Siyu Chen
Civil Engineering
Mr. Siyu Chen received his MS degree in Highway Engineering from South China University of Technology in China. Currently, he is pursuing his Ph.D. degree at MTU from Fall 2015 under the supervision of Dr. Zhanping You. His Ph.D. research focuses on investigating the water permeability of asphalt mixture. After the completion of his Ph.D., he would be interested to work as a faculty in an academic institution in China.
Mohammed Desouky
Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics
I earned my bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering from Military Technical College in 2005 and my MSc in aerospace engineering from Cairo University in 2012. I started at MTU in Spring 2017. My research is on spacecraft attitude determination, dynamics and control. Specifically, I am developing control schemes that enable the spacecraft to carry out attitude maneuver in less time with less power consumption.
I would like to express my gratitude to my entire family for supporting me. With Special thanks to my father, Abdelrahman, my wife, Eman and my son, Zeyad. I am grateful to the Graduate School for granting me the Finishing Fellowship for Fall 2019. I would also like to thank my advisors Dr. Abdelkhalik and Dr. Gauchia for their academic advice and their constant support and encouragement.
It has been great time at Michigan Tech and I am proud to be a part of it.
Nancy Henaku
Rhetoric, Theory and Culture
I am currently a doctoral candidate on the Rhetoric, Theory and Culture (RTC) program in the Department of Humanities. Generally, my research examines the intersections between discourse and socio-political processes with a specific emphasis on postcoloniality and transnationality. For my doctoral dissertation, I argue for a Global Southern perspective on women’s politics, suggesting that a serious engagement with postcolonial (African) women’s politics provides critical insights into the complexities of female political power and the role that language and rhetoric play in constructing this complexity. Besides suggesting a multitheoretic framework for unravelling the socio-discursive complexities that I identify in my discursive data, the dissertation also contributes to discussions in transnational feminist research by highlighting the connections between discourses on/about an African woman and discursive patterns identified from a broader transnational context. Because my doctoral project is itself an effort to recover an African woman’s political contributions, I have had to cover significant ground in order to highlight the complex issues in the texts examined. I am currently completing the final chapters of my dissertation and looking forward to my defense and graduation in Fall 2019. The Finishing Fellowship will therefore facilitate my work on the final sections of my dissertation. I am extremely grateful to the Michigan Tech Graduate School and the Graduate Dean Awards Advisory Panel for this generous financial support. I am also grateful to Dr. Victoria L. Bergvall—my advisor—for her support and intellectual guidance and to the Department of Humanities for supporting my academic endeavors since I started the PhD program.
Danielle Rupp
School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science
I am a fourth year PhD Candidate in the School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science. My area of study revolves around boreal ecosystems—particularly northern wetlands—and how these areas are responding to climate change. The research that I pursue at Michigan Tech specifically involves carbon cycling, microbial response, and plant community shifts due to hydrologic change. Other research I have been involved with during my time at Tech includes the investigation of permafrost thaw and its effects on nutrient cycling in and around thermokarst features. In so doing, I have spent the past three summers living and working in and around Fairbanks, Alaska—an area in which permafrost thaw and climate change are daily realities for both the landscape and the people who live there. During my time at Michigan Tech, I also had the opportunity to attain a Masters in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), which expands my technical skillset for any future career.
I am incredibly grateful to the graduate school for awarding me a Finishing Fellowship. The extra time to finish writing and publishing my research will make me a competitive candidate for many potential future careers. Careers I am interested in pursuing include nonprofit environmental research, land- or water-based management positions in federal agencies, land trusts, or non-profits, or environmental state-based careers in Alaska or other northern climates.
Amol Paithankar
Mining Engineering
I am a Ph.D. candidate studying Mining Engineering in the Department of Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences. I came to Michigan Tech in Fall 2015 to pursue MS in Mining Engineering, after working for 4 years in the mining industry in India. I started working under the guidance of Dr. Snehamoy Chatterjee, where I worked on multiple-point geostatistics and mine production scheduling. After finishing MS in 2017, I decided to continue for a Ph.D. at MTU. As a Ph.D. candidate, I am developing a mining complex optimization algorithm to solve a large scale stochastic open-pit mine optimization problem. I want to thank my advisor Dr. Snehamoy Chatterjee for his guidance and generous support.
I am very grateful to the Graduate School for the support provided through the Doctoral Finishing Fellowship. This support is instrumental in this final stage of my graduate studies. I am mainly writing my final research papers, and look forward to completing my dissertation in a timely manner and take on new challenges.
Applications are being sought for KCP Future Faculty Fellowships, a program funded by the State of Michigan. Applications are due no later than 4pm on October 8, 2019 for funding starting in Spring 2020 or later. KCP fellowships provide students up to $20,000 (MS students) or $35,000 (PhD students) to pursue their degrees. Funds may be used to support students (or faculty/staff) pursuing degrees at Michigan Tech. For Michigan Tech students, the Graduate School and nominating department must also contribute matching funds to help support the student.
The purpose of the King-Chávez-Parks Future Faculty Fellowship Program is to increase the pool of academically and economically disadvantaged candidates pursuing faculty teaching or administrative careers in post-secondary education.
Complete information about eligibility criteria and materials needed for an application is available on our web page.
Applications for spring 2020 finishing fellowships are being accepted and are due no later than 4pm, October 24, 2019 to the Graduate School. Please email applications to gradschool@mtu.edu.
Instructions on the application and evaluation process are found online. Students are eligible if all of the following criteria are met:
Finishing Fellowships provide support to PhD candidates who are close to completing their degrees. These fellowships are available through the generosity of alumni and friends of the University. They are intended to recognize outstanding PhD candidates who are in need of financial support to finish their degrees and are also contributing to the attainment of goals outlined in The Michigan Tech Plan. The Graduate School anticipates funding up to ten fellowships with support ranging from $2000 to full support (stipend + tuition). Students who receive full support through a Finishing Fellowship may not accept any other employment. For example, students cannot be fully supported by a Finishing Fellowship and accept support as a GTA or GRA.
Applications for spring 2020 PHF Graduate Assistantships are being accepted and are due no later than 4pm, October 22, 2019 to the Graduate School. Instructions on the application and evaluation process are found online. Students are eligible if all of the following criteria are met:
Priority will be given to students originally from Houghton, Keweenaw, Baraga, or Ontonagon counties. Non-resident students and international students are encouraged to apply if their health research is applicable to health needs and job shortages of our local community (obesity research, rural health, medical informatics, drug delivery and lab testing, physical therapy, etc.).
These assistantships are available through the generosity of the Portage Health Foundation. They are intended to recognize outstanding PhD talent in health-oriented research areas. Applicants should be a catalyst for promoting and improving the overall health of Houghton, Keweenaw, Baraga, and Ontonagon communities through one of the following:
Students who receive full support through a PHF Graduate Assistantship may not accept any other employment. For example, students cannot be fully supported by a PHF Graduate Assistantship and accept support as a GTA or GRA.
Students who are completing a dissertation, thesis, or report are invited to join the Graduate School to learn about the resources available to them to assist in scheduling their defense, formatting their documents, and submitting their documents. In one afternoon, you can learn everything you need to be successful and complete your degree in a timely fashion! Faculty and staff who assist students with submissions are also welcome to attend. Attend the entire event, or stop in for the seminar that interests you.
If you are unable to join us, the event will be taped and available online after the event. The previous semester’s seminars are always available online.
Information on submitting, formatting, and more can be found online for dissertations and theses or reports.