February 26, 2024

Faculty, staff and graduate students can have a complimentary professional portrait taken by University Marketing and Communications (UMC) during one of our spring semester portrait sessions.

• Monday, March 18 — 10 a.m. to noon
• Tuesday, March 19 — 10 a.m. to noon

Portraits will be taken in the UMC Studio, located on the ground floor of the Administration Building (Admin G37). An appointment is required.

Schedule an appointment through our online calendar. You must use your mtu.edu account to schedule an appointment.

• Sign in to the calendar with your mtu.edu account
• Find the portrait session date you want — March 18 or 19
• Click the appointment time you want between 10 a.m. and noon
• Click Save
• Smile!

Portraits will be emailed directly to you three to four weeks after your session.

The University Senate will convene Meeting 698 at 5:30 p.m. March 6 in Dow 642.

Those within the University community unable to attend in person have the option to attend via Zoom. Please note: You will need to log in to your MTU Zoom account to join the virtual meeting.

Senators are responsible for making their constituents aware of the agenda for this meeting. Senators who are unable to attend should arrange for their alternates to attend in their place.

View the agenda to Meeting 698.

Do you know a student in grades 6-11 who is looking to explore their interests this summer through hands-on experiences alongside exceptional young people from around the globe?

Summer Youth Programs (SYP) has several courses available to students for free or at a reduced cost, as well as scholarships specifically for local students. Learn more about these opportunities on SYP’s Free or Reduced-Cost Courses info table.

To explore all of the 50-plus programs offered this summer, please visit the Summer Youth Programs website.

Registration for spring Session 2 adult and youth aquatics programs closes Thursday (Feb. 29) at 11:59 p.m. Space is available in the following programs:

• Adult Huskies Swim Training (ages 18 years and older)
• Adult Huskies Swim Lessons (ages 18 years and older)
• Huskies Group Swim Lessons Learn to Swim Levels 1-5 (ages 6-17 years)
• Huskies Swim Clinic (ages 6-17 years)

Don't miss out. Sign up today!

Questions? Contact Aquatics Manager Annie Bengry at ambengry@mtu.edu or 906-487-2995.

Starting to think about your summer plans? Michigan Tech has some great sports programs to keep your kids and their friends entertained all summer long.

• Boys Basketball
• Girls Basketball
• Football
• Strength & Conditioning
• Volleyball

Registration for summer 2024 sports camps opens today (Feb. 26) at 8 a.m.! Sign up now!

On Feb. 15, the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) and the MTU Waste Valorization Research Group volunteered to judge third- through fifth-grade Invention Convention projects at Baraga Elementary School.

Invention Convention Worldwide is a K-12 invention education program that teaches students problem-identification, problem-solving, entrepreneurship and creativity skills and builds confidence in invention, innovation and entrepreneurship for life. Prior to the competition, the Baraga students developed inventions that would impact their community.

SWE Advisor Gretchen Hein and members Skyler Brawley (senior, computer engineering) and Maci Dostaler (junior, software engineering) paired up with Assistant Teaching Professor Fei Long (ME-EM) and Research Engineers Shiying Cai and Adeyinka Adekunle (both ME-EM) to evaluate the inventions. The judges were impressed with the students’ excitement when describing their projects and the range of creative solutions.

The inventions included:

• Snow plow for a strider bike
• Snow plow for a remote controlled car
• Motorized fishing lure that moved in the water
• Shoes that would grow as the wearer grew
• Multistation pencil sharpener
• Hover car that would move based on the placement of magnets in the road
• Pollution Vacuum Filtering Device
• Basket Land board game
• Handy Dandy Light Switch
• Magic Pen 55
• Spectacular Butter Lipstick
• Upside Down gaming controller accessory for kids
• Phone Holder 5000
• Catnap Paw Covers
• Keep-Away Can to keep dogs away from the trash can
• Safari board game
• Kai’s Numbing Hair Gel

The judges thank the teachers and staff, along with the enthusiastic student inventors, for inviting us to look over and judge at the Invention Convention. SWE and the MTU Waste Valorization Research Group would enjoy returning to evaluate projects next year.

Are you working on your business pitch or getting ready to raise capital for your startup business?

Join us next Tuesday (March 5) from 4-5:15 p.m. on Zoom for a Finance Your Innovation Workshop presented by Patrick Visser, chief commercial officer at the MTEC SmartZone.

This workshop will cover startup company capital fundraising planning with an overview of strategies such as bootstrapping, angel, venture capital and growth capital financing. Additionally, Visser will cover the importance of milestones-based planning, reality checks, strategies and developing financial projections (pro forma).

This workshop is open to the community. Register to attend by Friday (March 1).

The Michigan Tech Blue Line Club is hosting its final luncheon of the 2023-24 season on Friday (March 1) at 11:45 a.m. in the “old” Blue Line Room outside of University Images in the Student Development Complex. The event is open to the public and costs $15 per person.

Tickets need to be purchased by 3 p.m. on Wednesday (Feb. 28) to guarantee lunch. Tickets can be purchased online, by calling the Central Ticket Office at 906-487-2073 or by visiting the ticket office in person. Payment will not be accepted after Wednesday at 3 p.m.

Turkey and provolone subs and ham and Swiss subs will be served, along with fruit, chips, cookies, water and pop.

Michigan Tech hockey head coach Joe Shawhan will talk about the final weekend of the regular season and his eight seniors. The Huskies and Tommies will face off at 7:07 p.m. Friday and 6:07 p.m. Saturday (March 2) at the MacInnes Student Ice Arena.

Jae Sung Kim (CEGE) is the principal investigator (PI) on a project that has received a $30,696 research and development grant from Michigan State University.

The project is titled "Data, Models, Software Tools and Education for Enhancing Geodetic Infrastructure."

Jeffrey Pereira Hollingsworth (CEGE) is a co-PI on this potential three-year project.

Smart Water Magazine mentioned Michigan Tech in a story about cloud seeding, a rain enhancement program practiced by the United Arab Emirates to supplement water supplies. MTU researchers were announced as recipients of one of three grants awarded by the UAE for its fifth awards cycle. The MTU project centers on laboratory and modeling studies of cloud susceptibility to hygroscopic seeding.

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Bridge Michigan mentioned Michigan Tech in a story about climate change’s impact on the habitat of the piping plover, an endangered Great Lakes shorebird. The story cited research by Pengfei Xue (CEGE/GLRC) projecting that the Great Lakes’ baseline water levels will rise seven to 19 inches by 2050. Xue presented the research at the June 2022 Frontiers in Hydrology Meeting. The story was picked up from Great Lakes Echo.

VPR Research Series: Publishing Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them

Join us virtually Thursday (Feb. 29) from noon to 1 p.m. for the next session in the VPR Research Series: “Predatory Publishing Pitfalls, and How to Avoid Them” featuring Nora Allred, associate director for scholarly engagement at the Van Pelt and Opie Library.

Predatory or fraudulent publishers, whose sole objective is profit, lure potential authors with the promise of rapid peer-reviewed publication and low fees in their “impactful journals.” In reality, what they deliver is the opposite: unqualified or non-existent review, hidden fees, fake or misleading journal rankings, damage to researcher reputation and the possibility of misinformation entering the scholarly record. With an increasing number of predatory publishers being identified, researchers need to be aware of and prepared for this publishing pitfall.

Please join us to learn about predatory publishing: what it is, why it’s a problem and how to avoid it.

Join us via Zoom.

Any questions should be addressed to rd-l@mtu.edu.

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Save the Date: World Water Day Talk

The Great Lakes Research Center is thrilled to sponsor a talk by Michigan Tech alumna Miriam Rios-Sanchez '11 (Ph.D. Geological Engineering) in celebration of World Water Day 2024.

The talk will take place at 3 p.m. on March 22 in the Memorial Union Building (MUB) Alumni Lounge. 

Rios-Sanchez is originally from Colombia. She has a bachelor’s degree in geology from the University of Caldas in Colombia, a master’s degree in hydrology and water resources from the IHE-UNESCO Water Institute in the Netherlands, and a Ph.D. in Geological Engineering (focused on hydrogeology) from Michigan Tech.

Since 2013, Rios-Sanchez has been a faculty member at the Center for Sustainability Studies, which houses the Geology Department at Bemidji State University. She is a strong advocate for finding opportunities to serve underrepresented students and has a passion for mentoring, having been an academic mentor and advisor to the Trio/McNair Scholar Program and the site coordinator of the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (Louis Stokes North Star STEM Alliance in Minnesota).

Rios-Sanchez’s research interests include applications of remote sensing and digital elevation modeling techniques for geological sciences, regional groundwater exploration, aquifer evaluation and management (geological mapping, tectonics, flow system delineation, assessment of subsidence and other impacts) and natural hazards. She has a particular interest in the influence of groundwater in natural hazards, such as flooding, landslides and volcanic activity.

Other 2024 World Water Day events include:

• “Going Circular,” a film presented as part of the Sustainability Film & Discussion Series, coordinated by the Michigan Tech Office of Sustainability and Resilience, at 7 p.m. on March 21 in Fisher 138. Everyone is welcome to attend. The film is free. A suggested $5 donation is appreciated. The film and refreshments are provided by the Great Lakes Research Center.
• Undergraduate poster sessions from noon to 1:30 p.m. and 2:30-4 p.m. on March 22 in the Rozsa Center lobby, in collaboration with Pavlis Honors College for the Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Symposium.
• Graduate poster session from 5-8 p.m. on March 26 in the Rozsa Center lobby, in collaboration with the Graduate Student Government for the Graduate Research Colloquium.

From the organizers of World Water Day:

“Be part of the global campaign on ‘Water for Peace.’ We need everyone — from individuals and families to companies and governments — to do what they can to cooperate on water and pave the way for a more harmonious society. Download resources to get involved this World Water Day and find out more about the connection between water and peace.”

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HR Presentation Available: New Hiring Process for Student and Temporary Employees

Human Resources (HR) is updating the process for hiring all student and temporary employees. Beginning next Monday (March 4), departments wishing to hire students or temporary employees must email hr-help@mtu.edu or visit the online HR Support Center. New hires must provide original documentation regarding Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9. No new hires will be allowed to work without providing the required documentation.

HR hosted a Lunch and Learn on Feb. 21 for University staff who handle hiring students and temporary employees. This event was recorded and is available online for those who could not attend. Human Resources will be posting the recording and slides on the hiring website next week.

Watch the recording now (use passcode !Y32+vQw to access the video).

Any questions about the new processes can be directed to hr-help@mtu.edu.

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Dining Locations’ Spring Break Hours

Today (Feb. 26) through Sunday (March 3), several dining locations on campus will be closed or have different hours of operation for spring break.

• The Food Hall at Douglass Houghton Hall — Closed
  Reopening Monday, March 4, during regular scheduled hours.

• The Eatery at McNair — Closed
  Reopening Monday, March 4, during regular scheduled hours.

• The Food Hall at Wadsworth Hall — Closed
  Reopening Sunday, March 3, at 11 a.m.

• The Campus Café in Wadsworth Hall — Closed
  Reopening Sunday, March 3, at 6 p.m.

• Brkfst & Co in the MUB — Open
  Open during regular hours, with grab-and-go sandwiches and salads available.

• Bowl Life in the MUB — Closed
  Reopening Monday, March 4, during regular scheduled hours.

• The Library Cafe — Closed
  Closed throughout spring break as new partner Velodrome Coffee Company makes updates to the space. Reopening Monday, March 4.

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

Monday, February 26, 8 a.m.–8 p.m. | Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts, Rozsa Galleries

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...

Carpentry Workshop in Python

Monday, February 26, 9:00 a.m.–4:45 p.m. | Great Lakes Research Center (GLRC), 202

A free, in-person Carpentry Workshop in Python will take place February 26-27, 2024, in GLRC 202, each day from 9 a.m.-4:45 p.m. The workshop is open to all Michigan Tech...

NSF CAREER Proposal Information Session

Monday, February 26, 12:00–12:45 p.m.

During this session, we'll be discussing the basics of the Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER) at the National Science Foundation (NSF), including key dates and...