March 20, 2024

P.A.W.S. (Peer Awareness for Well-being and Support) is a newly adopted program at Michigan Tech that equips students with the knowledge and tools to effectively recognize the signs of a mental health crisis, give appropriate and supportive aid, and refer a peer who is struggling to professional mental health resources. The program seeks to involve students from multiple backgrounds and experiences who are natural, key peer supporters on campus and want to help bring a higher level of mental health awareness and advocacy to the Michigan Tech community.

Promoting student mental health and well-being is a whole-campus effort, and Michigan Tech students are crucial in helping to support student mental health on campus. Research shows that students who struggle with mental health often reach out to their peers first, while a smaller percentage reach out to their on-campus counseling center.

Over six weeks of training, P.A.W.S. gives students the skills to help their peers experiencing crisis or distress. Participants meet each week for one hour. The core purpose of P.A.W.S. is to increase the number of peer support leaders on campus who are trained to identify and confidently refer their peers to the appropriate professional mental health resources, and who embrace a holistic approach to well-being by expanding and enriching the network of support on campus.

Once students have completed the six-week training program, they are considered members of the P.A.W.S. network for the remainder of their time at Michigan Tech. Completing this program will open up future opportunities for participating in mental health and well-being advocacy on campus, getting involved in future continuing education or peer programs, and being a leader in promoting mental health resources on campus. With only six weeks of training, students will learn valuable skills that are useful even after their years at Michigan Tech.

Each week brings up a new topic for students to discuss with peers in their group:

• Session 1: What is Mental Health?: Acceptance and Avoidance
• Session 2: Core Supportive Skills
• Session 3: Depression and Anxiety
• Session 4: High-Risk Coping Strategies & Behaviors
• Session 5: Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors
• Session 6: Helping Others Get Help

Faculty, staff and students who are passionate about mental health awareness on campus are invited to nominate a student for the P.A.W.S. fall 2024 cohort. Nominated students must have at least one year left in their academic program and will receive an email requesting a completed application form and their schedule availability. Nominations are accepted year-round, but please submit nominations for fall 2024 by April 7.

Limited spots are available. Nominees not accepted into this cohort will be waitlisted for the next semester.

To Learn More: Visit our information table in the Van Pelt and Opie Library today, tomorrow and Friday (March 20-22), check out our website or email us at PAWS@mtu.edu.

Thank you to everyone who celebrated Open Education (OE) Week at Michigan Tech with our OE panel discussion on Monday (March 18). If you missed it, the recording is now available on Digital Commons @ Michigan Tech.

You’re invited to continue the conversation in person with Annelise Doll (VPOL), scholarly communications librarian and OER specialist. Join her at the OE Library Cafe Social at noon on Friday (March 22). Anyone interested in learning more about open education is welcome to reach out to the Van Pelt and Opie Library at library@mtu.edu.

This Friday and Saturday (March 22 and 23), join Michigan Tech Jazz and special guest Kris Johnson backstage at the Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts for the annual Don Keranen Memorial Jazz Festival, presented by Michigan Tech Music!

• Video Game Jazz Ensemble and R&D Jazz Band
  Friday, March 22, at 7:30 p.m.
  The Video Game Jazz Ensemble opens the festival with an exciting set. For this concert, the band members have done original arrangements of music from video games released since 2010. Then, the R&D Jazz Band takes the stage with the incredible featured artist Kris Johnson on trumpet. Their set will include the music of Thelonious Monk, Louis Prima and Thad Jones.

• MS/HS Jazz Musicians and Jazz Lab Band
  Saturday, March 23, at 6 p.m.
  Local middle and high school jazz musicians open with a piece they will learn during a masterclass led by Director of Jazz Studies Adam Meckler earlier in the day. Then, Michigan Tech's premier jazz ensemble, the Jazz Lab Band, will be joined by trumpeter Kris Johnson, whose career includes performing with the renowned Count Basie Orchestra, for an energetic evening of phenomenal music. The concert features a wide range of music, including original pieces by Johnson and some of his arrangements performed by the Count Basie Orchestra.

• JazTech and Workshop Brass Band
  Saturday, March 23, at 9 p.m.
  JazTec opens the final jazz fest concert of 2024 with a set that ranges from “Sentimental Mood” by Duke Ellington to “Them Changes” by Thundercat. The band last performed on the Rozsa stage during "Backstage Jazz: Small Groups" earlier this semester. The late-night concert will close with the beloved Workshop Brass Band, last heard on the Rozsa stage during the sold-out "Mardi Gras Fat Tuesday" event! They’ll have you on your feet with New Orleans-style music.

Festival Details:

• What: Don Keranen Memorial Jazz Festival
• When: Friday and Saturday, March 22 and 23
• Where: Backstage at the Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts
• Tickets: Pay As You’re Able ($15 full ticket fee). Student Rush is included with the Experience Tech fee. Reserve your tickets.

Michigan Tech is welcoming students, faculty and staff into the H-STEM Engineering and Health Technologies Complex, with the opening ceremony right around the corner April 26.

To learn more about the H-STEM Complex and class registration for the upcoming academic semester, check out our third LodeTV episode of 2024 on YouTube!

The next guest speaker in the Department of Biomedical Engineering (BioMed) Seminar Series will present Friday (March 22) at 3 p.m. in person in EERC 100 and virtually via Zoom.

Andrew Tsourkas from the University of Pennsylvania will present "Engineering novel antibody and nanoparticle platforms for imaging and therapeutic applications."

Read the abstract and speaker bio at the University Events Calendar.

The Department of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) is hosting a seminar presented by Assistant Professor Joshua Mueller tomorrow (March 21) at 1 p.m. in M&M 610.

The seminar is titled "Microstructure-Mechanical Property Relationships and Kinetic Transitions in Phase Transformations Mechanisms in Multi-Phase Ferrous Alloys."

From the abstract:
Multi-phase ferrous alloys have duplex microstructures consisting of face-centered-cubic austenite (referred to as retained austenite) and body-centered-cubic ferrite or a ferrite-based constituent (martensite or bainite). To generate these microstructures, austenite-stabilizing alloy additions are required, typically manganese (Mn) and/or nickel (Ni). The alloy is partitioned during thermal processing, enriching the austenite with the stabilizing solute and enabling austenite retention upon cooling. These duplex microstructures are associated with increased combined strength and toughness; however, the mechanical performance is sensitive to relatively minor changes in alloy and heat treatment. The austenite composition, and corresponding deformation mechanism, is believed to have a crucial influence on the mechanical flow behavior of these alloys. Therefore, there is considerable interest in developing confident correlations between austenite characteristics and mechanical performance. The research outlined here is aimed at (1) elucidating the effect of austenite deformation mechanisms on the flow behavior in duplex microstructures and (2) understanding kinetic transitions with respect to partitioning and non-partitioning phase transformation mechanisms. Results aim to guide alloy and heat treatment design using advanced thermal processing techniques to generate duplex microstructures with increased performance.

Mueller is an assistant professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Michigan Technological University, where he teaches courses relating to thermodynamics of materials, phase transformations and microstructure-mechanical property relationships. He also holds a guest scientist appointment with the Dynamic Structure Design & Engineering and Vessel Operations Group at Los Alamos National Laboratory.

Mueller earned a Ph.D. in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering from the Colorado School of Mines through the Advanced Steel Processing and Products Research Center, and a B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His broad research interests include fundamentals of phase transformations and microstructural evolution of materials as well as microstructure-mechanical property relationships. He is particularly interested in microstructural design to enhance yield strength-toughness performance of multi-phase ferrous alloys and incorporating thermodynamic and phase field simulations for an integrated computational materials engineering (ICME) approach to alloy and heat treatment development.

The next Department of Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics (ME-EM) Graduate Seminar speaker will present virtually at 4 p.m. tomorrow (March 21) via Zoom.

Laurence Brassart will present “Coupled degradation and mechanics in polymers and gels.”

Brassart’s research focuses on the micromechanical and constitutive modeling of engineering materials, including polymers, composites, soft materials and energy materials. She is particularly interested in multiphysics and multiscale aspects.

Wednesday (March 20)
• Call of Duty: MW3 vs. Franklin College, 7 p.m. Varsity Plus. Watch the Twitch stream.

Thursday (March 21)
• Super Smash Bros: Ultimate vs. Grand Valley State University, 7 p.m. Varsity Plus. Watch the Twitch stream.

Times are subject to change. Check Twitter @MTUEsports for updates.

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Esports News
Read more in the MTU Esports weekly update.

Missed a game? All past streams are available on YouTube.

Job Posting for Wednesday, March 20, 2024

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.

Assistant Teaching Professor – Biometrics and Natural Resource Techniques, College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science. 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.

Zhanping You (CEGE/MTTI) is the principal investigator on two projects that received grants from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy.

The first project, which received a $482,549 grant, is titled "Multi-Agency Reconstruction of Asphalt Pavement with Rubber in Bay County for US 10 Detour Preparation."

The second project, which received a $418,814 grant, is titled "Construction of Rubber Asphalt Concrete Pavement on Portland Cement Pavement on Dixie Highway."

Both are 18-month projects.

Robert Nemiroff (Physics) was mentioned by Lakeland Boating in a story previewing the Keweenaw Dark Sky Park’s second annual Upper Peninsula Dark Sky Festival, being hosted April 11-13 at Keweenaw Mountain Lodge. Nemiroff is one of the event speakers, and will discuss some of the best photos from NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day.

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Professor Emerita Susan Martin (SS) was mentioned by Michigan Blue Magazine in a travel story discussing the history, sporting events and food options that draw visitors Houghton and Hancock. The story noted Martin’s virtual seminar on the Keweenaw’s early Native American cultures offered at the Carnegie Museum of the Keweenaw.

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The Detroit Free Press mentioned Michigan Tech in a story running through the different ways to use the Michigan Education Trust, Michigan's prepaid college tuition program, to save for college.

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The Rink Live and Daily Mining Gazette covered Michigan Tech hockey’s Logan Pietila and Max Koskipirtti being named CCHA Players of the Week. Pietila was the Forward of the Week and Koskipirtti was the Rookie of the Week.

10th Annual Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Symposium

The Pavlis Honors College is thrilled to invite you to the 10th annual Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Symposium (URSS), taking place Friday (March 22) in the Rozsa Lobby. This event promises to be an enlightening showcase of the fascinating research conducted by some of Michigan Tech's best and brightest undergraduates.

The day kicks off with two engaging poster sessions, scheduled from 12-1:30 p.m. and 2:30-4 p.m. Here, you will have the opportunity to witness firsthand the remarkable diversity of research areas explored by our talented student participants. Attendees will have the chance to engage directly with the students, inquire about their projects and gain deeper insights into the world of undergraduate research and scholarship.

An additional highlight of URSS is the panel discussion at 1:30 p.m., featuring guest panelists from diverse backgrounds and fields of expertise. Panelists include industry veterans Debra Switzer, a graduate of MTU with over 20 years of experience in the mining industry; Erik Lilleskov, a research ecologist and project leader for the Climate, Fire, and Carbon Cycle Sciences Work Unit of the U.S. Forest Service — Northern Research Station; and Ellie Asgari, an assistant professor of management and entrepreneurship in the College of Business. These panelists will share their insights on how undergraduate research can create opportunities and influence career paths, providing invaluable guidance to both students and faculty alike.

Interested in attending our research symposium? Be sure to check out the Pavlis Honors College Blog for more information about undergraduate research.

We encourage all faculty and staff to mark their calendars and attend URSS on Friday — your presence and support are invaluable as we celebrate the achievements of our undergraduate researchers and inspire the next generation of innovators.

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C4 Swedetown FrosTri Winter Triathlon

Join the Copper Country Cycling Club (C4) at Michigan Tech for our first winter triathlon, the Swedetown FrosTri! This event will take place Saturday (March 23) at 10 a.m. at the Swedetown Trails. We will start with a ski (classic or skate), followed by a fat bike ride and, finally, a snowshoe!

What happens if there is no snow? We've all been confused with this winter, so it's hard to predict snow conditions for late March. If we're low on snow, we'll remove the ski event and instead do just a bike/run event. We will post updates to the event website and email registrants as the date gets closer!

View the event flyer.

All are welcome! We invite students and community members to come out and enjoy the race!

Event Details:

• What: Swedetown FrosTri Winter Triathlon
• When: Saturday, March 23, at 10 a.m.
• Where: Swedetown Main Trailhead
• Cost: It's free, but donations are appreciated and all profits will support local trail networks!

Bring Food!
We want you to bring food to the event! We would love to have baked goods, fruit, chips, finger foods or other food you can see yourself craving after your hard work! We'll set this all up at the Swedetown Chalet to be feasted upon by race participants.

Event Routes and Distances (in this order):

• 14K Nordic Ski: Valley Trail to Upper Greenstone to reverse Mama Bear, reverse Papa Bear, reverse Baby Bear, Lower Greenstone, Relentless Loop to Pine Ridge Loop, and then Tiger Loop.

• 10K Fat Bike: Fat bike loops 1, 2, 3 and 5.

• 5K Snowshoe: Bear Paw Snowshoe Short Loop to Bear Paw Snowshoe Long Loop to Valley Trail.

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GSG Social Event: Pottery and Tea

Come hang out and paint your own pottery to keep at Graduate Student Government's (GSG's) Pottery and Tea social event tomorrow (March 21).

The event, in collaboration with local business Magic Kiln Studio, is sure to be a fun and relaxing time. Any pottery you paint will be brought to the kiln and fired to keep your pottery durable, and can be picked up at the Grad Commons a few days after the event.

Meet us at the MUB Commons after 6 p.m. tomorrow to participate.

RSVP to the event.

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World Water Day Talk: Miriam Rios-Sanchez '11

In honor of World Water Day, Miriam Rios-Sanchez will talk about “Understanding the Hydrogeology of Mountainous Regions in Latin America - Education and Professional Learning Strategies to Build Community Capacity and Empower Student Engagement” on Friday (March 22) from 3-4 p.m. in the MUB Alumni Lounge. (Come a little early for a meet-and-greet with light refreshments from 2:45-3 p.m.)

Rios-Sanchez is a faculty member at the Center for Sustainability Studies at Bemidji State. 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 Scholars 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.

This event is sponsored by the Great Lakes Research Center at Michigan Technological University. If you would like to meet with Rios-Sanchez, please contact Erika Vye at ecvye@mtu.edu.

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This Week's C3 Luncheon Menu

Menu for Thursday (March 21):

• Cauliflower General Tso's (Vegetarian, Soy, Sesame, Gluten, Dairy, Egg)
• Orange Chicken (Sesame, Dairy, Gluten, Egg, Soy)
• Basmati Rice (Vegan, AD, AG)
• Garden Salad (Vegan, AD, AG)
• Vegetable Stir Fry (Vegan, AD, AG)
• Vegetable Spring Rolls (Vegetarian, Dairy, Sesame, Gluten, Egg)

Join Carved and Crafted Catering for this week's C3 Luncheon. The luncheon is held each week on Thursday 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, or C-Cubed, 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 in the Memorial Union office (MUB 101).

AG = Avoiding Gluten
AD = Avoiding Dairy

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University Senate Meeting 699

The University Senate will convene Meeting 699 at 5:30 p.m. today (March 20) 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 699.

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

Wednesday, March 20, 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...

Keyence VHX & LHX Lunch and Learn

Wednesday, March 20, 10 a.m.–12 p.m. | Minerals and Materials Engineering Building (M&M), 610

ACMAL is please to extend an invitation to the MTU research community for a Lunch and Learn session with Keyence on March 20th, from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM. Keyence is a...

TIAA Webinar: Paycheck for Life - Set your sights on retirement security

Wednesday, March 20, 12–1 p.m.

Register here: https://event.on24.com/wcc/r/4424784/86A751D4D2AEE46C8F114A5D5C0D1C0A Do you have a plan to avoid outliving your retirement savings? In this webinar, you’ll...

Husky Hour: Healthy Living

Wednesday, March 20, 1:30–2:30 p.m. | WADS Dining Hall

Eating healthy food and getting enough sleep are two vital aspects of living a well-rounded, healthy life. Learn about these healthy habits with the Center for Student Mental...

Husky Hour: Healthy Living

Wednesday, March 20, 2–3 p.m. | WADS Dining Hall

Eating healthy food and getting enough sleep are two vital aspects of living a well-rounded, healthy life. Learn about these healthy habits with the Center for Student Mental...

Students For Life General Meeting

Wednesday, March 20, 5–6 p.m. | Fisher 230

Students For Life general meeting