April 19, 2021

As a reminder, each Vice President for Student Affairs candidate will present their ideas on the top issues facing the future of student affairs as well as share their thoughts on ways to address these issues at Michigan Tech. The campus community is invited to participate in each candidate’s public presentation via Zoom, which will be approximately 30 minutes followed by a 15-minute question and answer session. Each session will also be recorded and posted to this webpage for later viewing.   The public presentations scheduled for today and Wednesday include:  

Monday, April 19: Dr. Matthew Aschenbrener   

• 1:00 pm: Zoom Student Webinar 
• 2:45 pm: Zoom Faculty/Staff Webinar 

Wednesday, April 21: Dr. Amanda Hobson     

• 1:00 pm: Zoom Student Webinar 
• 2:45 pm: Zoom Faculty/Staff Webinar 

Candidate feedback forms are also available online along with links to their recorded presentations.  

We are looking for volunteers to take part in a study exploring how people may interact with future Augmented Reality (AR) interfaces. During the study, you will record videos of yourself tapping on a printed keyboard. The study takes approximately one hour, and you will be paid $15 for your time. You will complete the study at your home.

To participate you must meet the following requirements:

• You must have access to an Android mobile phone
• You must have access to a printer
• You must be a fluent speaker of English
• You must be 18 years of age or older
• You must live in the United States

If you would like to take part, please contact rhabibi@mtu.edu

Please join us at 2 p.m. on Wednesday (April 21) for our continuing interactive webinar series exploring the many features of the Safety Skills Training Platform Learning Management System. Each webinar is designed to be a stand alone topic, combining slide presentations and “live” demonstrations utilizing the Safety Skills system.

The webinars are geared for Safety Skills Training administrators, but anyone is welcome to participate.

This session will cover How to Train Your Students/Volunteers using the Safety Skills Platform and will be led by Safety Specialist, Chris Maxson. There will be opportunities to ask questions, both in real-time and after the topic presentation.

The webinar will be recorded, so don’t worry if you can’t make it. Previously recorded webinars can be found on the Michigan Tech EHS webpage.

To join this week’s webinar:

• When: 2 p.m. on Wednesday, April 21
• How to Join: Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android
• Telephone: US: +1 312 626 6799 or +1 301 715 8592 Meeting ID: 882 3537 0460

In the meantime, please feel free to email ehs-help@mtu.edu with any questions or roadblocks you may encounter.

The 23 members of the Michigan Tech RedTeam achieved a historic breakthrough in the Spring 2021 National Cyber League (NCL) competition.

The primary team finished the capture-the-flag (CTF) team competition 3rd Place in the overall ranking, and tied for 1st Place in total score. More than 900 teams from across the country participated in the CTF.

Students on the primary team are: Trevor Hornsby, Dakoda Patterson, Stu Kernstock, Matthew Chau, Ryan Klemm, Shane Hoppe and Joshua Stiebel.

Further, of the 4,180 individual players competing in this spring’s NCL, four RedTeam players ranked in the Top 100:

• Trevor Hornsby (50th)
• Dakoda Patterson (59th)
• Stu Kernstock (75th)
• Matthew Chau (100th)

“Amazing achievements,” said Bo Chen (CS). “We are proud of you guys!” Chen, along with Yu Cai (AC), are advisors to the student organization. Read the blog post.

We are excited to officially introduce the Husky Exchange Program. This program will set up drop-off sites at accessible locations in all residence halls to collect reusable but unwanted items from residents as they move out in the spring.

We will then sort the items and donate them to local organizations or resell/give them back to students in the fall. This is a great way for us to reduce waste on campus, and pay it forward to our students and community members.

All funds from the fall sale will go towards student-led sustainability initiatives. The program will run from Thursday (April 22) through Wednesday, April 28.

We will be collecting pool noodles, non-perishable food items, box fans, lamps and lights, laundered sheets, clothing, and small, clean, appliances. We are still in need of volunteers to make this work.

Please consider volunteering for one or more shifts on this form by Wednesday (April 21). We will reach out to all volunteers with more details about the shifts before the start of the program. If you have any questions, please email sustainability@mtu.edu.

A big thanks to the students, staff, and the Tech Forward Initiative on Sustainability and Resilience that made this inaugural round of the Husky Exchange possible.

Michigan Tech is excited to announce the National Prescription Drug Take Back Day scheduled from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday (April 24).

This is an opportunity to properly dispose of expired and unused prescription drug medication.

Michigan Tech Public Safety and Police Services is a registered drop-off/collection site and is located at 206 MacInnes Drive.

As a reminder, this prescription drug medication disposal is for pills only (no liquids please). Questions? Contact wmborosk@mtu.edu

Parenting All Rainbow Kids (PARK) is a faculty/staff-led group for the parents/guardians of LGBTQIA* youth. PARK aims to offer group members a confidential, supportive community where we can learn and grow as parents/guardians together.

Community members are welcome. During the spring semester meetings will be held at 10 a.m. on the third Tuesday of each month. Our next meeting is at 10 a.m. tomorrow (April 20) via Zoom. Everyone is welcome.

For questions or concerns, contact Michelle Jarvie-Eggart, Amber Kemppainen, or Amy Howard.

Mechanical Engineering MS student Brad Baas will present his defense at 11 a.m. today in R.L. Smith Building (MEEM) 1021.

The title of the presentation is "Investigation of a Machine-Plant Interface for Extracting Rooted Invasive Aquatic Plants." Co-advisors are Paul Van Susante (ME-EM) and Guy Meadows Location (GLRC).

The Department of Engineering Fundamentals is conducting a faculty search.

The fourth candidate is Michelle Jarvie-Eggart who will present an active and collaborative first-year engineering lesson at noon Wednesday (April 21) via Zoom.

The College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science will have a seminar at 12:30 p.m. Thursday (April 22) via Zoom. Our seminar speaker is Justin Kunkle, assistant director of undergraduate studies and academic advisor in the Department of Forestry at Michigan State University.

Kunkle has shown great success in increasing and improving diversity and inclusion in their undergraduate program. He recently received three substantial NIFA grants to help increase inclusion of minorities in their program. Kunkle will present a talk entitled "Seeding the Ground: Growing the Next Generation of Multicultural Forestry Professionals.”

Department of Physics PhD candidates, Jeff Kabel, advisor: Yoke Khin Yap and Oindabi Mukherjee, advisor: Robert Nemiroff, will present their research progress at this week's Physics Colloquium.

Titles and abstracts of the presentations can be viewed here. This virtual event will take place at 4 p.m. (EDT) Thursday (April 22)

Please join via Zoom. If you haven't registered for the weekly Physics Colloquium series in the past, please register in advance for this event:

The Department of Computer Science will present a lecture by Qun Li at 3 p.m. on Friday (April 23).

Li is a professor in the computer science department at William and Mary University. The title of his lecture is, “Byzantine Fault Tolerant Distributed Machine Learning.”

Join the virtual lecture here: 

Read the blog post here.

Fill Out the COVID-19 Symptom Tracking Form Before Coming to Campus

If you are working on campus while the University is at Health Safety Level Three, remember that no one is permitted to come to campus with symptoms consistent with COVID-19.

Employees are required to monitor their symptoms daily before coming to campus. The Daily Symptom Tracking Form is a short form that will help you determine if you have COVID-19 symptoms.

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Annual Steam Shutdown

The annual steam shutdown will take place during the week following Spring Commencement, Sunday, May 2 through Friday, May 7 (weather permitting). This outage is required to provide maintenance and service of the boilers and steam distribution system on campus. This planned maintenance improves the reliability of our system and reduces the likelihood of an unplanned failure during the winter heating season.

Note: There will not be heat or hot water in the affected buildings during the steam shutdown.

There will be no distilled water available from the steam-driven stills. Steam-driven autoclaves/sterilizers will not be operational.

Annual Steam Shutdown (from noon Sunday May 2 to noon Friday May 7)

Buildings Affected:

Society of Women Engineers Attend the

SWE-Wisconsin Spring Forward Professional Day

On April 10, Katy Pioch (Mechanical Engineering Junior), Sophie Stewart (Mechanical Engineering Junior), Aleah Hummel (Civil Engineering, Sophomore), Aerith Cruz (Management Information Systems, First-Year), and Gretchen Hein (SWE Advisor and MMET) attended the SWE-Wisconsion Spring Forward Professional Day virtually.

Pioch gave the introductory welcome address. Stewart and Cruz gave a presentation and workshop summarizing our outreach efforts where with support from a Society of Women Engineers (SWE) Program Development Grant, the College of Engineering and Civil and Environmental Engineering, the section has virtually met with over 500 local and regional youth.

During the Spring Forward Celebration, Hummel was awarded the Society of Women Engineers- Wisconsin Section Martha Maxwell Memorial Endowed Scholarship.

The goal of the scholarship program is “To honor Martha Maxwell's memory and continue fostering her excitement about engineering, math, and science for young girls and women.” At the event, Hummel was recognized for her work as the Evening With Industry chair and her internship where she worked on various construction projects. Scholarships are important for all students; here is what this one means to Alli: “I am very honored and grateful to be the recipient of the Martha Maxwell Memorial Endowed Scholarship. Being a part of SWE helps me grow academically and professionally. I am excited to continue my involvement in SWE as I progress throughout my academic and professional career.”

Hein notes that “Alli is a joy to have in class and is planning to continue her work with Evening with Industry in the fall. She is truly a person who exemplifies the goals of this scholarship”. Audra Morse, Chair of Civil and Environmental Engineering, stated that “The Civil and Environmental Engineering Department is proud of Alli's scholastic achievements and her involvement in SWE. Congratulations to Alli for receiving a SWE-WI scholarship!”

The SWE Section at Michigan Tech recognizes the contributions of our members who presented at the professional day, and members, like Alli, who are recognized for their academic and societal efforts. We thank everyone for their support of SWE at Michigan Tech.

Tim Colling (CEE/CTT) is the principal investigator on a project that has received a $212,289.83 other sponsored activities contract from the Michigan Department of Transportation. The project is entitled, "MIRE Unpaved Road Identification." Colin Brooks (MTRI/CTT) is a Co-PI on this potential 7.5-month project.

Nick Koszykowski (CEE/CTT) is the principal investigator on a project that has received a $107,379.78 other sponsored activities contract from the Michigan Department of Transportation.

The project is entitled, "MIRE Roadsoft Data Exchange."

Tim Colling (CEE/CTT) is the Co-PI on this potential 7.5-month project.

Lindsay Hiltunen, university Archivist, and Laurie Stark, manager of circulation services/staff development and Lean initiative coordinator, presented a roundtable session at the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) 2021 conference, entitled Leading with the Library: Diversity and Inclusion in Service.

The conference session challenged academic librarians and other participants to reframe customer service policies in the library to put equitable access and inclusive services at the front of the patron experience. The roundtable was modeled after the Van Pelt and Opie Library’s CARE Service Standards.

The national conference took place virtually last Tuesday through Friday (April 13-16).

To have your event automatically appear, please submit them to the University Events Calendar.

Master's Defense: Aadam Ismail Harnekar

Monday, April 19, 8–9 a.m.

Electrical Engineering Advisor: Bruce Mork Real Time Adaptive Relay Settings for Microgrid Protection Verified Using Hardware in Loop Attend Virtually:...

Master's Defense: Bradley Baas

Monday, April 19, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. | R. L. Smith Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics Building (MEEM), 1021

Mechanical Engineering Co-advisors: Paulus Van Susante and Guy Meadows Investigation of a Machine-Plant Interface for Extracting Rooted Invasive Aquatic Plants Attend...

Teal Ribbons

Monday, April 19, 12 p.m.–1 p.m. | Michigan Tech Campus

All month there will be Teal Ribbons on Trees. These ribbons symbolize solidarity with victims of sexual violence and are meant to create conversation on campus about how we...

Integrating Service-Learning into First-Year Engineering Courses: The EWB Design Challenge 

Monday, April 19, 3 p.m.

Amanda Singer, Environmental Engineering MS Student, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Michigan Tech Abstract: Service-learning has been shown to prepare...

Predicting the Impacts of Climate Change on the Great Lakes Water Levels Using a Fully Coupled 3D Regional Modeling System

Monday, April 19, 3 p.m.

Miraj Kayastha, Civil Engineering MS Student, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Michigan Tech Abstract: The Great Lakes of North America are the largest...

Preparing your Promotion Packet

Monday, April 19, 4 p.m.–6 p.m.

The Office of the Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs will host a session, Preparing your Promotion Packet. The first half of the session will focus on the...

UP and Moving - Strength Workout

Monday, April 19, 5:30 p.m.

Michigan Tech students in the Department of Kinesiology and Integrative Physiology are offering an "UP and Moving" initiative for campus and community members. UP and Moving...

Molti-Colored Migratory Birds

Monday, April 19, 6 p.m.

Husky Bites presents Special Guest Jared Wolfe Assistant Professor, College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science Michigan Technological University Co-host Erik...

SHPE General Body Meeting

Monday, April 19, 6 p.m.–7 p.m. | Online

Bi-weekly General Body Meeting

Adult Huskies Group Tennis Lessons Spring Session 3

Monday, April 19, 7 p.m.–8 p.m. | Gates Tennis Center

Adult Huskies Tennis Lessons are now being offered for ages 17 and up who are looking to learn more about the game of tennis! Each class will include technique and games to...

Diverse Dialogues: Doc & Talk: KIKI

Monday, April 19, 7 p.m.–9 p.m.

Doc & Talk: KIKI In New York City, LGBTQ youth-of-color gather out on the Christopher Street Pier, practicing a performance-based artform, Ballroom, which was made famous in...

Get Your Erg On! Spring Session 2

April 19, all day | John MacInnes Student Ice Arena, Blue Line Room

Get your Erg on! Join members of the MTU Rowing Club as they guide you through the basics of rowing technique and coach you through fun and challenging workout sessions — all...

Teal Ribbons for Sexual Assault Awareness Month

April 19, all day | Outdoors

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. During the Month of April there will be Teal Ribbons displayed throughout campus. Teal has become the signature color for sexual...