Read about Michigan Tech students who have partnered with Keweenaw Bay Indian Community’s Natural Resources Department on a variety of research projects:
Huskies Serve as Virtual K-12 Tutors During the Pandemic
When the Covid-19 pandemic began this spring, it rapidly affected every facet of life including the lives of K-12 students and families across the country when schools began closing. Schools changed gears to provide virtual and remote education almost overnight, a major challenge for teachers, students and parents alike. At the same time as universities closed, Michigan Tech students also found themselves stuck at home with plenty of their own on-line class work, but still wondering how they could help the community. As Tech students, faculty, and alumni brainstormed and connected with local educators for advice, Tech Tutors – a free, virtual tutoring program for K-12 students – was born.
Connecting on Zoom, Elise Cheney-Makens (alum and Community Engagement Coordinator for the Pavlis Honors College), Lydia Savatsky (undergraduate), and Charles Fugate (alum) worked together to quickly roll out the Tech Tutors program in a matter of weeks. By early May, the program was up and running.
Tech Tutors allows Michigan Tech students to volunteer while staying home to keep their families, friends, and communities safe. Volunteer tutors and K-12 students meet virtually through programs like Zoom. Participants range in age from first grade up through high school, and tutors help their students with everything from solving basic math problems to learning the principles of acids and bases by dipping oranges in baking soda or diving into the complex scientific and social implications of the pandemic. Currently, participating students come from throughout the Western U.P., and tutors are able to work with any students and families interested in tutoring.
The benefits of Tech Tutors extends far beyond helping with subjects like English, science, and math. While completing schoolwork and traditional learning are essential parts of the program, equally important is tutors mentoring and building connections with their students. At a time when many people – K-12 students, families, and college students alike – have had their normal routines and lives interrupted, building connections with new people, supporting one another, and learning from new perspectives is more valuable than ever before.
Created by students, faculty, staff, and alumni in the Pavlis Honors College, the Tech Tutors program will begin operating this fall under the Center for Educational Outreach at Michigan Tech and the program will continue to help K-12 students – and provide opportunities for Michigan Tech students to give back – as we navigate what school and life look like during the ever-changing Covid-19 world.
More information about Tech Tutors and how to get involved is available on their website.
One of the most important things students can do is become civically engaged. Watch this video to learn how to vote absentee if you’re a Michigan citizen. If you live out-of-state, go to vote.gov to find out how to vote this November.
Interested in being a math tutor with Americorps? Apply now for the upcoming school year: https://www.sagaeducation.org
Dear Fall 2020 Study Abroad Students,
As you know, Michigan Tech has been monitoring the CDC guidelines regarding COVID-19 and international travel.
Regrettably, in order to protect your health, and to minimize the financial impact to all involved, Michigan Tech is cancelling all study abroad programs departing August through December 2020 due to the continued spread of COVID-19. This includes both European Project Semester programs and study abroad programs operated by third-party providers.
Like you, we are deeply disappointed by the need to make this decision. We highly value the unique, soul-enriching, perspective-changing experience of study abroad. Ultimately, our higher priorities must be to protect your personal health, minimize disruptions to your academic success, and promote the well-being of the entire Michigan Technological University community.
We know that this decision will affect each of you in different ways and that you have each been preparing for the possibility that your program might be canceled by delaying your bookings and enrolling in Fall courses at Michigan Tech as a backup.
Students with questions about how this cancellation affects degree programs including minors and certificates, should contact academic advisors and faculty program leaders as soon as possible. Please also feel free to contact Vienna Chapin if you have any questions about this cancellation, or if you would like to meet virtually to plan an alternative future study abroad experience. Vienna can be reached by email, vrchapin@mtu.edu, or by phone (906) 487-1976.
Lorelle Meadows, PhD
Dean, Pavlis Honors College
Congratulations to our graduates! Watch our virtual medallion ceremony as we celebrate Adison Cook, Brad Dahm, Becky Daniels, Samantha Dertinger, Lucinda Hall, Lianne Novak, Clara Peterson, Cameron Philo, Brenna Rosso, Emily Rutledge, Addie Saltarelli, Joshua Undlin, and Amanda Vermeer.
Every Michigan Tech graduate has accomplished something amazing — Michigan Tech has prepared them to create the future in their fields. So how did our Honors graduates go above and beyond?
They had once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Took action. Learned and led. Developed relationships in the Michigan Tech community and around the world. Take a look at this photo essay to see how the Pavlis Honors College’s class of 2020 created their own definitions of success.
Each year, Central Michigan University and Michigan Tech’s CMU’s New Venture Competition. Due to COVID-19, this year the competition pivoted online and became the New Venture Online Competition — NVOC. Contestants pitched their ideas in either a 10-minute or two-minute pitch. Four Michigan Tech Husky Innovate students competed in the 10-minute pitch category and three won top prizes.
First Prize — Ranit Karmakar with FOCUS, $7,500
Second Prize — Mitch DeLong with FreightMate, $3,000
Honorable Mention — Jacob Soter with SwimSmart, $1,000
Watch the 2020 New Venture Competition awards ceremony
“When I was growing up, I could walk fifty feet out my back door and pick a fresh tomato to eat as an afternoon snack. Another fifty feet, I would find farm fresh eggs and beyond that there were blueberry bushes that our bee hives were pollinating. My family survived Michigan winters from persevering the food we grew in the garden from the summer before. I was fortunate enough to grow up watching my food grow and being a part of the system of planting, picking, and processing. I quickly realized not every kid grew up like this. …”
Sometimes the best way to teach really does involve getting your hands dirty. Read “Planting a Seed for Generations to Come: School Greenhouses and Gardens,” by Honors student Addie Saltarelli, on the Western Upper Peninsula Food System’s blog.
Michigan Tech faculty, staff members and students received awards totaling $90,500 in funding through the Michigan Space Grant Consortium (MSGC), sponsored by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the 2020-2021 funding cycle.
Michigan Tech Undergraduates receiving $3,000 research fellowships:
Michigan Tech Graduate Students receiving $5,000 research fellowships:
Faculty and staff members receiving $5,000 or more for pre-college outreach and research seed programs include:
At the 2019 ALL IN Challenge Awards Ceremony held to recognize colleges and universities committed to increasing college student voting rates, Michigan Technological University received a bronze seal for achieving a student rate between 20% and 29%. A full list of seal awardees can be viewed here.
“Civic engagement is on the minds of faculty, staff and students at Michigan Tech,” said Bonnie Gorman, Dean of Students and Vice President of Student Affairs. “Our students are on the forefront of solving some of our nation’s most vexing problems and it is critical to have them engaged in the political process as well.”
Student participation in elections has increased from the 2014 midterm election to the recent 2018 midterm election. According to the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement, an initiative of Tufts University’s Institute for Democracy & Higher Education, voter turnout at the more than 1,000 institutions participating in the study increased by 21 points from 19% to 40%. Michigan Tech’s data reveals a student voting rate in the 2018 midterm of 26.9 percent, a 17.5 point increase from 2014 (9.4% rate in that midterm).
The growth is encouraging, and student leaders are identifying ways to increase participation in coming years. “While working on Voter Registration Day, I realized that there are a lot of questions students have regarding voting that otherwise go unanswered,” said Anna Ellis (forestry ‘20), chair of the Undergraduate Student Government’s Political Affairs Committee. “Michigan Tech has made great strides in increasing political involvement, but if we want to continue this we will need to create resources that make the process less confusing for busy students.”
“We are excited to honor Michigan Tech with an ALL IN Challenge bronze seal in recognition of their intentional efforts to increase democratic engagement and full voter participation,” said Jennifer Domagal-Goldman, executive director of the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge. “More institutions like Michigan Tech are changing culture on campus by institutionalizing nonpartisan democratic engagement efforts that are resulting in the incredible student voter turnout rates that we’ve seen across the country.”
The ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge is a nonpartisan, national initiative recognizing and supporting campuses as they work to increase nonpartisan democratic engagement and full student voter participation. The Challenge encourages higher education institutions to help students form the habits of active and informed citizenship, and make democratic participation a core value on their campus.
More than 560 campuses, enrolling more than 6.2 million students, have joined the Challenge since its launch in summer 2016.
If you want to get involved in the Michigan Tech ALL IN Democracy Challenge and help with voter registration, contact Kari Henquinet at kbhenqui@mtu.edu.