwier/Permaloc Innovation Scholarship.
A Kansas City, Missouri, native, Belk would like to work in the community where she grew up and intends to start a nonprofit organization that will provide space for youth to discover landscape architecture while improving the Troost Corridor, a dividing line of segregation and disinvestment in Kansas City, through participatory design. Her graduate research is focused on exploring the barriers Black landscape architecture students face, with the aim of offering universities and the profession recommendations for improving the Black experience and increasing the number of Black landscape architects.
"I want to use my Master of Landscape Architecture degree and my minor in community planning for the benefit of an underserved neighborhood close to my heart," Belk said. "I was drawn to landscape architecture because my neighborhood sits on the east side of Troost Avenue, which is the racial and economic dividing line in Kansas City, Missouri. The moment I realized the disparities between my neighborhood and neighborhoods west of Troost was intentional, I knew I wanted to do something about it. The neighborhoods west of Troost are safe, aesthetically pleasing, and have a higher level of education and income per household than the neighborhoods east of Troost. My neighborhood has very few trees, many vacant lots, and no parks."
"The design professions have struggled to build a population reflective of our nation's demographics," noted Stephanie Rolley, head of the landscape architecture and regional & community planning department. "As a profession that shapes the public realm and creates neighborhoods and communities, landscape architecture needs the voices, perspectives, and contributions of Black, Indigenous, People of Color. Ayana will play an important role in attracting BIPOC youth to the profession and empowering them to improve underserved neighborhoods. The LAF Scholarships provide well-deserved national recognition of her leadership and passion."
The LAF Honor Scholarship of $10,000 was awarded in support of Belk's vision for starting a nonprofit organization in Kansas City to provide a space for youth to discover landscape architecture and improve the Troost Corridor through participatory design. She hopes to increase minority representation in landscape architecture.
The Landscape Architecture Foundation Honor Scholarship was established in 2018 by Patrick Phillips, a visionary and leader in the responsible use, design and transformation of land to support thriving and inclusive communities worldwide. Originally trained as a landscape architect, Phillips served as the Global CEO of the Urban Land Institute from 2009 to 2018 and as president of its foundation. Phillips' career spans more than 30 years in the economic analysis of real estate and land use. He believes that landscape architects can play an important and distinctive role in the creation of cities and neighborhoods that are safe, healthful, economically productive and beautiful.
The Urban Studio and Daniel Zwier/Permaloc Innovation Scholarship awarded Belk a $2,000 scholarship as first runner-up. The scholarship helps students who would like to take the skills and knowledge obtained through a degree in landscape architecture and apply them to careers in areas such as product development, entrepreneurship, politics, nonprofit service and any other possibility an applicant can imagine. Daniel Zwier, CEO and founder of Permaloc Corporation, started down a nontraditional career path when in 1983 he recognized a need in the industry and designed and patented his first landscape edging product. Zwier started this scholarship to help the next generation of landscape architecture advocates, designers, makers, and thinkers succeed in whatever they choose to do.
