Featured news at KU


Our top featured stories

Student works keyboard in production TV studio.
Melissa Green-Blye of KU is principal investigator of two grant projects that will train students to boost Indigenous representation in news media. They will work to build partnerships with students at Haskell Indian Nations university to build journalism networks that move beyond "problem of the day" coverage of topics like mental health for young people.

Other featured news

Student works keyboard in production TV studio.

KU lands grant funding to boost Indigenous representation in news media using character-based approach

Melissa Green-Blye of KU is principal investigator of two grant projects that will train students to boost Indigenous representation in news media. They will work to build partnerships with students at Haskell Indian Nations university to build journalism networks that move beyond "problem of the day" coverage of topics like mental health for young people.
Laura Moriarty

New novel ‘Sunlight Finds You’ explores how a first love can affect one’s entire life

In a new novel, Laura Moriarty, a professor of English at the University of Kansas, crafts a coming-of-age tale set in 1950s Florida. It has been selected as a featured book for “The Today Show.” Moriarty will give talks at several events across Kansas this month.
Compact Muon Solenoid at Large Hadron Collider

With new Department of Energy award, KU-Fermilab team builds next-generation detectors for CERN’s Large Hadron Collider

A University of Kansas project to design and build two cutting-edge particle detectors for the Compact Muon Solenoid experiment at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider has been approved for funding through the U.S. Department of Energy’s Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, or DOE EPSCoR.
Historical image of Lawrence near the end of the 19th century shows family with pair of dogs outside worn shelter.

‘Unsettled Lawrence’ exhibit will reveal history of city’s unhoused, encamped population

In a new exhibition, a University of Kansas researcher focuses on how unhoused and encamped individuals in Lawrence’s past and present have formed a diverse community. “Unsettled Lawrence” opens Aug. 7 at the Watkins Museum of History.

Research



In a new novel, Laura Moriarty, a professor of English at the University of Kansas, crafts a coming-of-age tale set in 1950s Florida. It has been selected as a featured book for “The Today Show.” Moriarty will give talks at several events across Kansas this month.
A new study from the University of Kansas complicates the picture of primates living in North America some 55 million years ago during the Eocene. The research was published in the Journal of Human Evolution.
ALICE experiment at CERN's Large Hadron Collider
A University of Kansas physicist played a leading role in a CERN study showing that two rival explanations for how gluons behave inside atomic nuclei can now be experimentally distinguished.

Kansas Communities



With a new artificial intelligence chatbot tool developed at the University of Kansas, families can receive vetted information about autism that is specific to their needs in Kansas.
KU researchers are working to address declining literacy rates in Kansas schools, where just 1 out of 3 students are reaching grade-level proficiency. The goal through the state's Blueprint for Literacy initiative is to reach 90% proficiency for students across Kansas.
360th Basic Training Class
U.S. Rep. Ron Estes addressed the graduates of the Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center on July 31 as they completed their 14-week basic training course.

Economic Development



The National Academy of Inventors ranks the University of Kansas 39th among public universities for the number of utility patents granted in 2025, marking the fourth consecutive year the University of Kansas is listed among the United States’ top 100 institutions receiving patents.
Research and development expenditures spanning all University of Kansas campuses climbed to $610.6 million in fiscal year 2025, surpassing the previous record of $546.1 million by 12% and marking a full decade of sustained research growth.
Attendees chat in audience at professional development workshop.
The Center for Workplace Excellence supports career development in the Greater Kansas City area, helping businesses and nonprofit organizations strengthen workforce skills, improve organizational effectiveness and navigate today’s rapidly changing workplace environment.

Student experience and achievement



The names of more than 6,800 graduates at the University of Kansas for summer and fall 2025 and spring 2026 have been announced by the University Registrar. Many graduates and candidates for degree celebrated by participating in KU Commencement, which took place May 17.
The University of Kansas Alpha chapter of Phi Beta Kappa academic honor society has initiated 87 new members. Election to Phi Beta Kappa recognizes a student’s high academic achievement while pursuing a broad and substantive liberal-arts curriculum.
KU students Nate Tatpati, Jaden Huehl, Allison Monteleone and Bhavya Gupta sit on bench.
The University of Kansas Center for Service Learning has received external funding to support the continuation of the CSL’s Trailblazers Mini-Grant and Cohort Program. The 2025-2026 cohort included more than 25 student Trailblazers across 16 projects focused on sustainability, youth development, health and more.

Campus news



University of Kansas alumnus David Booth, founder of Dimensional Fund Advisors, will discuss his new book, “Stay Calm: Learn to Embrace Uncertainty in Investing and Life,” at an event Sept. 10 at KU. Booth will be joined by Coach Bill Self and former Jayhawk athlete Mario Chalmers for a panel discussion.
The KU School of Business will launch an online Professional Selling Microcredential in September, offering working professionals a fast, flexible pathway to build in-demand sales skills.
A diptych painting with the left square featuring a dark purple stripe over black textured paint and the right square resembling a waterfall of white and purple
The Spencer Museum of Art at the University of Kansas has selected the painting “Winter Flight” by Kay WalkingStick as the KU Common Work of Art for the 2026-2027 academic year. The painting complements themes from the KU Reads book, “Orbital” by Samantha Harvey.

Latest news

Milton Machuca-Gálvez and Miguel Ángel Castro Cano give a presentation in Watson Library's 455 Conference Room on Wednesday.

KU librarian races to save record of Ngäbe voices, one fragile page at a time

A University of Kansas Libraries project is preserving decades of Indigenous Panamanian history: KU librarian Milton Machuca-Gálvez and architecture graduate student Miguel Ángel Castro Cano have digitized 61 issues of Drü, a hand-assembled bulletin produced from 1988 to 1998 by Acción Cultural Ngäbe documenting the culture, land rights and politics of Panama's Ngäbe people.
A visitor examines large presentation boards displaying stadium design concepts, site plans, renderings and architectural diagrams as part of the Shaping the Future of Football exhibition at Keystone CoLAB. The boards feature student work exploring soccer stadium architecture, urban design, fan experience and sports venue development, with detailed drawings, aerial views and digital visualizations covering an exhibition wall.

Sporting KC co-founder Cliff Illig to headline panel at KU exhibition closing event

The University of Kansas School of Architecture & Design’s “Shaping the Future of Football” exhibition concludes Aug. 21 at Keystone CoLAB in Kansas City with the KC Sports Impact Panel. Featured speaker Cliff Illig will discuss Kansas City’s 2026 FIFA World Cup opportunity and the future of sports, entertainment and economic growth in the region.
Social media icons on phone

KU economics expert can discuss how misinformation in social networks may affect midterm election

Tarun Sabarwal, professor of economics at the University of Kansas, is available to discuss how misinformation contagions in social networks might affect the Nov. 3 midterm election. He was just awarded a patent for his algorithms that manage network contagion.
Student works keyboard in production TV studio.

KU lands grant funding to boost Indigenous representation in news media using character-based approach

Melissa Green-Blye of KU is principal investigator of two grant projects that will train students to boost Indigenous representation in news media. They will work to build partnerships with students at Haskell Indian Nations university to build journalism networks that move beyond "problem of the day" coverage of topics like mental health for young people.