News Releases

The Tami Tango Trio will lecture, perform and teach at Missouri Western State University on Monday, Oct. 3. All events are free and open to the public. The Tami Tango Trio is an internationally acclaimed Argentine music and dance ensemble. The trio of flute, guitar and piano is accompanied by a talented dance duo. Events include: History of tango lecture, 4 p.m., Hoff Conference Room, Blum Student Union room 218 Performance, 7 p.m., Kemper Recital Hall inside Spratt Hall Tango class, 9 p.m., Kemper Recital Hall inside Spratt Hall Missouri Western State University is a comprehensive regional university providing a blend of traditional[Read More]

The Filharmonic, an a cappella group featured on NBC’s “The Sing-Off” and the film “Pitch Perfect 2,” will perform at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 29 in the Potter Hall Theater at Missouri Western State University. The concert is free and open to the public. The Filharmonic made the semi-finals of “The Sing-Off” in 2013 and participated in the first “Sing-Off” national tour. The six Filipino-American vocalists have shared the stage with Linkin Park, Black Eyed Peas and Pentatonix. The Filharmonic is presented by the Western Activities Council at Missouri Western. Missouri Western State University is a comprehensive regional university providing a blend of[Read More]

“Shades of Blue: Contemporary Cyanotypes” will be exhibited at Missouri Western State University’s Potter Art Gallery from Sept. 23 to Oct. 24. There will be an opening reception at 5 p.m. Friday, Sept. 23 that is free and open to the public. “Shades of Blue” features national and international artists who work with the cyanotype photographic process. Featured artists include Isobel Davis, Nina Earley, Adam Finkelston, Hannah Skoonberg, Andy Julo, Tasha Lewis, Rochelle Martin, Anna Mavromatis, Heather Oelklas, Danielle Owensby, Veronica Siehl, Emmeline Solomon, Nicole White and Vanessa Wiggins. The Potter Art Gallery is open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through[Read More]

A Missouri Western State University student will be remembered through a scholarship established in her memory by Cabana Ice Cream in St. Joseph. The first Jordan Swearngin Memorial Scholarship has been awarded to Blair Griffin. Jordan Swearngin, a senior physical education major from Lee’s Summit, Missouri, passed away on Sept. 6, 2015 at the age of 22. During Missouri Western’s commencement ceremony in May, her parents Nick and Jennie Swearngin accepted a posthumous bachelor’s degree on her behalf. Jordan was a valued employee of Cabana. Owner Scott Burns created the scholarship in her memory to help other students pursue their goals with[Read More]

The MWSU Ambassadors will hold their first membership meeting of the school year on Thursday, Sept. 29 in the Spratt Memorial Stadium Hall of Fame Room. The social begins at 11:30 a.m., followed by lunch at noon. The lunch is open to anyone considering joining the MWSU Ambassadors. Cost is $10.50 and attendees may pay at the door. Reservations are required by Monday, Sept. 26. To make a reservation, call (816) 271-5646 or email holtz@missouriwestern.edu. Guest speaker is Ryan Menley from the Department of Athletics, who will talk about Missouri Western’s new video board and the renovated stadium. Tours of the stadium will be available following[Read More]

The fourth annual Hispanic Heritage Banquet at Missouri Western State University will feature poet Denice Frohman and the music of Trio Aztlan. The banquet at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 27 in Blum Student Union, rooms 222-223, is free and open to the public, but advance reservations are required by Thursday, Sept. 22. Call 816-271-4150 or email cme@missouriwestern.edu to make your reservation. Frohman is an award-winning poet, lyricist, and educator, whose work explores the intersections of race, gender, sexuality, and the “in-betweeness” that exists in us all. Born and raised in New York City, she is the 2013 Women of the World[Read More]

“Professional Journeys,” a workshop featuring cast members from the Performing Arts Association production of “Embraceable You: The Music of George Gershwin,” will be presented at 2 p.m. Friday, Sept. 23 in the Potter Hall Theater. The workshop is free and open to students and the public. Lisa Balkwill has performed on Broadway and her film credits include singing and dancing with Catherine Zeta Jones in the Oscar-winning film “Chicago.” Director Rob Marshall then cast her in his Broadway production of “Cabaret,” where she understudied Teri Hatcher as Sally Bowles. Other credits include Broadway’s “The Who’s Tommy” and “Beauty and the Beast,”[Read More]

Missouri Western State University has been notified by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) that the agency is conducting a proactive compliance review of Missouri Western’s athletic programs. The purpose of this review is to determine whether the university is in compliance with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in programs and activities receiving financial assistance from the federal government. OCR conducts periodic, proactive compliance reviews as part of its standard operating procedure. Missouri Western was selected for the review based on publicly available data; according to[Read More]

The 23rd R. Dan Boulware Convocation on Critical Issues featuring political commentator Cokie Roberts can now be viewed online at www.missouriwestern.edu/convocation/. It is also being broadcast on MWtv, channel 12 on Suddenlink in St. Joseph. The Sept. 13 presentation by Roberts, a commentator for ABC News and NPR, was titled “Insider’s View of the 2016 Presidential Election “It was always going to be a close race, because the country is deeply divided,” Roberts told an audience of more than 3,000 people. “There are very few people ‘in the middle’ or undecided enough to be swayed.” The Convocation will be broadcast on MWtv at[Read More]

Live multimedia performances that are a part of the Walter Cronkite Memorial at Missouri Western State University will travel to New York and Washington, D.C. for performances this month. The special engagements are in honor of the centennial of the legendary newsman’s birth in St. Joseph, Missouri, on Nov. 4, 1916. “And That’s the Way It Is,” a 90-minute trilogy, will be performed for invited guests, including members of Cronkite’s family, at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 23 at Lincoln Center’s Stanley Kaplan Penthouse in New York. “Cronkite,” a 25-minute show, will be performed at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 25 at the[Read More]

Missouri Western State University will hold its 20th annual Reading of Challenged and Banned Books at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 28 in the Hoff Conference Room, Blum Student Union, room 218. The event, in recognition of the American Library Association’s Banned Book Week, is free and open to the public. Missouri Western students and faculty will be joined by members of the community to read selections from books that have been either banned or challenged in U.S. schools in recent years. Refreshments will be served following the reading. The event is sponsored by the Department of English and Modern Languages, the Department[Read More]

For the second time in three years, an undergraduate synthetic biology research project at Missouri Western State University and Davidson College in North Carolina has received a grant of more than $1 million from the National Science Foundation. It is the largest research grant in Missouri Western’s history. “With our statewide mission of applied learning, we at Missouri Western pride ourselves on the opportunities that we provide undergraduate students to work with faculty members on significant research projects,” said Dr. Robert Vartabedian, Missouri Western’s president. “In most large universities, projects like this synthetic biology research would be reserved for graduate students.[Read More]

Nine faculty members in the Department of Art at Missouri Western State University will exhibit work at the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art, 2818 Frederick Ave., from Sept. 16 through Nov. 6. There will be an opening reception from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 16 at the museum. There is no charge to attend the reception. In addition to their work in classrooms and studios teaching Missouri Western students, art faculty members continue to be active working artists. Participating in the exhibit, “Nine: Missouri Western Art Faculty Exhibit,” are: Peter Britton Rebecca Foley David Harris Teresa Harris Eric Fuson Matt Hepworth [Read More]

In commemoration of the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Missouri Western State University will present a free live showing of the live multimedia performance “Cronkite” at 8 p.m. Monday, Sept. 12, in the Kemper Recital Hall inside Spratt Hall. The performance is open to the public. “Cronkite” is a one-man show adapted from an appearance by the legendary newsman Walter Cronkite on CNN’s “Larry King Live” in September 2002, one year after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. The 23-minute show incorporates live performance, audio, video and still photographs to evoke memories of 9/11 and other major events[Read More]

The Alumni Association at Missouri Western State University will honor eight individuals at the 34th annual Alumni Awards Banquet at 6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 14 in the Fulkerson Center. Award recipients include: Distinguished Alumni Award The Distinguished Alumni Award was created by the Alumni Association Board of Directors in 1983 to recognize alumni of the St. Joseph Junior College, Missouri Western Junior College, Missouri Western College, Missouri Western State College and Missouri Western State University who distinguish themselves professionally; are a service to their community, state or nation; have made humanitarian contributions to society in general or who possess qualities that elicit pride[Read More]

Step Afrika, a talented dance troupe that infuses modern stepping with traditional African dancing, will perform at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 14 in the Potter Hall Theater at Missouri Western State University. The performance is free and open to the public. Step Afrika provides an enriching education experience while providing an appreciation of the arts. Audience members will have the opportunity to learn about a different culture and to learn some of the steps themselves as part of the performance. Step Afrika’s appearance is part of CME Week at Missouri Western, and is sponsored by the Center for Multicultural Education, Student Government[Read More]

Comedy, carnival games, tailgating and more highlight Family Weekend activities at Missouri Western State University Friday and Saturday, Sept. 16 and 17. Events are free and open to the public. The weekend begins with a free show by comedian Jeff Scheen at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 16 in the Kemper Recital Hall, Spratt Hall room 101. Scheen has been featured in the Laughs TV show, was a finalist at the 2015 Laughing Skull Festival, is a regular at the Chicago Laugh Factory, Zanies and several independent comedian-run shows, and was showcased at the Cleveland Comedy Festival, Laugh Your Asheville Off in[Read More]

Missouri Western State University’s 23rd annual R. Dan Boulware Convocation on Critical Issues will be held at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 13 in the Looney Complex arena. The featured speaker is Cokie Roberts, renowned journalist and political analyst. Her topic is “Insider’s View of the 2016 Presidential Election.” The event is free and open to the public. The Convocation Luncheon will follow the event and will begin at noon in the Fulkerson Center. The cost is $40 per person, and advance payment is requested. Roberts will hold a question-and-answer session at the lunch. Reservations for the lunch are required. Please email[Read More]

At a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Aug. 30, Missouri Western State University celebrated the past and the future of the Thomas Eagleton Indoor Pool in the Looney Complex on campus. The pool has undergone approximately $600,000 in renovations this summer, including renovation of the entire pool shell interior and pool deck, the addition of a new storefront entryway and ticket office that will allow patrons to enter directly from the outside, renovation of the locker rooms and the addition of a family restroom and changing area, among other improvements. Discussions about the future of the swimming pool began in 2014, and at that[Read More]

The freshman class starting the fall semester at Missouri Western State University is almost four percent larger than the class from a year ago. “An increased freshman class is a very encouraging sign for our enrollment going forward,” said Dr. Paul Orscheln, associate vice president for enrollment management. “As has been the case in recent years, the incoming freshmen appear to be well prepared academically. We also are drawing from a wider area, with increases in the numbers of freshmen from Iowa, Illinois and St. Louis.” Preliminary enrollment data indicates a freshman class of about 900 students, a 3.9 percent increase over[Read More]