The Sunflower v. 130 i. 16 (Jan. 27, 2026)

Budget reduction now estimated at 7%

BY KASS LEWIS & KAMI STEINLE news@thesunflower.com & steinlekami@gmail.com

On Dec. 3, Wichita State University President Richard Muma announced a 3% reduction to WSU’s general use budget and said workforce reductions were “likely.” The budget reduction has since increased to 7%, about a $7.9 million reduction for the next fiscal year.

In a Jan. 20 announcement to WSU staff, Muma attributed the reduction to next year’s budget to lower funding expected from the state and a continued decline in international enrollment.

Provost Monica Lounsbery has confirmed that vacant faculty and staff positions will continue to be left empty in order to reduce workforce expenses.

The funds in the general use budget come from two sources: general fees, which are funded by student tuition, and the state general fund, allocated by the state legislature from tax revenues. The general use budget is distributed across the university.

The GU budget supports 65% of salaries and wages in Academic Affairs, according to Lyndsay Pletcher, executive director of budget.

We’re really looking at how we can create efficiencies through maybe consolidating some of our structures.”

MONICA

LOUNSBERY Provost of Academic Affairs “

“That requires a careful look over everything that we’re doing,” Lounsbery said. “We’re really looking at how we can create efficiencies through maybe consolidating some of our structures.”

to be thinking about our course offering.”

The Kansas Board of Regents decides how classes are defined, determining the difference between lectures and seminar classes.

Lounsbery said that there will likely be errors at the beginning about which courses will have fewer sections and miscommunications around the amount of students allowed to enroll in one class.

“We do not want to have an effort that impinges on academic excellence,” Lounsbery said. “I think it’s going to take some time to figure out, ‘What kind of class is this? What should the cap be?’ This is not a one and done.”

Lounsbery said that one of the major things the university is looking into is the number of students at WSU compared to the number of offered courses. The university is planning to cut courses that have less than 80% of their seats filled.

7%

“I’m not under the impression that we have a plethora of workforce here. We are really looking at things like vendor contracts,” Lounsbery said. “Around policies, around additional compensation … a major overhaul for Academic Affairs is really going

Lounsbery said that Academic Affairs, the largest division on campus that oversees the curriculum and faculty affairs, will attempt to minimize harm with the budget cuts.

The Office of Academic Affairs created a hiring review committee in fall 2025 to look at how essential faculty positions are and if there is enough need to replace them. The committee is made up of university employees from Human Resources, the Office of Finance and the Office of the Provost. The individuals on the committee do not receive any additional compensation for their seats.

“We’ve grown some parts of our budget, but it hasn’t kept pace with the cost of things,” Lounsbery said. “Taking inventory on time and really thinking about the stuff that we’re doing, that maybe we’ve always done and maybe we don’t

need to do some of these things anymore. And then thinking about how we can make room for new things instead of just adding a person.”

When the university announced the 3% reduction, seven College of Engineering employees had already been laid off. These positions have not been filled, partially due to decreased enrollment of international students in the College of Engineering.

International students pay a higher rate of tuition than students from the United States. International student enrollment

has a higher impact on budgets funded by tuition dollars because of this. There is a discounted rate for some international students called Global Select. Those in Global Select can pay 1.5 times more than the average in-state student. Other international students without the discount pay 2.5 times more than the average in-state student. Chief Financial Officer David Miller said about half the international students are discounted and half aren’t.

Men’s basketball

team

MUSCLES MEMPHIS

BY OWEN PROTHRO sports@thesunflower.com

Dug McDaniel hit the deck hard. Emmanuel Okorafor set a screen on him less than four minutes into the second half Saturday that made the ex-Kansas State point guard walk in a daze to the announcers’ table after picking himself up off the hardwood. Memphis coach Penny Hardaway took a timeout, and Wichita State led by 24.

Winning feels sweet. But winning against a team fans hate the most feels even sweeter.

It may not have been last year’s top 25 upset, but Wichita State dominated Memphis to the delight of 6,226 Shocker faithful inside Koch Arena for a satisfying 74-59 victory.

The Shockers are now one game back from first place in the American Conference standings and on a three-game win streak, improving to 13-8 overall and 5-3 against league opponents. It’s also the first time in the Paul Mills era that they’re two games above .500 in the conference. And for the second-consecutive game, WSU threw the first punch and didn’t look back.

“You’re not going to win the game in the first five minutes,” Mills said. “But the tone is going to set in the first five minutes.”

The blow against the Tigers (9-10, 4-3 American) looked like a 12-0 run that became a 21-point advantage with five minutes left in the half. During that time, it looked like the Shockers gassed Memphis. It showed. McDaniel and Quante Berry flung hands high and tilted their heads back after an unforced turnover with 7:33 to go. Sophomore Dillon Battie soared high for a one-handed dunk to ignite the crowd and force a Memphis timeout.

By the end of the half, the Shockers took a 40-22 lead.

“If we’re the most physical team, we’re going to come out with the dub,” said senior guard Kenyon Giles, who finished with a gamehigh 14 points and was one of four Shockers to eclipse double-digits.

The other WSU players who joined Giles with 10 or more points were senior Karon Boyd (14), sophomore Dillon Battie (13, season-high), and junior Will Berg (10). Sophomore Brian Amuneke scored nine off the bench on three 3-pointers, whose play didn’t go unnoticed by Mills.

“I thought those three threes in the first half kind of gave us a leg up,” Mills said of Amuneke. The Shockers went up by as many as 24 in the second half and continued to keep the foot on the gas. Memphis turned up its intensity, too, eventually clawing back to 11 points.

But every time it looked like the Tigers would force their way back into it, WSU responded with timely shots and trips to the foul line to keep them at bay.

When asked about the rivalry, players echoed that it doesn’t matter who you put in front of the Shockers. They’re not going to treat any team differently than the next.

“We don’t really hang our heads or get amped up over one team,” Boyd said. “We try to treat everybody the same. It doesn’t matter who is in front of us. We’re going to treat them like they’re the opposition.

“But we were excited to play together, getting the chance to go out here and show our talents and play as a team.”

Playing as a team, that’s what the Shockers are doing now. Outmuscling opponents, too.

For now, however, they’ll get a week off before heading to Tulsa to play the Golden Hurricane in the Donald W. Reynolds Center on Sunday at 1 p.m.

Sushi Do replaces FujiSan in the RSC

BY TALIYAH WINN editor@thesunflower.com

Sushi remains in the Rhatigan Student Center, but a new restaurant has taken over in place of FujiSan — Sushi Do.

Sushi Do will provide more options than FujiSan, but currently the menu offers sushi, poke bowls and rice bowls. Boba, ramen and udon will come Feb. 3.

Each year, Dining Services surveys students to receive feedback about restaurant offerings, which prompted the change to Sushi Do.

“We made the switch from FujiSan to Sushi Do based on students’ needs,” Senior Director of WSU Dining Services Jamie Kraisinger said. “The needs being vegan, vegetarian and the need for halal — based on religious needs.”

The spot that Sushi Do occupies rotates frequently based on feedback. FujiSan came to the RSC in fall 2024. Before that came Tu Taco in August 2023. But Kraisinger said that student feedback pushed Dining Services to offer sushi and later helped inform the change to Sushi Do.

“The feedback (the) prior year had been ‘We want sushi.’ ‘We want boba,’” Kraisinger said. “It was okay sushi, but we didn’t hit some of those marks. This company hits way more of those pieces.” Next to what the restaurant offers, pricing is the next big consideration for students.

“Aside from offerings, pricing is one of the next pieces,” Kraisinger said. “It’s always mentioned in the surveys, so when we look, we wanted to make sure it was very similar. And there is a wide variety of options, but price points were very, very similar, within pennies.”

Kraisinger said that her main priority is listening to student feedback on food options.

“We did the (Starship) robots and we’ve done remodels,” Kraisinger said. “… we really halted last semester and said, ‘Okay, enough of the new. Let’s go back to the basics and just listen to students and react quickly.’”

Sushi Do is open Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Delivery is available on the Starship app for a fee.

University Stadium receives multi-million dollar investment for renovations

BY KASS LEWIS news@thesunflower.com

The Wichita State Board of Trustees announced a $38 million investment in Phase 2 of the renovations on WSU’s University Stadium, formerly Cessna Stadium. The board voted unanimously to approve the investment.

Improvements to the stadium are mostly continuations of Phase 1B, according to a press release from WSU. Phase 2 of renovations will add a throwing area for track and field, a widened field to host soccer, a nine-lane track, sprint warmup lanes and a longer javelin runway.

Phase 1B is set to complete before the Kansas State Track and Field Championship meet on May 29-30, and Phase 2 will begin following the 2026 state meet.

The west stands will have “ample seating” available for the 2027 state meet, according to the release. Construction is scheduled for completion by the 2028 state meet.

Budgeting changes, new class requirements may come from the Kansas legislature

BY KASS LEWIS news@thesunflower.com

As the Kansas legislature begins its 90-day session — ending April 11 — it may make some changes to higher education in the state. From the budget process to class requirements, here’s how the legislature may affect Wichita State.

Kansas’ new legislative budget process

The current legislature is taking control of the state budget. In previous sessions, Kansas’ governor would submit a suggested budget for the upcoming fiscal year to the legislature, which would make additions and/or subtractions from various line items. This session, the legislature is taking over the budget creation process 100%. Laura Kelly won’t make a draft, but still has the power to veto certain line items, and she must sign for the budget to become official.

“The legislature’s final product is compared to the governor’s budget, and (the legislature gets) credited or blamed,” Gearhart said. “… so they wanted greater control and greater involvement in the appropriations process.”

This doesn’t necessarily mean the budget will change drastically, it just means its creation process looks different.

BUDGET / FROM PAGE 1

Lower international student enrollment is not only happening in the College of Engineering.

This fall, the university had an 11.7% decline in undergraduate international student enrollment and a 20.1% decline in graduate international student enrollment.

“(The layoffs) is a separate issue from the budget cuts that were announced by President Muma … but in some ways it’s connected as well,” Miller said in December.

Miller explained that the College of Engineering has seen declines in both enrollment and credit hours, which have taken hits to the college’s budget. He specifically pointed to lower

Changes to class requirements

The Kansas House of Representatives introduced Bill 2428 to the legislature on Jan. 12. The bill would require students at state-owned universities to take a “Constitutional Republic” course, and freshmen seminar or orientation courses to include information regarding freedom of speech rights.

Gearhart said that considering current general education requirements, the “Constitutional Republic” requirement — which would require students to take a class that covers topics surrounding America and its constitutional values — should already be fulfilled by the courses WSU students are required to take.

“I’m toying (with) if it helps us or hurts us to ask for a cleaner definition (of ‘Constitutional Republic’ courses) or if ignorance is bliss,” Gearhart said.

The bill has been sent to the House Committee on Education for discussion.

Reducing higher education spending

The former president of Emporia State University, Ken Hush, was hired by the Kansas GOP for $50,000 to find funds in higher education that could be reduced or eliminated.

“To be honest with you, we

enrollment in the computer science program and a decline in international students. The layoffs were part of “an effort to right-size that budget,” according to Miller.

Many public universities in Kansas are dealing with budget cuts for the coming fiscal year because of less state funding for higher education. WSU will receive about $7.9 million less than the previous year, which Miller said would “definitely” lead to increased tuition for the next academic year.

“Last year’s tuition rate increase was 3.5(%) … and I think we’d be looking at something that’s within that same type of range for next year,” Miller said.

Miller said that going forward it “comes down to being faithful to

were all kind of surprised,” Gearhart told The Sunflower about the appointment. “His mandate is to find efficiencies in higher education… I think what I’ve heard is he’s going to be tasked with seeing if what’s described as the ‘Emporia State model’ can apply to the other five universities.”

“I think they got more (state general funding) and fewer students, so yeah, that can be done,” Gearhart said at the

(b) In order for a course to satisfy the American institutions general education requirement, such course:

(1) Shall include:

(A) An understanding and appreciation of the basic principles of American constitutional democracy and how they are applied under a republican form of government, including:

(i) The constitution of the United States and major American constitutional debates and developments;

(ii) a limited federal government of enumerated powers;

(iii) a federal system that respects the dual sovereignty of the states;

(iv) the separation of powers;

(v) a network of checks and balances;

(vi) equal protection under the law;

(vii) freedom of speech; and

our mission.”

“The mission is ‘to be an essential educational, cultural and economic driver for Kansas,’” Miller said. “And so that often means that for the institution, we have to be thinking about not just today, but what does the institution look like 10 years from now?”

Miller said not every project is immediately liked, using the Rhatigan Student Center as an example.

“When the RSC was being remodeled and rebuilt, not all of campus was very supportive of that,” Miller said. “I mean, campus was kind of split on whether that should occur or not occur. And when I walked through that building today, I can’t imagine if that hadn’t been done.”

legislative update. “… That’s funny as hell as (far as) I’m concerned.”

While ESU received less State General Funding in FY2024, it received more money per student with $11,600 per student at ESU and $4,800 per student at WSU. Hush — House Speaker Daniel Hawkins’ fraternity brother — had a controversial presidency at ESU due to tenured faculty layoffs and a 12.5% decline in enrollment from fall 2022 to fall 2023.

(viii) landmark supreme court cases that have shaped law and society;

(B) significant use of the nation’s essential founding documents and other primary source materials, including significant use of, at a minimum, the constitution of the United States, the declaration of independence and the federalist papers, and how such documents have shaped the nature and functions of American institutions of self-governance; and

(C) a comparative discussion of the impacts of political ideologies of communism and totalitarianism that conflict with the principles of freedom and democracy that are essential to the founding principles of the United States

Definition pulled from Kansas House Bill 2428

Lounsbery said that the growth of projects like the innovation and biomedical campuses at WSU will benefit and grow campus resources to help fund other parts of the university. She said, “that is really important — thinking about what that return on investment looks like.”

“What I really want to focus on is the things that we do well and helping us to leverage those things to help us get out of this challenging budgetary moment,” Lounsbery said. “We don’t quite know the details of all the things we’re going to be doing to help our budget get aligned … I’m really thinking of our fiscal health. That will allow us the flexibility to do great things.”

Dillon Battie is mimicking his idols for Wichita State

BY OWEN PROTHRO sports@thesunflower.com

Dillon Battie’s path to collegiate basketball started in Dallas without a ball in his hand, but rather at his feet. The now-6-foot-9, high-flying sophomore forward on Wichita State’s men’s basketball team took more shots at nets on a grass pitch than on a hardwood court growing up. But as time passed, basketball became more attractive than soccer — fitting for someone whose father once made an NCAA Elite Eight at Temple and uncle was a fifthoverall NBA Draft pick.

On TV, LeBron James’ raw talent jumped out. Jimmy Butler’s control on attack became the acme. Battie no longer wanted to chase the upper 90 but rather chase down blocks and rattle rims like his idols.

“As I got older, I started watching LeBron. I loved his athleticism,” Battie said after scoring a season-high 13 points, dishing three assists, coaxing two steals and a block during the Shockers’ physical 74-59 win against Memphis on Saturday in Koch Arena.

“Then I started watching a little Jimmy Butler. I watched how he played off of two feet, and how he’s able to get to the basket.”

In a game that honors toughness, Battie channeled his inspirations to reap the rewards. He dove for loose balls and clambered for eight rebounds against a Tigers team that went down 22-8 early in the game and never got back within 11.

Battie helped keep a crowd of 6,226 stay warm and buzzing despite the freezing conditions beyond the Roundhouse’s walls.

After a challenge midway through the first half, coach Paul Mills drew up a play to exploit a zone look Memphis threw at them on a baseline out-of-bounds play. Unnoticed at the top of the 3-point arc, Battie slipped past three defenders and shook the rim on a pocket pass from guard Mike Gray Jr.

Two Tigers simultaneously threw their hands up in frustration while WSU fans threw up theirs to raise the roof.

“This was a play that we’ve had. We’ve had to remind him of it. … I’m glad it worked out for DB,” Mills said.

Later, as the shot clock wound down midway through the second half, Battie grabbed an offensive rebound and looked, of all things, to pass it. Gray subtly motioned for him to shoot, which was all the confidence he needed. Battie turned, fired and drilled a 3-pointer all in a second.

“I was like, ‘Oh, this is a good shot,’” Battie said when it ripped the net, 57-40.

But of all the highlights Battie made, the selfless passes impressed Mills the most. Multiple times he attacked his defender and drew another before gaining control off two feet — like that Butler guy — and finding an open man.

“For him to have three assists, it’s pretty impressive,” Mills said. “Because … Dillon’s not really willing to defer. You saw that with the first shot that he took when they were plugging him hard in the paint.”

That kind of maturity hasn’t gone unnoticed, especially from upperclassmen who have weathered multiple seasons.

“You love it, man. Seeing him (Battie) in the gym every day, putting in the time,” senior guard Kenyon Giles said. “Have a couple of bad practices, a couple of good ones, but always staying levelheaded. I’ve seen him put in the work all the time, so I always knew the work was going to show.”

With his teammates’ trust, a growing book of knowledge and the makeup to jump through the roof, Battie said his next evolution is developing a better perimeter game and fine-tuning the defensive end.

For now, playing to his strengths — attacking the paint, finishing at the rim, making tough plays — will keep him on the court. So will using the artistry of his icons.

SWEET, SWEET VICTORY

Wichita State flashes its best basketball against Memphis

BY OWEN PROTHRO sports@thesunflower.com

Wichita State was already amid a suffocating run when back-to-back dunks rattled the rafters at Koch Arena. Memphis needed a timeout badly.

Before the teams even huddled, WSU coach Paul Mills waved his arms up and down like he was about to take flight. He punched the air so hard he almost knocked the wind out of it.

The Shockers were well on their way to a 74-59 beatdown that extended their win streak to three games and jumped their record to 13-8 on the season and 5-3 in American Conference play.

Everyone in that moment — players, assistants, trainers, fans on their feet — was roaring. The Roundhouse was turned into the “Loudhouse.” Forward Dillon Battie, who saw Mills’ reaction, said after the game that it fuels everything when a coach gets that fired up.

“I actually didn’t see that,” guard Kenyon Giles said with a laugh. “When Coach Mills gets hyped, that means we’re doing a good job.”

For 40 minutes, the Shockers crashed the glass, dove for loose balls and set damning screens that left Tigers on the floor. They were a team firing on all cylinders, playing an unselfish and physical brand of basketball fans have grown to love over the years.

“The extra effort’s definitely important,” forward Karon Boyd said. “For one, it kills their momentum, and it gets us amped up. Everybody’s willing to do the little things, get gritty and get on the floor. It’s good to see everybody is willing to give it their all and put it out there.”

WSU was led by a balanced attack on offense that saw four players eclipse double-digit scoring and played stifling defense that only allowed 41% of Memphis’ shots to fall.

Shocker Sports Roundup: What you missed over the last week

BY EVAN TONG evantong3@gmail.com

Men’s tennis

Wichita State men’s tennis took a 5-2 victory against Omaha in Nebraska on Saturday. With the win, the Shockers now sit at 2-4 on the season after a rough five games to start.

UNO took the doubles point when a tiebreaker on the first court became the decider, as senior Alejandro Jacome and sophomore Ilias Worthington took a 6(5)-7(7) loss.

Freshman Pablo Roche Alcaya and sophomore Zaid Al Mashni were the only Shockers to take a doubles victory that afternoon, 7-5. Wichita State bounced back after the doubles matchups and only lost one matchup in singles. Roche Alcaya kept his momentum up with a decisive 6-2, 6-1 victory over UNO’s Pavan Uppu. Al Mashni took his matchup to the super tiebreaker, losing 6-3, 6(7)-7(9), 0(6)-1(10). It was Al Mashni’s first singles defeat of the spring season.

Wichita State will continue on to Abilene, Texas to take on Abilene Christian on Thursday.

Women’s tennis

Wichita State’s women’s tennis team lost both its Friday and Saturday matchups at the ITA Kickoff Weekend in Lubbock, Texas. No. 10-ranked Oklahoma State swept the Shockers, 4-0, in the semifinals, leaving four games unfinished in both the singles and doubles matchups.

Juniors Xin Tong Wang and Giorgia Roselli were up 5-4 in their doubles match before their match went unfinished as the Cowgirls won two courts. WSU sophomore Sati Aubakirova and senior Kristina Kudryavtseva took a 0-6 loss in their match.

The only way that we can move people is you have to play connected. You have to play inspired. You have to play intense.”

PAUL

MILLS Head men’s basketball coach “

The Shockers forced 17 turnovers and held the Tigers to under 10 points for 15 minutes of the first half. They went on a 22-4 run during that time to open a 21-point cushion, and never led by less than 11 points from then on. They dished out 17 assists on 30 buckets and picked apart Memphis’ defense with ease.

The 6,226 in attendance, who braved freezing temperatures and snow, were treated to a warming, dominant performance — one that serves as a statement for the rest of the league. If WSU can keep the same form when it travels to Tulsa Sunday, Feb. 1, a new season-high in attendance could be in store for the Shockers when they return home.

“It’s not other people’s job to move us. It’s our job to move them,” Mills said. “The only way that we can move people is you have to play connected. You have to play inspired. You have to play intense.”

When Giles saw the number of people arriving to the game, he knew the Shocker faithful had their backs.

“I was a little nervous about a pretty good team coming in here,” he said. “I would’ve loved to have the crowd, but I saw the snow and I was like, ‘I understand.’ But on the way here, I saw the fans walking in. I was like, ‘We got some real supportive fans.’ It was really exciting.”

And as rewarding as seeing the turnout in the crowd was, WSU seeing its own growth from

within felt just as satisfying. The start of the Shockers’ conference schedule had already been up-and-down with an 18-point blown lead to Charlotte and a narrow loss against Rice.

But a grind-it-out win against South Florida and back-to-back gut punches this week are proof that this team is starting to click at the right time. There’s never a moment to get complacent, however.

“We still have a long way to go, a lot of learning,” Giles said. “We’re stacking wins, but at the end of the day, this is a hard conference.”

He added: “Teams started scouting us, and we just have to keep figuring it out … keep getting better in all areas.”

Still, the Shockers’ motivation to do so is unwavering. Saturday was just the latest public display.

“We’re all just dedicated to the game,” Battie said. “People who are dedicated to the game, they come together. That’s what y’all are seeing right now.”

Wang and Roselli were also the only Shockers to win more than one game in the singles bracket. Wang went 0-6, 4-6 in her matchup while Roselli was the only Shockers to take a set — 3-6, 6-2 — before leaving the third set unfinished. The Shockers then took to the consolation side of the ITA Kickoff Weekend, losing out to Long Beach State, 4-3.

Kudryavtseva and Aubakirova avenged their Friday evening loss in a 7-5 victory on the doubles court. Senior Vichitraporn Vimuktananda and graduate student Anne Knuettel also took a 7-5 victory in doubles.

The Shockers were held just short as they could only muster up two wins on the singles bracket.

Wichita State will make a brief road trip to Iowa on Saturday at noon against Iowa State. Then they will travel eastward to play the University of Iowa for another noon matchup Sunday.

Track and field

Wichita State track and field took three first place finishes at the Prairie Wolf Invitational in Lincoln, Neb. hosted by Nebraska Wesleyan University on Friday.

Junior Chairo Ogbebor took first place in the men’s 200-meter race with a time of 22.03 seconds.

Fellow junior Josh Parrish took first in the 60-meter hurdle preliminaries with a time of 7.79 seconds, the only athlete with a time below eight seconds. Parrish did not make a finish in the 60-meter hurdle finals, however. At the Mark Colligan Memorial in Lincoln, Neb. on Saturday, Wichita State men’s track and field placed third out of four teams, while the women’s team placed fourth out of four.

Junior Josh Parrish set a new school record in the men’s 60-meter hurdle with a time of 7.70 seconds on his way to first place, beating Shannon Armstrong’s record time of 7.72 seconds set in 2004.

Jason Parrish, Josh’s twin brother, finished first in the men’s 400-meter race at 47.84 seconds.

Wichita State will host the Coach Wilson Invitational from Wednesday to Saturday on campus.

ARTS & CULTURE

CAMPUS SPRING WELCOME

Students and staff gathered for s’mores, hot chocolate and bumper cars outside Shocker Hall despite cold

Sushi Do lacks flavor compared to previous sushi option

BY MYA SCOTT & MALEAH EVANS opinion@thesunflower.com

& arts@thesunflower.com

Over winter break, Wichita State announced a variety of new restaurants that will be added to the roster of dining options for students. One of those is a replacement for the Rhatigan Student Center’s FujiSan — Sushi Do.

Sushi Do’s menu is very similar to its predecessor. They serve sushi, hence the name, along with a variety of other foods like poke bowls, gyoza and edamame. Next month, the establishment will also serve ramen, udon and boba.

As avid consumers of sushi and the like, we decided to try the new restaurant for lunch — anything to keep from going back to Chick-fil-A again.

Sushi We ordered the cream cheese roll, which has cream cheese, cucumber and imitation crab. It was $7.99, and we were able to use dining dollars for the purchase.

It was… okay. There was no problem downing three of the rolls, but they were nothing mind-blowing. The cucumber was nice and crunchy, but that was the best part. The rest was bland. Maybe it was our choice of roll — lacking avocado or real fish.

The prices were average, and the variety was nice, even offering platters of different types of sushi. It would be difficult to justify spending more

of the coveted dining dollars on something easily purchased from Dillon’s of the same, if not better quality.

Compared to the previous restaurant, the roll we got Sushi Do lacked sushi toppings, which may have contributed to the blandness. Most of the rolls at FujiSan had seasonings added on top, which bolstered the flavors that were present.

Hot items

We also ordered the chicken teriyaki bowl for $8.99 and the fried dumpling bowl for $10.99. The chicken teriyaki comes with chicken, rice, cucumber and your choice of teriyaki sauce, spicy mayo or a combination of both We got the combination of both for the chicken teriyaki bowl and the spicy mayo for

the dumpling bowl which is the same, with dumplings in place of the chicken.

The best part of the bowl was the sauce. It added flavor, and the heat from the spicy mayo added a nice kick to contrast with the cool cucumber. And the cucumber did taste good. The biggest gripe with the vegetable was the unevenness of the slices, making it hard to create a balanced bite.

But overall, the chicken was bland without the sauce to back it up, and the rice was just… well, rice. It would be nice if there were a fried rice option for those who don’t like white rice, or want a more flavorful choice.

The dumplings were pretty good, but like the chicken, lacked seasoning and needed the sauce to add the flavor.

Drinks

Sushi Do at the moment offers Ramune sodas and fountain drinks, but later plans to expand to include boba. At its opening, FujiSan offered boba, and so we are curious to see how the flavors of the two match up.

It was nothing special, but it was a filling meal for the price. Overall, we would return, but be prepared to ask for sauce.

If that’s for you, then you’re in luck. Compared to FujiSan it is lackluster, and wasn’t the greatest replacement option, but it’s here now and is an okay alternative if you’re still looking for sushi.

Experience heat and passion in ‘Fire of Love’ documentary

BY MYA SCOTT opinion@thesunflower.com

Things will be heating up in the geology building with the department’s upcoming documentary showing.

Geology professor Melissa Scrugg, who is a volcanologist herself, will lead the showing of the award-winning documentary, “Fire of Love” on Jan. 29 at 4:30 p.m. Directed by Sara Dosa and originally released in the summer of 2022, the film focuses on the true story of Maurice and Katia Krafft — a pair of volcanologists who traveled over the Earth’s globe together to explore their passion for explosive beauty and the danger of volcanos.

The couple died in an avalanche of volcanic ash on Mount Unzen, in Nagasaki, Japan, on June 3, 1991. The film tells the story of their relationship and careers through archival footage.

“Fire of Love” originally debuted at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival before National Geographic Documentary Films bought the distribution rights. It won Best Feature Documentary at the 95th Academy Awards in 2023.

There will be a Q&A after the showing with other volcanologists, who will share their understanding of volcanic activity, field research and more. They will also discuss the science behind some of the scenes in “Fire of Love.”

IT’S GETTING CHEESY

Wichita State to add another pizza place to campus roster

Pizza is everywhere.

Despite the food originating in Italy, America, in its colonizing fashion, has taken it and made it a staple of nearly every home. Everywhere you go, there’s a pizza place, or a frozen pizza section lurking around a corner.

Wichita State itself is responsible for the creation of one of the largest pizza chains.

But pizza, in the grand scheme of things, is not that good, especially when there’s an oversaturation of the dish on one college campus.

Pizza Shuttle is one of three new restaurants coming to campus, in Braeburn Square next to Jersey Mike’s. Pizza Shuttle, as you could guess from the name, will offer pizza. The restaurant’s Instagram says it will open Feb. 2.

Now, my problem isn’t that the campus has a new restaurant; in fact, I crave new places to eat. What is slightly annoying, however, is that it’s another place that makes pizza, making four total, all within one campus.

There was already Sungrano which can also be found in Social Tap, which is owned by the same people who are opening the Pizza Shuttle. It is also located in Braeburn Square and offers

wood-fired pizza, unlike Pizza Shuttle’s more college-kid-style pizza, which is quick to grab and cheaper to buy, which is appreciated.

And there’s Shocker Sports Grill and Lanes, most known to me for its horrendous pizzas of the month, but which also offers normal pizzas like the Wu-preme and pepperoni. And then for those with a dining plan, there’s the pizza station at the dining hall, which is nearly always in operation as long as the doors are open.

While some of them may offer different types of pizza, four places is still just too many. Maybe two, but four seems excessive for essentially just dough, cheese and sauce with miscellaneous toppings.

I will give the newest addition to the pizza family on campus this — its hours truly fit the motif of an average college student. With food being offered until midnight, it is perfect for late-night studying. But did it have to be pizza?

There are so many types of food, which I know this campus knows. We have Indian food, Korean corn dogs and sushi all available, so it’s not like we’re incapable of serving foods from different cultures. It’s like the notion of pizza parties from our high school days has yet to flee the minds of those in charge.

I would love campus to get an authentic Chinese food place,

because no, Panda Express does not count. Or a place where vegan and vegetarian students could eat full meals and not just sides of fries.

And if the fact that we have four pizza places wasn’t enough, not a single one of them is Pizza Hut. Remember how I mentioned Wichita State had a hand in creating a large pizza chain? Well, that was Pizza Hut.

It was one of the first things I learned about the campus during college hunting, the first being that Wu was just a giant shock of wheat.

Yet the only dedication we have to that historic moment is a museum that’s seemingly hidden from the rest of campus. Not a real hut in sight.

I honestly don’t want more pizza on campus, but if Wichita State were going to open another pizzeria, it would be nice for it to pay homage to our history, because no one out-pizzas the hut in the end.

It’s too late now for the campus to change. The sign is hung up and the opening day announced, but I highly encourage the people in charge of choosing our newest food spots to stop picking based on what they want. And even though Braeburn Square is privately owned, it still operates on campus and benefits from college kids’ money, and we deserve a say, too.

The problems with Public Speaking, how to make it better

Public speaking can be best described as “nobody’s favorite class.”

It’s not a class most students go to in order to make memories, and it’s not a class that typically changes people’s worldview.

Simply put, it’s a required course that most either procrastinate on taking or get out of the way as soon as they possibly can.

But why does public speaking have this reputation?

Anxiety about speaking in front of people is definitely a major factor, but I think there’s more to it than that.

Based on my personal experience in the class at Wichita State, it all comes down to a fundamental lack of novelty. Public speaking courses are not only scary but also incredibly boring.

First off, most of the course consists of obvious lessons about voice and posture that you’ve been taught your entire life. In my class specifically, it got to the point where my teacher would quickly go through or skip lessons because of how obvious they were.

The limited requirements for speech structure and sources also don’t help matters, as they lead to every speech in the class sounding the exact same.

It really is a shame, as public speaking has a lot of potential as a class. It’s a skill that can cross

Letter to the editor: Ghosts of Sunflower past

The Wichita State University Sunflower celebrates its 130th anniversary this month. Its first issue was published in 1896. While I am old, I was not actually there at its inception. In fact, like many Cowley County residents before me, I wrote for them back in the spring of 2003 when I was working on my master’s degree at Wichita State University.

For two years prior to that, I had written for the Southwestern College Collegian there in the basement of Christy Hall. I had returned to Wichita State for the first time since I had first been there as a student from 1998-1999. The ghosts from four years before were definitely there. Going down into the basement of Elliot Hall, I still remember the

smell of pizza. The reporters all thrived on it, apparently. I have read stories from other reporters and they mention the same thing about the pizza. After all of these years, I do not really remember any names of the other people that were there.

I actually got to interview Raymond Benson, who was then the current author of the James Bond novels. I would love to find my original article. Unfortunately, for Benson at that time, he was about to pen his last Bond novel as the Ian Fleming Foundation was about to chart a different course with someone else at the helm. Still, I remember being so nervous to talk to a guy whose James Bond continuation novels, even then, lined my shelves.

Still on a James Bond kick, I also interviewed record producer Lukas Kendall who was working at that time on the remastered, expanded James Bond soundtracks. Back in those days, I recall leaving campus late in the mornings to go to Barnes and Noble to pick up my copies of the expanded editions of such scores as You Only Live Twice, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, and Diamonds are Forever. I was so tickled to talk to a guy whose work culminated in the CDs I had just purchased.

The movie “Somewhere in Time” had just been released on DVD and one of the special features on the then-new DVD was about the International (Network of) Somewhere in Time Enthusiasts. I got to speak to Joe Addie, the

president and editor of the club and magazine. That was a lot of fun. I had only just recently seen “Somewhere in Time” for the first time in one of my film classes at Southwestern College. I did love it, though, I actually did try to interview Pierce Brosnan. I kid you not. This was a few months after “Die Another Day” came out in November of 2002. I was able to get a hold of Brosnan’s agent who was speaking on his car phone — probably from sunny California — who told me that Pierce was out of the country and was done doing domestic press. So, the timing was off.

I also did some work for KMUW around that same time when they were located on the south end

professions, after all; it doesn’t matter if you’re an educator, politician, or even a salesperson. Public speaking is undeniably important, and whether knowingly or not, it’s a skill that you’ve been cultivating throughout your entire life.

But instead of acknowledging these inherent skills and working with students in creative ways, public speaking classes seem content with regurgitating information about standing up straight and carrying your voice.

Of course, there are exceptions. No two public speaking classes are alike, and I’m sure there are plenty of great programs out there, but these are just some common criticisms that I’ve noted.

Overall, I just think it would be good if these issues with public speaking were addressed at the Elliott School specifically, as they set the curriculum.

A solid start would probably be if some of the speech restrictions were loosened, so students can actually play to their strengths instead of following a stiff rulebook. I think the classes could also benefit from teachers with more experience in the field of public speaking.

If those fixes are combined alongside the one-on-one coaching offered by our Public Speaking Lab, a lot would probably change for the better already.

Ultimately, whatever happens with public speaking, it needs to happen quickly, because I sure don’t see the course improving on its own anytime soon.

of campus. I remember getting reactions from people when the Columbia shuttle disaster happened. There was also a Wichita mayoral primary race I vaguely recall talking to some of the candidates for.

I was only there for a few months that spring, and I wish I could have gotten to stick around. Unfortunately, I needed to make more money. It would be 14 more years before I would be back in newspaper writing again; this time, in Wellington.

— Adam Catlin

Former Sunflower Staff and current editor of the Newkirk Herald Journal

SHOCKER SNOW DAY

Students

brave

the cold for sledding & Shocker basketball

UPCOMING EVENTS

‘THE BEGINNING IS THE END IS THE BEGINNING’ EXHIBITION

Tuesday, Jan. 27

8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

McKnight Art Center

View original works by Joshua James Knott in the Clayton Staples Gallery. Works include drawings, photographs, collages and more focusing on a variety of subjects.

SAC OPEN HOUSE

Tuesday, Jan. 27

4 - 6 p.m.

Rhatigan Student Center

Come learn about the Student Activities Council by playing games, eating free food and meeting new people. Stop by and get a sneak peak at upcoming events.

ULRICH DOCENTS POP-UP EXHIBITION

Tuesday, Jan. 27

All Day

Ulrich Museum of Art

View an exhibition curated by the Ulrich Museum’s docents, intended to educate and create curiosity. The museum is open Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

PAWS & RELAX

Wednesday, Jan. 28

10 a.m. - noon

Ablah Library

Relax and manage your early semester stress with therapy dogs from Love on a Leash. The event is hosted by the Office of Student Success and University Libraries.

SYLLABUS PARTY WITH SUCCESS COACHES

Wednesday, Jan. 28

10 a.m. - noon

Ablah Library

Get help kicking off the semester from the success coaches. Work on your time management, planning and how to turn syllabi into a clear plan for success.

WELCOMEFEST: SHRINKY DINKS TRINKET TABLE

Wednesday, Jan. 28

11 a.m. - noon

Rhatigan Student Center

Come to the Shrinky Dinks Trinket Table hosted by the Geology Department to make your own trinket and celebrate the start of the semester with Welcomefest.

COCOA AND CONNECT WITH TRIO STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES

Wednesday, Jan. 28

11 a.m. - 1 p.m.

Rhatigan Student Center

Stop by for a cup of hot chocolate and learn about how TRIO Student Support Services can help you succeed. Find out how to sign up and get the help you need.

MOVIES WITH SCIENTISTS: FIRE OF LOVE

Thursday, Jan. 29

4:30 - 6:30 p.m.

Geology Building

Come for a movie night special feature of the award winning documentary “Fire of Love,” followed by a Q&A led by Geology Professor Melissa Scruggs.

SAC BIG TRIVIA

Thursday, Jan. 29

7 - 9 p.m.

Ablah Library

Test your knowledge and show what you know across a variety of WSU based topics. Compete to win prizes at a bingo night hosted by the Student Activities Council.

LOTERÍA NIGHT

Friday, Jan. 30

6 - 7 p.m.

Rhatigan Student Center

Celebrate community, culture and friendly competition while winning prices and having fun. The event is hosted by the Office of Student Engagement and Belonging.

HAVE AN EVENT YOU WOULD LIKE LISTED?

CONTACT THE ARTS EDITOR: arts@thesunflower.com

CONTACT THE NEWS EDITOR: news@thesunflower.com