Case Study: Wichita State University advances innovation and applied learning with NetApp

Wichita State University advances innovation with applied learning

Wichita State University’s Innovation Campus has ramped up industry partnerships to meet growing demand for research, digital transformation and a workforce skilled in data‑intensive technologies. To close the gap between curriculum and industry—particularly in aerospace, defense, AI and cloud computing—the university needed reliable high‑performance storage, applied learning opportunities and closer collaboration with technology partners.

NetApp built a 168,000‑square‑foot on‑campus facility with a large data center for product development, testing and student employment, while WSU created an associate degree in cloud computing to align skills with industry needs. The partnership places more than 100 students in NetApp roles, supports 5,000+ applied‑learning participants (who earned $27M in 2021), and has strengthened research capabilities for digital twinning, AI simulations and DoD‑related projects—improving student outcomes and industry competitiveness.

Wichita State University

Tonya Witherspoon

Associate Vice President of Industry Engagement and Applied