March 20, 2023

The Michigan Translational Research & Commercialization (MTRAC) program for Advanced and Applied Materials is accepting applications for the 2023 RFP through March 31. Take this opportunity to advance your technology toward a commercially viable product or process by leveraging match funding at a 1:3 ratio. Project budgets are anticipated to range from $30,000 to $50,000 of direct costs per year. Matching funds are required of each project equivalent to 25% of the total project value.

Examples of desirable translational research goals and outcomes include achieving specific milestones on the path to commercializing systems, materials, processing technologies or devices which serve a well-documented market need. Proposals may address demonstration projects, prototype development or process scale-up that is necessary to attract follow-on funding from third parties.

Full details, including budget forms, proposal instructions, application links and previously funded technology examples, can be found on the MTRAC website or contact Mike Morley at mcmorley@mtu.edu for more information.

MTRAC is sponsored by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) and the Michigan Strategic Fund (MSF).

We're in the last stretch of the semester! Help our Huskies stay fueled as they cross the finish line on this school year by donating funds or any shelf-stable, unexpired items. The pantry has seen promising growth this year — thank you for helping keep the shelves stocked!

Food donations can be left outside the pantry in the alcove across from Fisher 135. For more details, including how and what to donate, visit our donation page or reach out to huskyfan@mtu.edu!

The deadline for the 2023 Summer Track B Cumbria Study Abroad program has been extended! Join us in this four-week, six-credit program (July 16 to Aug. 12) for an amazing opportunity to explore England's northwestern borderlands, including ancient stone circles, Roman forts and Medieval castles and cathedrals, all while taking in contemporary English and Scottish culture!

Simply fill out the Study Away/Study Abroad 2023 Application Form to get started. Your $500 deposit (applied toward the program fee) will be due April 1.

Our last info session for the program will be held tomorrow (March 21) at 6 p.m. in the Academic Office Building, AOB 201. You can also contact Dan Trepal at djtrepal@mtu.edu with any questions regarding the program.

Don't wait — apply today!

The Institute for Policy, Ethics, and Culture (IPEC), partnered with Michigan Tech's Office of the Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion, the Portage Lake District Library and the Michigan Humanities Council, is presenting "Work in Transition," a virtual speaker series in March 2023.

Matt Beane, assistant professor of technology management at the University of California Santa Barbara will speak tomorrow (March 21) at 7 p.m. via Zoom webinar.

Beane is a digital fellow with MIT’s Institute for the Digital Economy and a leading expert on work involving robots. His field research examines the ways artificial intelligence (AI) and intelligent machines are changing work and the broader implications of these technologies for workers, managers and organizations.

Beane's research and speaking focuses on ways we bend and break rules to get results from technology and converting these deviant practices into tomorrow’s solutions. His research has appeared in top management publications such as Administrative Science Quarterly and Harvard Business Review. He has spoken at TED, was selected in 2012 as a Human-Robot Interaction Pioneer and is a regular contributor to popular outlets such as Wired, MIT’s Technology Review, TechCrunch, Forbes and Robohub. He also took a two-year hiatus from his doctoral studies to help establish and fund Humatics, an MIT-connected, full-stack Internet of Things (IoT) startup.

Unlike most academics, Beane's work brings him side-by-side with leaders, technologists and workers on the cutting edge of robotics and AI deployments. His talks draw from his many hundreds of hours — sometimes years — watching, interviewing and collaborating with people pioneering new approaches needed to integrate robotics and AI into critical work tasks.

Beane's presentation, titled "How AI Technology is Changing the Future of Work," will focus on the implications of futuristic robot and AI technology on human workers.

Jason Archer (HU), assistant professor of communication and media technologies, will host a discussion and Q&A following Beane's presentation.

Register for the webinar.

For more information about the lecture series, visit IPEC's Work in Transition page.

This Thursday (March 23), we are screening the third film in this year's Modern Language Film Series, where we approach the theme of social justice. Thursday's film is "Identifying Features," a Spanish language film directed by Fernanda Valadez and released in 2020 in Mexico and Spain. Run time: 95 minutes.

Magdalena embarks on an ever-expanding and increasingly dangerous journey to discover the truth about what happened to her son, who disappeared after he left with a friend to cross the border into the U.S. looking for work.

The film will begin at 7 p.m. in Fisher 135. Each film will be subtitled in English. The screening is open to the public.

Turning Point USA at Michigan Technological University invites everyone, including community members, to "Be Brave with Brandon Tatum" tomorrow (March 21) at 7 p.m. in Fisher 135.

Tatum was an All-American high school football player out of Fort Worth, Texas. He played in the U.S. Army All-American Game, which showcases the top 78 high school football players in the nation, and played for the University of Arizona for five years on a full athletic scholarship. Though he entered the NFL Draft in 2010, God had other plans for Tatum, and one year later he joined the Tucson Police Department (TPD). He is now a seven-year veteran of the TPD, and has been a SWAT operator, field training officer, general instructor and a public information officer.

Tatum is also the co-founder of Blexit, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of the youth of urban and minority communities. He is the founder of TatumReport, host of “The Officer Tatum Show,” and CEO of three companies. He has become one of the most prolific speakers and exciting personalities on social media, producing a Facebook video that received over 70 million views. Tatum has a tremendous following of over 3 million people spread across various social media platforms.

Tatum holds a bachelor's degree in sociology from the University of Arizona and is actively working on his master’s in business leadership from Grand Canyon University.

Please join us to hear from Tatum how to be brave in today’s culture.

Brandon Weeks will present as part of the Department of Chemical Engineering (ChE) Research Series on Thursday (March 23) at 3 p.m. in person in Chem Sci 201 or virtually via Zoom.

Weeks is a professor of chemical engineering at Texas Tech University.

Weeks will present "Impact of explosives on society, from nano to macro."

Read the abstract on the University Events Calendar.

Tiffany Lewis from the Goodard Space Flight Center will be presenting at a special Physics Colloquium.

The seminar will be presented in person at 11 a.m. tomorrow (March 21) in Fisher 138.

Lewis’ presentation is titled “Building Blocks for Blazars.”

Read the abstract on the University Events Calendar.

On March 30 from noon to 1 p.m. in GLRC 202, join members of the Tech Forward Initiative on Sustainability and Resilience to discuss upcoming opportunities for team proposals in the thematic areas of sustainability and resilience. Ana Dyreson (ME-EM), Chelsea Schelly (SS), Judith Perlinger (CEGE), Soonkwan Hong (COB) and Yousef Darestani (CEGE) will help seed and moderate the discussion. Attendees will also get a chance to learn more about Tech Forward resources to support research development. Feel free to bring lunch.

Add the event to your Google Calendar.

If you are interested in this work area but unable to attend, please email Alan Turnquist at alturnqu@mtu.edu and we will provide you with a summary and an opportunity to join subsequent discussions.

The Department of Social Sciences is hosting Professors Lucie Morisset and Luc Noppen, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM), to hold a workshop on Wednesday (March 22) from noon to 1 p.m. in AOB 201 and virtually via Zoom.

The workshop is titled "Heritage and local development in postindustrial contexts: overview of the research at the Canada Research Chair in Urban Heritage."

Founded in 2001 at the UQAM School of Management, the Canada Research Chair in Urban Heritage supports work on heritage from a strategic community development perspective. It focuses on knowledge, but also on the symbolic and functional requalification of built heritage, particularly in the context of deindustrialization, based on the critical principle that heritage has the capacity to transform the physical and social environment in which it is deployed.

Morisset and Noppen will present some of the research they are conducting in this spirit. They will briefly address the issue of disused churches in urban areas, as well as the future of former company towns and historic industrial complexes. They will conclude with the presentation of a deep mapping project designed to federate such research and, in the long term, to encourage community participation and enhance social knowledge.

Refreshments will be served in the Social Sciences Commons in AOB 209 after the workshop.

About the Speakers
Lucie K. Morisset has been working for the last three decades on the knowledge and preservation of the built landscape. She is a professor in the Urban and Tourism Studies Department at UQAM and chairholder of the Canada Research Chair in Urban Heritage. A historian of architecture and urban planning, Morisset is distinguished by her historical, theoretical and practical approach, linking scientific expertise with the experience of residents and owners of heritage buildings. Planned communities and the social justice of heritage feature prominently in her work. President of the Association of Critical Heritage Studies from 2017 to 2020, she currently sits on the boards of the International Committee for the Conservation of Industrial Heritage, the Quebec Association for the Industrial Heritage, and the International Council on Monuments and Sites Canada. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada since 2011, Morisset received in 2022 the Gérard-Morisset award, the highest distinction awarded by the Quebec government in the field of heritage.

Luc Noppen is a full professor in the Department of Urban and Tourism Studies at the UQAM School of Management Sciences. After a career at Laval University, he was the first holder of the Canada Research Chair in Urban Heritage at UQAM in 2001. An architectural historian by training, Noppen has worked extensively on the characterization and protection of built heritage. He has published some 20 books and several hundred articles and research reports, and has received numerous awards and distinctions, including the Killam Fellowship from the Canada Council for the Arts and the Prix du Québec Gérard-Morisset. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 1994.

The Department of Humanities announces a Rhetoric, Theory, and Culture (RTC) Colloquium being held next Monday (March 27) from noon to 2 p.m. in the Petersen Library, Walker 318.

The colloquium will be conducted by panel chair Professor Stefka Hristova (HU) and panel respondent Professor Jason Archer (HU).

Presentations will include:

• "Algorithmizing Identities and Experiences of Twitter and Facebook Users in Africa" presented by Eugene Agyei, RTC Ph.D. student
  
  
• "Digital Justice: Vernacular of Complaints on Police and Criminal Allegations in the United States" presented by Ayodele James Akinola, RTC Ph.D. student
  
  
• "Identity-first Versus Person-first Language Within Disability Dialogue" presented by Riley Powers, scientific and technical communication B.S. student
  
  
• "Redefining the Classroom: How Metonymy Engages Students Further in Postsecondary Writing Pedagogy" presented by Tucker Nielsen, RTC M.S. student
  
  
• "TikTok and Queer Youth Identity" presented by Nila McGinnis, RTC Ph.D. student

From the abstract:
This panel addresses ways that technology articulates social identity — specifically around notions of ability. Papers explore different sociotechnical and symbolic formations of marginalized identity related to queerness, victims of the criminal justice system, the classroom, and mobility. Papers address these issues from digital and global perspectives, including TikTok, African contexts, and transnational experiences — attempting to show how groups often treated as disabled and further marginalized by normative discourses, strategically operate with technology to reshape identity.

The next Environmental Engineering Graduate Seminar will take place at 3 p.m. today (March 20) via Zoom (use passcode 514421).

Courtney Andrie, engineer-in-training, an environmental engineer at Foth Infrastructure & Environment LLC, will present "Anaerobic Treatment to Reduce Influent COD and Sludge Production for Mid-West Slaughterhouse."

Read the Environmental Engineering Graduate Seminar abstract.

Job Posting for Monday, March 20, 2023

Staff and faculty job descriptions are available on the Human Resources website. For more information regarding staff positions, call 487-2280 or email humanresources@mtu.edu. For more information regarding faculty positions, contact the academic department in which the position is posted.

Chief Information Security Officer, Information Technology. 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 humanresources@mtu.edu.

Cassy Tefft de Muñoz (CEO) was quoted by the Voice of Sterling Heights, Michigan, in a story about the hugely successful turnout at the STEM Fest held at St. Clair Community College on March 11. Michigan Tech’s Mind Trekkers offered activities and demonstrations at the festival, which had more than 3,700 students from over 130 zip codes register to attend.

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MLive ran a story about Michigan Tech and the University of Michigan Ann Arbor being ranked among the top 50 best value public colleges in the U.S. by the Princeton Review. MTU was ranked No. 32, and U-M Ann Arbor was No. 9.

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College Hockey News, the Rink Live, Mankato Free Press and BVM Sports ran a story on Michigan Tech hockey's coach Joe Shawhan and goaltender Blake Pietila being named the CCHA’s coach and player of the year, respectively. Shawhan’s award was covered individually by the Daily Mining Gazette, WJMN Local 3 and WLUC TV6. Pietila’s award was covered individually by the Daily Mining Gazette and WJMN Local 3.

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The Daily Mining Gazette covered Michigan Tech hockey’s Kyle Kukkonen being named CCHA Rookie of the Year.

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Photonics Online and Novus Light Technologies Today mentioned Michigan Tech in stories about Jennifer Hellberg ’97 (B.S. Environmental Engineering) being appointed division vice president, business unit manager, at Zygo, which works with global organizations and sets standards by which the metrology and optics industries judge themselves.

Sponsored Webinar: 'Why Pronouns Matter'

The Michigan Tech community is invited to an upcoming webinar, "Why Pronouns Matter: Fostering Inclusion In and Out Of The Classroom," tomorrow (March 21) from 1-2:30 p.m. 

This workshop will help participants understand why this is an important issue and how to navigate this landscape. Additionally, the presenters will share from their experiences the differences between gender identity expression and sexual orientation, a commonly confused concept. 

Who should attend:

• Administration
• Enrollment Management
• Faculty
• Human Resources
• Online Learning
• Student Services/Affairs
• Student Mental Health Services/Crisis Response
• Campus Police

The webinar, presented by Innovative Educators, is available through the sponsorship of the Office of the Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion and Equal Opportunity Compliance and Title IX.

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Technical Lecture with CS Faculty Candidate Stella Otoo

Department of Computer Science (CS) faculty candidate Stella Otoo, New Mexico State University, will present a classroom lecture tomorrow (March 21) at 1 p.m. virtually via Zoom.

The title of the talk is “Implementation Strategies for STEM Learning using a Computer-Based Simulation.”

Otoo is an educational specialist at the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) Outreach Center of New Mexico State University. Her research interests focus on a playcentric approach to learning programming through games and the effective implementation of theories in teaching and learning theoretical computer science concepts.

Learn more on the Computing News Blog.

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Write-In at the Library Next Wednesday!

Students are invited to the Opie Room in the Van Pelt and Opie Library on Wednesday (March 22) from 12-4 p.m. for some writing time with the Writing Center!

Coaches will be available to support you as you work, or you can just focus in some dedicated writing space and enjoy a few snacks.

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CTL Technical Workshop: Canvas Grading and Gradebook

Do you have questions about how the Canvas gradebook works? Do you need help grading assignments in SpeedGrader and posting them in the gradebook? Making sure your students have accurate and updated grades in Canvas is important. The Jackson Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) will be hosting a technical workshop on Canvas grading and gradebook practices.

We’ll cover some of the common pinch points that instructors encounter, including the use of assignment groups for grade weighting, setting up a grading scheme that matches your syllabus, using grade posting policies and attaching grading rubrics to your assignments.

Register to attend the CTL Technical Workshop: Canvas Grading and Gradebook at 2 p.m. Thursday (March 23) in Library 219 (CTL conference room).

Contact the CTL at elearning@mtu.edu for more information.

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UAW Local 5000 Scholarships

Two scholarships are available to the children of Local 5000 members in good standing. $500 will be awarded to a child attending or who will be attending Michigan Tech and $500 to a child attending or who will be attending another college, university or certificate program.

Please download the application form to apply or see the email sent to uaw-l@mtu.edu on Feb. 27. The application deadline is May 15.

Contact Devin Seppala at devin@mtu.edu or Amanda Cadwell at amanda@mtu.edu for more information.

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ACSHF Forum with Paul Ward

The Department of Cognitive and Learning Sciences (CLS) will host Paul Ward at the next Applied Cognitive Science and Human Factors (ACSHF) Forum.

The presentation, “Beyond Academia: From Adaptivity to Augmented Decision Making and Back Again,” will be from 2-3 p.m. today (March 20) via Zoom.

Ward is chief scientist for the social and behavioral sciences and principal cognitive scientist at the MITRE Corporation — a not-for-profit organization based in McLean, Virginia, that runs multiple federally funded research and development centers whose aim is to solve problems to create a safer world.

Ward's full bio and abstract can be found on the Cognitive and Learning Sciences News blog.

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SS Accelerated MS Degree Info Session

Interested in pursuing a master's degree? Did you know it can be done in only one year? If you are a rising junior or senior (from any major on campus), this is the time to explore your options.

The Department of Social Sciences (SS) will be hosting an information session from 4-5 p.m. today (March 20) in the Academic Office Building Commons (second floor of the AOB) for the following programs:

• Accelerated M.S. in Environmental and Energy Policy
• Accelerated M.S. in Industrial Heritage and Archaeology
• Accelerated M.S. in Sustainable Communities

Drop in and learn about the various curriculums, how to double count undergraduate courses toward a graduate degree, how to use the senior rule, and the all-important information on funding your graduate degree. Advisors will be available to answer any other questions you may have.

If you are interested but unable to attend the information session, I encourage you reach out the appropriate accelerated M.S. advisor:

• Accelerated M.S. in Environmental and Energy Policy: 
  Adam Wellstead at awellste@mtu.edu 
  
  
• Accelerated M.S. in Industrial Heritage and Archaeology: 
  Laura Rouleau at lwrouleau@mtu.edu 
  
  
• Accelerated M.S. in Sustainable Communities: 
  Chelsea Schelly at cschelly@mtu.edu 

Hope to see many of you there!

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

Volunteer Income Tax Assistance by Appointment

Monday, March 20, 11 a.m.–11 p.m. | Academic Office Building (AOB), G015

The College of Business is pleased to again offer Volunteer Income Tax Assistance. Accounting majors will provide free income tax preparation assistance for students and...

ACSHF Forum: Paul Ward

Monday, March 20, 2 p.m.–3 p.m.

The Department of Cognitive and Learning Sciences will host Dr. Paul Ward at the next Applied Cognitive Science and Human Factors forum. The presentation, “Beyond Academia:...

Anaerobic Treatment to Reduce Influent COD and Sludge Production for Mid-West Slaughterhouse

Monday, March 20, 3 p.m.

Environmental Engineering Graduate Seminar Courtney Andrie, EIT, Environmental Engineer, Foth Infrastructure & Environment, LLC Abstract: A mid-west slaughterhouse treats...

Software Carpentry Workshop in R

Monday, March 20, 3:00 p.m.–5:30 p.m.

Michigan Tech will host a “Software Carpentry Workshop in R” from March 20 to March 24, 2023, each day from 3-5:30 p.m. ET. The virtual workshop is open to and free for...

German Stammtisch Conversation Table

Monday, March 20, 5 p.m.–6 p.m. | Walker Arts and Humanities Center, 120C

Stammtisch is an informal German conversation table. Join us for casual conversation and snacks! Practice your German, make friends and share interest in German culture....

Bio-Inspired Designs

Monday, March 20, 6 p.m.

Husky Bites presents Special Guest Bruce Lee Professor, Biomedical Engineering Michigan Technological University Co-host Fatemeh Razaviamri A smart adhesive doesn’t need...

Intention Bracelets

Monday, March 20, 6 p.m.–8 p.m. | Makerspace, Memorial Union Building

Join us in the Makerspace to make a personalized washer bracelet,

Yoga For You

Monday, March 20, 6 p.m.–7 p.m. | MUB Ballroom

MTU's Save RSO and the Well-Being Advocates will be hosting a trauma-informed beginners' yoga course. Instructor Bridgette Morin will be providing a safe and open space for...

The Rozsa Presents: National Geographic Live Adaptation

Monday, March 20, 7:30 p.m. | Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts, Dr. James A. and Margaret C. Black Performance Hall

THE ROZSA CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS PRESENTS NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC LIVE ADAPTATION WITH ENVIRONMENTAL ANTHROPOLOGIST & FILMMAKER ALIZÉ CARRÈRE Run time 70 min speaker...