Fall is a busy time for many of Merit’s Members as students return to school for another school year. Here are some news highlights from a few of Merit’s Member organizations.
U-M Undergraduates a More Diverse Group in Many Ways This Fall
The University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor undergraduate population features more diversity this fall. It includes more underrepresented minorities, more students from low-income families, more first-generation students and representation from more Michigan high schools. Underrepresented minorities make up 13.8 percent of the freshman class, up from 12.8 percent in fall 2015. 28,983 undergraduates are on the Ann Arbor campus this fall.
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Lake Michigan College is building a new Wine and Culinary Education Center on its Benton Harbor campus.
Through a partnership with the Yellow River Conservancy Technical Institute (YRCTI) in China, Northwestern Michigan College (NMC) instructors will teach courses at the YRCTI campus over the next 18 months. Students from the institute will also travel to Traverse City to complete their NMC degrees as part of the agreement. NMC President Timothy J. Nelson and others from the college recently traveled to Beijing for the China Annual Conference for International Education and visited Changsha Polytechnic College and Huanggang Polytechnic College.
Lake Michigan College Wine & Viticulture Technology Program Grant
Lake Michigan College (LMC) recently received a $1 million grant from the Michigan Talent and Economic Development (TED) to build a new Wine and Culinary Education Center on its Benton Harbor campus. The facility will support LMC’s Wine and Viticulture Technology Associate Degree program and help students learn the art, science and business of wine. Students also gain experience at Lake Michigan Vinters, the Midwest’s first and only commercial teaching winery.
Michigan Universities Collaborate to Examine Flint Water Filters
Researchers from Wayne State University, Michigan State University and University of Michigan are conducting studies to determine the best ways to manage the type of point-of-use water filters being used by Flint residents. Manufacturers typically recommend replacing filters after processing approximately 100 gallons, and the researchers are examining if this replacement schedule is best for the Flint water distribution system. The research is expected to provide additional guidance about the use of filters in Flint, and the team is working closely with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, the Genesee County Health Department and the Flint Mayor’s Office.
WMU Debuts New Product Design and Innovation Major
Starting in fall 2017, Western Michigan University will begin offering an undergraduate program that combines art, design, engineering and entrepreneurship. Product design and innovation (PD+I) will feature four years of hands-on industrial design education. The program will help meet the growing design and manufacturing needs of southwest Michigan and the Midwest.
Flying Blind: WISD Staff Member Takes to the Skies
Jason DeCamillis, a teacher consultant for the visually impaired at Washtenaw Intermediate School District, is working on the documentary Flying Blind: A Documentary Film, which chronicles his learning to fly a plane. DeCamillis is legally blind and is taking flying lessons in Ann Arbor. On October 23rd, he made his first supported solo flight and completed three full stop landings. You can follow his progress on his Facebook page.
Happy 10th Anniversary, Michigan Tech Research Institute
Michigan Tech Research Institute (MTRI) in Ann Arbor celebrated its 10th anniversary on October 28th. Funded entirely by contracts, the institute has done more than $80 million in research, ranging from research on drones and radar defense to wildlife remediation and melting glaciers in Alaska. The research institute emerged in 2006 from an acquisition by Michigan Technological University that purchased the environmental and emerging technologies division of Altarum Institute in Ann Arbor. Since then, MTRI has conducted research for the US Bureau of Land Management, NASA, the Michigan Department of Transportation, the US Department of Agriculture and others.