Nominations Open for 30th Annual Student Leadership Awards

Nominations for the 30th Annual Student Leadership Awards are now open!

On behalf of the University, Student Leadership and Involvement is seeking nominations for the President's Award for Leadership, Dean of Students Award for Possibilities, the William and Josephine Balconi Community Service Award and a variety of other awards to recognize the efforts and achievements of our amazing Michigan Tech community.

We encourage you to visit the Student Leadership Awards webpage for more information on each individual award. Click on an individual title to read more about the award and its requirements, then complete and submit the nomination form. Please take a minute to nominate a standout student, student organization or advisor today!

The recipient of each award will be honored at the 30th Annual Student Leadership Awards Ceremony at 6 p.m. April 12 in the Memorial Union Ballroom. Nominators are warmly encouraged to attend.

Nominations are due by midnight on March 10 for the following awards:

Individual Awards:

  • President’s Award for Leadership
  • Dean of Students Award for Possibilities
  • William and Josephine Balconi Community Service Award
  • Percy Julian Award
  • Clair M. Donovan Award
  • Exceptional Enthusiasm as a Student Leader
  • Exceptional Leadership in Student Governance
  • Rising Star of the Year
  • Student Employee of the Year
  • Student Organization Advisor of the Year

Organizational Awards:

  • Exceptional Civic Engagement Award
  • Exceptional Program of the Year
  • Most Improved Student Organization
  • Student Organization of the Year

Questions concerning the Student Leadership Awards can be directed to Student Leadership and Involvement at activities@mtu.edu or 7-1963.

MTRAC Request for Proposals Open Now

Applications for the 2024 Michigan Translational Research & Commercialization (MTRAC) grants are open from Jan. 1 to March 31.

The MTRAC Innovation Hub for Applied Advanced Materials program at Michigan Tech provides funding and resources to support materials-related projects with high commercial potential. This support includes research and development funding for prototype and late-stage translational activities, with consultation and mentoring from an oversight committee including industry and investment experts.

Contact Julie Baker at juabaker@mtu.edu or 906-487-3458 to receive assistance and guidance on proposal preparation.

Full details can be found in the 2024 MTRAC Applied Advanced Materials Application Process PDF and on the University's MTRAC page.

AppsAnywhere Downtime

On Thursday (Feb. 8) from 6-8 a.m., AppsAnywhere software will be unavailable due to system maintenance. This will not affect locally installed software (CORE, COMSOL, aspen One and Labview).

For questions about this maintenance, we can help. Contact IT at it-help@mtu.edu or call 7-1111.

You're Invited to CocoaFEST!

Please join us in the East Reading Room of the J. Robert Van Pelt and John and Ruanne Opie Library from 9-11 a.m. next Monday (Feb. 12) for CocoaFEST!

This will be a unique, relaxed opportunity to meet recruiters from Brunswick Corporation/Mercury Marine, Caterpillar Inc., Gerdau, Greenheck Group, Heartland Business Systems, Leidos, Nucor, Plexus Corp., Auto-Owners Insurance Company, American Axle & Manufacturing and General Dynamics – Electric Boat Division.

We will have hot cocoa and toppings for you to enjoy with these great employers!

After CocoaFEST, there will be a resume review and interview prep with employers from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m.

Cookies for a Cause

Enjoy some delicious homemade cookies and help Michigan Tech’s Tau Kappa Epsilon (TKE) chapter support St. Jude’s Children's Cancer Research!

Join us Wednesday (Feb. 7) during the All-Nighter from 4-10 p.m. (or until supplies run out). We’ll be set up behind the TKE statue site, next to the Administration Building. Some allergen-free options will be available.

Suggested donation of $3 per bag or two bags for $5. Cash and Venmo accepted. You can also donate directly to St. Jude’s on behalf of the Michigan Tech TKEs.

This Week at the Rozsa

Cirque FLIP Fabrique’s Blizzard — Friday and Saturday, Feb. 9 and 10
Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts
A Winter Carnival and Rozsa Presenting Series Event

“Mind-blowing acrobatics in a never-ending winter.” — Theaterkrant, Amsterdam

  • Opening Night — Friday, Feb. 9, at 7:30 p.m.
  • Sensory Friendly Matinee — Saturday, Feb. 10, at 2 p.m.
    Learn more about sensory-friendly events.

With “Blizzard,” FLIP Fabrique takes you on a fantastic, poetic and gentle journey in the dead of winter, and invites you to lose yourself in a moment of complete wonder. With performers at the peak of their art and outstanding visual poetry, “Blizzard” promises to blow away everything in its path.

Support for this Rozsa Presenting Series event is provided by Blue Key National Honor Society, the James A. and Margaret C. Black Endowment Fund, the Katherine M. Bosch Foundation, Late Night Programming and the Michigan Arts and Culture Council.

Tickets
Faculty, Staff and General Public: Get your tickets online 24/7, in person at the Rozsa Box Office on weekdays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., or by calling 906-487-1906.

Students: Learn how to get your free Student Rush ticket, sponsored by the Experience Tech fee, for this reserved seating show. (Instructions are near the bottom of the webpage under the subheading "Skip the rush line by reserving in advance.")

This Week's C3 Luncheon Menu

Menu for Thursday (Feb. 8):

  • Herb Crusted Chicken Breast (AD, AG)
  • Tortellini Primavera (Vegetarian, Dairy, Gluten)
  • Caesar Salad (Vegetarian, Egg, Dairy, Gluten, Fish, Soy)
  • Parmesan Polenta (Vegetarian, AG, Dairy)
  • Chef Vegetables (Vegan, AD, AG)
  • Breadsticks (Vegetarian, Dairy, Egg, Gluten)

Join Carved and Crafted Catering at Michigan Tech for this week's C3 Luncheon. The luncheon is 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 Chef Luis Delgado 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 and cookies are available free to all attendees.

The buffet lunch is $15 per person. Cash, credit cards and gift cards are accepted. Gift cards can be purchased or redeemed in the Memorial Union Office (MUB 101).

AG = Avoiding Gluten
AD = Avoiding Dairy
VG = Vegan
V = Vegetarian

CS Colloquium with James Davis

James C. Davis, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at Purdue University, will present a Department of Computer Science (CS) Colloquium lecture next Monday (Feb. 12) from 4-5 p.m. in Rekhi 214 and via Zoom.

The title of Davis’ talk is “Practices and Hazards in Reusing Pre-Trained Neural Networks: A Software Engineering Perspective.”

Join the colloquium via Zoom.

Read more on the Computing News Blog.

Become Mental Health First Aid Certified

The next opportunity for staff to become Mental Health First Aid Certified is Feb. 29 and March 1 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. each day. This two-day training assists individuals with recognizing signs and symptoms of someone experiencing a mental health crisis and understanding how to respond and/or get them connected to appropriate resources.

Two hours of pre-work are required through online modules ahead of the in-person training dates. The deadline to sign up is Feb. 16 and the session is limited to 30 participants. Sign up using the Mental Health First Aid registration form.

Please direct any questions to Sarah Dowd at sedowd@mtu.edu.

CS Faculty Candidate Presentation with Nagender Aneja

Department of Computer Science (CS) instructional-track faculty candidate Nagender Aneja will give a virtual classroom presentation next Tuesday (Feb. 13) at 11 a.m. via Zoom.

The title of Aneja’s presentation is “Navigating the Data with Pandas: An Introduction to Data Science.” The talk will center on the Pandas library, an essential tool in the Python programming ecosystem for data manipulation and analysis.

Join the presentation via Zoom.

Read the talk abstract and Aneja’s bio on the Computing News Blog.

ACSHF Forum: Grad Student Presentations

The Department of Cognitive and Learning Sciences (CLS) will host two speakers at the next Applied Cognitive Science and Human Factors (ACSHF) Forum: Sarah Aslani and Kit Cischke, both ACSHF graduate students. Their presentations will be from 2-3 p.m. today (Feb. 5) in Meese 109.

Aslani will present "The Influence of Decreased Ambient Lighting on Reactive Balance Mechanisms in Older compared to Middle-aged Adults and Younger Adults."

Cischke will present "Concept Maps as a Means to Calibrate Judgments of Learning."

Full abstracts can be found on the Cognitive and Learning Sciences News blog.

Job Posting

Job Posting for Monday, Feb. 5, 2024

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.

Public Safety Officer, Public Safety and Police Services (POA posting dates Feb. 5 to Feb. 9, 2024 — external applicants are encouraged to apply; however, internal POA applicants are given first consideration if they apply during the internal POA 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 humanresources@mtu.edu.

New Funding

Scott Miers (ME-EM/APSRC) is the principal investigator on a project that has received a $37,130 research and development contract from the Environment and Climate Change Canada.

The project is titled "Validation & Testing of the Mini-PEMS for Snowmobile Applications."

In the News

Sarah Hoy (CFRES) was quoted and John Vucetich and Rolf Peterson (also CFRES) were mentioned by AP News in a story about the suspension of the 2023-24 winter study of wolves and moose on Isle Royale last Tuesday (Jan. 30). The National Park Service made the call after sustained warm weather made the ice unsafe for the researchers’ survey plane to land. It is the first time in the study’s 65-year history that warm weather has caused a suspension. The story was picked up by 160 outlets nationwide, including the Guardian and Detroit Free Press.

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Zhanping You (CEGE/MTTI) was quoted by Great Lakes Echo in a story about the national potential for recycling scrap tires by incorporating them into road pavement. Trial road projects using rubber-modified asphalt in Michigan are “performing pretty well,” according to You.

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Rodney Chimner (CFRES/ESC) was quoted by EcoWatch in the story “Wetlands 101: Everything You Need to Know.” The quote was originally published in a story about peatlands’ remarkable ability to store carbon from Michigan Tech’s 2019 Research Magazine.

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Undergraduate Joe Dlugos, president of Blue Key National Honor Society, was quoted by WLUC TV6 in a story confirming Winter Carnival is going forward despite the snowmelt caused by recent warm temperatures. The story mentioned that Blue Key is looking for snow donations for statue building.

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The Daily Mining Gazette covered Michigan Tech hockey’s Blake Pietila being named a 2024 Hobey Baker Award candidate.

Reminders

Career Closet Accepting Clothing Donations

The Career Closet is a giveaway of gently worn business clothing to assist students in preparing for Career Fair and other career opportunities. Last year, between the fall and spring Career Closets, we were able to give away 1,600 items to 420 students!

In order to provide as many options for students as possible, we need to secure donations of professional clothing and shoes. We will be accepting donations of gently worn, clean business clothing through Friday (Feb. 9) at noon. Donated items will be available to all Michigan Tech students at no cost.

The Career Closet will take place Friday from 1-5 p.m. in the Superior Room and Makerspace in the Memorial Union Building. Another giveaway is planned in fall 2024 on Sept. 10 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

If you would like to volunteer at the event, please sign up through GivePulse or email us at huskycloset@mtu.edu.

While we will accept any new or gently used professional items, we do have some high-priority items:

  • Hangers
  • Paper grocery bags or reusable grocery totes
  • Men’s shoes
  • Men’s dress shirts
  • Men’s suits
  • Ties
  • Women’s size small tops
  • Women’s size 0-6 dress pants

Donated clothing may be dropped off at any of the following locations:

  • College of Business
  • Dean of Students Office
  • Career Services
  • University Images
  • Residence Education and Housing Services
  • Superior National Bank
  • American Forest Management

Or, boxed clothing can be mailed to:

Residence Education and Housing Services
1701 Townsend Drive
153W Wadsworth Hall
Houghton, MI 49931

Thank you to all who have supported this effort. This event is donation and volunteer based, and we could not do it without the help and support of our Husky community!

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Guardians of the North Annual All You Can Eat Pancake Booth

The Guardians of the North Air Force ROTC Detachment 400 is hosting our annual All You Can Eat Pancake Booth during Michigan Technological University’s Winter Carnival All-Nighter.

Get hot, fresh pancakes for $7 per person or $10 per two people, starting at 6 p.m. Wednesday (Feb. 7) and continuing until 2 a.m. Thursday (Feb. 8). We'll also be serving drinks and playing music!

Come meet the Guardians of the North members and claim the title of Pancake Champion for eating the most pancakes! We will be located in the main hallway of Fisher Hall, outside Fisher 135.

All are welcome!

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AI Working Group Faculty Listening Sessions

Michigan Tech's Artificial Intelligence (AI) Working Group is holding two listening sessions on the topic of AI in the classroom. Charged by the provost, the group is looking to gather feedback and data on usage, ideas and concerns about AI tools in education. Each event will be organized as a guided conversation with an opportunity for all other comments or questions at the end.

There are two dates available:

  • Virtual — Monday, Feb. 5, from 3-4:30 p.m. via Zoom
  • In Person — Tuesday, Feb. 6, from 3:30-4:45 p.m. in the Library East Reading Room (light refreshments will be served)

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Family Fun Day Donations

Save the Date: Family Fun Day 2024 will be held March 9 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and planning is underway. The event will feature food and activities for the whole family, including use of the SDC swimming pool and ice rink.

At this time we are seeking donations for prizes. If your department has items that can be used as prizes (coffee mugs, gift certificates, etc.) or if you would like to make a personal donation, contact Staff Council member Heather Sander at hesander@mtu.edu or 906-487-2153.

Donated items can be sent via campus mail to:

Attn: Dawn Pichette, ECE

Please mark items as "Family Fun Day Donation."

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Learn About Incorporating ArcGIS Notebooks with Parth Bhatt

Tomorrow (Feb. 6) at noon ET, Parth Bhatt (CFRES), assistant teaching professor, researcher and the instructor for the Global Campus professional development course Python for Modern GIS and Remote Sensing, will be one of the presenters for the monthly GIS in Higher Education Chat.

For the topic, "Why and how to incorporate ArcGIS Notebooks in your instructions," Bhatt will be joined by two experts from Esri, the company behind the ArcGIS software. In this chat, the panel will discuss the process of getting started with ArcGIS Notebooks, showcase geospatial analysis examples, share teaching resources and more. This talk is ideal for educators who are considering developing a new Python programming course.

Registration is free.

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Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Symposium Seeking Judges, Participants

The Pavlis Honors College would like to extend you an invitation to join us as a distinguished judge at the Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Symposium (URSS). Your participation would significantly contribute to the success of our passionate undergraduate researchers. If you would like to serve as a judge for the symposium, please submit our brief form. We appreciate your time and talents!

We encourage undergraduate researchers and scholars from all colleges to participate in the Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Symposium. We are pleased to feature the work of the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellows, The DeVlieg Foundation Fellows and the Copper Shores Community Health Foundation Fellows at this year's event, and we would also love to feature your students! This year, in addition to the poster sessions, the URSS will also feature a panelist discussion.

The URSS is a great opportunity to highlight the work of our undergraduate students, present posters describing completed or ongoing research and receive feedback from faculty judges. This year’s event will take place March 22, and research submissions are due by 11:59 p.m. tomorrow (Feb. 6).

Please pass this information to students whom you think would benefit from this opportunity and encourage them to apply! Questions about URSS can be directed to Chris Hohnholt at cahohnho@mtu.edu.

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BioSci Chair Candidate Seminars with Casey Huckins

Department of Biological Sciences (BioSci) chair candidate Casey Huckins, professor, Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University, will present a Department Leadership Seminar today (Feb. 5) from 3-4 p.m. in Rekhi G009.

Huckins will also present a research seminar tomorrow (Feb. 6) from 3-4 p.m. in Chem Sci B002.

The research seminar is titled "Integrated research to understand, conserve, and restore coaster Brook Trout – A Lake Superior Legacy."

From the abstract:
My lab group in aquatic ecology conducts research based on the foundations of ecology and evolution to understand, conserve, and restore native communities and populations. Lake Superior once supported abundant populations of adfluvial brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis, aka coaster Brook Trout. They develop as juveniles in tributaries and then migrate downriver into coastal waters of Lake Superior where they grow and mature before returning upriver to spawn. Only scattered and severely diminished remnant coaster populations remained by the early 20th century. In this talk I will present a brief overview of the history of the decline of coaster populations along the south shore of Lake Superior, highlighting recent research on the patterns and potential causes of the declines associated with the historical industrial development of the region. Our research documenting the small contemporary population size and critical habitat needs of Salmon Trout River coasters, supported reductions in allowable catches leading to increased protection to aid their recovery. However, multiple anthropogenic stressors continue to limit coaster rehabilitation. Natural sediment dynamics of rivers are important to the biological and physical structures of rivers, yet contemporary watershed disturbances degrade the river habitat through increased erosion and sedimentation that buries larger river substrates needed for Brook Trout spawning. Anthropogenic fine sediments also affect key ecosystem properties of coldwater freestone rivers by leading to reduced primary production. Active restoration to remove aggraded fine sediments has benefited Brook Trout recruitment, supporting the goal to conserve and restore this remnant coaster population in the region. Our related local research uses Passive Integrated Transponder tagging approaches to document an additional migratory population of coaster brook trout in the region. In addition, I will share an overview of our ongoing collaborations that further examine these migratory Brook Trout, their movements in the Keweenaw Waterway, their genetics, and regulations designed to aid the recovery of potential cryptic coaster populations in the region.

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Environmental Engineering Graduate Seminar with Mary Benjamin

The next Environmental Engineering Graduate Seminar will take place at 3 p.m. today (Feb. 5) in GLRC 202.

Mary Benjamin, Ph.D. student in environmental engineering, will present "Evaluating First-Year Engineering Students' Self-Efficacy in MATLAB Programming Instruction Prior to the Integration of WebTA, a Code Critiquer."

Read the abstract on the University Events Calendar.

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Three Important Announcements about Digital Measures at Michigan Tech
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1. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Sense of Belonging

Digital Measures at Michigan Tech (DM) now allows users to enter and report on data related to diversity, equity, inclusion and sense of belonging (DEIS) activity. While not required, users and reviewers are encouraged to report on and review these records in support of DEIS efforts as outlined in the Faculty Handbook.

Users will find a new screen within the General Information section of the DM Activities homepage titled "Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Sense of Belonging (DEIS)." This screen allows users to search through existing records from other screens to identify records that are relevant to DEIS. Users will be asked to enter an explanation as to how identified records are relevant to DEIS. There is also a narrative field that allows users to enter overarching statements about their DEIS activity.

The Faculty Activity Reports (FARs) have a new corresponding DEIS section that appears directly preceding the Annual Faculty Narrative section. This section will list any relevant DEIS activities, along with explanation of relevance and the DEIS narrative statement. Reviewers are encouraged to take this data into consideration during the review process.

An overview video of the new screen and reporting can be found at Panopto-HuskyCast.
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2. Updates to Annual Advising Summary Screen and Advising Section of Faculty Activity Reports

Some significant changes have been made as to how Annual Advising Summary records are handled within Digital Measures at Michigan Tech (DM). The changes are intended to better capture and report on advising activities outside of traditional graduate student advising.

While the Annual Advising Summary screen itself has only been minimally revised, the Advising section of the Faculty Activity Reports (FARs) has been modified to encompass more data from the Annual Advising Summary screen by academic year. Users can now add a general annual advising statement via the narrative field that invites users to speak on general and specific advising points that are not captured elsewhere in the FARs. The revised section will now report on many more nontraditional advising relationships for users serving in those roles. The changes also make it easier for users serving as academic advisors to accurately report on their efforts.

Users are encouraged to visit the newly revised screen to ensure they have indeed entered all advising roles and reviewers are encouraged to take the additional data now available in the FARs into consideration during the review process.
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3. Update on Transition from TechTracS to Cayuse for Sponsored Research Activity

Information Technology (IT) is still in the process of converting the automatic loading of Sponsored Research data to Digital Measures at Michigan Tech (DM) from Cayuse. Loading of data from TechTracS to DM was suspended on July 1, 2023, in anticipation of transitioning to the loading of this data from Cayuse. It was hoped that the new loading process would be in place by the end of October 2023, but the process is taking longer than expected. The new projected date of completion is March 1.

Meanwhile, we are continuing to ask DM users and reviewers to be patient. If you are a user who has reporting due and you have missing and/or inaccurate Sponsored Research records, please contact the DM administrator. If you are reviewing DM reporting, please be aware that Sponsored Research records may be incomplete or might appear in a section that is unexpected.
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The Digital Measures at Michigan Tech administrator can be reached at dm-admin@mtu.edu or 7-2135.

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Howl for Helpers: Volunteer During Winter Carnival

Blue Key is extending a much-appreciated volunteer opportunity for Tech faculty and staff during the Winter Carnival All-Nighter!

Wednesday (Feb. 7) is the day the All-Nighter statue building begins, and two fire cages run during the evening: one located by the AES statue and another by the Husky statue. If you are interested in volunteering, please sign up on our 2024 All-Nighter Fire Pit spreadsheet. All that is required from volunteers is that they ensure the fire pits stay lit and do not get out of control. They will also serve as reporting bodies to local law enforcement and Blue Key for safety concerns.

If there are any questions, please email Blue Key at bluekey@mtu.edu. Other than that, enjoy staying warm and seeing the statue building happen live on campus!

Today's Campus Events

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

Simple Machines: Poetry, Letterpress, and the Art of the Little Magazine Presented by Michigan Tech Art

Simple Machines is a two-edition, international, letterpress poetry magazine founded and edited by Michigan Tech’s M. Bartley Seigel, funded through a Research Excellence...

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Prep for Career Fair

Print your Career Fair name tag, practice your personal intro, learn how to find companies on CareerFair+, and more! This event will be taking place in two locations: MUB...

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Cocoa, Condoms, and Conduct

The President's Council on Health & Well-Being is kicking off winter carnival week with cocoa, condoms, and information about conduct! Stop by our table in the library on...

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Work-in-Progress: Evaluating First-Year Engineering Students' Self-Efficacy in MATLAB Programming Instruction Prior to the Integration of WebTA, a Code Critiquer

Environmental Engineering Graduate Seminar Mary Benjamin, Ph.D. student, Environmental Engineering Abstract: In the realm of engineering education, especially in...

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International Career Fair Prep

Join Career Services and IPS to learn about how to prepare for and what to expect at Career Fair.

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NSF I-Corps Program

Course Description Entrepreneurially-minded graduate and undergraduate students, faculty, staff, alumni, and local community teams are invited to join the next Great Lakes...

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Huskies Group Swim Lessons - Parent & Child Aquatics - Spring 2024 Session 1

Ages 6 months to 3 years. Come make a splash in Huskies Group Swim Lessons! American Red Cross Parent and Child Aquatics levels are being offered at the SDC Pool for ages 6...

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Huskies Group Swim Lessons - Preschool Aquatics - Spring 2024 Session 1

Ages 4-5 years. Come make a splash in Huskies Group Swim Lessons! American Red Cross Preschool Aquatics levels are being offered at the SDC Pool for ages 4 to 5 years old....

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Mark Mix - The Right to Work

Join us on February 5th at 7 pm in M&M 610 for a Virtual presentation from Marx Mix. Mark Mix is President of the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation. He also...