November 5, 2021

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­With the construction surrounding the Lakeshore Center, visitor parking in the vicinity of this building can be challenging. If you have a red or black faculty/staff parking permit, you may park in available parking spaces designated for Michigan Tech faculty/staff parking at the Lakeshore Center; however, having a Michigan Tech faculty/staff permit does not guarantee you a parking spot there. If you are visiting the Lakeshore Center for a meeting or event, it is suggested that you arrive early.

If a parking space is not available for your visit, please consider and plan extra time for the following options:

• You can park temporarily (up to two hours) in any City of Houghton parking area signed as free two-hour parking.
• You can park temporarily (up to two hours) south of Dee Stadium along Lakeshore Drive.

In addition, a portion of the lot east of Krist Oil Company gas station (along East Lakeshore Drive) and a portion of the Grace United Methodist Church lot (three blocks south of the Lakeshore Center) are designated as free parking by the City of Houghton. The spaces provided in these lots are limited, so it is best to utilize the first two options listed above.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding your parking permit or locations, please contact the Transportation Services office at 906-487-1441 or email parking@mtu.edu.

Summer Youth Programs (SYP) are weeklong programs that blend hands-on experiential learning with exploration of the local area. SYP sees an average of 1,100 participants for the 65-plus educational programs offered each year.

We're looking for passionate individuals who enjoy working with youth and want to inspire the next generation of makers and doers. Each year we hire 50-plus undergraduate and graduate students for a variety of roles that offer a rewarding experience that builds leadership and other critical interpersonal skills.

If you or someone you know are interested in learning more about being a member of the SYP team, we encourage you to attend our hiring sessions or email us at outreach@mtu.edu. 

Hiring Information Session Dates:

• Thursday, Nov. 11 — 6 p.m. in the MUB Alumni Lounge
• Thursday, Jan. 20 — 6 p.m. in the MUB Alumni Lounge

You can also visit our website to learn more about the positions offered.

The final session in the kickoff series for Innovators in Industry will take place on Monday (Nov. 8) at 7 p.m. via Zoom. Titled “Entrepreneurship, Startups, and Venture Capital,” the session will be hosted by the College of Business. Featured alumni will make short presentations with time for Q&A from the audience.

Innovators in Industry aims to give students direct access to industry experts, leaders and influencers to help shape their paths. Featured alumni for the session are:

• Kanwal Rekhi ’69, managing director of Inventus Capital Partners.
• John Rockwell ’79, president, CEO and director of Accelergy Corp.
• Chang Park ’73, president, CEO and founder of Universal Remote Control Inc.
• Rebecca Ufkes ’87, president of Ufkes Holdings.

Innovators in Industry virtual sessions are open to all Michigan Tech students, faculty, staff and alumni. Join Monday’s session via Zoom.

Read the bios of Monday’s presenters on the College of Business Newsblog.

Are you wondering how best to teach students who are on the spectrum? In today’s ADVANCE Weekly Roundup, a college teacher who herself is on the spectrum corrects some myths about the neurodiverse and provides recommendations for teaching them.

One of the myths is that autism is limited to young white men; it affects people of all races, genders and ages, and diagnoses in adults and women are both on the rise. Also, autism affects each individual in different ways, so challenging the diagnosis because it doesn’t conform to stereotypes is a poor strategy. Read this week’s article on Inside Higher Ed, "10 Things Faculty Need to Understand about Autism," to improve your classroom skills.

Today’s feature was shared with us by Sonia Goltz. If you have an article you think we should feature, please email it to advance-mtu@mtu.edu and we will consider adding it to the ADVANCE Weekly Roundup.

The ADVANCE Weekly Roundup is brought to you by ADVANCE at Michigan Tech, an NSF-funded initiative dedicated to improving faculty career success, retention, diversity, equity and inclusion. Past articles are available on the ADVANCE Newsblog.

To learn more about our featured topic, our mission, programming efforts, and to check out our growing collection of resources, contact us or visit our website.

Two Michigan Tech graduate students were honored by The Institute of Noise Control Engineering (INCE) at their annual honors and awards ceremony recognizing outstanding service, research and activity in noise control.

Sunit Girdhar, doctoral student in mechanical engineering-engineering mechanics, won both the inaugural INCE Student Scholarship and the Martin Hirschorn IAC Prize – Student Project.

Steven Whitaker, an electrical and computer engineering graduate student, received the 2021 Leo Beranek Student Medal for Excellence in Noise Control.

Dana Lodico, INCE-USA vice president, Honors and Awards Committee, applauded the winners. “This year’s winners should be incredibly proud of their achievements in noise control,” said Lodico. “Entries for INCE-USA Honors and Awards were very competitive, and we look forward to seeing how each winner continues to advance the noise control industry in their careers.” 

Read more about the awards on the INCE website.

Ph.D. candidate Diego Andres Aponte Roa (ECE) will defend their doctoral dissertation Nov. 19 at 9 a.m. This virtual defense will be held online only. Attendance is invited via Zoom.

The title of Roa's dissertation is "Decision Support Tool for Service Restoration."

Roa is advised by Wayne Weaver.

At the next Applied Cognitive Science and Human Factors (ACSHF) Forum, the Department of Cognitive and Learning Sciences will host ACSHF Ph.D. student speakers Anne Inger Mørtvedt and Lamia Alam.

Their presentations are titled "Information usability evaluation to increase implementation of injury prevention training in sports" and "Assessing cognitive empathy elements within the context of diagnostic AI chatbots."

The forum will take place from 2-3 p.m. Monday (Nov. 8) in the Harold Meese Center (Meese), Room 109, and virtually via Zoom.

The No. 22 Michigan Tech volleyball team wraps up its home schedule with a pair of matches against GLIAC North Division opponents at the SDC Gym.

The Huskies will host Northwood today (Nov. 5) at 5 p.m, then wrap up the weekend tomorrow (Nov. 6) on Senior Day against Lake Superior State at 2 p.m.

Read more and find ways to tune in at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

No. 18 Michigan Tech hockey opens CCHA play this weekend by hosting Lake Superior State at the John MacInnes Student Ice Arena.

The Huskies and Lakers will meet at 7:07 p.m. tonight (Nov. 5) and 6:07 p.m. tomorrow (Nov. 6). 

Read more and find ways to tune in at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

Michigan Tech men's basketball became the second Midwest region Division II team to snag victory from a Division I opponent this fall, holding off Ball State University 70-69 in an exhibition game at Worthen Arena on Nov. 3.

Ball State University stormed back from a 17-point second-half deficit to tie the game, but Owen White gave the Huskies the one-point lead at the free throw line, and that proved to be the difference. Head coach Josh Buettner and assistant coach Ben Stelzer had successful debuts behind the Michigan Tech bench.

Read more at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

Michigan Tech men's and women's cross country teams are set to compete in the NCAA Division II Midwest Region Cross Country Championships tomorrow (Nov. 6) at Angel Mounds State Historic Site in Evansville, Indiana.

The women's 6K starts at 11:30 a.m., followed by the men's 10K at 12:45 p.m.

Last time out for the Huskies, the men finished second at the GLIAC Championships on Oct. 23 and were ranked No. 6 in the region and No. 25 in the nation; meanwhile, the Huskies women's cross country placed fourth at the GLIAC Championships hosted by Saginaw Valley State.

Read more and find ways to follow the races at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

Guy Meadows (GLRC) was quoted in a story about Wisconsin landowners battling shoreline erosion on Lake Michigan by Wisconsin Watch.

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Adrienne Minerick (ChE) was profiled by Prism Magazine Online, a publication of the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE).

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Michigan Tech alumnus Eugene Manley Jr. discussed science, mentoring and STEM diversity as a “brilliant but not famous” guest on the Research Evangelist podcast.

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Tori Keerl, an alumna of Michigan Tech's materials science and engineering program, was highlighted by Nissan Stories as "the nose of Nissan North America." 

Christopher Roussi (MTRI/GLRC) is the principal investigator (PI) on a project that has received a $217,527 research and development co-op/joint agreement from the U.S. Geological Survey.

The project is titled "USGS Sensor Support System."

Andrew Barnard (ME-EM/GLRC) is the co-PI on this project.

Face Coverings Required Indoors on Campus

While Michigan Tech is at Health and Safety Level Two, face coverings must be worn indoors. This applies to all students, employees and visitors, regardless of vaccination status.

Michigan Tech strongly recommends that all employees and students continue with handwashing and hand-sanitizing practices, especially in light of the virulence of the COVID-19 delta variant. Please be aware that if you are exposed to COVID-19, quarantine guidelines vary depending on vaccination status. 

In Level Two, students and employees are not required to monitor their symptoms daily prior to coming to campus. But, individuals should be mindful of their own symptoms. A useful monitoring tool is available from the CDC. 

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On-Demand COVID-19 Testing Available on Campus

Walk-in, on-demand COVID-19 testing is available to Michigan Tech students and employees during the fall 2021 semester.

Testing is located in the Datolite Room at the MUB on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 9 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. There is no cost to be tested, and no appointment is needed. 

Read more COVID-19 Testing Information on the MTU Flex website.

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2022 Open Enrollment and Benefits Forums

2022 Open Enrollment will begin on Nov. 15 and will run until 5 p.m. Nov. 29. Open enrollment is your opportunity to assess your individual and family needs and elect the benefit package that is right for you.

Benefit Services will be hosting two Benefit Forums for employees to learn about their 2022 benefit options. Release time will be provided to attend the Benefit Forums.

Benefit Open Enrollment Forums:

• Wednesday, Nov. 10 — 9:30 a.m. in MUB Ballrooms B1 and B2
• Wednesday, Nov. 17 — 2:30 p.m. in MUB Ballroom A2

Benefit Changes for 2022:
The University’s basic life insurance coverage will increase from the current $5,000 to a $50,000 flat benefit with a voluntary option to enhance up to four times the employee’s salary.

Additionally, faculty and staff will have the opportunity to increase their matching retirement, in accordance with the announcement made in July. Michigan Tech will enhance its dollar-for-dollar matching program over the next two years. Beginning Jan. 1, 2022, the retirement matching will increase from 7.5% to 7.75%, with an additional increase in 2023 to 8.5%.

Passive Enrollment Option:
Open enrollment for 2022 is NOT mandatory. The passive enrollment allows employees to roll over most of their benefits from the previous year without making updates in the system.

Flexible spending accounts (FSA) and health savings accounts (HSA) will not automatically roll over. It’s important if you would like to elect these to do so during open enrollment. While open enrollment is optional, it is recommended that all employees complete open enrollment, regardless of if you are making changes to your benefit elections or not.

During open enrollment, you will have the opportunity to: 

• Enroll or change medical, dental, or vision coverage for next year.
• Contribute to or change contributions to an HSA or a health care FSA or dependent care account. HSA and FSA elections from the previous year will not roll over to 2022.
• Enroll or change your optional employee life insurance, spouse and/or dependent life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance, long-term disability buy-up coverage, or enroll in critical illness or accident coverage.
• Contribute to or change contributions to retirement accounts.
• Earn Husky Health points for completing open enrollment via MyMichiganTech.

To find more information on open enrollment, please visit our Open Enrollment website to get the most updated details on benefits for 2022.

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PhD Defense: Kevin Nevorski, BioSci

Doctoral candidate Kevin Nevorski (BioSci) will present his Ph.D. defense today (Nov. 5) at 2 p.m. This virtual defense will be held online only. Attendance is invited via Zoom. 

Nevorski's defense is titled "Denitrification and nitrogen fixation commonly co-occur but rates vary throughout the year and in different environments."

From the abstract:
Denitrification and nitrogen fixation are nitrogen cycling processes which can occur simultaneously in streams but are rarely studied together. The overarching goal of this dissertation was to quantify temporal and spatial variation of these rates in streams across the USA, characterize the environmental drivers of that variation, and determine the role that denitrification plays in the carbon cycle. ... Overall, we found that denitrification and nitrogen fixation commonly cooccur, that rates are more variable spatially and temporally than expected, and that this variation is not simply explained by environmental characteristics as commonly assumed.

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Film Board Presenting 'Cruella'

This week, the Film Board presents “Cruella,” rated PG-13 for some violence and thematic elements.

Showings:

• Friday, Nov. 5 — 5:30 p.m., 8:30 p.m., 11:30 p.m.
• Saturday, Nov. 6 — 5:30 p.m., 8:30 p.m., 11:30 p.m.

Starting this week: 5:30 p.m. showtimes will be shown with subtitles!

Located on Michigan Tech's campus in Fisher Hall, Room 135.

Tickets are $3 and concessions are $1. We hope to see you at the movie this weekend — and have a great day.

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Workshop: Finding and Citing Multimedia

Need a picture for your paper or project? This workshop will introduce you to a variety of resources you can use to find freely available images and other multimedia for your work.

Please come ready with questions!

The workshop will be held today (Nov. 5) from 11-11:30 a.m. in the library, Room 244.

Register to attend.

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

Hyperconnection: A New Series by Tiffany Lange

Friday, November 5, 8 a.m.–8 p.m. | Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts, Gallery: A-Space

Tiffany Lange’s newest series “Hyperconnection”, examines overstimulation and anxiousness through abstraction. After a year of increased screen time during quarantine and...

The Misinformation Edition Exhibition

Friday, November 5, 8 a.m.–8 p.m. | J. Robert Van Pelt and John and Ruanne Opie Library

Glass Room: Misinformation Edition explores how social media and the web have changed the way we read information and react to it. It exposes new types of influencers, the new...

PhD Defense: Kevin Nevorski

Friday, November 5, 2 p.m.–3 p.m.

Biological Sciences Advisor: Amy Marcarelli Denitrification and Nitrogen Fixation Commonly Co-Occur But Rates Vary Throughout the Year and in Different Environments Attend...

(Women's Soccer) Michigan Tech at Purdue Northwest

Friday, November 5, 2:30 p.m.–5:30 p.m.

Women's Soccer: Michigan Tech at Purdue Northwest

Board Game Group

Friday, November 5, 3 p.m.–5 p.m. | J. Robert Van Pelt and John and Ruanne Opie Library, 243

Are you worn out at the end of the week and just want to hang out and play a game? Then this group is for you! We will chill and play strategy-based board games. The goal is...

ICC Distinguished Lecture: Dr. Philip E. Bourne, University of Virginia

Friday, November 5, 3 p.m.

DR. BOURNE'S LECTURE HAS BEEN POSTPONED. IT WILL BE RESCHEDULED FOR THE SPRING 2022 SEMESTER. The Institute of Computing and Cybersystems will present a Distinguished Lecture...

(Women's Volleyball) Northwood vs. Michigan Tech

Friday, November 5, 5 p.m.–8 p.m. | Student Development Complex (SDC), Wood Gym

Women's Volleyball: Northwood vs. Michigan Tech

Film Board Presents: Cruella

Friday, November 5, 5:30 p.m.–8:00 p.m. | Fisher 135

Estella is a young and clever grifter who's determined to make a name for herself in the fashion world. She soon meets a pair of thieves who appreciate her appetite for...

Range Day

Friday, November 5, 7 p.m.–9 p.m. | SDC Shooting Range

Students are allowed to come down to the range to either use their own firearms or the firearms provided by the club.

(Men's Ice Hockey) Lake Superior State vs. Michigan Tech

Friday, November 5, 7:07 p.m.–10:07 p.m. | John MacInnes Student Ice Arena

Men's Ice Hockey: Lake Superior State vs. Michigan Tech

Film Board Presents: Cruella

Friday, November 5, 8:30 p.m.–11:00 p.m. | Fisher 135

Estella is a young and clever grifter who's determined to make a name for herself in the fashion world. She soon meets a pair of thieves who appreciate her appetite for...

Film Board Presents: Cruella

Friday, November 5, 11:30–1:00 a.m. | Fisher 135

Estella is a young and clever grifter who's determined to make a name for herself in the fashion world. She soon meets a pair of thieves who appreciate her appetite for...

41 North Film Festival

November 5, all day | Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts

The 41 North Film Festival showcases recent independent films and filmmakers from around the region, country, and world. For more information and a complete list of films,...