June 15, 2022

Effective July 1, Finance and Administration will report to Dave Reed. This announcement follows Sue Kerry’s decision to leave the University.

“Over the past three years, Sue has done a tremendous job in her role as CFO,” said Rick Koubek, president. “Thanks to her efforts, Michigan Tech is in a sound financial position.”

Reed has previous experience serving as interim CFO and vice president for administration. “I am quite confident in Dave’s ability to seamlessly transition into this role and continue the forward momentum of the University’s financial and administrative operations,” said Koubek.

These units will report to Reed until a permanent replacement is appointed following a national search. Human Resources will report to Sarah Schulte on an interim basis.

The Vice President for Research Office has updated the graduate student tables for budgeting stipends and tuition. These rates are to be used immediately in proposal budgets to external sponsors.

The tuition rates per credit differ between Non Engineering/Computer Science and the Engineering/Computer Science disciplines. Remember to take this into account when budgeting for one (1) credit.

The updated stipend and tuition tables can be found on the VPR forms page at:

• GRA Stipend Rates
• GRA Tuition Rates

The deadline to submit Tuition Reduction Incentive Program (TRIP) forms for the fall 2022 academic semester is July 1.

The TRIP application and guidelines can be found on the Human Resources website underneath "Education Benefits."

Please contact Benefit Services at benefits@mtu.edu or 906-487-2517 with any questions.

There has been a time change for the farewell to Nancy Barr, who is leaving the University to take a faculty position with the University of South Florida's Department of English.

The new time for her farewell is from 1-3 p.m. in the Memorial Union Building Alumni Lounge (107C) tomorrow (June 16).

Stakeholders and business owners of the Keweenaw are invited to join us for a Keweenaw Tourism Conference on June 24 in Michigan Tech’s Memorial Union Building Ballrooms A and B. The conference will take place from 2:30-8 p.m., and will consist of a series of presentations, panels and discussions on tourism and sustainability practices in the Keweenaw.

Students who participated in the Amtrak Tourism sustainability summer program have synthesized both their experiences throughout the United States and interdisciplinary approaches to accessibility and transportation, culture and place, and environmental factors.

We would appreciate anyone who is interested in coming to the conference to RSVP using the contact information listed below no later than Tuesday (June 21).

Conference Summary:

• 2:30-5 p.m. — We will be holding interactive, informational panels and providing light snacks and refreshments throughout.
• 6-8 p.m. — We will be holding a banquet and dinner. This section is intended for students, friends, family and interested attendees.

Please RSVP by calling 989-559-0585, emailing Mariah Mellendorf at mrmellen@mtu.edu, or submitting our Google form.

Job Postings for Wednesday, June 15, 2022

Staff and faculty job descriptions are available on the Human Resources website. For more information regarding staff positions, call 906-487-2280 or email mtujobs@mtu.edu.

For more information regarding faculty positions, contact the academic department in which the position is posted.

Associate Director of Admissions – Visitor Engagement, Admissions. Apply online.

Dining Services Assistant Manager, Associate Manager or Manager, Dining Services. Apply online.

Custodian (12 months/ 40 hours/ first shift) #22182, Facilities (AFSCME posting June 15 to June 21, 2022 — internal AFSCME applicants are given first consideration if they apply during the internal AFSCME posting dates). Apply online.

Michigan Technological University is an Equal Opportunity Educational Institution/Equal Opportunity Employer that provides equal opportunity for all, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.

Accommodations are available. If you require any auxiliary aids, services, or other accommodations to apply for employment, or for an interview, at Michigan Technological University, please notify the Human Resources office at 906-487-2280 or mtujobs@mtu.edu.

Iosif Pinelis (Math) is a co-author of a paper accepted for presentation at the conference Theory and Practice of Differential Privacy (TPDP) 2022. 

The paper is titled "Differentially Private Fractional Frequency Moments Estimation with Polylogarithmic Space."

Pinelis' co-authors are Dawn Song and Lun Wang, both of the Computer Science Division, University of California, Berkeley.

A preprint version of the paper is available for download.

EurekAlert! published a news release from the American Society for Microbiology about research by Steven Techtmann (BioSci) on using bacteria to break down plastic waste.

Techtmann and postdoctoral fellow Lindsay Putman were quoted in the release, which was picked up by AZoCleantech.

Additionally, a Michigan Tech 2022 Research Magazine story highlighting Techtmann’s research was picked up by Bioplastics News.

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Matthew Portfleet (GMES) was mentioned by Great Lakes Echo in a story about health concerns for sand and gravel workers in Michigan. The story was originally published by Spartan Newsroom in May.

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Newsweek mentioned Michigan Tech’s earthquake magnitude scale in a story on a series of quakes that hit Yellowstone National Park on Sunday (June 12) ahead of unprecedented flooding.

June Is PTSD Awareness Month

The month of June each year is designated as Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Month to bring awareness to those with PTSD and to encourage people to reach out to their fellow citizens to provide support and remove the stigma associated with this disorder.

PTSD is a mental health problem that some people develop after experiencing or witnessing a life-threatening event, like combat, a natural disaster, a car accident or sexual assault. It's normal to have upsetting memories, feel on edge or have trouble sleeping after this type of event. If symptoms last more than a few months, it may be PTSD.

Visit the National Center for PTSD to learn more about PTSD and to help raise PTSD awareness during the month of June. This site offers daily activities such as taking a pledge to raise PTSD awareness, learning about treatment options and sharing social media posts, all in an effort to support PTSD awareness.

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MS Defense: Brock Howell, GMES

M.S. in Geological Engineering candidate Brock Howell will present their defense today (June 15) at 10 a.m. in person in Dow 633 and virtually via Zoom. 

Howell's defense is titled "Evaluation of Production-Well Performance in Response to Formation Clogging and Rehabilitation for the Keweenaw Bay Tribal Fish Hatchery."

Howell is advised by John Gierke.

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

Master's Defense: Brock Howell

Wednesday, June 15, 10–11 a.m. | Dow Environmental Sciences and Engineering Building, 633

Geological Engineering Advisor: John Gierke Evaluation of Production-Well Performance in Response to Formation Clogging and Rehabilitation for the Keweenaw Bay Tribal Fish...

Proud Innovation Series Part One: "From ideas to innovation"

Wednesday, June 15, 3:00 p.m.–4:15 p.m. | J. Robert Van Pelt and John and Ruanne Opie Library, East Reading Room

Michigan Tech's Patent and Trademark Resource Center (PTRC) and Center for Diversity and Inclusion (CDI) invite the public to celebrate entrepreneurship and Pride Month with...