February 3, 2023

Michigan Tech’s Pavlis Honors College invites undergraduate researchers and scholars from all colleges to participate in the 2023 Michigan Tech Undergraduate Research & Scholarship Symposium (URSS). We are pleased to feature the work of the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellows, the DeVlieg Foundation Fellows and the Portage Health Foundation Fellows at this year's event, and we would also love to feature your students!

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 24, and research submissions are due by 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday (Feb. 7).

This year, in addition to the poster sessions, the URSS will also feature a panelist discussion and a networking social event leading up to the announcement of the event’s award winners. Our menu for the panelist discussion and the networking social will consist of French-roast coffee, petit fours and Lac La Belle apple cider.

Additionally, we have teamed up with the J. Robert Van Pelt and John and Ruanne Opie Library to offer a poster creation session on March 14 from 10-11 a.m. to assist your students in preparing for the URSS. If they'd like to get started before then, the Library has templates to assist them.

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

The Michigan Tech Archives is currently accepting applications for its annual Travel Grant Program. The travel grant brings scholars and researchers to Michigan Tech to work with the archives’ collections. Financial support for the program is provided by the Friends of the Michigan Tech Library, a support organization for the Van Pelt and Opie Library.

Grants are awarded for up to $1,000 to defray the costs of travel to visit and conduct research in Houghton, Michigan. In addition, graduate students applying to the program may request up to an additional $250 (furnished by the Archives) to help defray any duplication costs incurred during a qualified research trip.

The Archives houses a wide variety of historical print, graphic and manuscript resources related to the Copper Country and the University. Subject coverage is vast, and includes University and campus life, regional towns and cities, local industries and businesses, social organizations, events and personalities of the Copper Country, and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Primary topical research areas include the western Upper Peninsula, industrial heritage and history (particularly copper mining and its ancillary industries), social history, community development along the Keweenaw Peninsula, transportation and the environment. Finding aids for some of the collections can be found on the Collection Register.

To apply for funding through the Travel Grant Program, please visit the program website.

Applications are due March 17. Award recipients will be notified in April. The successful candidate must complete their travel by Dec. 8, 2023. Electronic submission of applications is required.

For further information, please contact University Archivist Lindsay Hiltunen at 906-487-3209 or copper@mtu.edu.

After months of advocacy and working closely with Transportation Services and the administration, it is Graduate Student Government's immense pleasure to share with you that Transportation Services started the Hancock shuttle pilot this past Tuesday (Jan. 31).

A valid Michigan Tech ID will be required to ride the van. This service is available for staff, faculty, and graduate and undergraduate students.

In Hancock, the shuttle will have four stops:

• Northern Mutual Insurance
• Quincy Street / Ryan Street crossing
• Quincy Street / Michigan Street crossing
• Western Upper Peninsula Health Department

The full schedule is available online.

Please note that this is a pilot shuttle and its future will depend on its usage. If you have any suggestions, please feel free to share them with us by filling out the Hancock Shuttle Feedback Form. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to GSG President Ranit Karmakar at gsg-president@mtu.edu.

Recently the White House released a roadmap that will expand the federal collection of data about sexual orientation and gender identity in order to advance equity for LGBTQI+ Americans. However, advances in measurement will be needed at all levels, including at universities.

The management adage that you can’t improve what you don’t measure applies to achieving equity within organizations — without adequate measures, problems are ill-defined and rarely solved. However, human resource management, developed in response to equal employment opportunity legislation, can be very limited in focus. This Inside Higher Ed article discusses the importance of measuring faculty diversity on dimensions not normally assessed, such as sexual orientation and gender identity. This is justified because of the need not only to have viewpoints represented, but also to put in needed support structures and monitor whether faculty of different identities have equal opportunities for success.

We welcome these changes from the White House roadmap. Michigan Tech has allowed students, faculty and staff to use preferred names since 2015, and a group of dedicated individuals is currently working on implementing a personal pronouns policy. Having these two policies and processes in place will facilitate the process of collecting data for nonbinary genders once it becomes allowable for reporting by the federal government and available in the software (Banner). These changes will assist with equity and inclusion efforts because the AFEQT tool that allows department chairs and deans to analyze equity data relies on Banner data.

Today’s feature was shared with us by the ADVANCE PI team with input from Beth Lunde-Stockero (EOC) and Mike Blanco (OVPDI). If you have an article you think we should feature, please email it to advance-mtu@mtu.edu and we will consider adding it to the ADVANCE Weekly Roundup.

The ADVANCE Weekly Roundup is brought to you by ADVANCE at Michigan Tech, an NSF-funded initiative dedicated to improving faculty career success, retention, diversity, equity and inclusion. Past articles are available on the ADVANCE Newsblog.

To learn more about our featured topic, our mission, programming efforts, and to check out our growing collection of resources, contact us or visit our website.

Registration for the next Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) Open Water SCUBA Course will open next Friday (Feb. 10) at 8 a.m.

The course is conducted over two weekends and includes:

• Ten hours of academic instruction (some coursework to be completed independently),
• Ten hours of confined water training (SDC Pool), and
• Four certification dives in Lake Superior (Marquette).

Upon registration, students will be given all required reading material and paperwork to complete prior to the start of the course. Students must be 18 years old and be able to swim 200 yards comfortably.

Course Dates and Times:

• Friday, March 24 — 5-10 p.m., SDC
• Saturday, March 25 — 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., SDC
• Sunday, March 26 — 8 a.m. to noon, SDC
• Saturday and Sunday, April 15-16, or Saturday and Sunday, April 22-23 — Open Dives in Marquette (exact location and time TBA)

Cost is $575 per person (includes all instruction, fees and training materials). The deadline to register is March 17.

For more information, visit our PADI Open Water SCUBA Course page.

The College of Engineering and the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geospatial Engineering (CEGE) are pleased to announce Pasi Lautala as the featured instructor for this week’s Deans’ Teaching Showcase.
Lautala will be recognized at an end-of-term luncheon with other spring showcase members, and is a candidate for the next CTL Instructional Award Series.

Lautala is being honored for excellence in teaching across a 20-year effort focused on railway engineering. Because of his passion for rails as a highly energy-efficient mode for land transportation, he established and now manages Michigan Tech’s railway engineering program. The educational aspects of this program benefit students at Michigan Tech and across the nation.

“Dr. Lautala had a vision of a world-class rail engineering program at Tech. Through steadfast determination, Pasi made that happen,” said College of Engineering Dean Janet Callahan. “Because of Pasi’s trailblazing efforts, Tech students can pursue an undergraduate minor in rail transportation. And those who do are highly sought after for employment by rail companies and their contractors on our continent and beyond.”

In addition to the minor he established, Lautala mentors students in the Rail Engineering Activities Club (REAC) at Michigan Tech, reinforcing their curricular experiences with extracurricular activities. Students interact with rail industry professionals to learn even more about train systems and establish important industry contacts. This club is the inaugural student chapter of the American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association (AREMA), the national organization for rail engineering professionals. That the inaugural student chapter was established at Michigan Tech speaks volumes about Lautala’s impact in railway engineering education.

Lautala has also had an enormous impact across the continent. In 2008, he helped establish the Railroad Engineering Education Symposium (REES) under the auspices of AREMA, which he continues to lead. Its purpose is to expand and encourage railway engineering education throughout North America. In 2015, with the help of the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), this was augmented with the passenger-rail symposium (p-REES) to look at issues particular to transit, commuter and inter-city services. Lautala’s vision has led hundreds of faculty members and dozens of universities to incorporate rail engineering into their educational offerings.

“Dr. Lautala is a visionary in rail education and his impact is significant,” said Audra Morse, chair of CEGE. “I have heard about this work through colleagues and department heads around the country. Our students benefit from Pasi’s passion, technical competence and industry connections. The rail program draws students from all over the country to Michigan Tech.”

Lautala has also worked to develop a pipeline of students passionate about rail as an energy-efficient mode of transportation through Michigan Tech’s summer youth program. This has led to the “Tracks to the Future” collaboration with University of Illinois and Penn State Altoona, which, with funding from the Federal Railroad Administration, expands the program and includes these other campuses.

For his impact on education at Michigan Tech and beyond, the College of Engineering is honored to recognize Pasi Lautala in the Deans’ Teaching Showcase.

IEEE's Region 4 Northeastern Wisconsin Section, whose geographic area includes Michigan Tech, has received the 2022 Membership Retention Award.

Aurenice Oliveira accepted the award on behalf of the section during IEEE Region 4 RCom Meeting 2023, which took place Jan. 27-29 in Chicago, Illinois.

Oliveira is an associate professor in the Michigan Tech Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and serves as the IEEE Region 4 Section 27 chair. She is also the advisor of Michigan Tech's IEEE student chapter.

Read more at the Electrical and Computer Engineering Newsblog.

The Department of Cognitive and Learning Sciences (CLS) will host MTU Assistant Professor Jason Archer of the Department of Humanities at the next Applied Cognitive Science and Human Factors (ACSHF) forum.

The presentation, “The Embrace of the Surgical Machine: Touch, Practice, and Power in the Operating Room,” will be from 2-3 p.m. Monday (Feb. 6) in Meese 109 and via Zoom.

In this presentation, Archer will talk about his work in the area of human machine communication, focusing on research related to the da Vinci Surgical System (dVSS), a system widely used in robotic-assisted surgery. He will discuss how concerns with touch-oriented media sparked his investigation of the dVSS, explain the challenges of doing research in a surgical setting and share stories from interviews with robotic surgeons and observations from the OR that help highlight some of his findings.

The next Environmental Engineering Graduate Seminar will take place at 3 p.m. on Monday (Feb. 6) via Zoom (use passcode 514421).

Leonard Mankowski, vice president – geology at WSP, will present "In-Situ PFAS Immobilization and Beyond; Resilient Corrective Actions Applied at a Suspected AFFF Site in Alpena, Michigan."

Read the abstract on the University Events Calendar.

Michigan Tech alum Daniel Miller from the University of Maryland-Baltimore will be presenting at a special in-person Atmospheric Sciences Seminar on Monday (Feb. 6) at 4 p.m. in Fisher 101.

Miller's presentation is titled "Satellite Remote Sensing of Cloud Droplet Microphysics – A NASA Perspective on the Development of Cloud Droplet Size Distributions and the Future of Cloud Remote Sensing Observations."

Event details are available on the University Events Calendar.

Michigan Tech hockey's Blake Pietila has been named the CCHA Goaltender of the Month for January.

Pietila earned the honor for the second time this season and for the fifth time in his career.

For January, Pietila held a 1.37 goals-against average and .947 save percentage while going 6-1-1 with three shutouts. He led the NCAA in shutouts, goals-against average and save percentage among goaltenders who played five games. The Hobey Baker and Mike Richter Award candidate was named the CCHA Goaltender of the Week three times during January and was the MVP of the Desert Hockey Classic after leading the Huskies to the title with 55 saves on 59 shots.

Read more at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

No. 12 Michigan Tech hockey travels to Bemidji State for their second meeting of the season with the Beavers.

The puck drops at 8:07 p.m. tonight (Feb. 3) and 7:07 p.m. tomorrow (Feb. 4) at the Sanford Center.

Fans can listen live on the radio at Mix 93.5 WKMJ-FM or online at TheMix93.com or Pasty.net. All Michigan Tech home and CCHA games during the 2022-23 season will also be livestreamed on FloHockey.tv.

The Beavers took 4-of-5 points in the teams’ first meeting in Houghton, winning 5-2 in the first game and taking the second in a shootout after a 2-2 tie.

Read the preview at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

Michigan Tech women's tennis took an early lead but fell 4-3 to Tiffin University on Wednesday (Feb. 1) to open regular season play at Gates Tennis Center.

"It was a tight one today," said head coach Kristin Yep. "We had some jitters in our first match of the season and I think that contributed to a slow start. But overall, I felt we competed well as a team and the match could have gone either way. I'm very proud of our players and the effort they showed against a good team."

Read more at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

Michigan Tech men's tennis fell 7-0 against Tiffin University on Wednesday (Feb. 1) to open the 2023 spring season at Gates Tennis Center.

"We lost the match 7-0, but I didn't feel the score reflected the fight that our guys showed today," commented head coach Kristin D'Agostini-Yep. "We prepared knowing Tiffin was a very difficult opponent and we never gave up on a point. It was great to see Leon (Sell) play well for us at No. 1 singles. The fact that he gave Ruben Fonga a tough time in the second set shows what a great competitor he is.”

Read more at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

The Michigan Tech Blue Line Club is hosting a Winter Carnival luncheon next Friday (Feb. 10) at 11:45 a.m. in the 'old' Blue Line Room outside of University Images.

The event is open to the public and costs $15 per person.

Tickets need to be purchased by 5 p.m. on Wednesday (Feb. 8) to guarantee lunch and can be purchased online, by calling the Central Ticket Office at 906-487-2073, or by visiting in person. Pasty, coleslaw, carrot cake, soda, water and coffee will be served.

Read more at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

Michigan Tech Nordic skier Anabel Needham competed in the U23 World Ski Championships for the second straight year, representing the United States in Whistler, British Columbia, Canada, on Jan. 29-31.

Needham competed in the classic sprint last Sunday (Jan. 29), placing 34th (3:25.90). She returned Tuesday (Jan. 31), racing the 20km mass start for the second time in her career, placing 33rd overall (1:07.48.1).

"January was nothing but a smashing success for Anabel," head coach Tom Monahan Smith and assistant coach Kristen Monahan Smith said. "We are just so darn proud of Anabel, not only for what she's accomplished athletically, but by how she's done it, racing so well in three back-to-back-to-back championship events."

Read more at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

Job Posting for Friday, Feb. 3, 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.

Postdoctoral Scholar – Molecular Biology or Physiology, Kinesiology and Integrated Physiology. Apply online.
Contact: Zhiying Shan

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.

Xinfeng Xie (CFRES/ESC) is the principal investigator (PI) on a project that has received a $70,381 research and development co-op/joint agreement with the Texas A&M University.

The project is titled "Efficient Drying Processes of High-Quality Wood through Intelligent Desiccant Assisted Heat Pump System Innovations."

This is an expected three-year project.

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Aleksandr Sergeyev (AC/ICC) is the PI on a project that has received $80,775 from West Shore Community College.

The project concerns the research and development of the teleoperated industrial robotic workcell.

Scott Kuhl (CS/ICC) is a co-PI on this one-year project.

MLive mentioned Michigan Tech in a story about stabilizing enrollment at Michigan colleges. A report released this week measured a drop of less than 1% for all Michigan colleges between fall 2021 and fall 2022. 

Michigan Tech is one of three colleges in the state where enrollment has increased over the past decade.

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The Detroit Free Press, ClickOnDetroit and Lansing’s WILX 10 picked up photographs by Rolf Peterson (CFRES) of an Isle Royale wolf who survived a fall through the ice into Lake Superior on Jan. 28.

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Joe Shawhan (ATH) was quoted by the Daily Mining Gazette in a story about the gauntlet of CCHA foes Michigan Tech hockey will run to close the regular season. Jordy Murray (ATH) and multiple players were mentioned in the story.

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The Daily Mining Gazette picked up Michigan Tech Athletics’ press release announcing that Blake Pietila is the CCHA Goaltender of the Month for January. Pietila was also the goaltender of the month for October 2022.

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The Athletic mentioned Michigan Tech hockey’s Kyle Kukkonen in a story ranking players in the Anaheim Ducks’ prospect pool.

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Kalamazoo’s 103.3 WKFR-FM ran a story about St. Albert the Great Catholic University Parish’s annual Ice Mass, held at the student-constructed chapel of Our Lady of the Snows.

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WLUC TV6 mentioned Michigan Tech in a story about the nomination deadline for the Keweenaw Chamber of Commerce’s Sparkplug Awards. The award ceremony will be held March 2 at the Memorial Union Building.

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The LBM Journal, Contractor Supply and Informed Infrastructure covered the naming of Michigan Tech alum Mike Olosky ’91 (mechanical engineering) as CEO of Simpson Strong-Tie.

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Turks and Caicos Weekly News covered the appointment of Michigan Tech alum Delano Arthur ’02 (electrical engineering) as commissioner of energy and utilities in the Ministry of Home Affairs, Transportation, Energy and Utilities, in the Turks and Caicos Islands.

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DBusiness mentioned Michigan Tech alum James Purrington ’01 (electrical engineering) as one of law firm Dickinson Wright’s seven newly elected member attorneys.

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Michigan Tech Sports Hall of Famer Teri (Salani) Seibert, a dominant Alpine skier for the Huskies from 1974-77, was mentioned by the Daily Mining Gazette in a story about her nephew Hunter’s success on the US Junior World Championship Alpine Ski Team.

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NewsRadio 740 KTRH-AM mentioned Michigan Tech in coverage of former Husky wide receiver Bobby Slowik’s recent interview with the Houston Texans for their offensive coordinator position.

CFRES First Friday: Keweenaw Nature Megaphone

The College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science (CFRES) and its artist-in-residence, Lisa Gordillo, invite you to “First Friday,” an opportunity to visit with the artist and explore works of art inspired by the environments around us.

First Friday will take place today (Feb. 3) from 10 a.m. to noon in the U. J. Noblet Forestry Building. Two works will be on display: a prototype of the “Keweenaw Nature Megaphone,” and “Transmission,” a multimedia work by Swedish artist Simon Sjöström.

The exhibit, organized by Gordillo, is part of her ongoing project “Sister Forests,” which connects the forests of the Keweenaw and those of Björkö-Arholma, Sweden, by sharing art, community events and environmental action.

Works of art will remain on display through spring break.

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

Prepare for Career Fair!

Friday, February 3, 11:00–11:30 a.m. | Administration and Student Services Building, 220 Career Services

Everything you need to know about Career Fair and how to prepare for it.

Book Release Event: The Idler’s Club: Humour and Mass Readership from Jerome K. Jerome to P.G. Wodehouse

Friday, February 3, 12 p.m.–1 p.m. | J. Robert Van Pelt and John and Ruanne Opie Library, East Reading Room

Laura Kasson Fiss presents the January 2023 release of her book, The Idler’s Club: Humour and Mass Readership from Jerome K. Jerome to P.G. Wodehouse. The book analyzes the...

Friday After School Learn to Ski and Snowboard Program

Friday, February 3, 5:00 p.m.–6:30 p.m. | Mont Ripley Ski Area

Fridays Ages 8+ 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,...

Outdoor Venture Crew Weekly Meeting

Friday, February 3, 5 p.m.–6 p.m. | TBD

We'll be voting on our weekly trip and discussing other relevant information. While our meetings run until 5:50 PM, they don't usually last longer than 20 or 30 minutes. We...

Outdoor Venture Crew Weekly Meeting

Friday, February 3, 5:15 p.m.–7:00 p.m. | Fisher 129

We'll be voting on our weekly trip and discussing other relevant information. While our meetings run until 7:00 PM, they don't usually last longer than 20 or 30 minutes. Feel...

Film Board Presents: Elvis

Friday, February 3, 5:30 p.m.–8:00 p.m. | Fisher 135 Michigan Tech

Join Film Board this weekend as we show 2022's Elvis in Fisher 135! Tickets are $3 and concessions are $1 each. More information on our website: https://filmboard.mtu.edu/

Middle School Volleyball Development League

Friday, February 3, 6:00 p.m.–7:30 p.m. | Student Development Complex (SDC), Multi-Purpose Gym

A four-week developmental program for middle school girls in grades 7 & 8 to learn and improve their skills in preparation for the upcoming interscholastic season. This...

(Men's Ice Hockey) Michigan Tech at Bemidji State

Friday, February 3, 8:07 p.m.–11:07 p.m.

Men's Ice Hockey: Michigan Tech at Bemidji State

Film Board Presents: Elvis

Friday, February 3, 8:30 p.m.–11:00 p.m. | Fisher 135 Michigan Tech

Join Film Board this weekend as we show 2022's Elvis in Fisher 135! Tickets are $3 and concessions are $1 each. More information on our website: https://filmboard.mtu.edu/

Film Board Presents: Elvis

Friday, February 3, 11:30–2:00 a.m. | Fisher 135 Michigan Tech

Join Film Board this weekend as we show 2022's Elvis in Fisher 135! Tickets are $3 and concessions are $1 each. More information on our website: https://filmboard.mtu.edu/

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

February 3, 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...