January 21, 2022

Michigan Tech is excited to announce that through our partnership with Northstar Employee Assistance Program (EAP), benefits-eligible employees have access to additional resources to support their well-being, behavioral health and mental health.

In addition to the eight free, confidential counseling sessions available annually through Northstar EAP, Michigan Tech benefits-eligible employees now have access to Tess and MyLifeExpert Self-Service Portal.

Tess is a new text-for-support service offered by Northstar EAP. Simply text the phone number and start your mental health journey today. Instantly available on a 24/7 basis, Tess is confidential and provides healthy coping exercises customized to what you are encountering. Text "Hi" to 906-208-4204 to begin your conversation with Tess today!

The MyLifeExpert Self-Service Portal is Northstar EAP's work/life portal, which gives employees access to thousands of up-to-date, topic-related articles, videos, podcasts, calculators, interactive checklists, webinars and more.

For more information about Northstar EAP, Tess or the MyLifeExpert Self-Service Portal, check out the Benefits website.

We have all experienced bullying at work. Upon reflection, we often think we could have handled the moment better. But how? Each time, we think: “How could I have responded better?”, “What should I have said?” or “Why is this still bothering me?”

In Liz Kislik’s blog, she shares exercises she uses with her clients to navigate the moments of being bullied by a colleague. The first exercise is to ask yourself, “Are you safe?” Recognizing that you are safe reduces the grip the bully has on you. The second exercise is to mentally imagine the bully as small and vulnerable standing in the palm of your hand. Since the source of the bullying behavior is insecurity and lack of control, this exercise redirects behavior to focus on the bully and not on the response. This positions you to act in a manner that is measured and strategic instead of purely reactionary. Measured responses also allow supervisors to better recognize the source of the bullying behavior and hopefully work to correct problematic patterns of poor behavior.

Today’s feature was shared with us by A3B. 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.

The 2022 Sustainability Film Series kicks off with a discussion of the film "Chasing Coral" from 7-8 p.m. Thursday (Jan. 27). Participation is free and open to all faculty, staff, students and community members. A suggested donation of $5 per film to support the film series is appreciated. Make your donation online.

Participants need to register to receive the Zoom link to participate in the facilitated discussion. The film may be viewed on Netflix or YouTube.

Coral reefs around the world are vanishing at an alarming rate. Between 2014 and 2017, "Chasing Coral" captured the most severe bleaching event in recorded history. During these years, 75% of corals suffered or died from heat stress brought on by climate change. It is predicted that if nothing changes, by 2034 there will be severe bleaching events every year, and by the end of the century every reef in the world will bleach.

Casey Huckins (BioSci) will be the discussion facilitator. He has been a faculty member at MTU since 1998. His research group in aquatic ecology at the Great Lakes Research Center investigates restoration of migratory coaster brook trout, control of invasive species, and habitat improvement, including rivers that have been degraded by land use in the watershed. For the past decade, Huckins and Jill Fisher have taught a course in the Bahamas on the biology and ecology of tropical island plant and animal communities in marine and terrestrial systems within the context of the geological and human history, and climate of these fragile tropical ecosystems and their incredible biodiversity.

The Sustainability Film Series and Facilitated Discussion is cosponsored by MTU's Sustainability Demonstration House, College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science and Department of Social Sciences, and Friends of the Land of Keweenaw, Lake Superior Stewardship Initiative, Keweenaw Land Trust and Keweenaw Unitarian Universalist Fellowship.

The schedule of films from February to May 2022 is coming soon.

Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) is hosting leadership training presented by The Leadership Institute on Jan. 29. This free training is open to students, faculty, staff and the local community.

Two identical trainings sessions will be offered in DOW 642 at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. These three-hour workshops will cover:

• Recruitment — Finding your people.
• Communication — Developing a winning message.
• Leadership — Learning to lead.
• Campaign — Mobilizing your vote.
• Activism — Activating your campus.

Registration is required to participate:
Register for the 10 a.m. session.
Register for the 2 p.m. session.

Questions can be addressed to YAF adviser Lynn Artman at laartman@mtu.edu or 906-370-5221.

College of Sciences and Arts Dean David Hemmer, at the suggestion of Department of Chemistry Chair Sarah Green, has selected glycobiologist Professor Tarun Dam as our week two Deans' Teaching Showcase member.

Dam will be recognized at an end-of-term luncheon with other spring showcase members, and is a candidate for this summer's CTL Instructional Award Series.

Dam’s teaching has a wide reach; he typically teaches upper-division courses in biochemistry and pharmaceutical chemistry, but has also contributed to first-year recitation courses. Feedback from his students is overwhelmingly positive, and he is consistently listed in the top 10% of instructors identified by the provost. Dam won the Distinguished Teaching Award in 2015 and is a member of the Academy of Teaching Excellence.

Green wanted to recognize Dam particularly for his high scores on metrics that ensure all students feel included and heard in his classes. His best — and nearly perfect — scores come in response to questions like, “The instructor displayed a personal interest in students and their learning;” “My instructor creates an atmosphere where ideas can be exchanged freely and easily;” and “My instructor creates an environment for mutual respect.”

Green has seen students go out of their way to comment on Dam’s dedication to their learning and success. In her words, “Any visitor to his class can immediately see those qualities. His classes resemble discussions among scholars more than a dry lecturer imparting nuggets of information to yawning rows. Students are alert and engaged, discussing the topics and asking questions. The chemistry department, and Michigan Tech, and especially our students, benefit tremendously from Dr. Dam’s dedication to student learning.”

Dam designed and implemented a tool he calls Continuous and Rapid Testing (CaRT), which was published in The Teaching Professor. Dam uses index cards for this quick quiz/survey combination that gives him insight into student understanding and a reason to reach out to students who need help.

Hemmer, meanwhile, recognizes that Dam’s excellent teaching goes hand in hand with his research. Through an NSF grant, Dam is bringing research discoveries from his lab into the classroom through a “bench to blackboard” initiative. Hemmer emphasizes, “Tarun is a real example of the teacher-scholar model that we value at Michigan Tech. He is one of the top researchers in the chemistry department while also devoting himself to excellence and innovation in the classroom.”

Congratulations to Aynaz Biniyaz, a Ph.D. candidate in civil engineering, on being selected as the 2021-22 WTS Michigan Legacy Leadership Graduate Scholarship winner!

According to WTS Michigan application materials, the WTS launched the Leadership Legacy Scholarship in 2007. Through this award, WTS Michigan provides a $2,500 scholarship to an outstanding young woman pursuing graduate studies working toward a career in transportation or a related field, and who demonstrates a specific interest in advancing transportation innovation.

Biniyaz is currently working under Zhen Liu. Her application will now be reviewed for the $5,000 WTS Foundation Scholarship.

The Applied Cognitive Science and Human Factors (ACSHF) Forum will be held from 2-3 p.m. Monday (Jan. 24) virtually via Zoom.

There will be two speakers: Pomm Khaewratana and Alex Watral, both ACSHF graduate students.

Khaewratana will be presenting "Learning with word game: Effects of crossword and elaboration on learning scientific vocabulary."

Watral will present "Online Assessment of Motor Learning in Younger and Older Adults."

Join us as we present our next session of the VPR Research Series featuring a virtual presentation by the MTEC SmartZone. This session will introduce the team at the Michigan Tech Enterprise Corporation to share more about the role of their organization in our local innovation ecosystem. The session will be held Thursday (Jan. 27) from 11 a.m. to noon.

Join the session on Zoom using meeting ID 865 8878 1464 and passcode 0Rblp50Z.

Learn about the different programs that are available to support the development of ideas into actions and explore opportunities for our research community to collaborate with them.

A Q&A session will follow the presentation for attendees to ask questions and engage with the presenters to dig deeper into specific topics of interest.

The Michigan Tech hockey team's goaltender, Blake Pietila, is one of 28 goalies named to the Watch List for the Mike Richter Award, given annually to the top goalie in men's NCAA Division I hockey since 2014.

Pietila is in contention for the award for the second straight season — he was one of nine finalists in 2021. He is also a Hobey Baker candidate for the second season in a row and has twice been named a CCHA Goaltender of the Week.

Read more at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

The Michigan Tech at Northern Michigan hockey game, originally scheduled for tonight (Jan. 21) at the Berry Events Center in Marquette, has been moved to Sunday (Jan. 23) at 6:07 p.m.

The NMU at Tech game, set for tomorrow (Jan. 22) at the John MacInnes Student Ice Arena in Houghton, will still be played as scheduled. Puck drop is also set for 6:07 p.m.

The schedule change is due to health and safety precautions within Northern Michigan's hockey program.

Read more and find ticket info at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

The Daily Mining Gazette ran a story on Michigan Tech’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration.

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Great Lakes Now interviewed Nancy Langston (SS) about her latest book, “Climate Ghosts: Migratory Species in the Anthropocene.”

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A video published by the Structural Engineering Institute (SEI) features doctoral student in structural engineering Arman Tatar, the chair of MTU’s SEI graduate student chapter. The three-minute video features Tatar and two others discussing the ASCE Mentor Match program and sharing their experience as participants.

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 make choices to protect themselves, such as getting vaccinated, wearing high-filtration face coverings, and practicing enhanced sanitation and physical distancing where possible — especially in light of the increased transmissibility of the COVID-19 omicron 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 spring 2022 semester.

Testing is available every week in the Rozsa Center basement Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. There is no cost to be tested, and no appointment is needed. 

The consent form is now online and can be completed anytime between 8:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. on the day of your visit.

More COVID-19 Testing Information for the Michigan Tech community is available on the MTU Flex website.

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Banner Production System Maintenance

A production system maintenance window is scheduled for Sunday (Jan. 23) from 7-10 a.m.

The following production services will be unavailable during that time:

Banner
Banweb
MyMichiganTech
ASPIRE
Course Tools
Housing Apartments Wait List
OAP Rental System
Oracle Reports
UC4/Appworx
Virtual Cashiering
WebFocus

If you have any questions or concerns, we can help. Contact us at it-help@mtu.edu or call 906-487-1111.

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Downtime for Password Resets on Sunday

On Sunday (Jan. 23) from 8 a.m. to noon, password resets will be unavailable while Michigan Tech IT performs maintenance on mylogin.mtu.edu.

If you have any questions, we can help. Contact us at it-help@mtu.edu or call 906-487-1111.

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How to be an Effective GTA/GTI

Do you ever find yourself wondering how to be an effective graduate teaching assistant (GTA) or graduate teaching instructor (GTI)? The Professional Development Committee at Graduate Student Government will be hosting Michael Meyer as a speaker for our “How to be an Effective GTA/GTI” seminar from 4-5 p.m. on Thursday (Jan. 27) via Zoom.

Meyer is the director of the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) at MTU and teaches a course about this very thing, so don’t miss this invaluable material!

Register to attend.

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This Weekend at the Rozsa

The Michigan Tech winter Weekend of New Music begins tonight (Jan. 21) with "Water Music: New Music Inspired by the Great Lakes" backstage at the Rozsa!

• Water Music: New Music Inspired by the Great Lakes — Friday, Jan. 21, 7:30 p.m.
  The American Wild Ensemble takes the stage to perform new music by living composers inspired by all five great lakes. The program includes the world premiere of a piece about Lake Superior, written by Michigan Tech's own Libby Meyer.
  Tickets: $15 for adults and $5 for youth. Michigan Tech students can attend for free and bring a friend with the Experience Tech Fee.
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• Student Composition Reading and Masterclass — Saturday, Jan. 22, 3 p.m.
  Composer-in-residence Stephen Lias and the American Wild Ensemble lead a masterclass of Michigan Tech students' compositions. There is no pre-registration or ticketing and all are welcome to this free event.
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• The Music of Stephen Lias — Saturday, Jan. 22, 7:30 p.m.
  "Adventure-composer." Has there ever been a more perfect combination of words for music in the Copper Country? Stephen Lias, artist-in-residence at Michigan Tech just before this concert, is literally an adventure-composer. He writes music inspired by his outdoor adventures in national parks and other natural wonders he encounters in his exciting life on the go.
  Tickets: $15 for adults and $5 for youth. Michigan Tech students can attend for free and bring a friend with the Experience Tech Fee.
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Tickets for these events are available in by phone at 906-487-2073, online or in person at the Central Ticketing Office in the Student Development Complex. The Rozsa Box Office will also be open for ticket purchases two hours prior to performances. 

Note: Face coverings are required for volunteers, staff and audience members at these events. Please visit the Rozsa COVID-19 Policies for the most up-to-date information.

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

Ski Mt. Everest "Tech"nically

Friday, January 21, 1 p.m.–5 p.m. | Mont Ripley Ski Area

This vertical distance challenge will have you skiing or snowboarding the same vertical distance as Mt. Everest (29,000 ft)! Proceeds will go to the American Society for Deaf...

Color Signal Processing – From Newton’s Prism to Digital Cameras

Friday, January 21, 3:30 p.m. | Electrical Energy Resources Center (EERC), 501

Electrical and Computer Engineering Seminar Please RSVP to ECE@mtu.edu if you would like to attend in person in EERC 501. You may also attend via Zoom. Michael Vrhel...

Sledding w/ Triangle Fraternity

Friday, January 21, 4 p.m.–6 p.m. | Tech Trails

Come to the Tech Trails with the brothers of Triangle Fraternity and have a bunch of fun in the snow! Rides will be provided from the Wadsworth Hall lobby 15 minutes before...

Middle School Volleyball Development League

Friday, January 21, 6:00 p.m.–7:30 p.m. | Student Development Complex (SDC), Multipurpose Room

A four-week developmental program for middle school girls in grades 7 & 8 to learn and improve their skills in preparation for the upcoming interscholastic season. This...

(Men's Ice Hockey) Michigan Tech at Northern Michigan

Friday, January 21, 6:37 p.m.–9:37 p.m.

Men's Ice Hockey: Michigan Tech at Northern Michigan

Alumni Pub Night- Auburn Hills, MI

Friday, January 21, 6:37 p.m.–9:00 p.m. | Red Ox Tavern

Due to the Hockey Games Postponement, this event has been changed to a Pub Night (same times). Sorry for the inconvenience. Join your fellow Michigan Tech alumni, friends,...

Water Music: New Music Inspired by the Great Lakes

Friday, January 21, 7:30 p.m. | McArdle Theatre

Michigan Tech Music presents Water Music: New Music Inspired by the Great Lakes This performance is part of New Music Weekend by New Music at Michigan Tech Performed by the...

Lambda Chi Alpha RUSH event: Basketball at the SDC

Friday, January 21, 9 p.m.–10 p.m. | Student Development Complex Varsity Basketball Court

Come play basketball with the brothers of Lambda Chi Alpha at the Student Development Complex! We'll be doing 5v5 games, bring a friend or your roommate and come shoot some...