August 20, 2025

In May, the MTU Astro-Huskies team placed fourth in NASA’s 16th annual Lunabotics Challenge. Developed to highlight NASA’s systems engineering principles, the annual challenge tasks student organizations from universities around the country to design, build and test a prototype off-world construction robot.

The MTU Astro-Huskies team is part of the University’s Multiplanetary INovation Enterprise (MINE). Team members spent a full academic year developing their Advanced Terrain Lunar Alteration and Shaping rover, or ATLAS, meeting a series of technical milestones and deliverables before competing in the Lunabotics qualifying rounds at the University of Central Florida. After qualifying among the competition’s top 10 teams, the Astro-Huskies continued on to finals at the NASA Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.

“Competing in Florida was an eye-opening experience,” said Katherine Rauscher, Lunabotics team member and senior mechanical engineering major. “We learned a lot as we met teams from all over the country and talked to other students about how they approached the design process.”

Meet ATLAS and learn more about the team’s success on the College of Engineering Blog.

Calling all instructors planning to teach an Essential Ed Experience (E3)! Starting this fall, faculty will have the opportunity to meet every other week to brainstorm ideas, share resources and provide support to fellow E3 Instructors.

The E3 Community of Practice will meet in Library 243, alternating between Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons. The schedule and tentative topics are listed below.

Reach out to E3 Manager Cassandra Reed-VanDam at cmvandam@mtu.edu to join the E3 Community of Practice.

E3 Community of Practice Schedule:

• Wednesday, Sept. 3 — E3 Goal Setting
• Tuesday, Sept. 16 — Building & Maintaining Community Relationships
• Wednesday, Oct. 1 — Reflection & Reflective Assignments
• Tuesday, Oct. 14 — Building Off of Existing Courses
• Wednesday, Oct. 29 — Finding Students' Intrinsic Motivation
• Tuesday, Nov. 4 — Moving Through Community Partner Conflict
• Wednesday, Nov. 19 — ePortfolios
• Tuesday, Dec. 2 — Connecting to Scholarship
• Wednesday, Dec. 17 — End of Year Reflection

The Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE) will be closed tomorrow, Aug. 21, for our annual departmental retreat.

Faculty and staff will return to work on Friday, Aug. 22, for business as usual.

Student Leadership and Involvement is looking for Michigan Tech staff and faculty who are interested in becoming advisors for registered student organizations (RSOs).

While we do not have a specific need at this time, vacancies occur regularly throughout the year due to staffing changes or the establishment of new student groups. Collecting this information before a vacancy occurs allows us to provide a smooth and efficient resource for groups who seek advice or direction on finding a new advisor.

As an advisor, you will have the chance to provide guidance and support to student leaders while fostering an environment that encourages leadership, innovation and collaboration. Learn more about being an RSO advisor on our website.

To express your interest in becoming an advisor, please take a moment to fill out our interest form. Your participation will not only benefit our students but also contribute to the overall enrichment of our University community.

The MLK Day Planning Committee is looking for faculty and staff to join the team for Michigan Tech’s 2026 celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. We’re hoping to grow the committee and bring in new voices to help shape meaningful and engaging programming for the campus community.

If you or someone from your department is interested in serving on the committee, we’d love to have you involved. Our first meeting will take place during the first week of September, once the fall semester is underway.

Please reach out to Micah Vacco at mvacco@mtu.edu or 906-487-3056 if you’re interested or would like more information.

Let’s work together to make this year’s events impactful and inclusive for all.

Job Posting for Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025

Staff and faculty job descriptions are available on the Human Resources website. For more information regarding staff positions, call 906-487-2280 or email humanresources@mtu.edu. For more information regarding faculty positions, contact the academic department in which the position is posted.

Associate Dean – Graduate Education, College of Sciences and Arts (internal Michigan Tech employee applicants only). Apply online.

Michigan Technological University is an Equal Opportunity Educational Institution/Equal Opportunity Employer that provides equal opportunity for all, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.

Accommodations are available. If you require any auxiliary aids, services, or other accommodations to apply for employment, or for an interview, at Michigan Technological University, please notify the Human Resources office at 906-487-2280 or humanresources@mtu.edu.

Environmental and Energy Policy Ph.D. graduates Shardul Tiwari ’22 and Aritra Chakrabarty ’25 and Chelsea Schelly (SS) are co-authors of an article published in The Electricity Journal.

The article is titled "Does energy policy scholarship consider energy resilience? A bibliometric analysis and agenda for reform."

Tiwari, Chakrabarty and Schelly co-authored the article with colleagues Mostafa Sahraei-Ardakani and Jianli Chen of the University of Utah and Gaby Ou of the University of Florida.

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Professor Emeritus Iosif Pinelis (Math) is the author of a paper published in the journal Electronic Communications in Probability.

The paper is titled "Preservation of the Bernstein property for sums of independent random variables."

The Daily Mining Gazette and WLUC TV6 covered Move-In activities at Michigan Tech, highlighting the University’s largest class of first-year students since 1985 and the start of the fall 2025 semester. Dawn Corwin (CSS) and students Maddalyn Alford (chemical engineering), Maddie Roux (ecology and evolutionary biology), and Owen Tabaczynski (mechanical engineering) were quoted by the Gazette. Veronica Blissick (forestry) and Dominic Thelen (electrical and electronics engineering) were quoted by TV6.

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Bridge Michigan mentioned Michigan Tech junior Josh Arango (computer science) in a story about seaplane travel to Isle Royale National Park. Arango, along with his father and a friend, planned to backpack nearly the length of the island, from Rock Harbor to Windigo.

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Phys.org and 26 national news outlets mentioned Michigan Tech in a story about research showing how wastewater from aircraft toilets could serve as an early warning system to track the global spread of antimicrobial resistant superbugs. Michigan Tech collaborated on the study with Australia’s national science agency CSIRO, Xiamen University, and the University of South Australia.

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EMSNOW mentioned Michigan Tech in coverage of the Bright Manufacturing Challenge 2025. Team MTU ECE is one of eight teams nationwide advancing to the final round of the printed circuit board design competition, to be held Oct. 22 during the SMTA International Conference and Expo in Illinois.

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MLive mentioned Michigan Tech in a story about Isle Royale National Park’s decision to euthanize a wolf that had shown had shown signs of habituation to humans and reliance on human food. The article referenced Michigan Tech’s long-running Isle Royale wolf-moose report, which has tracked the island’s predator-prey dynamics for nearly 70 years.

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WLUC TV6 mentioned Michigan Tech in a story about Michigan Day, part of the University’s upcoming fall Career Fest series. The event will take place Sept. 9 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. along the MTU Campus Mall.

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My UP Now and the Keweenaw Report mentioned the Huskies Pep Band in stories about Pasty Fest 2025, held this past weekend in Calumet.

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Former Husky and Handshake co-founder Garrett Lord was a guest on the Aug. 19 episode of Grit Podcast, titled “Handshake’s Secret Weapon: The University Data That’s Training Tomorrow’s AI.” Lord discussed the evolution of Handshake from a career platform into an emerging leader in artificial intelligence training infrastructure. 

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Model D mentioned Michigan Tech in a story about FlowShield-Nano, a company founded by Rehab (Ruby) Alhajjar ’21 (Ph.D. Environmental Microbiology) that develops biosensors to detect contamination in drinking water and beverages. The article highlighted the Global Entrepreneur-in-Residence program’s support of Alhajjar’s work and its impact on the U.P. economy.

Modern Languages Open House Today

Join us for the Modern Languages & Cultures Open House today, Aug. 20, from 4:30-6 p.m. in Walker 120A!

Students are invited to come with any questions they may have about Modern Languages minors, courses, AP/IB scores, and social activities, as well as meet faculty members and fellow students. You could earn up to 9 credits with previous language knowledge!

We will also answer questions related to Modern Languages and Essential Education, as our courses also count toward Essential Education.

Those who have previous German or Spanish knowledge but have not already taken the placement test may do so at this time. The Modern Language Placement Test may also be taken online before the open house.

All students with more than one year of high school language study are required to take the placement test. Exceptions: 1) Students who scored high on the AP or IB exam are automatically given a waiver for third-year courses; and 2) Students who are receiving transfer credit for a course.

Questions? Contact Leyre Alegre-Figuero at lalegref@mtu.edu.

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ICC Center for AI Hosting Two-Part Proposal Workshop

The Institute of Computing and Cybersystems (ICC) Center for Artificial Intelligence is hosting a two-part workshop, with sessions on preparing a proposal budget and AI-enabled proposal support tools, respectively.

Both sessions will be held today, Aug. 20, in the MUB Alumni Lounge. Please email James Townsend at townsend@mtu.edu if you would like a calendar invite.

• Practice Preparing a Proposal Budget — Wednesday, Aug. 20, at 2 p.m.
  This event will be an interactive session providing guidance in the submission processes to common sponsors. New faculty and graduate students interested in pursuing a career in research will find this session beneficial, but anyone at MTU (faculty, staff, student) is welcome to attend.

• AI-Enabled Proposal Support — Wednesday, Aug. 20, at 3 p.m.
  Vinh Nguyen (MAE/CAI) and the ICC Center for AI have been working on developing relevant AI-enabled proposal support tools to help you search for funding opportunities and aid with nonscience aspects of proposals. This session will include a showcase of the development of these tools so far, welcoming discussion and feedback from attendees.

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No Tech Today on Friday

Tech Today will not publish on Friday, Aug. 22, due to a planned professional development retreat being attended by the University Marketing and Communications news and media relations team.

Updates to Tech Today systems will also be applied during this time.

Submissions for Monday, Aug. 25, are due by noon tomorrow, Aug. 21.

To have your event automatically appear, please submit them to the University Events Calendar.

Part 2 - Fall Orientation

Wednesday, August 20, 8 a.m.–10 p.m. | Michigan Tech Campus

This year orientation programs will look a little different from years past. Incoming students will be required to attend one of four, 2-day summer orientation sessions and...

Workshop - Practice Preparing a Proposal Budget Workshop

Wednesday, August 20, 2–3 p.m. | Memorial Union Building (MUB), Alumni Lounge B and C

This workshop is hosted by the ICC Center for AI in the Alumni Lounge rooms B and C This event will be an interactive session with in guidance in the submission processes to...

Workshop - AI-Enabled Proposal Support

Wednesday, August 20, 3–4 p.m. | Memorial Union Building (MUB), Alumni Lounge B and C

This workshop is hosted by the ICC Center for AI in the Alumni Lounge rooms B and C Dr. Vinh Nguyen and the ICC Center for AI have been working on developing relevant...

Intro to Swing Dancing (O-Week!)

Wednesday, August 20, 4–7 p.m. | DHH Patio

Come join the Swing Club to learn the basics of swing dancing and get to know the club's members! We are starting with a social hour at 4 P.M., with music, dancing,...

Mini-Golf on Walker Lawn with USG

Wednesday, August 20, 4–7 p.m. | Walker Lawn

Are you the best mini-golfer out of your Orientation Team? Can you defeat your Orientation Team Leader in a round of mini-golf? Let's find out! The Undergraduate Student...

O-Week "Deep Dialogues"

Wednesday, August 20, 4–7 p.m. | Walker Lawn

As you begin your school year, what important questions regarding life and purpose do you have? Join us for the afternoon to discuss whatever is on your mind, or engage in...

Modern Languages & Cultures Open House

Wednesday, August 20, 4:30–6:00 p.m. | Walker Arts and Humanities Center, 120A

Join us for the Modern Languages & Cultures Open House on Wednesday August 20th, from 4:30-6:00 pm in Walker 120A! Students are invited to come with any questions they may...

Being a Christian on Campus

Wednesday, August 20, 5:30–7:00 p.m. | Walker Lawn

6 of the Christian Groups on Campus (IV, Cru, St. Als, STK, CSM, and Navigators) will be having tables set out for you to come and get to know them along with a small info...