Search Results for "thesis and dissertations MS Office tips"

Grad Student Writes about Finns, Labor Unrest and a Radical Heritage; Book Signing Scheduled

by John Gagnon, promotional writer

There is an old story about soft-spoken, reticent Finns.

A Swede and a Finn stand at the bar, drinks in hand.

“Cheers,” says the Swede.

“Did we come to talk or drink?” says the Finn.

Gary Kaunonen, a graduate student in the rhetoric and technical communication program, is of Finnish heritage but definitely doesn’t fit that proverbial mold. Indeed, he is effusive–in speech and writing–about a subject that is dear to his heart and mind: Finnish immigrant labor and political activity in the Keweenaw.

A native of Minnesota, Kaunonen has written a book, “Challenge Accepted: A Finnish Immigrant Response to Industrial America in Michigan’s Copper Country,” which was just published by Michigan State University Press. The book is his master’s thesis in Tech’s industrial archaeology program.

The Michigan Tech Archives will host a presentation and book signing by Kaunonen at 4 p.m., Tuesday, August 17, in the East Reading Room of the Van Pelt and Opie Library.

Kaunonen calls the book “a honed-in look” at Finnish immigrants and their living and working conditions–and often radical union activities–in the years 1904-14. The backdrop of this history, Kaunonen says, was a “lopsided distribution of prosperity” that led to “proletarian consciousness” and a “struggle for the betterment of lives.” All of it was “a powder keg” that exploded into violence on the copper range in the 1913-14 Copper Strike and the infamous Italian Hall disaster, in both of which Finns had “a huge and significant role.”

“The upstart Finnish immigrants,” he writes, “often stumbled and stammered in awkward directions, but for a time that took a back seat to working class solidarity. They seldom wavered in their bold attempt to shape their lives into what they perceived to be a more just and equal existence.”

These immigrants had marked reputations. “Finns were respected workers,” he says, “but they were also suspected agitators. They had a big impact on labor relations in this area. They resisted company dictates and mandates. They challenged the inequalities of the traditional mining and industrial society.”

His research led him to the archives at both Michigan Tech and Finlandia University, where he sought material culture–what he calls the “hard evidence” of historic circumstances. He notes, for instance, that Hancock’s leftist newspaper, Tyomies (The Worker), moved to bigger and bigger buildings and bought bigger printing presses to accommodate a burgeoning readership and a growing business. Tyomies would become a communist organ.

Kaunonen can tell the story of immigrant Finns without championing any specific cause. “I’m not casting aspersions on the mining,” he says. “But you had these huge mining companies and the vast amount of wealth and inequality they created—and then you had this little ethnic group trying to make a place for themselves. I have a soft spot in my heart for the underdog. Not that I wholly agree with everything they did, but they should certainly have a place at the table, so to speak, in telling their story.”

He went to college just to play baseball. He quit because of injuries, poked around, and worked in factories. Then the drifter became a father. “I decided I was wasting my life. I thought, well, my daughter is here, and how can I lecture her on working hard and using your gifts if I don’t do that myself. So I decided to go back to school.”

That proved to be a purposeful enterprise. He earned three bachelor’s degrees from Minnesota State University-Mankato, his IA master’s at Michigan Tech, and is now a PhD student here. Previously, he was an archivist at Finlandia. It’s been “a winding road” that has become a quest. He has now written two books on Finnish immigrants. An earlier one, “Finns in Michigan,” also was published by Michigan State University Press.

In his endeavors, Kaunonen is grateful for what he calls “a slew of good professors” in social sciences and now humanities. “They inspired me by what they did and currently do.”

As did his family.

“I write because I have an admiration for my parents and grandparents. All of them were members of the working class”—both grandfathers worked on the Minnesota iron range–“and I’m kind of honoring them and their contributions to American labor.”

Published in Tech Today.

Graduate Student Writing Groups

At the Multiliteracies Center, in Walker room 107, we offer Graduate Student Writing Groups for graduate students at any level.

The groups are available for working on projects (planning and writing), proposals, conference papers, posters, presentations and defenses. They are discussion based to allow students to explain their project to other students and get feedback from peers. Evidence shows that we retain 75 – 90% of what we teach others as opposed to only 10% of what we read.

Safari Club International Graduate Student Grant

The Safari Club International (SCI) Michigan Involvement Committee (MIC) is a non-profit corporation composed of representatives of each of the Michigan chapters of SCI. The Committee coordinates collaboration between SCI, its Michigan chapters, and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Environment (DNRE); provides scholarships and grants to graduate students; and supports other wildlife conservation and education activities deemed appropriate by the organization.

The Award

Goal: To preserve and perpetuate the right to hunt and the commitment to conservation within the wildlife profession and potential future leaders of the DNRE.

Purpose: To provide financial assistance to a graduate student, preferably one working on a DNRE-funded university research project associated with the preservation of hunting.

Fund Financing: A minimum annual fund of $3,000 has been established by SCI MIC to finance the grant program. Additional grants may be awarded if funding is available. Grant amounts may vary depending upon the number of awards and the fund balance.

Award Duration: The grant will be available for use for one year between September 1 and August 31 of the next year. An award recipient can compete for additional grants in subsequent years with other applicants. If invited by participating chapters, each selected student will be required to visit the chapter at least once during the year of the award.

How to Apply

To Be Eligible:

1) Student must be accepted or enrolled in a Wildlife or related discipline graduate program at a college or university in Michigan.

2) Must be planning a career in the Wildlife Management field.

3) Student must be familiar with hunting, hunting ethics, the role of hunting in wildlife management, and hunting’s role in society.

4) If enrolled in a MS or MA program, it must be a thesis-based degree.

Application: There is no separate application form. Please send a resume which outlines your background, along with three reference letters from individuals knowledgeable of your field skills and experience. Include your name and graduate institution where enrolled on all materials submitted. In addition, in 500 words or less, provide a response to the questions: “What should the elements of wildlife management be 20 years from now, and in what role do you see yourself?”

Selection Process: An SCI MIC committee will review application materials and select finalists. A subcommittee will interview finalists and select the award recipient(s) by September 1, 2010.

Send all materials, by June 15, 2010 to Paul Royce, SCI-Lakeshore Chapter, 9881 84th Avenue, Zeeland, Michigan 49464