Michigan Tech College of Business Newsblog

Kasza Hired as Women’s Assistant Basketball Coach

Published May 31, 2012

Michigan Tech head women’s basketball coach Kim Cameron announced Monday that former Husky Maria Kasza has been hired as the team’s new assistant coach.

“I am extremely excited to have Maria on staff,” said Cameron. “Since she came to Michigan Tech in 2007, she has continuously shown an insurmountable passion for this school and this team. Her competitive nature, energy and her basketball mind will be huge assets to our team’s ultimate goal.”

Kasza has spent the previous two seasons coaching high school girls’ basketball in Michigan. She spent the 2010-11 season as the varsity assistant coach at Kalkaska High School where she helped the Blazers to a 23-2 record. That season she also coached the seventh-grade boys’ basketball team at Kalkaska Middle School. Last season she was the head coach of the freshman girls’ basketball team at Williamston High School.

Kasza was on the Tech squad for three years, competing only one season due to injury and transfer rules. She was an integral part in two of the team’s NCAA Division II Elite Eight Appearances.

“I am so excited for the opportunity to be back with Michigan Tech basketball, and I can’t wait to get up to Houghton and start working with Kim and the Huskies,” said Kasza. “I believe in everything that this program is, and I’m thrilled to be a part of continuing Tech’s tradition.”

She received both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business administration from Michigan Tech. Kasza was a member of the Dean’s List and Beta Gamma Sigma Honors Fraternity.

In addition to coaching, she spent the past two years working as a project lead for the Michigan Public Health Institute.

Kasza will begin her duties on June 1.

by Ian Marks, assistant director, athletic communications and marketing

Custodian Darlene Corrigan Retires

Published May 30, 2012

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Tanya Maki cutting the cake at Darlene Corrigan's Retirement Party.

After a 37 year career with Michigan Tech, the School of Business and Economics says goodbye to long time custodian Darlene Corrigan. Darlene kept the Academic Office Building unofficially the cleanest building on campus since 1993 and will be greatly missed.

“Darlene attacks dirt. If you’re going to have a heart attack on campus, do it our building,” noted Professor Emertis Jim Gale. “The doctors can come here; Darlene keeps it more sterile than an operating room.”

We thank Darlene for the time she spent with us and wish her well in all the glory of retirement.

You will be missed. Congrats!

Research Presentation on Inter-Sourcing

Published May 23, 2012

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Dr. Mari Buche speaks during panel discussion.

Associate Professor of Management Information Systems Mari W. Buche and graduate student Gareth Johnson (ME/MBA) traveled to Green Bay, Wis., to attend the Midwest Association for Information Systems (MAIS) annual conference May 18-19. They presented “Inter-sourcing: Partnerships Between Businesses, Universities and Student Interns.” Buche, treasurer of MWAIS, also participated in a panel discussion on the future of the Midwest AIS organization and chaired a session on organizational issues relating to information systems.

Associate Professor of Management Information Systems Mari Buche and Gareth Johnson

Economics Graduate Accepted into top 100 Law School

Published May 16, 2012

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Coleman Segal to attend McGeorge School of Law.

The School of Business and Economics wants to congratulate Coleman Segal for his acceptance into the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law. We’re so proud!

Despite being accepted to UC Berkeley out of high school, Segal chose to pursue his undergraduate degree at Michigan Tech. After visiting his Aunt and Uncle in the Houghton as a child, he has always loved the area. The wild, beautiful surroundings, the opportunity to participate in the vibrant folk music scene, and the impressive academic reputation were all factors in his decision to come to Tech.

After researching universities, he learned of the Economics program at Michigan Tech. Economics interested Segal in high school because it can be applied to so many different aspects of life. Segal said, “The study of economics is in large part an effort to understand the mechanics of a functioning society, and so it relates to many different fields. It also provides a good background for law school, which I have planned to attend since high school.”

Segal is a California native and will soon return to his home state to pursue his law degree from one of the top 100 Law Schools in the nation. Applying and being accepted to five law schools –Marquette University in Milwaukee, University of San Francisco, Santa Clara University, and Albany Law School– Segal selected the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law and will begin classes next fall. In addition to their impressive reputation, Segal said he chose McGeorge School of Law based on their location in Sacramento, California. He finds the area interesting as a center of government, with multiple courthouses at different levels in the immediate area.

Crediting his experiences with extracurricular activities such as the iOMe Challenge and the Pavlis Institute for advancing his goals of attending law school, Segal noted that Michigan Tech prepared him well for continuing his education. Mastering skills such as writing and researching papers, in many different subjects, have been instrumental for the pursuit of his law degree.

Woods Receives Distinguished Teaching Award

Published May 15, 2012

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Faculty Spotlight

MTU School of Business and Economics Roger Woods — Roger Woods Receives Distinguished Teaching Award

“Office hours” are an elastic concept for Michigan Tech’s 2012 Distinguished Teaching Award winners.

Roger Woods, a lecturer in the School of Business and Economics, received the award in the assistant professor/professor of practice/lecturer category. He also synchronizes his schedule to his students.’

“I’m on IM from 8 to 10 p.m.,” he said. “That’s when they are doing homework. When they get stuck, I help them get unstuck.”

Woods came to Michigan Tech in spring 2003. The former IBM manager and engineer teaches Quantitative Problem Solving and is an instructor in the Business Development Experience, the School’s equivalent of Senior Design. He also has taught a variety of other courses, including project management, operations management and entrepreneurship.

Students polled in his Quantitative Problem Solving class wrote, “He never lets a student fall behind if the student is putting their 100 percent effort into the course”; “He makes a difficult class enjoyable and gives us plenty of opportunities to get help”; and “He is the BEST teacher that I have ever had, period. Of all the schools I have ever been to, he is the most helpful teacher and the most excited about his job. He creates energy so that this class will never be boring and keeps us busy.”

How does he inspire such enthusiasm? “I think it’s access,” Woods said. “I don’t expect them to learn everything from a book or from a lecture. It’s going to take some exploring; when they explore, they sometimes need help, and that doesn’t happen on my schedule.” He also makes a special effort to tailor the material for his students. “It’s important to think of your audience.”

One of the best things about teaching, he said, is watching a student experience the “aha!” moment that may serve them later in their careers. “I want them to walk away with confidence that they can learn, not just regurgitate information,” he said. “Someday they will be in the workplace, without a professor, and I want them to apply these lessons so that ultimately they will do their job better.”

“I challenge them, I make them think,” Woods added. “If they are willing to respond by thinking, then they get it, and that’s rewarding to them. And I enjoy interacting with those students who have that desire to learn.”

Just reading a textbook won’t cut it. “Word gets out: don’t miss class,” he said.

Occasionally, students let him know his efforts have paid off after they leave the University for the corporate world. “I get emails back saying, ‘I did what you told me, and I was a star.'”

“It’s no surprise” that Woods has been honored for his teaching, said Tom Merz, associate dean of the School. “Roger has a great rapport with younger people,” he said. “It’s a cliche, but it’s still true: he deeply cares about younger people, and he gets a lot of gratification watching them work hard and succeed. Plus, he has a sense of his audience, who he is communicating with, so he can reach them.”

His students agree. Wrote one, “When I tell people that I’m in BUS2300, people say ‘Is Woods still teaching that? I loved that guy.'”

Originally published in Tech Today by Marcia Goodrich, magazine editor.