From the Dean
Greetings Michigan Tech Alumni and Friends. I am pleased to share this selection of College of Computing news with you.
Much has happened since our newsletter in January. Michigan Tech and the College of
Computing have been actively working to meet the urgent challenges of the new year,
and thinking to the future as we plan for a new decade. This has been a time of challenge,
reflection, and discovery.
I’m extremely proud of our College of Computing students. I have witnessed examples
of extraordinary commitment during this spring semester. Even when faced with new
and unfamiliar challenges, our students have applied themselves to advance their education
and participate as fully as possible in University opportunities. You’ll see some
examples of this below.
We have all been unmoored, yet I am also continually re-energized by the strength
and resilience demonstrated by our faculty and staff. Throughout all of this, each
of them remains steadily focused on what matters most—our students.
As we reach the end of spring semester, I feel both relief and a sense of hope about
our future. We are discovering new ways to communicate, share, and experience our
human connections. It’s exciting to consider how we will use our new skills as we
move into the future, while striving to preserve and grow our close-knit community.
The shift to remote instruction reminds us that traditional lectures are just one
of the many ways that we can deliver the outstanding education that our students expect.
Instead of simply trying to get back to normal, we’re working on becoming even better
as we lead the College of Computing into the future.
With best regards,
Adrienne Minerick, Ph.D.
Dean, College of Computing
Congratulations to the Class of 2020!
The College of Computing hosted a Convocation Ceremony May 1, 2020, to congratulate Spring and Summer 2020 graduates.
At the virtual event, student achievement awards were announced, faculty and staff congratulatory videos were viewed, and Michigan Tech Computer Science alumnus Brian VanVoorst ’91, '93 presented a Convocation address. The College's inaugural class of 109 graduates comprises 5 doctor of philosophy degrees, 14 masters of science, and 90 bachelors of science. The graduating class is nearly 20% women, 27% of the class graduated with honors, and the average undergraduate GPA is 3.28. Visit the Class of 2020 webpage here.
Computing Undergraduate Elijah Cobb Receives Special SURF Fellowship
College of Computing undergraduate Elijah Cobb has received a special Undergraduate Research Fellowship under the SURF umbrella.
CS major Elija Cobb's research proposal was excellent, but so were many others and the SURF funds were limited, so Cobb missed out. Enter Chuck Wallace and the College of Computing, who have found funding to allow Cobb to participate this summer. Learn more
Husky Game Development Wins Honorable Mention
Husky Game Development (HGD), a student Enterprise focused on developing video games, won Honorable Mention accolades at Design Expo 2020, presented virtually this April.
The winning project, “Lost in Mazie Mansion,” is a 2D mystery-puzzle game. To win, you’ll need the help of Mazie. Dodge monsters patrolling the halls, solve puzzles, and find the keys to get Mazie’s memory back. View a video about the game here. Learn more
US DOD Funds ROTC Cybersecurity Research
The US DOD Office of Naval Research has awarded Michigan Tech researchers a $249K grant
that supports the creation of an ROTC undergraduate science and engineering research program at Michigan Tech. The aim of the program is to supply prepared cadets to all military branches to serve as officers in Cyber commands. Learn more
Faculty Seed Grants Fund Critically Needed Research
The five faculty seed grants provide immediate funding in support of research addressing critical needs during the current pandemic.
Tim Havens, associate dean for research, said the grants will enable progress in new
research with the potential to make an impact on the current research. Congratulations
to the researchers:
Guy Hembroff: “Development of a Novel Hospital Use Resource Prediction Model to Improve Local Community
Pandemic Disaster Planning”
Leo Ureel and Charles Wallace: “Classroom Cyber-Physical Simulation of Disease Transmission”
Bo Chen: “Mobile Devices Can Help Mitigate Spreading of Coronavirus”
Nathir Rawashdeh (pictured): “A Tele-Operated Mobile Robot for Sterilizing Indoor Space Using UV Light”
(A special thanks to alumnus Paul Williams, who’s generous gift to support AI and robotics research made this grant possible.)
Weihua Zhou and Jinshan Tang: “KD4COVID19: An Open Research Platform Using Feature Engineering and Machine Learning
for Knowledge Discovery and Risk Stratification of COVID-19" Learn more
College of Computing News Briefs
New Bachelor of Science in Mechatronics, pending approval from MTU BoT and State of Michigan.
New Health Informatics Stackable Certificates in Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Healthcare and Security and Privacy in Healthcare.
Since our prospective students were home, instead of here on campus, we prepared this Spring Preview Day video.
PhD Candidate Siva Kakula Wins Grant to Attend IEEE World Congress, Present Two Papers
Six New Faculty members will join the College of Computing this Fall, including Briana Bettin, above.
CNSA Lecturer Todd Arney received the Provost's Award for Sustained Teaching Excellence, an elite new award.
Leo Ureel’s student-centric efforts to increase retention and diversify enrollment recognized in Deans' Teaching Showcase.
Weihua Zhou's research solutions merge medical imaging and informatics, computer vision, and machine learning.
Take a look at this great new College of Computing video! Because the future is computational.
Stay Home. Stay Safe. Stay in Touch. Resources for students facing challenges in this uncertain time.
Michigan Tech is #2 on a list of highest-paid grads in Michigan published by WXYZ Detroit (ABC-TV).
