January 24, 2023

Pavlis Honors College (PHC) is accepting applications to the Undergraduate Research Internship Program (URIP) for the 2023-24 academic year. The internship program will run from September 2023 through mid-March 2024 and is open to any undergraduate student on campus with an identified faculty research mentor. Faculty and students who are already working together are welcome to apply.

PHC will provide $960 in funding for the student intern, with the expectation that faculty will provide equivalent matching funds to be dispensed concurrently, resulting in a total of $1,920 paid hourly over the course of the internship. Faculty may make use of research funds, IRAD and start-up packages or consult their chairs, deans or center/institute management to identify the source of their match.

Details regarding the application process can be found on the Pavlis Honors College website.

The deadline to submit applications is 5 p.m. March 24. Faculty need to supply a letter of support as part of the application package. If you have questions about the submission process, please email Rob Handler at rhandler@mtu.edu.

The Undergraduate Research Internship Program is made possible with support from PHC and generous donations from the Portage Health Foundation and the DeVlieg Foundation.

The Michigan Tech community is invited to access and read "A Vision for Essential Education at Michigan Tech," an overview document that introduces the proposed changes to general education at Michigan Tech and will form the basis for the formal University Senate proposal. This work is the product of IDEAhub, a Tech Forward Initiative focused on Reimagining Education for the 21st Century.

There will be three opportunities this week to hear a presentation about the proposed changes:

• Tuesday, Jan. 24 — 3:30-4:30 p.m. in the in the East Reading Room of the Van Pelt and Opie Library.
• Wednesday, Jan. 25 — 9-10 a.m. in the East Reading Room of the Van Pelt and Opie Library.
• Friday, Jan. 27 — 2-3 p.m. via Zoom.

For those who cannot attend an information session, there is a link in the document to a Google form for questions and feedback.

The Essential Education proposal represents the culmination of over three years of collaboration and innovation involving hundreds of faculty, staff and students at Michigan Tech. IDEAhub leadership is grateful to all who have contributed to this effort and excited to share our work with the campus community.

Know someone who is passionate about sustainability and is improving campus or the community through their teaching, research or service? Please consider nominating them for the second annual campus sustainability leadership awards!

Self-nominations are welcome; nominations from others are encouraged. Please submit nominations via our submission form by Feb. 15. A public ceremony will be held to celebrate their accomplishments in early April.

The awards will recognize a faculty member, a staff member and a student on campus — each of whom has made significant contributions to advancing sustainability.

Last year’s winners are listed below, and a three-minute video on their contributions is on the Sustainability website.

• Undergraduate: Kendra Lachcik
• Graduate: Rose Daily
• Staff: Larry Hermanson
• Faculty: Sarah Green

The Department of Computer Science will present an info session for students interested in preparing for this spring’s ICPC/NCNA programming competitions tomorrow (Jan. 25) from 5:30-6:30 p.m. in Rekhi 214.

The 2022-23 International Collegiate Programming Contest's (ICPC's) North Central NA (NCNA) Regional Contest takes place Feb. 25. A practice competition, the NAQ (North American Qualifier), is scheduled for Feb. 4.

Read more at the College of Computing Advising blog.

Menu for Thursday (Jan. 26):

• Chicken Paprikash
• Curried Chickpeas (Gluten-Friendly, Vegan)
• Zucchini and Tomatoes (Gluten-Friendly, Vegan)
• Lemon Ginger Basmati Rice (Gluten-Friendly, Vegan)
• Grilled Naan (Vegetarian)
• Tangy Cucumber Salad (Gluten-Friendly, Vegan)

Dining Services presents this week's C3 Luncheon, being held from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the Memorial Union Alumni Lounge (MUB 107). All faculty and staff, along with their guests, are invited.

The C3 lunch buffet menus are created and prepared by executive chef Michael Landini and his culinary team. As the name suggests, the meals are meant to foster conversation, community and collegiality. Attendees may bring their lunch instead of purchasing the buffet. Fruit-infused water, coffee, tea, cookies and fruit are available free to all attendees.

The buffet lunch is $12 per person. Cash, credit cards and gift cards are accepted. Gift cards can be purchased in the Memorial Union office (MUB 101). You can submit C3 feedback using our Google form. To join the C3 Google group and receive weekly menus, email business-support@mtu.edu.

Department of Humanities Ph.D. candidate Laura Vidal-Chiesa (rhetoric, theory, and culture) has been inducted into the American Association of Colleges and Universities Future Leaders Society. The honor was presented at the AAC&U Annual Meeting in San Francisco, California, on Jan. 18-20.

According to AAC&U’s website: “The Inductees into the AAC&U Future Leaders Society share a profound commitment to high-quality teaching and learning, equity, and community engagement.” Membership includes access to “unique, cross-disciplinary opportunities for professional development, networking, and mentorship” as well as training and development resources for future educators.

Read more at the Humanities News, Features, and Other Updates blog.

The next presentation in the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geospatial Engineering (CEGE) Alumni Speaker Series will take place at noon on Thursday (Jan. 26) via Zoom.

CEGE alumnus Leon Sniegowski ’12, senior consultant, Ricondo and Associates, will present "O’Hare Modernization Program: A Retrospective Look at Keeping the Busiest Airport Operating."

Read the abstract on the University Events Calendar.

Professor Paul Sanders (MSE) spent six months on sabbatical at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondhem, Norway, in summer and fall 2022. He will share his social experiences in a nontechnical seminar entitled "An exploration of Norwegian work and social interactions to increase our understanding of another culture while also helping us to better understand ourselves and our preferences."

The seminar will be held at 1 p.m. Thursday (Jan. 26) in M&M 610.

Michigan Tech women's basketball extended their win streak to six straight over the weekend, winning games against Davenport and Grand Valley State at SDC Gymnasium.

The Huskies found victory over the Panthers 76-58 on Thursday (Jan. 19). Alex Rondorf marked her third double-double of the season in the game, posting 21 points and 11 rebounds, including four on the offense glass.

"Alex did everything again today," said head coach Sam Clayton. "Offensively, she was hitting her threes and also going to the offensive boards. She was getting into the passing lanes with three steals. She is a very unselfish player who runs the floor every time and just created a ton for us."

Saturday (Jan. 21), Tech topped the No. 4 ranked Lakers 57-56 in come-from-behind fashion. Isabella Lenz became a Houghton hero, sinking the game-winning jumper as time expired. 

"The play was actually a screen, but that's not how it worked out," Lenz recalled. "When (the ball) came to me I knew how much time was left, so I just wanted to make sure I got a shot in the air. Luckily, it went in."

"Bella's shot was impressive," said Clayton. "I was so proud of her because I know how hard she works on shots just like that one on a day-to-day basis. I trust her in late shot clock situations because she just makes smart decisions."

The Huskies (16-3, 8-1 GLIAC) moved up to first place in the conference standings with the victory over the Lakers — their sixth straight. Tech also remained perfect at home (8-0) and avenged a GLIAC semifinal loss to GVSU last season.

Read more at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

Michigan Tech men's basketball dropped two matches at SDC Gymnasium this weekend, falling to Davenport and Grand Valley State.

Michigan Tech men's basketball fell 90-77 to Davenport on Thursday (Jan. 19). Dan Gherezgher, Nate Abel and Marcus Tomashek reached the 20-point plateau, but it wasn't enough to defeat the Panthers, who put up 40 points in the paint. Gherezgher led the Huskies with 21 points on 8-of-13 shooting.

Saturday (Jan. 21), the Huskies went into halftime tied 33-33 with Grand Valley State. After the half, Tech fell behind the Lakers, losing 74-61. Adam Hobson led the Black and Gold with 16 points (5-for-11), including three triples and four rebounds. Josh Terrian (12 points) and Gherezgher (11) also made it to double figures.

"The guys aren't giving up. They're working," said head coach Josh Buettner. "We did a good job minimizing our mental mistakes in the first half and that gave us a chance. We had a couple of defensive lapses, which allowed them to go on a run. Offensively, we just don't have that player that can go and cover up a lot of defensive deficiencies yet. We need to get there. We made some progress playing the right way today and we need to keep improving."

Read more at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

No. 14 Michigan Tech hockey took away a win and a tie from their weekend CCHA series against Ferris State at Ewigleben Ice Arena.

The Huskies shut out the Bulldogs 1-0 on Friday (Jan. 20). Kyle Kukkonen scored the game-winning goal with 12.8 seconds left in the first period. Hobey Baker and Mike Richter Award candidate Blake Pietila extended his nation-leading shutout mark to six and his school record career shutout mark to 16 while winning his 50th career game.

"I liked our game from the goaltender on out," Tech coach Joe Shawhan said. "This isn't an easy place to win in. Everybody played well and we transitioned the puck well and played fast. We didn't score on the power play but we got quality chances. Their goaltender was outstanding."

Saturday (Jan. 21), Tech skated to a 3-3 tie, and the Bulldogs earned the extra CCHA point with a 2-1 win in the third round of the shootout.

"We got a big goal by Crespi late but weren't able to hang on. It was disappointing," Shawhan said. "We had a lot of individual play tonight, and they out-competed and out-worked us."

Read more at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

Tuesday (Jan. 24)
• Huskies Drive Time, 7:30-8 a.m. on Mix 93 WKMJ-FM

Thursday (Jan. 26)
• Women's Basketball at Ferris State, 5:30 p.m. on Mix 93 WKMJ-FM
• Men's Basketball at Ferris State, 7:30 p.m. on Mix 93 WKMJ-FM

Friday (Jan. 27)
• Hockey vs. Northern Michigan, 7:07 p.m. at MacInnes Student Ice Arena on Mix 93 WKMJ-FM and WLUC TV6 or FOX-UP

Saturday (Jan. 28)
• Women's Basketball at Lake Superior State, 1 p.m. on Mix 93 WKMJ-FM
• Men's Basketball at Lake Superior State, 3 p.m. on Mix 93 WKMJ-FM
• Hockey at Northern Michigan, 6:07 p.m. at MacInnes Student Ice Arena on Mix 93 WKMJ-FM and WLUC TV6 or FOX-UP

Richelle Winkler (SS) was quoted by Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis in a story summarizing discussions at the Jan. 13 Regional Economic Conditions Conference. All states in the district are facing “economic headwinds” caused by pre-pandemic declining labor force participation, lack of affordable child care and lack of affordable housing.

*****

Will Cantrell (GS/Physics) was quoted by MyNorth.com in a story about the often-photographed blue ice of the Great Lakes. Cantrell explained the science behind the blue ice in the story.

*****

Jeremy Bos (ECE) was quoted and Ph.D. student Zach Jeffries (electrical engineering) and Akhil Kurup ’22 (Ph.D., computer engineering) were mentioned by Photonics Media in a story about a research project to develop tests and performance standards for lidars used in autonomous vehicles (AVs) and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS).

Bos led the testing through its first year with Jeffries’ assistance. The team’s findings are detailed in an open-access paper published in Optical Engineering.

*****

Lei Pan (ChE) was quoted by Business North in a story about Michigan Tech’s $2.5 million U.S. Department of Energy ARPA-E MINER award for carbon storage and extraction of critical minerals from mine tailings. 

Pan is the project’s principal investigator. The stories were picked up from a Michigan Tech News story.

*****

The Keweenaw Report highlighted an episode of the “Finnding America” docuseries featuring Pasi Lautala (CEGE/MTTI). The series features interviews with Finns and “explores what it means to be Finnish in America.”

*****

Undergraduates Joe Dlugos and Jessica Gadbury — Blue Key Honor Society’s president and state chair, respectively — were quoted by WLUC TV6 in a story previewing this year’s Winter Carnival.

*****

The Traverse City Record-Eagle mentioned Michigan Tech in a story about the potential test bed capabilities of the planned Freshwater Innovation and Research Center, to be constructed along West Grand Traverse Bay. The center is a collaboration between MTU, 20Fathoms, the Discovery Center & Pier, Northwestern Michigan College and Traverse Connect.

*****

Grand Rapids’ WOOD TV8 ran a Walker Lawn webcam image of Michigan Tech students playing broomball (not hockey, WOOD TV8!) in a story about snow conditions across Michigan.

*****

RVtravel.com included Winter Carnival in a feature listing nine upcoming winter festivals across the U.S. and Canada worth taking the RV out in the snow (though the writer mistakenly lists Marquette as the location).

*****

Radio Results Network mentioned Michigan Tech in a story about an eight-hour annual Mine Safety and Health Administration refresher training course at Bay College in February. The course is being presented in partnership with MTU.

Submission and Formatting 101: Master the Dissertation, Thesis and Report Process

Editor's Note: The date of this seminar has been changed. The original date was Jan. 25.

Students who are completing a dissertation, thesis or report are invited to join the Graduate School to learn about the resources available to them to assist in scheduling their defense, formatting their documents and submitting their documents. In one afternoon, you can learn everything you need to be successful and complete your degree in a timely fashion! Faculty and staff who assist students with submissions are also welcome to attend. Attend the entire event, or stop in for the seminar that interests you.

• When: Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2-4 p.m. (see a detailed schedule on our blog)
• Who: Students completing a dissertation, thesis or report; faculty and staff who assist students with submission.
• Where: Virtually via Zoom (please register to attend online and receive participation instructions) and in person in Admin 404 (room capacity is 35). 
• Registration: Please register to receive handouts via email or attend online. The seminar will be available online as well as on campus.

If you are unable to join us, the event will be taped and available online after the event. The previous semester’s seminars are always available online.

Information on submitting, formatting and more can be found online for dissertations and theses or reports.

*****

CyberCorps SFS Scholarship Opportunity

Interested in cybersecurity? The College of Computing wants you to know about an exciting scholarship opportunity for Michigan Tech students who want to pursue cybersecurity degrees, including a B.S. in Cybersecurity, M.S. in Cybersecurity and/or a cybersecurity minor.

The CyberCorps: Scholarship for Service (SFS) Program at Michigan Tech is open for application now. Application for the 2023 cohort closes March 1. All computing students (computer science/software engineering, computer network and system administration, cybersecurity, electrical engineering technology/computer engineering and management information systems) may apply for the scholarship. Students from non-computing disciplines, but with a strong interest in cybersecurity, may also apply.

CyberCorps provides two- or three-year full scholarships to cybersecurity undergraduate and graduate students. In return for their scholarships, recipients agree to work in a cybersecurity-related position for a federal, state, local or tribal government agency after graduation for a period equal to the length of the scholarship.

Curious? Interested? Michigan Tech’s CyberCorps team will host a student info session from 5-6 p.m. Feb. 1 in person in Rekhi 112 and online via Zoom.

For more information and to apply, visit the CyberCorps SFS program website.

*****

CTL Lunch and Learn: 'Engaging Students'

Learning involves more than just listening!

Changing a student’s role from a passive listener to being actively involved in the learning process can improve their skills in collaboration, critical and creative thinking and problem solving. Having your students active and engaged is also vital for supporting retention of new knowledge. The constructivist learning theory states that learning happens when students are able to test their constructs through discussions with their peers, ask questions and test various possibilities.

Have you considered ways that you can increase student engagement in your courses? Not sure where to start?

Make plans to attend the Jackson Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) "Engaging Students" Lunch and Learn on Feb. 2 from 12-1 p.m. We’ll explore active learning strategies best suited for your course content, level of complexity, class size and even classroom layout! Whether you are just starting to explore ways to engage students or have had success and would like to try other approaches, we hope you will join us.

Register to attend the CTL "Engaging Students" Lunch and Learn. All registered attendees will have lunch provided.

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

7 Days of MUB

Tuesday, January 24, 12 p.m.–6 p.m. | MUB

Join MUB Board during the week of January 18 to learn more about our organization and relax before the semester picks up! We will be giving away free baked goods, promoting...

Create Your Résumé

Tuesday, January 24, 2:00 p.m.–2:30 p.m. | Administration and Student Services Building, 220 Career Services

Learn the basics of creating a résumé that presents your best self to your future employer.

McNair Scholars Info Session MTU/Zoom

Tuesday, January 24, 2 p.m.–3 p.m. | Memorial Union Building (MUB), Alumni Lounge

Do you want to get a PhD? Thinking about it but unsure how to get there? The McNair Scholars Program helps students get ready for grad school—and we'll pay you too. If you...

Essential Education proposal overview and Q and A

Tuesday, January 24, 3:30 p.m.–4:30 p.m. | J. Robert Van Pelt and John and Ruanne Opie Library, East Reading Room

The entire campus community is invited to join the IDEAhub leadership team for an overview presentation of the proposed Essential Education program, which would replace our...

Adult Huskies Swim Lessons Spring 2023 Session 1

Tuesday, January 24, 5:00 p.m.–5:50 p.m. | Student Development Complex (SDC), Pool

Adult Huskies Swim Lessons provides aquatic education for the beginner to the intermediate swimmer who is looking to become more comfortable in the water and learn the...

Tuesday Adult Learn to Ski and Snowboard Program

Tuesday, January 24, 5:30 p.m.–7:00 p.m. | Mont Ripley Ski Area

Tuesday - Adults Mont Ripley has a reputation for being steep and difficult. We are here to change that. Snowmaking and perfect grooming, combined with a guided tour to fit...

Tuesday After School Learn to Ski and Snowboard Program

Tuesday, January 24, 5:30 p.m.–7:00 p.m. | Mont Ripley Ski Area

Tuesdays Ages 12+ Children of all ability levels have an opportunity to learn to ski or snowboard, make new friends, and explore Mont Ripley together. The focus is on safety,...

Astronomy Club

Tuesday, January 24, 6 p.m.–7 p.m. | Fisher 130

Hello all! Astronomy Club has some exciting news for the club this semester, we are going to begin having monthly meetings! The 24th will be the first of a few this semester,...

Living Room Conversations

Tuesday, January 24, 6 p.m.–8 p.m. | MUB Alumni Lounge

USG's Political Affairs Committee presents the first Living Room Conversation! Engage with your fellow Huskies on topics that matter to you through guided discussion. The...

SAE Aero Design Bi-Weekly Meetings

Tuesday, January 24, 6:00 p.m.–7:30 p.m. | MEEM 703

SAE Aero Design aims to offer valuable experience to Michigan Tech students of all majors interested in an extracurricular engineering & design opportunity. Come join our...

Understanding Your Financial Aid Package

Tuesday, January 24, 7:00 p.m.–8:30 p.m.

The financial aid process can be confusing, and our financial aid team is here to help. Join us virtually to learn about your financial aid package, hear options for financing...

Adult and Youth Huskies Tennis and Pickleball Lessons (Session 1)

January 24, all day | Michigan Tech Gates Tennis Center

Youth Huskies Tennis Lessons: After school and weekend Youth Huskies Group Tennis Lessons are available this spring! Join in by age group and level for some fun on the tennis...