SIU Today | SIU News

SIU Today - September 24, 2026

SIU researchers build robot, AI to detect soybean diseases before symptoms appear

Billy Ram, assistant professor of precision agriculture, and doctoral student Samuel Singh, are working to design a robot and program its artificial intelligence models to detect soybean diseases before symptoms appear.

Mandatory annual Ethics Act training begins Oct.1

Mandatory 2026 annual Ethics Act training for all SIU Carbondale faculty, staff, graduate assistants, undergraduate assistants, volunteers, student workers and extra help workers takes place Oct. 1-Nov 16 on the D2L platform. School of Medicine employees located on the Carbondale campus will complete training using HealthStream.

Noted musician, educator and alumnus Eric Frazier is on campus Sept. 30

Noted jazz musician, educator and SIU Carbondale alumnus Eric Frazier — the first graduate from the school’s then-Black American Studies program — returns to his alma mater to inspire current Salukis by sharing his own career journey. The discussion is from 4:30-6 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 30, in Morris Library’s John C. Guyon Auditorium.

Campus Cookout Appreciation is Oct. 5 

Let’s celebrate what we’ve accomplished together! In appreciation of the hard work across our university community that helped drive strong retention and enrollment increase this fall, all faculty, staff and students are invited to the traditional campus cookout. The cookout is from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday, Oct. 5, in Faner Plaza — rain or shine.

View this month’s The Saluki Watch Dawg  

The Department of Public Safety’s September 2026 issue of  The Saluki Watch Dawg is available. In this month’s edition, you can review procedures for attending Saluki football games, as well as crosswalk safety for bicyclists, pedestrians and motorists, learn the warning signs for suicide and alcohol poisoning and where to get help, sign up for the LiveSafe app, and gain protection from email scams. Previous issues of The Saluki Watch Dawg  are also available.

Mental health first aid training available

SIU Carbondale’s Wellness and Health Promotion Services is offering mental health first aid certification to SIU faculty and staff for free. The two in-person training courses are Friday, Oct. 2 and Tuesday, Nov. 24.

Gower Research Award Symposium is Sept. 25-26

SIU Carbondale’s Gower Research Award Symposium, Friday and Saturday, Sept. 25-26, celebrates the 20th anniversary of the Gower Fellows Program and showcases the research of the School of Chemical and Biomolecular Sciences.

Record 380 women participate in fifth annual Saluki Women’s Weekend

A record 380 women participated in the fifth annual Saluki Women’s Weekend, Sept. 10-12, the largest turnout in the event’s history. The event, “Cultivate. Connect. Lead.,” highlighted women in agriculture and brought together SIU alumnae, students, faculty, staff and community leaders for professional development, philanthropy, mentorship and networking.

Soccer, softball on the Saluki home sports schedule Saturday

The Saluki women’s soccer team hosts Murray State at 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 26, at the Lew Hartzog Track and Field Complex. The Saluki softball team hosts Parkland College in a doubleheader starting at noon on Saturday at Charlotte West Stadium.