Canvas Introductory Workshop series offered

Tom Freeman from The William G. Jackson Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) will offer the three-part Canvas Introductory Workshop series for instructors and instructional staff looking to get started using the Canvas Learning Management System. The series begins January 9, 2018 The three workshops in the series are:

  • Canvas 101: Introduction to Canvas
  • Pages & Modules in Canvas
  • Assignments & Grades in Canvas

The series gives instructors and others who will be building and administering Canvas courses the basic information necessary to create a basic Canvas course. Each workshop is conducted in a 50-minute block between five minutes after and five minutes before the hour, and offers attendees an opportunity to work hands-on in Canvas during the workshop. Participants are encouraged to take Canvas 101 first, and then take the next two workshops as they fit your schedule after.
Those interested in attending can find out more and register on the William G. Jackson Center for Teaching and Learning. For more general information or help with Canvas at Michigan Tech, be sure to visit Canvas One Stop.

New Daycare Center

Good morning  – I wanted to share some good news we learned through WorkLife’s membership with the Great Start Collaborative. At our last meeting, it was announced that a new daycare center is opening in Hancock, Right Start UP. My understanding is that they are a non-profit, and the daycare is only the first step. I believe they are planning to expand services to include early childhood education as well.

They have a questionnaire for interested families to fill out, located here.

Please feel free to share this information with any who might be interested.

Ann Kitalong-Will

Call for Proposals: REF, PHF Mid-Career and Faculty Fellow

Submitted by: Natasha Chopp

The VPR office has released a request for proposals for the Research Excellence Fund, Portage Health Foundation Mid-Career, and Faculty Fellow Program. Please share this information those interested in pursuing any of these opportunities.

Research Excellence Fund Proposals

Proposals are being solicited for the Research Excellence Fund (REF) program, an internal award of the Office of the Vice President for Research.
Budgets are due no later than 4 p.m. Thursday, March 1 and proposals are due no later than 4 p.m. Thursday, March 8. Both must be submitted electronically per the guidelines.
For additional information, see Research Excellence Fund.
If you are interested in serving on an REF proposal review committee, email Natasha Chopp.
Portage Health Foundation Mid-Career
Proposals are being solicited for the Portage Health Foundation Mid-Career (PHF-MC) program, which is designed to support tenured faculty with an active NIH grant and/or consistent history of external funding with NIH or a related agency.
Budgets are due no later than 4 p.m. Thursday, March 1 and proposals are due no later than 4 p.m. Thursday, March 8. Both must be submitted electronically per the guidelines.
For additional Information, see Portage Health Foundation Research Awards.
Faculty Fellow
Applications are being solicited for the Faculty Fellow Program. The Faculty Fellow Program is sponsored by the Office of the Vice President for Research.
The Program expands familiarity with sponsored program administration and strategic planning among the faculty, develops leadership capacity among the faculty and improves sponsored programs administration and strategic planning through faculty input.
Applications are due no later than 4 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 15 and must be submitted electronically per the guidelines.
For additional information, see Faculty Fellow Program.

Researcher’s success earning grants

Dear ECM Enthusiasts,
Rejection of proposals is hard, but…. you have at your disposal Michigan Tech’s Research Development team that can help to reduce rejections.  The article Granting Researches Success states:Many grant proposals are submitted without any kind of internal review. A new study suggests a major return on investment for institutions that help their researchers write better grants.  Read the full article here.
new study from Columbia University’s School of Nursing suggests that institutions benefit from helping researchers write better grants. Specifically, it found that pilot grant applications, that underwent an internal review, were twice as likely as non-reviewed applications to receive funding.

It’s “all about faculty engaging with their peers, being willing to obtain peer feedback and utilizing the services provided by an institution,”  said Nathan L. Vanderford, an assistant professor of toxicology and cancer biology at the University of Kentucky and assistant director for research at the campus’s Markey Cancer Center.

Adrienne R. Minerick, Ph.D.
Associate Dean for Research & Innovation, College of Engineering
Assistant to the Provost for Faculty Development
Professor, Chemical Engineering

Faculty Evaluations: 
Accounting for the “Unmeasurables”

Dear ECMers,

This is an interesting read that will likely spark conversation in your ECM meeting this month.
Also, I recommend subscribing to Tomorrow’s Professorthought-provoking articles like this come through periodically.
Adrienne R. Minerick, Ph.D.
Associate Dean for Research & Innovation, College of Engineering
Assistant to the Provost for Faculty Development
Professor, Chemical Engineering

Research Centers and Institutes Promote Interdisciplinary Work

Guest author: Peter Larsen

Happy post-Thanksgiving to the ECM faculty and team members!

As you think about your upcoming plans for research — and how to fund it! — now might be a great time to explore the Research Centers and Institutes at Michigan Tech.

Michigan Tech’s Research Centers and Institutes exist to promote interdisciplinary work across campus. Michigan Tech is home to 21 Centers and Institutes. This post is designed to provide answers to some common questions and information about how to engage with these campus resources.

What is the difference between a Center and an Institute?
A Center is a collaborative effort of faculty/researchers from two or more departments focused on a particular theme of research or educational activity. An Institute is proposed for larger initiatives that involve collaboration across multiple Colleges/Schools. Institutes may also contain one or more research centers within their organizational structure.

How are Centers and Institutes formed?
Centers and Institutes typically arise out of the interdisciplinary work of researchers. Approval requires evidence that there is a group of interdisciplinary researchers working together that could benefit from a Center/Institute structure. The second general factor in the decision to develop a Center or Institute is the existence of a funding opportunity that would benefit from the existence of the research center. Centers are proposed by faculty through an established process. Department chairs and deans from all involved administrative units must approve the plan, with final approval granted by the Vice President for Research, Provost, and University President.

How do I join a Center or Institute? What are the benefits of that affiliation?
Faculty can affiliate with one or more Centers/Institutes by simply expressing an interest. Only one Center can be the “home” to a sponsored project, but researchers with multiple research thrusts can affiliate with more than one Center or Institute.

Centers and Institutes provide an intellectually stimulating environment for researchers working across disciplines and on large projects. Centers/Institute funds are used to further the interdisciplinary mission of the group. Funds are used for a variety of purposes, for example to support student travel, provide cost share on research projects, or fund shared equipment or personnel. Centers also offer services like administrative support, access to equipment/facilities, and shared information about upcoming proposal deadlines. In addition, Centers/Institutes often organize professional and social opportunities for Center members, students, post-docs, and research staff.  Once you become a member of a Center, you can suggest opportunities and events that are beneficial to the group.

How are Centers and Institutes funded?
Centers are funded through the scholarly work of affiliated researchers. 18% of Institutional Research and Development (IRAD) funds collected from externally funded projects submitted through a Center or Institute are returned for use by the Center or Institute. These funds are in addition to the IRAD returned to the PI and administrative units (department and college/school); in other words, no one receives less IRAD if a Center or Institute is involved. The Center orInstitute is accountable to the Vice President for Research to show that IRAD funds are being effectively leveraged to expand the interdisciplinary work of the center.

How are Centers and Institutes administered?
Centers and Institutes are governed by the structure proposed and approved during the creation of the center. Most Centers or Institutes could be called “academic” or “virtual” centers in that the researchers and director are employed by academic departments, rather than directly by the Center. These Centers are proposed and led by a director who is a tenured or tenure-track faculty member.

A small number of Centers/Institutes affiliated with Michigan Tech operate uniquely. These Centers/Institutes are their own organizational unit (operating outside of an academic department, college, or school) and typically have a full-time director, multiple full-time staff members to support and conduct research, and often have Center-owned facilities and equipment. The Keweenaw Research Center, the Michigan Tech Research Institute, and the Great Lakes Research Center are examples of this alternate Center/Institute structure. Other Centers are similar to these in some ways with a full-time director and staff (e.g., Center for Technology and Training) and/or their own facilities (e.g., Advanced Power Systems Research Center).

Centers are authorized for a specific period of time (usually five years). Annual reports are required, and a self-study is required at the end of the initial authorization period to determine effectiveness and to provide a justification for Center renewal (if desired).

How can I learn more?

Contact information for current Center and Institute directors can be found here

Center and Institute functions and opportunities will be a topic of discussion during the annual Research Development Day that will be held January 11, 2018. Center and Institute directors will be invited to attend the social at the end of the day to interact with and discuss collaboration with interested faculty.

In addition, we are planning a Spring 2018 TechTalks on March 21 that will provide highlights of each of the Centers and Institutes in a brief, 2-minute presentation format, followed by a social time to discuss and learn more. Watch your email and Tech Today for additional information.

Proposal Support from Campus Satellite Office

Guest author: Lisa Jukkala

VPR Campus Satellite Office Pilot

Sponsored Programs Office (SPO) Spotlight

To provide each of you with direct and convenient access to proposal support, the Vice President for Research (VPR) set up a satellite office on campus.  The majority of the VPR staff are located in the Lakeshore Center in downtown Houghton which means our interactions with you have been predominantly through email.  However, to support faculty and staff face-to-face, in areas related to sponsored programs, we located this office on the 6th floor of the Dow Environmental Sciences & Engineering Building. My name is Jennifer Bukovich and my role in SPO is to help with multiple aspects of your proposal preparation.

I’m located in room 616 and I am eager to assist the faculty and staff in many areas related to proposal submission and award administration including but not limited to:

  • Interpretation of agency guidelines.
  • Prepare and/or provide guidance related to your budget, transmittal sheet and cost share form.
  • Interpretation of the grant/contract terms and conditions.
  • Provide guidance for post-award activities including no-cost time extensions, budget modifications, etc.

If you are working on your first proposal, we can start by talking about the resources you will need to complete your proposal.  I can guide and help you develop a budget that meets your agency format.  Michigan Tech requires an internal transmittal sheet to help all of the units supporting your research know their responsibilities and commitments.  I can help you complete this important document as it summarizes your project and includes all required University approvals.

The VPR Office and I are extremely excited about this opportunity to be located on campus. I look forward to the personal interaction this location will provide.  For assistance, please stop by my office, room 616 of the DOW building.

ABET Recognizes ECM Program

Dear ECM-ers from 2015-present,

 Yesterday was the culmination of the on-site visit by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).  Evaluators were here assessing programs in both the college of engineering and the school of technology.  At the exit meeting, two strengths were noted across all programs.  The first was the Early Career Management Committees and the second was the Enterprise program.

I wanted to share with you how significant this is.  For the last 6 years, departments and programs have been completing their assessments which culminated in a report submitted to ABET this last summer for their review.  Their questions during their visit this week largely originated from those reports.  Enterprise was of course emphasized everywhere in the report, but the Early Career Management Committees would not have been.  Thus, it was the mention of this program during the opening session on Monday at 8 am and discussions with all of you that reinforced in the ABET evaluators minds what an asset this program has been.

Each of you have played a meaningful and significant role in cultivating and supporting our own talent.  Each of you have contributed to creating a place where we all love to work and can thrive.  Each of you play a valuable role in creating the future of Michigan Tech.  Thank you for all of these things and the other tiny efforts in between.
While you are in the mindset of helping shape the future of Tech, please take the time to respond to the survey about working, living, and learning at Michigan Tech. Go to https://www.mtu.edu/worklivelearn/   There was an article in TechToday and only a tenth of us have responded.  Participating is key so that our administration can prioritize initiatives (like ECM) to support the growth and professional development of all of our faculty.
Thanks and congratulations for the recognition of a program you have helped make very impactful!
Best,
Adrienne

Your Language Road Map: A Guide to English Services at Michigan Tech

Guest author: Heather Deering

“Language, identity, place, home: these are all of a piece—just different elements of belonging and not-belonging.” ~Jhumpa Lahiri

Moving to a new place can bring many challenges.  The English Language Institute (ELI) at Michigan Tech helps international faculty and their families feel at home through a variety of language services the ELI offers.

Tea Time
Tea Time is a free weekly event that runs all year round. Each week students, faculty, and community members meet to practice conversation and share stories. Some of the themes we have discussed have been bucket lists, natural hazards, politics, war dances, and dowries. Come join us at the ELI office (DHH G044) from 2:30-4:30 p.m. on Wednesdays.

Tutoring
Customized tutoring is available for Michigan Tech international students and faculty. We also welcome community members interested in developing their English language skills. Tutors are our professionally trained IESL instructors, who will conduct a needs assessment and work with you to develop an individualized tutoring program that is suitable for you.

Cost:   $25 (faculty)
$15 (family members and graduate students)

Foundational English
Tailored to any student just beginning to learn English, Foundational English courses focus on the different skill areas of listening, speaking, writing, and reading.  Students can select how many classes they wish to take in this program.  These courses are offered six weeks every semester and in the summer.

Cost:   $360 per course
$1,440 for all four courses

Night Owls
Night Owls meets two hours per week for seven weeks every Fall and Spring semester.  It covers survival English needed in everyday life in Houghton.  This semester, the class starts on Thursday, October 19. At the end of the class this fall, students will be invited to a Thanksgiving celebration. This group is led by community teachers and is made possible with support from the Office of the Provost.

Cost:   $25.00 for seven weeks


To register for any of these services (other than Tea Time), visit this link.

If you have any questions or would like more information on other community services, please contact Heather Deering, the ELI Director, at hldeerin@mtu.edu or (906) 487-2009 or visit the English Language Institute website.