Our college has long been dedicated to engaging with communities and giving students applied learning experiences outside of the classroom. But now, we’re putting even more effort and resources into that mission with a new faculty fellowship for applied learning and internship scholarships.
In addition, our student research and travel award programs and Interdisciplinary Research Grant program, which encourages rural community engagement, are still going strong. In 2025, we awarded 77 undergraduate research awards! (More on that below.)
Here are just a few examples of how we’re making a difference in Kansas and the world and students are getting valuable hands-on experiences that give them an edge in the job market.
Student-driven multimedia documentaries show food insecurity in Kansas
“The Table We Share” is a documentary about Emmaus House, a food pantry, soup kitchen, and unhoused shelter in Garden City, Kan. It was produced by a multidisciplinary team of undergraduate and graduate students and faculty members. They did fieldwork and on-location filming during spring break through the social transformation studies department’s Engaged Stories Lab.
The project builds on the earlier Hungry Heartland storytelling project, which presents Kansas food deserts through photo essays and video, including the documentary, “Empty Breadbasket: When the Land that Feeds the World Cannot Feed Itself,” which aired on Topeka public television’s KTWU in 2022.
“The Table We Share” will be submitted to some film festivals and the team will present about the project at the American Society for Environmental History’s 2026 meeting.
Other partners include the departments of art and sociology, anthropology and social work, A.Q. Miller School of Media and Communication, Chapman Center for Rural Studies, and Staley School of Leadership.
Psychological sciences department helps rural Kansas community meet all generations’ needs
Psychology faculty and students are helping Logan, Kan., evaluate whether its new multi-use, multigenerational community center, which integrates a long-term care facility with a preschool and elementary school, is meeting all its residents’ needs in a way that improves educational outcomes, enhances quality of life and is fiscally sustainable. Read more.
Chapman Center and partners install markers that tell Manhattan’s history on its Linear Trail 
Chapman Center for Rural Studies is collaborating with Manhattan Genealogical Society and Manhattan Public Library on the Walking Through History on the Linear Trail project to place historical markers along the 9.4-mile trail. The markers tell the story of Manhattan’s early days and include topics such as railroads, floods, Exodusters and more.
Science departments support Rocks and Rockets science fair in Colby
K-State’s chemistry, geology and physics departments provided interactive exhibits for the annual Rocks and Rockets community science fair in Colby, Kan., last summer. The event drew more than 500 visitors and 47 volunteers, including other schools and the Kansas Geological Survey, Kansas Biological Survey and National Weather Service. And it was all coordinated by K-State geology alum Sarah Lamm, now a Ph.D. candidate at University of Kansas.
Modern Languages students offer bilingual storytime at Manhattan Public Library
Modern languages faculty and students are partnering with Manhattan Public Library on a bilingual storytime series called ¡Cuenta cuentos!/Tell Tales!. Geared toward children ages 3-8, the storytime features award-winning Spanish and bilingual books, craft-making and free books for attendees. Read more.
Chapman Scholars gain skills during summer applied learning experiences
From language and art studies in Mexico and Italy to geochemistry and tallgrass sustainability research in Wyoming and Kansas, the 2024 Chapman Scholars gained valuable hands-on experience to prepare for their futures.
Through the Mark Chapman Scholars Program, Helen Winters, fisheries, wildlife, conservation and environmental biology; Brayden Shumaker, geology; Alexa Murray, fine art; and Maya Anchondo, advertising and public relations and Spanish, received $5,000 awards to pursue summer opportunities that supported their educational and career goals. Read more.
Students gain international experience and course credits through Spain Today and KSU in Japan and Italy programs
Spanish majors and minors from multiple K-State colleges gained valuable research experience and Spanish language immersion during the Spain Today summer program led by Spanish professor Rebecca Bender from May 18-June 18. Students took courses, did independent research projects and earned six credits. Read more.
The KSU in Japan program participants took courses in computer science and Japanese culture and language while visiting an array of companies, laboratories, cultural sites and historical monuments in Tokyo, Fukuoka, Nagasaki, Nara and Kyoto. The program was led by Japanese professor Miki Loschky from May 26-June 9. Read more.
A variety of KSU in Italy programs are also offered each year. In the Arts and Culture program planned for next summer, 2026, students will experience Italian culture while earning six credits in Orvieto, Italy! They will choose two out of six courses on Italian language, music, food and wine and even fungi, plus photography and storytelling and the biochemistry of wine and cheese fermentation! Financial aid is available. Application priority date is Nov. 20.
Ireland football game offers unique opportunities for communications and band students
While the K-State Football team and 11,000 of their fans were planning their trips to Ireland for the Aer Lingus College Football Classic on Aug. 23, so were the A.Q. Miller School of Media and Communication and the Pride of Wildcat Land Marching Band.
Media and communication students in the KSU in Ireland: Sports and Leadership program got unique lessons in intercultural storytelling and sports leadership as they delivered student-run Wildcat 91.9 FM’s first-ever international radio broadcast from Dublin. Read about their experience.
After experiencing travel delays, the exhausted but enthusiastic Pride gave the performance of a lifetime! They paraded the streets and pub-crawled like never before and put on a spectacular halftime show with Iowa State’s band! Read about their experience leading up to the game and what drum major Colby Johnston had to say about this once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Math department hosts empowering events for youth in Kansas and beyond
The mathematics department hosts multiple outreach events that empower elementary through high school students to explore math and its connection to STEM, art, music and other fields. Attendees venture outside the standard school curriculum and enjoy puzzles, games and other engaging activities with faculty members and students on campus and virtually. Read about it.
Science departments recognize high school teachers who inspire future scientists
Five teachers representing schools in Olathe, Riley, Garden Plain, Dodge City and Scott City were named Kansas High School Science Teachers of the Year by our biology, chemistry, geology and physics departments. They were nominated by former students who were inspired by them to pursue sciences. The teachers were presented cash prizes during an expenses-paid, VIP campus visit with a few of their students. Read more.
Art department’s national printmaking conference draws hundreds to Manhattan
The art department coordinated and hosted the Mid America Print Council’s 2024 conference and community expo, From the Ashes: Printmaking, Preservation, and Renewal, Oct. 2-6, 2024, attracting more than 500 visitors to Manhattan!
The conference was focused on sustainability and the environment and featured printmaking demonstrations, panels and exhibitions as well as free community events in Downtown Manhattan.
The conference received more than $40,000 in grants from the Kansas Arts Commission and Greater Manhattan Community Foundation to support the community events.
77 Arts and Sciences students earn paid research experiences
In 2025, our college awarded Undergraduate Research Awards to 44 students in the spring and 33 in summer and fall. Awardees are doing faculty-mentored research on such topics as cancer therapeutics, fish spawning influences, music’s impact on athlete performance, how individuals experience solitude, the use of dance to improve movement skills, the impact of nitric oxide on microbial competition, and the impact of supportive workplace relationships outside of work.
Johnson Cancer Research Center provides 21 student research awards
Twenty-one K-State students in a variety of majors received $2,000 Undergraduate Cancer Research Awards from the Johnson Cancer Research Center to gain hands-on, faculty-mentored experience in cancer research.
