Alphabetized Staff Listing
Linda Baker
Executive Director, University Marketing and Communications
About Linda
- She has worked in higher education marketing for more than 25 years, with experience at a private liberal arts university, small medical school, rural community college and now a major research university.
- She is an award winning writer and editor and believes passionately in education in all its configurations.
- She empowers people to do their best, encourages them to question the status quo and believes a sense of humor is essential in the workplace.
Arlene Collins
Manager of Digital Assets and Publications
About Arlene
- She has worked for University Marketing and Communications for over 25 years.
- She prepares publications for the printer and coordinates specialized variable data mailings in conjunction with Mail Services.
Jennifer Donovan
Director of Public Relations
Her Beats
- Research Centers & Institutes (other than KRC)
- School of Forest Resources & Environmental Science
- Executive Team/Board of Control
- International Programs
About Jenn
- Her specialties include working with local, regional, national and special-interest news media.
- She is skilled at finding and developing University news and research stories and interesting the news media in covering them.
- She maintains the University Experts Guide.
- She is a former newspaper reporter and magazine writer.
- She enjoys reading detective stories and science fiction novels.
Wes Frahm
Director, Athletic Communications and Marketing
About Wes
- He oversees publicity and media relations for all 14 Huskies’ teams.
- His sports information specialties are hockey, football and tennis.
- A member of the College Sports Information Directors Association (CoSIDA), he has won numerous publication awards from the organization.
Quentin Franke
Web Content Specialist and Developer
Links of Interest
About Quentin
- He is the latest addition to the web group.
- He works with the CMS and various web duties.
- He enjoys snowboarding, mountain biking, and golf.
James Frey
Marketing Technology Support Specialist
Marcia Goodrich
Magazine Editor
Links of Interest
Her Beats
- College of Engineering
- Keweenaw Research Center
- School of Technology
About Marcia
- Her responsibilities include editing the Research and Michigan Tech magazines, writing and distributing news releases, and working with local media.
Kevin Hodur
Creative Writer
His Beats
- College of Sciences & Arts
- Career Services
- Hands-on Education (Enterprise, Senior Design, etc.)
- Special Events
Alexander J Hughes
Web Programmer
About Alexander
- He is a Michigan Tech Alumnus from Hancock.
- He is the programming and technical lead for the University’s content management system (CMS).
- He assists in CMS training and technical user support.
- He is an avid golfer, enjoys hockey and curling, watches many movies, and would like to visit Finland someday.
Jackie Johnson
Graphic Designer
906-487-3507
jabjohns@mtu.edu
jabjohns@mtu.edu
Links of Interest
About Jackie
- She is experienced in collateral design ranging from brochures, postcards, and posters to identity, logo design, and merchandise.
- She enjoys working with clients on projects from the conception of ideas to completion, overseeing them throughout the process.
Karina Jousma
Web Editor
Her Beats
- Enrollment/Admissions
- Housing & Residential Life
About Karina
- She develops, organizes, and structures copy for the Michigan Tech website in conjunction with University clients.
- She is skilled in all phases of writing and editing, from concept development to copyediting.
- She serves as the gatekeeper for style and grammar on the Michigan Tech website.
- She is a Michigan Tech alumna from the Western Upper Peninsula.
Ian Marks
Assistant Director, Athletic Communications and Marketing
About Ian
- His sports information specialties are hockey, soccer, Nordic skiing, track and field, and cross country.
- His background is based in a combination of sports information and print journalism.
Danny Messinger
Web Editor
Research Web Maintenance
Links of Interest
His Beats
- Youth Programs/K-12 Outreach
- Diversity
About Danny
- He is a Michigan Tech Alumnus.
- He works with both Research and University Marketing and Communications to develop new web content and maintain existing content.
- He enjoys skiing—both downhill and cross-country—and roller coasters.
Justin Plichta
Video Reporter/Producer
About Justin
- He is responsible for all UMC-produced videos, DVDs, and web-based media clips.
- He enjoys the other artistic aspects of his job as well, including writing and musical arrangement.
- When he’s not at work, Justin loves to trek out and explore the natural world.
Clare Rosen
Senior Creative Designer
About Clare
- She is experienced in publication/print collateral design and brand identity.
- She is responsible for the layout and design of the Michigan Tech Magazine and Research magazine.
Scott Shannon
Web Developer
Links of Interest
About Scott
- He is a Michigan Tech Alumnus.
- His background in computer science enhances his web development skills and abilities in web design.
- He is a technical lead for the University’s content management system.
- He creates and maintains University web pages, styles, scripts, and specialty websites.
- He examines web technologies in order to enhance user online experiences using the latest web standards.
Kara Sokol
Director of Integrated Marketing
Links of Interest
About Kara
- She is the lead writer and project manager for Admissions, the Center for Pre-College Outreach, and Student Affairs.
- Her favorite part of her job is getting to work with students; she advises the Michigan Tech Lode and works closely with Keweenaw Pride.
- She adores fresh, snappy nonfiction and spends her spare time writing and trolling the web for cool books and blogs.
- She believes that the world would be a better place if everyone embraced the serial comma.
"Simple design, intense content."
—Edward R. Tufte
—Edward R. Tufte
Gail Sweeting
Web Manager
Links of Interest
About Gail
- She helps departments prepare their website copy for migration to the University’s content management system.
- She trains department web liaisons to maintain their websites in CMS and guides them in establishing a schedule for updating their sites.
- She is an original member of the UMC web team.
Bill Tembreull
Lead Designer and Creative Specialist
About Bill
- He has worked in design and publications at Michigan Tech for 35 years.
- His work has earned numerous national awards.
- He oversees the design of most University publications, including brochures, posters, magazines, newsletters, and more.
- Prepares bids for pricing publications.
Rodney Thompson
Manager, Printing and Mail Services
Brandy Tichonoff
Director of New Media and Creative Strategy
Links of Interest
About Brandy
- She has over a decade of design experience.
- Her multimedia designs have won numerous industry awards and been published in Communication Arts and HOW Design.
- Her specialty is enterprise-scale website design.
- She is an incurable video game junkie.
Crystal Verran
Director of Publications
Links of Interest
About Crystal
- She is the first person to contact when you are interested in working with UMC on a project.
- She loves to brainstorm new ideas for publications with clients and enjoys the variety of projects that come through UMC.
- Crystal is a great source when questions arise regarding University Identity Standards.
- A self-described “design nerd,” she finds herself picking up publications from a variety of different places (to read and critique).
"Just Go with It!"
Joel C. Vertin
Web Maintenance Manager
Links of Interest
About Joel
- He has helped migrate many websites into Michigan Tech's content management system (CMS).
- He has experience in CMS project management, customer support, and user training.
- He assists in managing Michigan Tech's social media presence.
- He is a Michigan Tech alumnus from Laurium.
- His favorite sports include golf, basketball, and softball. He enjoys attending Michigan Tech sports events.
Dennis Walikainen
Senior Editor
Links of Interest
His Beats
- Graduate School
- School of Business and Economics/Entrepreneurship
- Alumni
- Athletics liaison
About Dennis
- He oversees the University's Athletic Communications and Marketing efforts.
- He maintains the University’s written history and keeps the Editorial Guide up to date.
- Online, Dennis writes the TechAlum newsletter.
- He manages the "hometowners": student news releases and tracks Michigan Tech's appearances in various publications.
- He contributes news stories to Tech Today, the news site, and the news media.
- Off campus he enjoys golf, running, and guts Frisbee.