Graduate School Newsblog

Tag: The DeVlieg Foundation

Doctoral The DeVlieg Foundation Fellowship Summer Research Award 2020 Recipient – Angela Walczyk

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I am a second-year PhD student in Biological Sciences. I started at Michigan Tech in 2016 as a MS student, and I became a PhD student in 2018. My research focuses on how whole genome duplication (i.e. polyploidy) in plants influences adaptation to abiotic and biotic environments. I am specifically interested in determining if specific environmental conditions are correlated with polyploid advantages or disadvantages as a means of better understanding: how diploid versus polyploid populations are affected by environmental change and which environments may be at most risk for polyploid biological invasions.

I am very grateful that the DeVlieg Foundation and the Graduate Dean Awards Advisory Panel has awarded me with support for the summer of 2020. This financial support will allow me to complete the second chapter of my PhD dissertation. This project will address whether polyploidy and/or post-introduction selection influences the expression of phenotypic plasticity in native and invasive populations of Solidago gigantea (Giant Goldenrod). I would also like to express my gratitude to the Biological Sciences Graduate Committee for their nomination and to my advisor Dr. Erika Hersch-Green for her mentorship and support of this project.

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Nominations open for summer 2020 fellowships from The DeVlieg Foundation

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Due to the generous support of The DeVlieg Foundation, the Graduate School is happy to accept nominations for 2020 summer fellowships.

All graduate programs may nominate one eligible PhD student per program.  The recipient will  receive a stipend for summer 2020 plus tuition support (one credit or three research credits for PhD candidates).  Eligible students will meet all of the following criteria:

  1. Must be a graduate student in the field supported by the DeVlieg Foundation:
    1. Biology/wildlife (2020 Summer Research Award in Biology/Wildlife)
  2. Must be a US citizen or permanent resident.
  3. Must be enrolled in a PhD program.
  4. Must be nominated by student’s graduate program.  Each PhD program may nominate one student.
  5. Must not be supported by another funding mechanism while supported by The DeVlieg Foundation (part-time job, fellowship, GTA, GRA, etc.).

Nominations are due no later than 4pm on February 26, 2020 to the Graduate School. Please submit as a PDF file sent to gradschool@mtu.edu.

Please see our web page for details on the application procedure and materials needed.  Each program may determine its own internal selection procedure.

Please contact the Graduate School with any questions.

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DeVlieg Foundation Fellowship Summer 2019 Recipient – Ami Kling

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Ami Kling
Biomedical Engineering

I am a second-year PhD student in the Biomedical Engineering program, although I never intended to pursue a graduate education when I first came to Michigan Tech. I came to this school as an undergraduate student in the fall of 2013 with an associate degree in hand, intent on earning a bachelor’s in 2-3 years and obtaining a job – any job – in the medical device industry. Four years, an undergrad degree, and a newfound love of physics later, I became first a masters and then a PhD student in the Biomedical Engineering department.

My research focuses on a novel medical imaging technique called elastography, which is used to noninvasively quantify tissue stiffness distributions in vivo. Specifically, I am interested in combining optical and ultrasound elastography techniques in order to create an improved system that has potential applications in both research and clinical environments.

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the DeVlieg Foundation and the Graduate Dean Awards Advisory Panel for the support that has been provided to me for the summer of 2019. This financial support will allow me to concentrate efforts on developing instrumentation, gathering experimental data, and publishing results. Consequently, this support will also further my overarching goal of creating a useful, portable, and readily available diagnostic imaging system. I would also like to thank: the Biomedical Engineering Graduate Programs Committee for their recommendation; my advisors, Dr. Jingfeng Jiang and Dr. Sean J. Kirkpatrick, for their guidance and support; and Mr. David Rosen for his assistance with this project.

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DeVlieg Foundation Fellowship Summer 2019 Recipient – Chris Adams

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Chris Adams
Biological Sciences

I am a fourth year PhD student in Biological Sciences. My research investigates life history variation in trout populations, which may be a mechanism for adapting to changing environments. Data is obtained by individually tagging fish with RFID tags and operating in-stream antenna stations to rack moments throughout a watershed. I look forward to working under the DeVlieg fellowship this summer to wrap up field work in the nearby Pilgrim River and prepare manuscripts for publication.

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Nominations for 2019 the DeVlieg Foundation Fellowships open

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Due to the generous support of The DeVlieg Foundation, the Graduate School is happy to accept nominations for 2019 summer fellowships.

All graduate programs may nominate one eligible PhD student per program.  There will be two recipients – each will receive a stipend for summer 2019 plus tuition support (one credit or three research credits in Research Mode).  Eligible students will meet all of the following criteria:

  1. Must be a graduate student in one of the fields supported by the DeVlieg Foundation:
    1. Engineering or a closely related field, OR
    2. Biology/wildlife (2019 Summer Research Award in Biology/Wildlife)
  2. Must be a US citizen or permanent resident.
  3. Must be enrolled in a PhD program.
  4. Must be nominated by student’s graduate program.  Each PhD program may nominate one student.

Nominations are due no later than 4pm on January 24, 2019 to the Graduate School. Email to gradschool@mtu.edu is preferred.

Please see our web page for details on the application procedure and materials needed.  Each program may determine its own internal selection procedure.

Please contact Debra Charlesworth in the Graduate School with any questions.

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DeVlieg Foundation Fellowships

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The Graduate School is pleased to announce the awarding of two DeVlieg Foundation Fellowships. The DeVlieg Foundation supports graduate students pursuing research in engineering, wildlife, and biology at Michigan Tech.

Forest Science

Kelsey Carter 3

Kelsey Carter is interested in plant physiological responses to climate warming. Her work was with a novel leaf-warming apparatus, which was developed in collaboration with Michigan Tech’s School of Forestry and Environmental Science and the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. The leaf-warming apparatus will have broad field and laboratory applications in predicting the effects of climate change on plant communities.

Physics

Tyler Capek 4

Tyler Capek studies how radiation interacts with aerosols in the atmosphere. His work focuses on developing instrumentation that characterizes the optical properties of various aerosols to study how the optical properties of aerosol (such as lab generated soot) change as a result of cloud processing. This work will allowing for a better understanding on the effect aerosols have on Earth’s radiative budget.

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Graduate School Announces Award Recipients

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The Graduate School is pleased to announce the following graduate student award recipients:

CGS/ProQuest Distinguished Dissertation Award Nominee:

  • Gary Kaunonen, PhD Graduate in Rhetoric, Theory and Culture

DeVlieg Foundation Fellowships:

  • Joseph Niehaus, PhD Candidate in Atmospheric Sciences
  • Shawn O’Neil, PhD Candidate in Forest Science

Doctoral Finishing Fellowships:

  • Mehran Bidarvatan, PhD Candidate in Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics
  • Kamal Dhungana, PhD Candidate in Physics
  • Rebecca Frost, PhD Candidate in Rhetoric, Theory and Culture
  • Ruilong Han, PhD Candidate in Civil Engineering
  • Jun Tao, PhD Candidate in Computer Science
  • Xu Yang, PhD Candidate in Civil Engineering

King-Chávez-Parks Future Faculty Fellowships:

  • Alexander Miranda, PhD Candidate in Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
  • Renee Oats, PhD Candidate in Civil Engineering
  • Sterling Prince, PhD Candidate in Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics

Photographs and details of awards and fellowships coordinated by the Graduate School can be found online.

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Graduate School Announces Award Recipients

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The Graduate School is pleased to announce that the following students have earned:

Doctoral Finishing Fellowships:

Jun Ma, PhD candidate in Computer Science
Evgeniy Kulakov, PhD candidate in Geology
Colin Gurganus, PhD candidate in Atmospheric Sciences
Suntara Fueangfung, PhD candidate in Chemistry
Fang Chen, PhD candidate in Electrical Engineering
Xiaohui Wang, PhD candidate in Electrical Engineering
Jennifer Riehl, PhD candidate in Forest Molecular Genetics and Biotechnology
Stephanie Ogren, PhD candidate in Biological Sciences
Tayloria Adams, PhD candidate in Chemical Engineering

Dean’s Fellowships:

Bonnie Zwissler, PhD candidate in Civil Engineering
Matthew Brege, PhD candidate in Chemistry
Bryan Steinhoff, PhD candidate in Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics

DeVlieg Foundation Fellowships:

Howard Haselhuhn, PhD candidate in Chemical Engineering
John Henderson, PhD candidate in Forest Science

King-Ch`avez-Parks Future Faculty Fellowships:

Zoe Miller, MS candidate in Environmental Engineering
Darnishia Slade, PhD candidate in Applied Cognitive Science and Human Factors
Ronesha Strozier, MS candidate in Environmental Policy

Photographs and details of awards and fellowships coordinated by the Graduate School can be found online:

www.mtu.edu/gradschool/administration/academics/awards-fellowships/

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2014 Nominations open for The DeVlieg Foundation Fellowships

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Nominations are now open for the DeVlieg Foundation Fellowships.

All graduate programs may nominate one eligible PhD student per program.  There will be two recipients – each will receive a stipend for summer 2014 plus support for one credit of tuition.  Eligible students will meet all of the following criteria:

  1. Must be a graduate student in one of the fields supported by the DeVlieg Foundation:
    1. Engineering or a closely related field, OR
    2. Wildlife/biology (2014 Summer Research Award in Biology/Wildlife/Natural Resources)
  2. Must be a US citizen or permanent resident.
  3. Must be enrolled in a PhD program.
  4. Must be nominated by student’s graduate program.  Each PhD program may nominate one student.

Nominations are due no later than 4pm on January 29, 2014 to the Graduate School. Please address to the attention of Debra Charlesworth.

Please see our web page for details on the application procedure and materials needed.  Each program may determine its own internal selection procedure.

Please contact Debra Charlesworth with any questions.

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DeVlieg Recipients Announced

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The Graduate School is pleased to announce that two students have earned fellowships from The DeVlieg Foundation.  The DeVlieg Foundation has generously provided support for graduate students pursuing research in engineering, wildlife, and biology at Michigan Tech.

The recipients this year are:

  • Anthony D. Matthys, PhD candidate in Biological Sciences
  • Renee C. Oats, PhD candidate in Civil Engineering

Photographs and details of awards and fellowships coordinated by the Graduate School can be found online.

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