News
Book outlines how to move beyond reliance on student surveys to evaluate, improve college teaching
“Transforming College Teaching Evaluation,” a new book from scholars at the University of Kansas and colleague institutions, outlines a project that developed new ways to more fully evaluate the value of college teaching. The book details how three institutions developed a new, more robust method of evaluation that recognizes how to fully evaluate teaching and how schools can overcome resistance to implement the methods at their campuses.
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Thu, 10/09/2025
Words, worlds collide in the ‘The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee’ at KU Theatre
The University of Kansas’ William Inge Memorial Theatre will be transformed into a space for nervous, sweaty and sometimes ornery junior high spelling bee contestants in the University Theatre’s production of “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.” The production runs Oct. 24 to Nov. 2.
Thu, 10/09/2025
KU Libraries enable ‘once-in-a-generation’ expansion in digital access to primary sources
A new deal negotiated by KU Libraries with information services provider ProQuest has expanded digital offerings exponentially, providing instant access to immense opportunities for research, learning and discovery.
Wed, 10/08/2025
Four Jayhawks will compete for Rhodes and Marshall scholarships
Three KU alumnae and one senior have been endorsed for prestigious fellowships for study in the United Kingdom with the support of the university’s Center for Undergraduate Research & Fellowships.
Wed, 10/08/2025
KU engineering professor wins Blavatnik Award for Young Scientists
Elaina Sutley, associate professor of civil, environmental & architectural engineering and KU Engineering associate dean for impact & belonging, is the laureate of the 2025 Blavatnik National Award for Young Scientists in the Physical Sciences and Engineering category. She is KU’s first-ever laureate.
Wed, 10/08/2025
Get involved with KU Homecoming community service opportunities
The University of Kansas will host its 113th Homecoming from Oct. 27 to Nov. 2. This year, KU Alumni has organized service events aimed at assisting the university community and extending the Homecoming spirit of Jayhawk unity and goodwill beyond Lawrence. All community members are invited to participate.
Wed, 10/08/2025
Study examines ties between criminal charges and mental health among incarcerated youth
New research from the University of Kansas asks if mental health issues like depression and anxiety are associated with specific charges faced by juveniles incarcerated in the United States. Paula Fite's findings were reported recently in Children and Youth Services Review.
Wed, 10/08/2025
KU Law to host Central States Law Schools Association Scholarship Conference
The University of Kansas School of Law will welcome legal scholars from across the country for the annual meeting of the Central States Law Schools Association on Oct. 10-11.
Wed, 10/08/2025
KU to participate in Great ShakeOut Earthquake Drill on Oct. 16
KU students, faculty and staff are invited to practice earthquake response and be counted in the world’s largest earthquake drill. The event will take place at 10:40 a.m. Oct. 16.
Tue, 10/07/2025
Don’t look away: Study shows teenage girls who avoid potentially negative feedback prone to higher anxiety
To better understand anxiety, a psychologist from the University of Kansas studied 90 teenage girls in sessions spanning three years, using wearable eye-tracking glasses as the subjects gave a speech to two judges: one who responded positively and one who responded potentially negatively.
Tue, 10/07/2025
Untold story of AIDS in the Midwest ‘Heartland’ revealed in new book
A new book shares the untold story of AIDS in the Midwest heartland, where unlikely coalitions cultivated their own distinct strategies for survival that became a surprising and lasting blueprint for LGBTQ politics today.
Mon, 10/06/2025
KU awarded $1.5M teacher professional development grant from US Office of Indian Education
The University of Kansas Indigenous Studies Program, Office of Sovereign Partnerships & Indigenous Initiatives and School of Education & Human Sciences have partnered with Haskell Indian Nations University and Native Nations across Kansas, Nebraska and Oklahoma to build collaborative teacher training programs for Indian Country. Their new Southern Plains American Indian Teaching Pathways Project was awarded $1.5 million from the Office of Indian Education in the U.S. Department of Education.
Mon, 10/06/2025
KU program found effective in helping reduce stress among child welfare service providers
The Resilience Alliance, an intervention for child welfare service providers in Kansas, was found to help reduce the secondary traumatic stress associated with working amid stressful family environments, according to University of Kansas researchers. They believe the findings can lead to reduced burnout among the workforce and lead to better service outcomes for families.
Fri, 10/03/2025
Critical Materials Crossroads team advances as finalist for NSF award of up to $160M over a decade
University of Kansas researchers join the University of Missouri-Kansas City in a collaboration named one of 15 finalists for the National Science Foundation Regional Innovation Engines award.
Thu, 10/02/2025
KU School of Architecture & Design announces alumni award winners
The KU Architecture & Design Alumni Awards celebrate the wide-ranging influence Jayhawk design leaders have in Kansas and throughout the world. They represent achievement in disciplines from architecture and urban planning to design, data visualization and creative leadership.
Wed, 10/01/2025
KU achieves record-high enrollment for second straight year
KU’s overall enrollment has grown 1.3% — or 399 students — to 31,169, eclipsing the previous all-time mark of 30,770 set last year. This includes a 1.2% increase at the Lawrence and Edwards campuses (which are counted together) and a 1.9% increase at KU Medical Center.
Wed, 10/01/2025
Everything old is new again on latest Draper Family Band recording
A University of Kansas School of Music professor’s multigenerational band is back at it with a second album of original songs. Brandon Draper dusted off old material and wrote new works, as well, for for the Draper Family Band’s new album in a blues-rock vein.
Wed, 10/01/2025
Lawrence creatives among recipients of 2025 Rocket Grants for community-driven art projects
Charlotte Street and the Spencer Museum of Art at the University of Kansas have announced the 10 recipients of the 2025-2026 Rocket Grants awards, a re-granting program of The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts.
Wed, 10/01/2025
Dole Archives awards 2025 research fellowship and travel grants, launches new educational grant program
The 2025 award cycle from the Robert and Elizabeth Dole Archives and Special Collections featured a record number of awards distributed for research and travel grants as well as the launch of a new grant program designed to support faculty at KU.
Tue, 09/30/2025
KU Debate team finishes third at J.W. Patterson Debate Tournament
KU Debate reached the semifinals of the second major national tournament of the season, the J.W. Patterson Debates hosted by the University of Kentucky. Kentucky hosted 127 of the top teams in the country at Sept. 26-29 event, and seven teams from the University of Kansas competed.
Tue, 09/30/2025
KU lands grant to expand research including individuals with disabilities, creating new career pathways
The Kansas University Center on Disabilities has received a grant to help other universities adopt a model of research that includes individuals with disabilities as part of the entire research process. It will also create career pathways for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities to work in the research field.
Tue, 09/30/2025
University announces recipients of annual teaching awards
The University of Kansas has announced 17 faculty members from the Lawrence and KU Medical Center campuses as recipients of KU’s annual teaching awards. They will be honored at the University Teaching Awards ceremony at 7 p.m. Oct. 21 at the Jayhawk Welcome Center.
Tue, 09/30/2025
KU Natural History Museum’s VENOMventure wins Leading Edge Award at ASTC conference
VENOMventure, a bilingual STEM-themed experience developed by the University of Kansas Natural History Museum, was honored with a 2025 Roy L. Shafer Leading Edge Award at the Association of Science and Technology Centers (ASTC) conference in San Francisco.
Tue, 09/30/2025
KU research-trained employees fuel economy, meet critical workforce demands in Kansas and beyond, report shows
A recent report from the Institute for Research on Innovation & Science shows more than 7,000 KU research-funded employees leveraged their experience to build careers in all 50 states and the District of Columbia from 2011 to 2023 — and nearly 40% found employment in Kansas.
Mon, 09/29/2025
New book examines how ‘bookish’ language of Shakespeare’s England influenced today’s society
In a new book, Jonathan Lamb, professor of English at the University of Kansas, reveals how the broad lexicon of book-related words in the newly print-savvy era of Shakespeare’s England taught cultures how to think, contemplate and describe the world.
Mon, 09/29/2025
Law Review Symposium to discuss State Constitutions in Times of Federal Uncertainty
State constitutions are a powerful source of individual rights and are becoming increasingly important in American jurisprudence.
On Oct. 17, the Kansas Law Review’s 2025 Symposium will bring together leading academics and practitioners to explore the role of state constitutional litigation in advancing civil rights and liberties.
Fri, 09/26/2025
KU Kudos September 2025: Celebrating Jayhawk achievements
It’s time to celebrate Jayhawk colleagues’ achievements: KU News Service accepted submissions and combed websites, social media and newsletters for recent external honors and awards for current faculty and staff at the Lawrence, Edwards and Medical Center campuses and affiliates.
Fri, 09/26/2025
New guide helps educators build critical AI literacy
While much of the focus on artificial intelligence in education has been devoted to students’ perspective, two University of Kansas professors are finding ways for educators to interrogate, and perhaps integrate, this breakthrough technology into their curriculum. The new research appears in a special issue of Thresholds in Education.
Thu, 09/25/2025
Military aircraft to fly over Lawrence campus Friday, Saturday in advance of football game
Military aircraft will fly over the Lawrence campus Sept. 26 and 27 in advance of this weekend’s home football game between the University of Kansas and the University of Cincinnati.
Wed, 09/24/2025
Director brings urgency to production of ‘Silent Sky’
University of Kansas lecturer Michelle Miller enlisted a KU astrophysicist colleague to fire up the cast of “Silent Sky,” to be staged Oct. 3-5 at University Theatre. The play about pioneering woman astronomer Henrietta Swan Leavitt and overcoming sexism in the scientific workplace is still relevant today, according to Miller.
Wed, 09/24/2025
Study models how human behavior, lockdowns and restrictions shaped COVID’s spread
Folashade Agusto led research appearing in the peer-reviewed journal PLOS One that employs computer modeling and large datasets to better understand how COVID-19 was transmitted in one community in South Africa.