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1. 2009 Distinguished Teaching Award Winners, Part Two |
by Karina Jousma, Tech Today assistant editor
Today's issue of Tech Today features the winner of the Distinguished Teaching Award in the assistant professor/lecturer/professor of practice category, Senior Lecturer Sean Clancey of the Department of Chemical Engineering. For more information on the award or the other recipient, Associate Professor Dean Johnson of the School of Business and Economics, see www.admin.mtu.edu/urel/ttoday/previous.php?issue=20090601 .
Sean Clancey
Students in chemical engineering have said very good things about Clancey. Included among the accolades is, "Of all the classes I've taken, I look forward most to Dr. Clancey's class because it is always exciting and fun."
When Clancey was a graduate teaching assistant in the humanities department during late 80s/early 90s, earning a PhD in Rhetoric and Technical Communication, he didn't expect to end up in the chemical engineering department. Then fate stepped in. Clancey says he joined the chemical engineering faculty in the mid-90s when a call was sent out for instructors to take over CM 3410, Technical Communication for Chemical Engineers. He says he "inherited" the class from former faculty member Betsy Aller, who is now an associate professor at Western Michigan University. "I was lucky enough that she brought me over here," he says.
In addition to CM 3410, Clancey teaches a Perspectives section, "Creating the 'Drug Fiend': Drugs and Drug Policy in the United States." In both classes, he centers his curriculum on assignments to help students hone their speaking and writing skills.
In CM 3410, each student is required to give three talks, which are videotaped, and extra credit is given to students who turn in memos that analyze their own speech performance. And in his Perspectives section, students are expected to produce 20 formal and 20 informal pages of writing, as well as give at least two oral presentations.
Students surveyed in CM 3410 say, "He has helped me to understand all aspects of public speaking" and "He has taught me to become a better speaker and interviewer."
On the importance of technical communication in chemical engineering, Clancey says, "When engineers go out into the world, they learn that the ability to communicate technical information is absolutely essential to their careers, that they're rated heavily on their communication skills. For the most part, students are fully aware that they need to work on their written and technical communication. And it's becoming more important every year."
Clancey takes a hands-on approach to teaching students how to write because "you learn communication by communicating." He says, "I do some lecturing, but I'm trying to reduce the amount of that."
During a typical class period, students revise samples of writing found in the genre of chemical engineering and defend their edits.
It's clear that Clancey's affinity for teaching extends beyond report writing and public speaking, however.
When asked why Clancey deserves the Distinguished Teaching Award, several students comment along the lines of, "He puts great effort into learning about, as well as connecting with, each and every student."
Clancey says he accomplishes this simply by learning his students' names--he learned the names of all 94 students in his classes last semester within the first month. "I think it's one of the most important things an instructor can do. One way to achieve 'buy-in' with students is to get to know them and listen to what they say."
Clancey says that outside the classroom, his involvement in extracurricular activities is very rewarding. He's the academic advisor to Delta Upsilon, for which he garnered the Exceptional Student Advising Award in May 2001. For the past three to four years, he's been coadvisor to the Consumer Product Manufacturing Enterprise, which has won five first-place awards since 2000.
What does Clancey like best about teaching? "The students themselves," he says. "College students are fun to work with. They are bright, hardworking and entertaining, and they tend to understand the importance of communicating. And you get to see students learn and improve their abilities, and that's a wonderful thing to see."
Komar Kawatra, chair of the Department of Chemical Engineering, says he was pleased to learn that Clancey was chosen to receive a Distinguished Teaching Award.
"Sean is very dedicated to Technical Communication for Chemical Engineers, and he also manages to make it entertaining," says Kawatra. "Plus, he's a huge Green Bay Packers fan!" He also highlights Clancey's involvement in the Enterprise Program. |
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2. Klein, Girard Named Academic All-District |
by Wes Frahm, director of athletic communications
Michigan Tech Nordic skier Jenna Klein (Ely, Minn.) and men's tennis player Brett Girard (Marquette) have both been named ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District At-Large by the College Sports Information Directors of America. Klein earned Academic All-District College Division First Team, while Girard was selected to the Academic All-District Second Team.
Klein, who posted a 4.0 cumulative grade point average in biological sciences, skied her way to the NCAA Championships event for the third straight year in 2009. The junior was the team's top finisher in the freestyle race at the NCAAs and was an All-Central Region performer for the second straight season.
Girard wrapped up a four-year career as Tech's No. 1 singles player by leading the program to its first-ever NCAA Tournament berth. The four-time All-Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference selection earned a cumulative 3.98 GPA in business administration.
The ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District IV College Division At-Large teams consist of all non-Division I student-athletes in the sports of bowling, crew, fencing, field hockey, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rifle, skiing, swimming, tennis, men's volleyball, water polo and wrestling. District IV encompasses the states of Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama.
As an all-district first-team selection, Klein will move on to the national ballot to be considered for Academic All-America status. |
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3. PLGC Junior Lessons, League to Begin This Month |
Portage Lake Golf Course's junior lessons will begin on Monday, June 15. The lessons run for eight weeks and are broken down into three age groups. Lesson days and times are as follows:
* 9-12 years, Tuesday and Friday, 9:45-10:45 a.m.
* 13-17 years, Monday and Wednesday, 8:30 a.m.-9:30 a.m., or
Tuesday and Friday, 8:30-9:30 a.m.
The cost for these lessons is $70.
Advanced lessons, for junior golfers who can shoot a score of 50 or lower for nine holes, will be held Fridays from 1 to 2:30 p.m. The cost for advanced lessons is $100.
The PLGC Junior League begins play on Thursday, June 18, and will last for eight weeks. The league is open to junior golfers ages 13 to 17. The cost of the league for PLGC junior members is $50, and for nonmembers the cost is $80. Players must sign up no later than Thursday, June 11. Junior League members must report to the course prior to 7:30 a.m. every Thursday.
For more information on the junior lessons and league, visit www.golf.mtu.edu or call 487-2641. |
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4. Proposals in Progress |
David R. Shonnard (Chemical Engineering/SFI), Susan T. Bagley (Biological Sciences), Gerard Caneba, Wenzhen Li (Chemical Engineering) and Shekhar Joshi (SFRES), "EFRI-HyBi: A New Generation of Catalysts and Biocatalysts for Forest-Based Biorefineries," NSF, EFRI HyBi Program
Brian Thelen (MTRI), "VF Doppler," University of Michigan
Kenneth Vrana (SFRES/ESC), "Isle Royale Institute Membership," Department of Interior, National Park Service
W. Charles Kerfoot, Nancy Auer (Biological Sciences/RSI), Sarah Green (Chemistry/RSI) and Noel Urban (CEE/RSI), "Recovery Act--Coastal Restoration Project (Mine Tailings), Keweenaw Bay of Lake Superior, Michigan: Shoreline Environmental Assessment and Mitigation," NOAA Fisheries
Ching-An Peng (Chemical Engineering), "Targeted Delivery of Doxifluridine and DHA-Paclitaxel for Breast Cancer Chemotherapy," DoD, Army
Linda M. Nagel (SFRES/ESC), "Assessing Vegetation of Isle Royale National Park with FIA Data," USDA, Forest Service
Ramakrishna Wusirika (Biological Sciences/BRC), "Identification and Expression Analysis of Rice Gene Pairs Conserved, Rearranged and Absent in Brachypodium, Sorghum and Maize Genomes," USDA Plant Genome, Genetics and Breeding Program
Martin Jurgensen (SFRES/ESC), "Risk Assessment Guidelines for Estimating Effects of Bio-Energy Removal on Soil Carbon, Nutrients and Long-Term Productivity," USDA, Forest Service
Catherine Tarasoff (SFRES/ESC), "Controlling Wild Chervil Along Roadways Using a Wetblade," USFS
Andrew Burton, Tom Pypker (SFRES/ESC) and Chandrashekhar Joshi (SFRES), "Variation in Use of Deep Soil Water Alters Drought Tolerance, Competitive Ability and Gene Expression of Northern Hardwood Tree Species," USDA CSREES/AFRI
Andrew Storer (SFRES/ESC), "2009 Multiscale Comparison of Emerald Ash Borer Trapping and Survey Tools," USDA APHIS
Hairong Wei, Chandrashekhar Joshi, Xiaohong Zhu (SFRES/BRC) and Andrew Burton (SFRES/ESC), "A System Biology Approach to Identify Genes and Genome Elements in Populus for Enhancing Multiple Stress Tolerance and CO2 Sequestration," USDA Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI)
Xiaohong Zhu, Chandrashekhar Joshi and Hairong Wei (SFRES/BRC), "Enhancing Calcium Use Efficiency and Salt Tolerance in Populus," USDA
Lawrence Sutter (MTTI), Elizabeth Hoy (CEE/UTC/MTTI) and Scott Bershing (CEE/TTAP/MTTI), "Region V Virtual Conference Series," US EPA
Ching-An Peng (Chemical Engineering), "Functionalized Gold Nanorods for Neuroblastoma Therapy," DoD
Seong-Young Lee, Jeff Naber, Jason Yang (MEEM/APSRC) and Dan Crowl (Chemical Engineering/APSRC), "Combustion Properties of High Hydrogen Content (HHC) Fuel: Laminar Flame Speed, Ignition Delay, Flashback Propensity Measurements and Low Temperature Chemical Kinetics Model Development," DOE
Ramakrishna Wusirika, Rupali Datta (Biological Sciences/BRC) and Kefeng Li (Biological Sciences), "Development of Multiple Metal-Resistant and Plant-Growth-Promoting Bacterial Consortium for Rhizoremediation and Soil Quality Improvement," USDA, CSREES AFRI Soil Processes Program
Rodney Guilbault (Public Safety), "Community Policing, Crime Prevention and Patrol Officer for the Michigan Tech Campus Community," US Department of Justice
Laura Bourgeau-Chavez (MTRI), "Analysis of Satellite SAR Imagery Over Grasslands of Colorado LTER," Colorado State University
Nancy French, Brian Thelen, Laura Bourgeau-Chavez and Richard Powell (MTRI), "Improving Soil Carbon Characterization for Agricultural Cropland Using Multi-Sensor Remote Sensing and Advanced Data Analysis Techniques," USDA, AFRI Soil Processes Program
Rupali Datta (Biological Sciences/BRC), "Using Vetiver Grass to Remediate Antibiotics in Waste Water," USDA
David Flaspohler and Amber Roth (SFRES/ESC), "Assessing Dispersal Dynamics and Genetic Introgression of Golden-Winged Warblers (Vermivora chrysoptera) in the Upper Midwest: A Combined Genetic and Stable Isotope Approach," US Fish and Wildlife Service
Nik Subotic (MTRI), "Torino Focus Areas 1,2,3," SAIC
Kim Fook Lee (Physics), "Optical Phase-Space-Time-Frequency Tomography for Imaging and Image-Guided Interventions," NIH
Thomas Pypker, Rodney Chimner and Andrew Burton (SFRES/ESC), "Carbon, Water and Soils Research Support," USDA, Forest Service
Shiliang Wu (GMES/RSI) and Charles Kerfoot (Biological Sciences/RSI), "Constraining Mercury Emissions with the Great Lakes Sediment Core Data," EPA
Keat Ghee Ong and Jeremy Goldman (Biomedical Engineering/BRC), "Detection of Arterial In-Stent Restenosis at the Point-of-Care," NIH
Tammy Haut Donahue (MEEM/BRC), "Early Changes in a Novel Model of Knee Joint Trauma," NIH
Chris Roussi (MTRI), "Development of a Portable, Non-Contact Device to Assist in the Diagnosis, Rehabilitation and Monitoring of Neuromuscular Disorders (Joint Articulation Sensor)," Rowe OrthoPedic and NIH
Nancy French, Tyler Erickson (MTRI) and Shiliang Wu (GMES), "Respiratory Health Impacts of Wildfire Particulate Emissions under Climate Change Scenarios," NIH
Lanrong Bi and Sarah Green (Chemistry), "Enabling Large-Scale Pharmacogenetic Studies by High-Throughput Genotyping Using Mass Spectrometry and Photocleavable Mass Tagged Dideoxynucleotides," NIH
Keat Ghee Ong and Rupak Rajachar (Biomedical Engineering/BRC), "Vibrational Coating for Inhibiting and Detecting Clot Formation in Blood-Contacting Devices" and "Novel Interfacial Coating Materials for Improved Protheses Outcomes," NIH
Kurt Paterson (CEE), "Evaluating the Efficacy of Public Health Engineering Education via Service-Learning," University of Colorado
Andrew Storer (SFRES/ESC), "Beech Bark Disease and Resistance in American Beech," USDA, Forest Service
Web Stayman (MTRI), "Development of a Dedicated X-Ray Computer Tomography Scanner for the Pediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit," NIH
Pasi Lautala (MTTI), "Establishing Truck/Rail Intermodal Terminal in Northeast Wisconsin," University of Wisconsin-Superior
Jindong Tan (ECE/CISSIC), "Development of Wearable Wireless Sensors for Physical Activities and Psychological Stress Monitoring in Free-Living Environments," NIH
Ravindra Pandey (Physics/MuSTI), "Fundamental Understanding of Biological Compatibility of Nanomaterials," NIH
Rod Chimner (SFRES/ESC), "Restoration of Sleeper Lake Peatlands," The Nature Conservancy
Martin Thompson (Chemistry/BRC), "Biophysical Analysis of Polybromo-Nucleosome Binding Dynamics," NIH
Lanrong Bi, Sarah Green (Chemistry) and Michael Neuman (Biomedical Engineering), "Mitochondria-Targeting Multifunctional Therapeutic Agents for the Treatment of Peripheral Vascular Disease in Diabetes Mellitus," NIH
Ching-An Peng (Chemical Engineering), "Theranostic Gold Nanorods for Neuroblastoma," NIH
Terry McNinch (LTAP/TDG-MTTI), "St. Louis County MN Traffic Sign Database Migration," St. Louis County Department of Public Works
Guy C. Hembroff (School of Technology), "Design and Implementation of a Secure and Practical Electronic Medical Records Architecture to Improve Health Care Efficiency and Provide Patient Control," NIH
Haiying Liu (Chemistry), "Near-Infrared Emissive Oligomeric and Dendritic BODIPY Dyes for Cancer Imaging," NIH
Robert Pastel, Charles Wallace (Computer Science), J. Christopher Brill (Cognitive and Learning Sciences) and Karla Kitalong (Humanities), "II: Building an Undergraduate Community of Practice in Human-Centered Computing," NSF
Rod Chimner and Sigrid Resh (SFRES/ESC), "Assess Vernal Pools of Picture Rocks National Lakeshore by Determining Distribution, Abundance and Ecological Significance," National Park Service
Kimberley D. Brosofske (SFRES), "Alternative Management Strategies in Ozark Forests: Carbon Sequestration in the Context of Ecosystem Functions and Services," University of Toledo
Shiyan Hu and Ashok Goel (ECE), "The Nanotube and Copper Interconnect Co-Design Methodology for Practical Nanotechnology VLSI Design," Semiconductor Research Corporation
A. K. Goel and V. Parkash (ECE), "Plasma Propagation as a Transmission Mechanism in Nanotube Interconnections," Semiconductor Research Corp., Global Research Corp.
Shiliang Wu (GMES/CEE/RSI), "Factors Influencing Future Tropospheric Ozone and Ozone Air Quality--Intercomparison of Effects from Changes in Climate, Vegetation, STE and Stratospheric Ozone Column," NASA
Ryan Gilbert (Biomedical Engineering), "Neurotrophin Incorporation within Electrospun Fiber Constructs to Enhance Regenerative Outcomes Following Spinal Cord Injury," Morton Cure Paralysis Fund
Raymond Shaw (Physics/RSI), "Further Development of the HOLODEC 2 (Holographic Detector for Clouds 2) Instrument," DOE (ARM Climate Research Facility)
Fernando Ponta (ME-EM/APSRC), "Analysis of Fluid-Structure Interaction Phenomena in Blades and Rotary Wings," AFOSR
K. M. Gibson (Biological Sciences), "Neurodevelopmental Consequences of a Hyper GABAergic State in Aldh5a1 Deficiency" and "Therapeutic Efficacy of Ornithine Alphaketoglutarate (OAK) in Aldh5a1 Deficiency," NIH |
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5. Reminder: Free Items in Peninsula Room Today |
The Memorial Union still has a collection of office furniture, including file cabinets, chairs, tables and miscellaneous items, available for free. Visit the Peninsula Room of the Memorial Union today, Tuesday, June 2, to view and take possession of any items your department could use. All items must be removed by the end of the day.
University property may only be transferred between departments; it may not be given or sold to individuals. |
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6. Free Surplus Divider Panels, Modular Desk Unit |
The Memorial Union has a number of cubicle divider panels and one matching modular desk unit available for free. These units are currently set up in Memorial Union 106. Stop by to view them between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Arrangements to have the items moved out must be made by Monday, June 8.
University property may only be transferred between departments; it may not be given or sold to individuals. |
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