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Michigan Tech’s NSBE Student Chapter Will Reach 1850 Gr. 7-12 Students (Virtually!) in Detroit During 10th Annual Alternative Spring Break

NSBE Spring Break


Eleven members of Michigan Technological University’s student chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) Pre-College Initiative (PCI) will present to EVERY science class at Chandler Park Academy in Detroit. That is a total of 74 classes and 1850 students during their 10th Annual Alternative Spring Break in Detroit from March 8-10. Their mission– to encourage students to consider going to college and increasing the diversity of those entering the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) career pipeline.

NSBE Pre-College Initiative 2021 Alternative Spring Break will be virtual this year.

The following NSBE students are participating:

Andi Smith – Chemical Engineering andreasm@mtu.edu (248) 937-0248
Jasmine Ngene – Electrical Engineering j gngene@mtu.edu (763) 248-2928
Jalen Vaughn – Computer Engineering j xvaughn@mtu.edu
Kylynn Hodges – Computer Science kbhodges@mtu.edu
George Ochieze – Mechatronics cochieze@mtu.edu
Catherine Rono- Biological Science crono@mtu.edu
Christiana Strong – Biomedical Engineering ctstrong@mtu.edu
Trent Johnson – Computer Engineering trentj@mtu.edu
Meghan Tidwell – Civil Engineering metidwel@mtu.edu
Oluwatoyin Areo*- Chemical Engineering oareo@mtu.edu
Kazeem Kareem* – Statistics kareem@mtu.edu

The NSBE classroom presentations are designed to engage and inspire diverse students to learn about and consider careers in engineering and science by interacting with ‘hometown’ role models (most of the participating NSBE students are from the Detroit area). These programs are designed to address our country’s need for an increased number and greater diversity of students skilled in STEM (math, science, technology, and engineering). This outreach is encouraged by the NSBE Professional Pre-College Initiative (PCI) program which supports and encourages K-12 participation in STEM. 

This MTU NSBE student chapter’s outreach effort is funded by General Motors and the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, and coordinated by the NSBE student chapter, with assistance from Joan Chadde, Director of the Michigan Tech Center for Science & Environmental Outreach.

High school students are informed of scholarships available to attend MTU’s Summer Youth Programs and high school STEM internship opportunities at MTU.

For more information about the MTU-NSBE student chapter’s Alternative Spring Break, contact NSB-PCI student chapter coordinator, Andi Smith andreasm@mtu.edu, or Joan Chadde, Director, Center for Science & Environmental Outreach, Michigan Technological University by email: jchadde@mtu.edu or call 906-369-1121.

Environmental Engineering Students are Seeking Solutions to Lake Ontario’s Cladophora Problem

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Anika Kuczynski, a PhD candidate in environmental engineering, shows Cladophora growing in Lake Ontario

Hayden Henderson, an environmental engineering undergrad, shows some of the green alga collected from Lake Ontario
Hayden Henderson, an environmental engineering undergrad, shows some of the Cladophora collected from Lake Ontario

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Michelle Nitz, an environmental engineering undergrad, is studying samples taken from Lake Ontario

Cladophora is a filamentous, green alga that grows to nuisance levels in areas of the Great Lakes receiving phosphorus enrichment.  Anika Kuczynski, a Ph.D. candidate in environmental engineering working under Dr. Marty Auer, recently received an Editor’s Choice Award for her paper entitled, “The Cladophora resurgence in Lake Ontario: Characterization and implications for management” published in the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences.  Anika is back on Lake Ontario this summer seeking engineering solutions to this problem plaguing the Great Toronto waterfront.  Anika was accompanied by environmental engineering undergrads Hayden Henderson and Michelle Nitz on her most recent trip to Lake Ontario in July.  Results from the field and laboratory studies performed there will be input to a 3D model developed by Anika, Chenfu Huang (also a  Ph.D. student in environmental engineering) and CEE’s Dr. Pengfei Xue to test management strategies to reduce nuisance growth of the alga.

Michigan Tech Tapped for National Rail Research, Education Center

Michigan Technological University’s Rail Transportation Program–part of the Michigan Tech Transportation Institute–is one of seven members of a research university consortium that has received the US Department of Transportation’s (USDoT) first multi-million grant to a University Transportation Center focused solely on rail transportation. The University of lllinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) will lead the consortium.

The $3.5 million grant is part of a $77 million USDoT initiative to advance research and education programs that address critical transportation challenges facing the nation. In addition to UIUC and Michigan Tech, the members of the National University Rail Center (NURail) are MIT, the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, the University of Illinois at Chicago, the University of Kentucky and the University of Tennessee-Knoxville.

NURail is one of 10 University Transportation Centers nationwide to receive the federal funding.

For the full story, see Railway.