January 23, 2023

Michigan Tech’s Pavlis Honors College invites undergraduate researchers and scholars from all colleges to submit for presentation at the 2023 Undergraduate Research & Scholarship Symposium. The symposium gives undergraduate students the opportunity to present posters describing completed or ongoing research and receive feedback from faculty judges. This event is an excellent learning experience and showcases the great undergraduate research and scholarship occurring at Michigan Tech.

The Undergraduate Research & Scholarship Symposium will take place March 24 in the Rozsa Lobby, coinciding with Michigan Tech’s Preview Weekend. The symposium is a great way to share the exciting research projects going on across campus with high school students who are considering attending Michigan Tech.

Research submissions are due Feb. 7 at 11:59 p.m.; please encourage your students to register and submit their work.

To submit, visit the Undergraduate Research & Scholarship Symposium webpage and follow the instructions provided. It is recommended that applicants save their text in a document and copy the required information into the submission form.

Submissions will be reviewed by Pavlis Honors College staff and confirmation of acceptance will be sent by March 6. In the event that more submissions are received than space in the Rozsa Lobby allows, it is possible that some will not be accepted.

Questions can be directed to Chris Hohnholt at cahohnho@mtu.edu. We look forward to seeing your submissions and presentations!

H-STEM Complex construction is proceeding on schedule, and the size of the building is clearly visible now. Over the next few weeks in the new addition, the concrete floor slabs will be completed and the structural fireproofing will be applied. Miscellaneous steel installation will be completed, including the stairs to all levels. Wall framing will begin, and the mechanical/electrical rough-in work will start. In the existing building, renovation work, the wall framing and mechanical/electrical rough-in will continue.

The project is still on track to be completed and occupied by early 2024.

As always, please pay attention when walking past the construction site, and thank you for your patience as we bring this exciting project into reality.

The project webcam is a great place to check out the progress. The project webpage is also a good place to look for more information on the project. 

Appointments are still available for faculty, staff and graduate students to have their complimentary professional portrait taken by University Marketing and Communications (UMC) at one of the following sessions:

• Wednesday, Jan. 25 — 10 a.m. to noon
• Thursday, Jan 26 — 1-3 p.m.

The sessions will take place in the UMC Studio, located in Admin G37. Appointments are required, and you must use your mtu.edu email account to sign up. 

To schedule a portrait appointment:

1. Go to the University Events Calendar.
2. Click Register.
3. Select Jan. 25 or Jan. 26.
4. Select your desired time.
5. Click Save.

Portraits will be emailed to the attendee within four weeks after the session. Alternatively, departments or individuals can contact Brockway Photography at 906-482-1900 to schedule a session and purchase portraits at any time.

Backstage Jazz: Small Groups — 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday, Jan. 27 and 28
Backstage at the Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts
Presented by Michigan Tech Music
Performed by Michigan Tech Jazz

This superb concert recreates the feeling of a jazz club by seating you onstage with the musicians. The concert, emceed by Director of Jazz Studies Adam Meckler, will be performed by the small ensembles of Michigan Tech Jazz.

Learn more about Backstage Jazz: Small Groups.

Get your tickets online, at 906-487-1906 or at the Rozsa Box Office from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Can’t attend in person? The concert will be livestreamed for far-away Michigan Tech Jazz lovers and alums.

On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) and Engineering Ambassadors (EA) hosted an Engineering Day at Barkell Elementary in Hancock, Michigan. Students from SWE, EA, Tau Beta Pi and Circle K “made it a day on, not a day off” through introducing kindergarten through fifth grade students to engineering.

Kindergarten and first grade students learned about buoyancy and stability through designing a constructing a foil boat to hold a load. Second and third grade students learned about potential and kinetic energy as they designed and constructed roller coasters for marbles. The fourth and fifth graders were introduced to series circuits as they constructed a BouncyBot.

We thank the Tech students for volunteering and the Barkell Elementary students for their enthusiasm and willingness to learn.

Physics graduate students will be presenting their research progress at this week's Physics Colloquium:

• Rhiannon Turner (advised by Petra Huentemeyer)
• Lucas Simonson (advised by Ramy El-Ganainy )

This will be an in-person event — the students will give their talks at 4 p.m. Thursday (Jan. 26) in Fisher 139.

Event details, including the students' presentation titles and abstracts, are available on the University Events Calendar.

Join Graduate Student Government (GSG) and the Van Pelt and Opie Library in learning why planning your career is more than just choosing a company or industry.

Melissa Baird, graduate director of the Department of Social Sciences, will walk through the steps to take you down the path to the career you want. This short workshop will take place in the Library East Reading Room from 12-12:30 p.m. next Tuesday (Jan. 31). Light snacks will be provided!

Sign up for the Career Planning Workshop.

Job Postings for Monday, Jan. 23, 2023

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.

Assistant Research Engineer – Software Developer, Michigan Tech Research Institute. Apply online.

Research Engineer/Scientist I – Remote Sensing Engineer, Michigan Tech Research Institute. Apply online.

Research Engineer I – Software Developer, Michigan Tech Research Institute. 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.

The recent naming of an asteroid after Robert Nemiroff (Physics) was covered by the Keweenaw Report.

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In its Jan. 18 print issue, the Daily Mining Gazette ran photos and a short summary of a visit by Michigan Tech students to Barkell Elementary in Hancock on page 6A.

The students — from Engineering Ambassadors, Society of Women Engineers, as well as Tau Beta Pi and Circle K — hosted an Engineering Day to introduce K-5 students to engineering principles.

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The Daily Mining Gazette and WLUC TV6 covered the naming of hockey goaltender Blake Pietila as a Hobey Baker Memorial Award candidate. Pietila’s candidacy was the subject of a Michigan Tech Athletics press release last week.

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The Daily Mining Gazette picked up a Michigan Tech Athletics press release about Nordic skier Adam Witkowski’s history-making appearance at the FIS World Cup over the weekend.

Witkowski is the first current Husky to compete in the World Cup.

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The Denver Post, Boston Herald, Capital Gazette and eight other regional news outlets in the U.S. mentioned Michigan Tech in a story about the open offensive coordinator job with the Baltimore Ravens.

Former Husky wide receiver Bobby Slowik, currently the 49ers passing game coordinator, was listed as a potential candidate.

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The Iron Mountain Daily News previewed Michigan Tech’s upcoming Winter Carnival comedy event featuring Mikey Day, a veteran of “Saturday Night Live” and Netflix’s “Is It Cake?” The show will begin at 9 p.m. Feb. 10 at the Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts.

Mentoring Graduate Students Workshops

The Provost's Office and Graduate School will hold a two-part workshop series focused on tools and best practices for mentoring and advising graduate students. All faculty who work with graduate students are invited to attend.

The first session will include an overview of tools and processes for advising and will feature a panel of experienced faculty mentors who will share their best practices for mentoring graduate students. It will also include time for Q&A. The second session will include case study discussions focused on mentoring challenges. Please mark your calendar for both events!

• Mentoring Graduate Students Workshop Part 1 — Effective Mentoring Structures: Tools and Best Practices
  
  • Tuesday, Jan. 24, 3-4:30 p.m., Memorial Union Ballroom B
  • Panelists will include Melissa Baird (SS), Evan Kane (CFRES), Amy Marcarelli (BioSci) and Zhanping You (CEGE).
    
    
• Mentoring Graduate Students Workshop Part 2 — Communicating Expectations and Overcoming Challenges
  • Tuesday, Feb. 21, 3-4:30 p.m., Memorial Union Alumni Lounge B

Faculty are free to attend just one event or part of an event as their schedule allows.

To help us with planning, please complete the Mentoring Graduate Students Workshops form to let us know that you plan to attend. The form also includes space for questions you would like answered at the sessions.

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WebFOCUS Maintenance

A production system maintenance window is scheduled for today (Jan. 23) from 4:30-6:30 p.m. WebFOCUS will be unavailable during this time.

If you have any questions or concerns, we can help. Contact us at it-help@mtu.edu or call 7-1111.

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ADVANCE Partnership Webinar: On-Campus Child Care and Family Support

Students, staff and faculty at Michigan Tech are invited to attend a dynamic discussion on Thursday (Jan. 26). Join the ADVANCE Partnership Team for a discussion on the equity issues faced by campus communities due to inadequate child care and caregiver support. Wendy Wagner Robeson and Autumn Green will discuss the factors that make up family-friendly campuses and the problems faced by student caregivers/parents. This session will focus on equity with respect to child care and the problems families and children face when they have inadequate or no child care. The trilemma of care — affordability, availability and high quality — will be examined with respect to the needs of a campus community. This discussion will be inclusive of all members of the community: undergraduate and graduate students, staff and faculty.

• What: On-Campus Child Care and Family Support Discussion
• When: Thursday, Jan. 26, at 1 p.m. EST
• Where: This will be a virtual discussion. Register today.

Resources:

• Flyer with a registration link
• Poster for printing and posting in your unit

A second session is scheduled for March 30 at 1 p.m. EST/noon CST and will focus on developing strategies and solutions to address these issues. It is our hope that by raising awareness of these concerns we all can recognize that our campuses need to uphold care infrastructures that are flexible and value community members’ values, cultures, gender, ethnicity and diversity so that all members can advance and reach their potential and thereby enhance the campus to which they belong.

The ADVANCE Midwest Partnership is an NSF-funded ADVANCE Partnership Initiative between Iowa State University, Michigan Technological University, North Dakota State University and Western Michigan University.

ADVANCE at Michigan Tech is an NSF-funded initiative dedicated to improving faculty career success, retention, diversity, equity and inclusion.

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MTU Implementing ERA Software from Cayuse

To help manage Michigan Tech’s continued growth as a research institution, the Vice President for Research Office is in the process of implementing electronic research administration (ERA) software from Cayuse.

With the current trajectory of research activities, Michigan Tech needs a software solution that will help to better manage our growing research portfolio, reduce administrative burden, provide transparency and assist with managing risk and compliance to changing regulations. After investigating several options, Michigan Tech has entered into a contract with Cayuse, which provides ERA software solutions for over 650 research institutions worldwide.

During fiscal years 2023 and 2024, the University will be transitioning to the new Cayuse cloud-based software for managing its portfolio of proposal/award activity, agreements, technologies and inventions, conflict of interest, human and animal ethics and hazardous safety. Implementation of the software will have impacts on a variety of constituents across campus, including principal investigators, departmental administrators, financial managers and related sponsored project roles. Overview and training sessions will be provided to the campus community in advance of the implementation of any changes to processes that will arise due to the new system.

Work began on this implementation in August 2022, with plans to implement all modules by October 2023. More information will be shared as we begin rollouts on our Cayuse Implementations webpage and in Tech Today.

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Essential Education Proposal Overview and Q&A

The entire campus community is invited to join IDEAhub leadership (the Tech Forward 21st Century Education task force) for an overview presentation of the proposed Essential Education program. This will be an interactive session with a final opportunity to share your feedback and questions on the proposed framework before the proposal is formally presented to the University Senate.

There are three opportunities to participate:

• 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. on Zoom

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 proposal with the campus community.

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Research Project Looking for Participants

The Aging, Cognition, and Action Lab is still looking for healthy older adults to participate in a two-day research study.

Inclusion criteria:

• 55-90 years old.
• No medical conditions/diagnoses that impact movement.
• No significant injuries to hands or arms that impact movement.

For more information, please visit the project website or call us at 906-487-2378.

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ACSHF Forum: Grad Student Presentations

The Department of Cognitive and Learning Sciences (CLS) will host applied cognitive science and human factors (ACSHF) Ph.D. students Lauren Sprague and Brandon Woolman at the next ACSHF forum.

Sprague's and Woolman's presentations will be from 2-3 p.m. today (Jan. 23) in Meese 109 and via Zoom.

Sprague will present "Pilot test of critical flicker fusion in combination with functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) in order to accurately measure cognitive workload during a visuospatial vigilance task."

Woolman will present "Assessing Cognitive Impairment and Early Alzheimer’s Disease Using a Reverse Visually Guided Reaching Task."

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

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CLC Fellowship Opportunity in Community Sustainability for Grad Students

Today (Jan. 23) from 12-1 p.m., Sarah Lee from the University of Michigan will hold a webinar about the Catalyst Leadership Circle (CLC) Fellowship.

Please join us in the Academic Office Building, AOB 201, or via Zoom.

The CLC Fellowship offers graduate students the opportunity to help local governments advance toward specific sustainability goals. The fellowship is supported by Michigan’s Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy Catalyst Communities Program and administered by the Graham Sustainability Institute at the University of Michigan.

The Fellowship offers: 

• $6,000 in funding 
• $1,500 housing/travel stipend
• Professional training
• Experience working with a municipality 

We hope to see you there!

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

7 Days of MUB

Monday, January 23, 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...

ACSHF Forum: Grad Student Presentations

Monday, January 23, 2 p.m.–3 p.m. | Harold Meese Center, 109

The Department of Cognitive and Learning Sciences will host ACSHF PhD Students Lauren Sprague and Brandon Woolman at the next Applied Cognitive Science and Human Factors...

Basics of Wastewater Treatment Operation & Design

Monday, January 23, 3 p.m. | Great Lakes Research Center (GLRC), 202

Environmental Engineering Graduate Seminar Tom Asmus, Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) Water Resource Division (WRD) Abstract: This...

Monday After School Learn to Ski and Snowboard Program

Monday, January 23, 5:30 p.m.–7:00 p.m. | Mont Ripley Ski Area

Mondays Ages 8-12 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,...

Engineering Ambassadors General Meeting

Monday, January 23, 6 p.m.–7 p.m. | Fisher 132

Join the Engineering Ambassadors for our First General Meeting of the semester! Bring a friend! We will review our semester schedule and plans, as well as expectations. Bring...

Sliding into the Future of Mont Ripley

Monday, January 23, 6 p.m.

Husky Bites presents Special Guest Nick Sirdenis General Manager, Mont Ripley Ski Area Michigan Technological University Co-hosts Dan Dalquist and Josie Stalmack Mont...

Keweenaw Socialists @ MTU General Meeting

Monday, January 23, 7 p.m.–9 p.m. | Fisher 325

Discussion of current org projects and planned socials as well as notable recent news. The meeting will be hybrid in-person and on Zoom. Following the organized portion of the...

Undecided About Your Major?

Monday, January 23, 7:00 p.m.–8:30 p.m.

Are you not sure what you want to major in or thinking you may end up switching majors? Then this session is for you!

Frozen Yogurt Bar!

Monday, January 23, 8 p.m.–9 p.m. | Phi Delta Chi Sorority House

All women and nonbinary individuals are welcome to come to the PDC house for a frozen yogurt bar! Rides are offered from WADS by the front desk leaving at 7:55 p.m., contact...

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

January 23, 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...