April 28, 2025

Today, April 28, Michigan Technological University welcomes Nicole Piazza as our first director of Thompson Scholarship Programs.

Piazza brings a wealth of experience and passion to this role. For the past four years, she has served as the scholarship and recruiting operations officer for Michigan Tech’s ROTC program. Prior to joining the University, she held several leadership roles in the U.S. Army, where she oversaw career exploration, volunteer and youth programs. She holds a bachelor’s degree in social science and a master’s in secondary education, both from James Madison University.

As the University's director of Thompson Scholarship Programs, Piazza will serve as a vital link between the Thompson Foundation and Michigan Tech, working closely with students to ensure their success. The requirements and various opportunities offered through the program are specifically targeted at helping students achieve academic and personal goals through volunteerism, community and collaboration. The program will be housed in the Alumni House beginning in August.

The Thompson Foundation, established in 1999, originally focused on grant-making efforts aimed at alleviating human suffering, promoting economic independence and increasing educational access for low-income youth and adults in the Detroit area. Over time, the foundation has shifted its focus toward providing scholarships at select universities in Michigan and northern Ohio. Its flagship initiative, the Working Families Scholarship Program, launched in 2011, is the same program Michigan Tech has proudly participated in since 2020.

Michigan Tech’s Working Families Scholarship is named in honor of two esteemed alumni: Rollin A. Jones and James E. Lindstrom. At its peak, the program will support more than 700 students on campus. Over its lifetime, the scholarship will positively impact thousands of Michigan Tech students.

The Thompson Scholarship Programs’ mission closely aligns with Michigan Tech’s core values — and Piazza exemplifies those values in her work. We are thrilled to welcome her into this new leadership role.

As in the past, faculty serving on search committees and promotion and tenure committees are required to complete a course now called the Faculty Hiring and Review Workshop. The workshop covers high-impact practices for attracting the best candidates, required steps for search committees, legal aspects of hiring, and approaches for successfully promoting and retaining faculty.

The requirements for completing this workshop will remain the same:

• The full workshop is a three-week asynchronous course in Canvas facilitated by fellow faculty members.
• For those who have already taken the full workshop, we offer a one-week refresher workshop that includes new trends and research.
• A refresher workshop is required every four years to maintain current status. Faculty must be current to serve on a search or PTR committee.
• Those with expired status are required to take the full three-week workshop.
• Each semester we will offer one full workshop and three refreshers.

This summer, the workshop website and enrollment process are being updated. A full announcement with updated enrollment instructions will appear in August in Tech Today and will also be sent to deans and chairs.

Faculty who were enrolled in the canceled spring 2025 workshops will have priority enrollment for workshops offered during the 2025-26 academic year and will be allowed an extra year to maintain their status without taking the full three-week workshop.

If you have any questions, please contact Workshop Coordinator Sarah Fayen Scarlett at sfscarle@mtu.edu or 906-487-2110.

Last Thursday, April 24, Michigan Tech's student chapter of the Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) hosted the Department of Biomedical Engineering’s first-ever Order of the Engineer induction ceremony.

The new Order of the Engineer student inductees include Rachel Andres, Simon Arnold, Emily Breton, Olivia Capelle, Brooke Cochran, Emily Dowdy, Shanaya Fleig, Jaden Fus, Hope Gibbons, Jamie Greenley, Zoe Haase, Anna Hill, Grace Hoeppner, Emilee Houk, Elenah Hoxsie, Madelyn Jackson, Kelsey Jensen, Carsen Jones, Matthew Kassab, Lauren Kiss, Janae Koetje, Kiley Long, Marissa Lopez, Olivia Luke, Lauren McIntyre, Makaiah Munchbach, Alexis Muszynski, Sophia Peake, Matthew Plansinis, Ethan Plummer, Jocelyn Portice, Simon Rhode, Grace Richer, Catherine Roelant, Erican Santiago, Catherine Schelonka, McKenna Seidl, Eddie Sloan, Maryellen Trewhella, Anna Turner, Margaret Voice, Eleanor Wentworth and Abigail Wilbanks.

Four faculty members were also inducted: Sangyoon Han, Jingfeng Jiang, Sean Kirkpatrick and Smitha Rao (all BioMed).

Thank you to the Department of Biomedical Engineering for supporting the new tradition — and for being inducted themselves, enabling its continuation for years to come. Special thanks to Kyle Griffin and Jeana Collins in the Department of Chemical Engineering for inducting everyone into the order.

Another year is in the books! Thanks to all the Michigan Tech faculty, staff, and students who made this an incredible year of live performances at the Rozsa Center. Starting today, April 28, the Rozsa will be shifting to summer hours. We will resume regular hours on Aug. 11, at the beginning of the fall 2025 semester.

Summer Hours Around the Rozsa:

• Rozsa Box Office: Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. to noon plus one hour before events.

• Rozsa Lobby and Administrative Offices: Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Lobby will open one hour before events. Closed during academic recesses.

• Rozsa Art Galleries: Closed for summer. Reopens with a new exhibition on Sept. 12.

Rozsa Summer Events:

Take a look at the community events happening at the Rozsa this summer, and be the first to know about the 2025/2026 Rozsa Presenting Series season by joining the Rozsa Newsletter or by following the Rozsa on Facebook or Instagram.

Job Posting for Monday, April 28, 2025

Staff and faculty job descriptions are available on the Human Resources website. For more information regarding staff positions, call 906-487-2280 or email humanresources@mtu.edu. For more information regarding faculty positions, contact the academic department in which the position is posted.

Academic Advisor, ​Electrical and Computer Engineering. 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.

M. Bartley Seigel (HU) read from his new poetry collection, “In the Bone-Cracking Cold,” at Literati Bookstore in Ann Arbor on April 17 and at 27th Letter Books in Detroit on April 18.

Seigel was joined by former Michigan Poet Laureate Nandi Comer and fellow Michigan poet Keith Taylor.

WLUC TV6 interviewed all three of Michigan Tech’s Spring Commencement speakers — Deedra Irwin ’15 (B.S. Exercise Science), Tabasum Hamdard ’25 (M.S. Data Science), and Mary Christine Stevens ’25 (B.A. English) — in a story previewing their addresses to MTU’s Class of 2025 at the University's graduate and undergraduate ceremonies, held April 25 and 26 at the MacInnes Student Ice Arena.

*****

M. Bartley Seigel (HU) was a guest on the April 16 episode of “Living Writers,” a radio show aired on the University of Michigan Ann Arbor’s WCBN-FM station. Seigel discussed his new collection of poetry, “In the Bone-Cracking Cold.”

*****

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer mentioned Michigan Tech in a press release about 543 jobs expected to be created downstate by the expansion of two businesses: Norplas Industries in Wayne County’s Highland Park and HL Mechatronics in Bay County’s Williams Township. MTU was named as a talent recruitment partner of HL Mechatronics, which recruits Huskies for internships and entry-level jobs. The announcement was picked up by Big Rapids’ Herald Review and the Midland Daily News.

*****

Muskrat Magazine mentioned Michigan Tech in a story highlighting a keynote address given by alum Roxane Gay ’10 (Ph.D. Rhetoric and Technical Communication) at AWP 2025, held by the Association of Writers and Writing Programs in Los Angeles in March.

Research Services Survey: Your Input Requested

Michigan Technological University’s Research Advisory Council (RAC) is currently conducting a short survey to solicit feedback on the current opinions of the overall effectiveness of research services, functions and programs at Michigan Tech. The survey will create a baseline of satisfaction ratings to track annually.

All faculty and research-active staff should have received a survey invitation and personalized survey link by email on April 10. Please provide your responses by May 9.

If you did not receive a survey and would like to participate, please contact research@mtu.edu.

*****

Info Session: 'Export Controls and Foreign National Restrictions'

Join Chief Research Security Officer Matt Hellman and the Research Security team for an informational session titled “Export Controls and Foreign National Restrictions” from 12-1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 30.

Please note: This hybrid session is being offered both in person in the Memorial Union Building's Superior Room (MUB B001) and remotely via Zoom.

Join the Info Session on Zoom.

Please contact researchsecurity-l@mtu.edu with any questions.

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

Master's Defense: Samuel Haarman

Monday, April 28, 2–3 p.m. | H-Stem, 348

Biomedical Engineering Advisor: Sangyoon Han DEVELOPMENT AND VALIDATION OF NOVEL FORCE RECONSTRUCTION ALGORITHM FOR TRACTION FORCE MICROSCOPY

Master's Defense: Suruchi Kushwaha

Monday, April 28, 2–3 p.m. | Rekhi Hall, 101

Computer Science Advisor: Iakov Nekritch Three-Sided Skyline Counting Queries Attend Virtually: https://michigantech.zoom.us/j/84063386093

Master's Defense: Yuxi Jin

Monday, April 28, 3–4 p.m.

Geology Advisor: Simon Carn QUANTIFYING SO2 EMISSIONS FROM EXPLOSIVE EVENTS OF THE 2021 LA SOUFRIÈRE ERUPTION USING DSCOVR/EPIC Attend Virtually:...