2017-2018 Graduate School Annual Report by Montana State University

2017-2018 Annual Report

Creating Knowledge, Elevating Discovery, Striving for Innovation

Contents About The Graduate School

Centers, Institutes & Research

Student & Alumni Excellence

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Data & Philanthropy

New Building Updates

Faculty Excellence

Comings & Goings

Catching up with Alumni

Native Student Success

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Graduate School Events

Grad Education in the News

Greetings from the Dean

MSU & the Solar Eclipse

This year’s annual report is particularly special as this winter Montana State University celebrated its 125th anniversary. Festivities at the Bobcat Birthday Bash included an impressive fireworks display, a Ferris wheel and live music. The Graduate School was privileged to play an important role in this once in a lifetime event, hosting a graduate student poster session as part of the revelries. This past year brought a wealth of achievements to The Graduate School community, from five graduate students receiving NSF Graduate Research Fellowships to a number of graduate students earning top awards in their respective disciplines. I am proud of each graduate student’s commitment to The Graduate School’s mission of creating knowledge, elevating discovery and striving for innovation. Indeed, they have been successful. Graduate education is a collaborative effort and achievement. I am pleased to share the news that many faculty members have received awards for excellence in their fields. They continue to dedicate their time to providing opportunities for graduate student success. The Graduate School has evolved in many ways. The first class of WIMU veterinary medicine students graduated this year, with each of the eleven graduates maintaining strong ties to Montana. We are preparing to enroll two new graduate students in fall 2018 to the Individual Interdisciplinary PhD Degree program, which was approved by the Board of Regents in spring 2016 and accredited by the Northwest Commission of Colleges and Universities in fall 2017. Additionally, the PhD in Electrical Engineering was re-instated by the Board of Regents in spring 2017 to better reflect the expertise and specialization of our graduates. Our alumni are thriving in their fields – many are off to prestigious post-doctoral opportunities, some have won competitive fellowships, and others have taken opportunities within industry and government labs. Indigenous graduate students also continue to succeed at MSU and you can read about their laudable accomplishments in this report. The Montana State University community celebrated many events as a community this year, from the 125th anniversary to the total solar eclipse, an event for which MSU students and faculty worked with teams across the U.S. to livestream the eclipse on NASA’s website using high-altitude balloons. I am incredibly proud of our graduate students and their accomplishments, which would not be possible without the support of our excellent faculty, staff, alumni, and community. I am unquestionably certain the future of graduate education at Montana State University is bright. Sincerely,

Karlene A. Hoo, Ph.D. Dean, The Graduate School

About The Graduate School Vision: The Graduate School strives to foster an environment that produces outstanding graduate scholars Mission: who contribute new ideas and The Graduate School enriches the knowledge using creative and graduate student experience by providing innovative approaches to excellent service, timely oversight, and relentless solve challenges in an advocacy for student success. evolving world.

Graduate School Staff Dr. Karlene A. Hoo, Dean Office of Fiscal Management Kathy Marcinko Office of Admissions Melis Edwards Amber Fischer Office of Student Affairs Donna Negaard Office of Degree Programs & Certificates Amanda Brown Lauren Cerretti

The Graduate School at a Glance Office of Analytics & Systems Management • Montana State awarded its first master’s degree in 1902 and its first Laura Collins doctoral degree in 1956. Megan Maier • The Graduate School staff is comprised of the Dean and ten professional staff members. • Montana State’s Graduate School is a member of the Western Association of Graduate Schools.

Krista Baziak and Ann Vinciguerra have moved on to different positions on campus. The Graduate School thanks them for their hard work in our office and we are all happy to see them around campus as they contribute to MSU student success in other ways. Thank you to our wonderful student employees. You all help our office run smoothly and greet everyone with a smile! Maggie Coobs Haley Dabbs Jamie Horner Shriyansh Kothari Montana Marks Brandon Molland Kylie Webb

Montana State University Quick Facts • Founded: 1893 • Affiliation: Public unit of the Montana University System; Montana’s Land-Grant University • Carnegie Classification: R2: Doctoral Universities - Higher Research Activity • Accreditation: Regional accreditation by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities • Fall 2017 Enrollment: 16703 total students, including 1978 graduate students • MSU faculty are nationally competitive with their ideas and garnered $126 million for their research and creative projects in fiscal year 2018. Student Body Profile (Total MSU Students) • 47% female • 53% male • 53% Montana residents • 43% out-of-state residents • 4% international students from more than 72 countries

Graduate School Profiles: Contributing to Student Success from All Corners of Campus University Graduate Council The Graduate School relies on the recommendations about graduate education policies from University Graduate Council (UGC). UGC membership consists of representatives from each academic college, faculty senate, and the graduate student body. UGC’s primary purpose is to advocate for graduate education as an essential component of MSU’s mission. UGC highlights for the year include the following accomplishments. Thank you to Chair John Borkowski, from Statistics, for a successful year. • Created template for Graduate Program Handbooks; CLS to pilot template by Dec 2018 • Added Masters and Doctoral committee options: a committee may have two or more co-chairs on their committee (if two or more, a chair is not required) • Reviewed & recommended several Level II Proposals (e.g. MA in Teaching, MS in Data Science, MA in English Education, PhD in Chemical Engineering) • Reviewed and accepted two Individual Interdisciplinary Program proposals • Revised PhD Enhancement announcement • Continuing to work on qualifying/comprehensive exam reporting policy • Revising evaluation criteria for the Provost’s Award for Graduate Research/Creativity Mentoring • Much discussion of Graduate Faculty Status in fall 2017 (tabled) • Added non-voting member from the MSU Library, Sara Mannheimer Erin Strickland, Graduate Writing Tutor Erin Strickland began working at the Writing Center in 2016. For her, writing is never at its best when done alone--she believes that talking, thinking and writing with input from others is the best way to develop as a writer. As the Writing Center’s graduate program coordinator, Erin has tutored students working on everything from professional papers to thesis chapters to personal statements and job applications. She also organized interdisciplinary writing groups, which are facilitated by writing center tutors and meet once a week so students can give one another feedback through multiple drafts of an assignment. She developed a series of workshops held the second Friday of each month, followed by open writing time. Graduate students used that time to write alongside the Writing Center’s graduate tutors, who were available to provide feedback, brainstorm and answer questions on citation styles, writing conventions and organizational choices. In addition, she has partnered with professors across campus to gain a better understanding of writing goals to help guide writers and tutors to a more productive collaboration. She will continue to build relationships with graduate students and professors while providing spaces for writers to think and work and, of course, write in.

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Shriyansh Kothari, Graduate Student Congratulations to Shriyansh Kothari, who is the recipient of the 2018 Spirit Outstanding Student Award. The award is given by The Office of Student Engagement on the Day of Student Recognition. Shri was nominated by the Recreational Sports & Fitness Team because of his “active involvement in so many campus efforts, his outstanding character and his commitment to making a difference in the world.” Shri is involved with the VOICE Center, The Compassion Project, and other campus organizations. He graduated spring 2018 with his MS in Computer Science and plans to continue into MSU’s M.Ed program in the fall. Barbara Komlos, Program Administrator Program Administrator, Dr. Barbara Komlos, is responsible for recruiting new Sloan Indigenous Graduate Partnership (SIGP) Scholars and developing professional development opportunities for current Scholars. She underscores the importance of fostering a supportive community in which Native graduate students are not only provided resources to be successful, but also find mentors, including faculty and their peers, whom they can turn to for guidance on topics from statistics to career planning. Through their research, SIGP Scholars are contributing to their disciplines in important ways, as well as leading efforts to benefit their home communities. Haley Dunkel, Molecular Biosciences Program Coordinator Haley Dunkel has been the Molecular Biosciences (MBS) Program Coordinator at Montana State University since 2017. The MBS Program is a unique graduate program that allows first year graduate students the freedom to choose and perform laboratory rotations across departmental boundaries. According to Dunkel, it is important for graduate students to be exposed to a number of research disciplines before focusing their attention. She says, “The exploratory design of this program gives students more independence, solidifies interest, and allows them to make lasting connections with many scientists.” Dunkel is particularly passionate about the MBS program because, back in 2007, she was one of the original students in the group. “I was drawn to graduate school at MSU because this unique program allowed me flexibility since I was excited by many research topics,” Dunkel explains. Dunkel received her undergraduate degree in Chemistry at MSU and then explored other fields through the MBS program, falling in love with fluorescence microscopy and developmental neuroscience. This passion led her to earn a doctoral degree from MSU in Neuroscience. In conjunction with coordinating the MBS program, she also coordinates the Cellular and Molecular Biology labs in the department of Cell Biology and Neuroscience. She enjoys teaching cell biology and loves to see the spark of energy in undergraduates and graduates alike when they are passionate about science. Photos from top to bottom: Shriyansh Kothari, Barbara Komlos, Haley Dunkel

Graduate School Events Research Rendezvous The 2017 Graduate Student Research Rendezvous took place on October 19. The Graduate School wishes to congratulate the following winners and extends a sincere thank you to all students and judges who participated. Engineering & Computer Science Poster Category 1. Sean Harris, Mechanical & Industrial Engineering 2. Vincent Morasko, Chemical & Biological Engineering Natural & Social Sciences, Humanities & Arts Poster Category 1. Dayane Reis, Land Resources & Environmental Sciences 2. Julie Gameon, Psychology Physical Sciences Poster Category 1. Fermin Guerra, Microbiology & Immunology 2. Amanda Byer, Chemistry/Biochemistry Three Minute Research Competition Judges’ Choice Winner – Subodh Adhikari, Land Resources & Environmental Science People’s Choice Winner – Kathleen Carroll, Ecology National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Recipients • • • • •

Robin Belton, Advisors: Jack Dockery, Brittany Fasy, Tomas Gedeon Eric Dunham, Advisor: Eric Boyd Kristopher Olshefski, Advisor: Mark Owkes Mallory Morgan, Advisor: Amy Trowbridge Mariah Romero, Advisor: Devon Orme

Photos from top to bottom: Research Rendezvous Volunteers, Fermin Guerra at the Research Rendezvous, Arianna Celis Luna at the 125th Anniversary Poster Presentation.

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Graduate Education in the News MSU Offers New Individual Interdisciplinary Degree (Excerpted and adapted from MSU News Service) While pursuing a master’s degree in exercise and nutrition sciences from Montana State University, Stephanie Wilson researched inflammation in the human gut microbiome. Wilson wanted to continue her research in a doctoral program at MSU. However, because her work crosses over into multiple and different disciplines, including biochemistry, exercise science, microbiology, immunology and nutrition, it wasn’t clear which department would be the best fit. Now, a new option offered by MSU allows Wilson to include multiple disciplines related to her research in her doctoral program. The program, which leads to a doctorate in interdisciplinary studies, is designed to serve students who wish to pursue the advanced degree but don’t have an immediate path forward in an existing doctoral program. According to Karlene Hoo, dean of The Graduate School, “This program is designed for students who are highly motivated — those who are real go-getters,” Hoo said. “They’ll come to The Graduate School with a plan for their individual interdisciplinary Ph.D. after already having coordinated with faculty across different parts of the university.”

Stephanie Wilson and Mary Miles. Photo by Adrian Sanchez-Gonzalez.

Mary Miles, professor in the Department of Health and Human Development in the College of Education, Health and Human Development and one of Wilson’s doctoral committee members, said there are significant benefits to pursuing an interdisciplinary degree. First, having multiple disciplines contributing to research increases the effectiveness of that research. “There are always challenges to interdisciplinary research: how to cross multiple sciences, how to understand the problem from multiple perspectives, how to get perspectives from different expertise areas,” she said. In addition, Miles noted that in her experience, an aptitude for interdisciplinary work often makes researchers more competitive for grants. According to Dean Hoo, providing another avenue for students to pursue a doctoral degree should also help the university graduate more doctoral students. She anticipates that up to six students per year will be accepted to the program. The effort aligns with the discovery goal of MSU’s strategic plan, which calls for increasing the scale, breadth and quality of doctoral education. Wilson is optimistic that she – and future students – will be well-positioned for their careers through this new program. “I think Montana State has a lot of very strong departments that future students can really take advantage of in making their own program,” Wilson said. “There is a potential for these top-notch programs to produce a top-notch student who is geared toward solving complex problems.”

Inaugural Class of Vet-Med Students (Excerpted and adapted from MSU News Service) Eleven MSU students hailing from all corners of Montana are newly minted veterinarians. Comprising MSU’s inaugural class of the Washington, Idaho, Montana and Utah Regional Program in Veterinary Medicine, dubbed WIMU, the students began their first year of the regional program in Bozeman, housed in the College of Agriculture. They then completed the final three years of their Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degrees at Washington State University in Pullman and received their diplomas on May 5, 2018. Mark Quinn, MSU’s WIMU program director and professor in MSU’s Department of Microbiology and Immunology, said each of the students performed exceedingly well and that several plan to return to Montana right away to practice veterinary medicine. Several additional students plan to eventually return to the state to practice after completing additional training. “Each student in this class had strong ties to Montana, and for many, their goal is to return to the state to practice,” Quinn said. The Montana Legislature and Gov. Steve Bullock approved MSU’s participation in the WIMU program during the 2013 state legislature to bolster the state’s veterinarian workforce, especially in the area of large-animal vets in underserved rural areas. The program is also a means to provide affordable access to Montana students wishing to pursue veterinary medical education. According to Quinn, in their first year at MSU, WIMU students learn basic animal anatomy, immunology, neurology, nutrition, physiology, surgery fundamentals and animal handling to master the structures and systems of a normal, healthy animal. They then transfer to WSU for three more years of additional training and completion of regional clinical rotations. WIMU students also travel around Gallatin County, and in summer months, students can seek work or internships in Montana veterinary practices. They can also return to Montana practices for clinical rotations, which are required in their final year at WSU. WIMU students also have access to horses and cattle owned by MSU. The 2018 class of MSU’s WIMU graduates: • • • • • • • • • • •

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Cassidy Briggs from Grass Range Garrett Bronec from Denton Jared Hardaway from Belgrade Anne Hutton from Wisdom Katie Olson from Three Forks Brenee Peterson from Havre Jess Scherr from Great Falls Lane Schmitt from Chinook Kelsey Stoner from Clancy Katlyn Tomschin from Wilsall Thomas Wurtz from Dupuyer Photo courtesy of WIMU

Electrical and Computer Engineering Department Adds New PhD Wataru Nakagawa, Associate Professor and Graduate Coordinator, shares an update on the new PhD in Electrical Engineering: For the ECE department, the primary goal in providing the “PhD in Electrical Engineering” is to give our students a degree program which is recognized and conforms to the common standards in our field. In particular, for PhD graduates who may choose to pursue an academic career in the future, having the “PhD in Electrical Engineering” rather than the “PhD in Engineering” might improve their ability to get hired, although this is admittedly anecdotal. The ECE faculty also feel that the more specific degree title better reflects the expertise and specialization of our graduates as they enter the job market. Note that by and large we don’t think this is an issue with the structure or quality of the program itself, just in the labeling of the degree, and how this may change perceptions among those outside the institution. In the initial phase of offering the “PhD in Electrical Engineering,” we will not significantly change the program structure, just make use of the new name. Left: Wataru Nakagawa; Right: Connor Julien works on an electrical board for the RadSat (Photo by Adrian Sanchez-Gonzalez) Finally, the ECE faculty do not have an issue with offering the “PhD in Engineering” as an option to those students who may want it (e.g. in more interdisciplinary areas), but we wish to offer the option of the “PhD in Electrical Engineering” to those who want it. Master of Professional Accountancy (MPAc) Students Practice Professional Development During the spring semester of 2018, four MPAc students joined 15 upper division undergraduate accounting students to prepare a total of 218 federal returns (89 e-filed and 129 paper filed). There were $136,869 of federal refunds and $31,066 of education credits.

MPAc students at Meet the Accounting Recruiters Fair. Photos courtesy of The Jake Jabs College of Business and Entrepreneurship.

The Jake Jabs College of Business and Entrepreneurship held a Professionalism Workshop in an effort to support students by preparing them to secure jobs after graduation and to excel in a business setting. More than 30 graduate students attended the event, which included a session on growth mindset, recruiting events, a presentation by the Montana Society of CPAs, resume critiques, individual coaching, and information networking. A panel discussion comprised of alumni was held with the Accounting Advisory Council on “Understanding the Profession of Accounting,” and was moderated by Dr. Marc Giullian, the director of the MPAc program. A panel of four accounting alumni also shared their experiences as young professionals. The panelists were Anna Morris ‘14, a senior associate with KPMG Anchorage; Heidi Morrison ‘14, senior accountant with Wipfli in Bozeman; Nolan Preeshl ‘14, a financial-compliance auditor for the Montana Legislative Audit Division in Helena; and Catherine Wodey ‘15, a staff accountant at West Paw in Bozeman.

Centers, Institutes and Research Robert Rydell Named MSU American Studies Director (Excerpted and adapted from MSU News Service) Robert Rydell, a professor of history in the Montana State University Department of History and Philosophy and the American Studies Program, has been named as the new director of the American Studies Program. The interdisciplinary program in the College of Letters and Science investigates the cultural underpinnings of American life, drawing on many disciplines at MSU including anthropology, the arts, archaeology, Native American Studies, geography and history. Rydell came to MSU’s Department of History and Philosophy after earning his Ph.D. from UCLA in 1980. Together with history professor David Cherry and English professor Susan Kollin, he built the university’s American Studies Program — the undergraduate degree in 2007, and the master’s and Ph.D. degrees in 2009. Along with the history department’s doctoral program, which Rydell also helped to establish, American Studies is the only other Ph.D. in the humanities at MSU. Rydell’s research is focused on Buffalo Bill’s influence on globalization through international performances later in his career, as well as world’s fairs, in which Rydell is a preeminent expert. A prolific scholar, he has authored or co-authored many books. His first book, “All the World’s a Fair,” was based on his dissertation that received the Allan Nevins Prize. “Buffalo Bill in Bologna,” which he co-authored with Dutch scholar Rob Kroes, received the Ray Browne Prize from the Popular Culture Association. His more recent “Designing Tomorrow,” co-edited with Laura Schiavo, was produced in conjunction with a major exhibition on world’s fairs at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. Rydell has participated in 50-plus invited lectures and seminars and has presented at more than 40 conferences. His presentations have been broadcast on C-SPAN and CNN, and he has been a guest on NPR and WNYC. He teaches courses in the Department of History and Philosophy, the American Studies Program and the Honors College, and serves as chair or member on multiple graduate committees. Rydell received the James and Mary Ross Provost’s Award for Excellence and the President’s Excellence in Teaching Award in 2012. In 2016, he was awarded the Mary C. Turpie Prize from the American Studies Association in recognition of his outstanding abilities and achievement in teaching, advising and program development. Rydell also wrote a history of MSU, “Democracy by Degrees,” for the 125th anniversary.

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http://www.montana.edu/americanstudies/images/Buffalo-Bill_Italy_resize.jpg Sheila Nielsen Excels at Research and Mentoring Students (Excerpted and adapted from MSU News, Mountains & Minds) Sheila Nielsen graduated from MSU in 1987. Now, more than 30 years later, she is a research scientist in MSU’s Department of Microbiology and Immunology in the College of Agriculture and the College of Letters and Science whose work will be sent into orbit aboard the International Space Station for the third time this fall. In addition to her extensive work in microbiology, Nielsen is the primary adviser for the approximately 450 students wishing to explore health professions after graduating from MSU each year. This year, Nielsen was recognized as the newest recipient of the Rufus T. Firefly Award for Excellence in Innovative Service, a distinction given to an MSU employee who has demonstrated tangible innovation, positive and broad impact on student experience and leadership through role modeling. Jaclyn Peick, a third-year medical student at the Western University College of Osteopathic Medicine of Pacific-Northwest, is one of numerous pre-health profession advisees who recommended Nielsen for the award. “[Nielsen] is actually one of the reasons why I chose MSU to begin with. She was so welcoming,” Peick said.

Sheila Nielsen gives instructions to lab students Kyle and Wes at her lab.

Beyond her work as an adviser, Nielsen has inspired students working in her research lab to strive for excellence and think beyond traditional boundaries. In the research lab, Nielsen finds ways to encourage aspiring young scientists. She welcomes undergraduate students as part of her team and also finds opportunities to attend research conventions and connect students with experts in the field. Currently, Nielsen and her team of students are studying the pathogenic yeast Candida albicans, which is commonly found in the mouth or gastrointestinal tract and causes fungal nails and athlete’s foot. While the yeast is usually treatable, it can present complications for those with underlying conditions. This could include astronauts, who are immunocompromised while in space. The researchers, whose work is federally funded by NASA, are trying to understand how the yeast responds to near-weightlessness. Their findings could help to keep astronauts healthy and also help the medical community fight the yeast on Earth. The team will send a series of experiments into space in November on an unmanned private spacecraft known as Dragon — a resupply capsule for the International Space Station which is owned by SpaceX. The MSU team sent its first experiments in 2012 on the very first of SpaceX’s resupply missions and followed with a second round of experiments in 2014.

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Student and Alumni Excellence Architecture Student’s Vision for a Bozeman Housing Solution Earns Top Prize in National Design Contest (Excerpted and adapted from MSU News Service) Mary Demro, a Montana State University architecture student, has turned Bozeman’s housing crunch into an idea for an innovative design that was a top place finisher in a national student design competition. Demro’s concept for a local sustainable mixed-use development was in the top 10 designs in the country out of more than 1,000 entries in the American Institute of Architects Committee on the Environment Top 10 for Students competition. Her award also won Demro a summer internship at one of the country’s top architecture firms. Demro, who grew up in Yellowstone National Park, completed the design for a studio taught by Steve Juroszek, MSU architecture professor. Demro’s winning entry theorizes “the close physical integration of places for work, living, recreation and relaxation” would provide a solution for the growing number of young Bozeman residents seeking affordable housing. Her plan includes residential units, co-working spaces, recreation spaces, and a mash-up of a grocery and menu kit service. AIA contest judges said that Demro’s entry “proposes a slightly utopian plan that is a good social proposition in which people can have their major needs met without traveling.” The daughter of a park concessionaire manager and a teacher, Demro graduated from Gardiner High School and attended Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. Demro received a bachelor’s degree in architecture and then married a West Point graduate whose orders took them to Georgia and Alaska, where she worked in the design industry. Demro said she has experienced excellence in people and programs in her graduate experience. “MSU is a hidden gem,” she said. “The people (in the program) are passionate. They are here because they want to live in Bozeman and they are doing a great job.” Demro’s long-term goal is to become licensed and work in Bozeman. Her top 10 finish resulted in a $2,000 prize and a stipend to attend the AIA convention in New York City in June. She also was matched with a summer internship at Skidmore Ownings and Merrill in Chicago, which Juroszek said is one of the foremost architectural firms in the world.

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Gianna Savoie, PhD in American Studies, Sees Success in Film Industry Gianna Savoie, former Assistant Teaching Professor and recent PhD recipient, had success in the film industry even before coming to Montana State University. Her work has been featured on PBS, National Geographic, Discovery, and the BBC. One of her films, “Wolverine: Chasing the Phantom,” won a Cine Golden Eagle award in the environment and science category, a Silver World Medal Award in the New York Festivals and was named the “Best Film Made in Montana.” This film earned a merit for scientific content at the International Wildlife Film Festival, was a finalist at the 2010 Banff Film Festival and was nominated for an emmy. Savoie founded and is executive director of the Ocean Media Institute (OMI), a global media collective that serves to create, educate, and advocate for the protection of the ocean. The organization’s goal is to collaborate with artists, filmmakers, organizations, academic institutions, aquaria and museums to produce, exhibit, and openly distribute media that promotes public understanding of ocean science and conservation.

Photo courtsey of the Ocean Media Institute http://www.oceanmediainstitute.org/

Gianna’s advisor, Michael Reidy, Professor of History, speaks highly of Gianna and her work: “When Gianna began her doctoral work, she was already an award-winning writer, director, and film producer. She is now also the founder and executive director of the Ocean Media Institute (OMI), a clearinghouse for the creation and distribution of films and other artistic creations that focus on the plight of the world’s oceans. Her recent film productions and her founding of the OMI are an outgrowth of her passion for ocean science and education, and I was lucky enough to help her transform that interest into an innovative dissertation. Her work is ambitious, incorporating historical narrative, interviews with scientists and media professionals, the OMI initiative, and a video series, “I am Ocean,” which chronicles the intimate relationship individuals have with the blue frontier. I’m afraid I learned more from her than she did from me — but that’s always the pay-off for mentoring talented students. I’m extremely proud of her finished product and look forward to her future endeavors, be it films, publications, or environmental outreach. You should check her work out too at oceanmediainstitute.org.”

Michael Reidy, Professor of History, and Gianna Savoie, PhD in American Studies, Fall 2017

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International Doctoral Student Wins Award for Wheat Rust Research (Excerpted and adapted from MSU News Service) Bernard Nyamesorto, a doctoral student at MSU, won the graduate research competition at the Borlaug Global Rust Initiative’s technical workshop held April 14-17 in Marrakech, Morocco. The workshop focuses on wheat scientists’ efforts to secure the world’s wheat crop and manage disease vulnerability. Nyamesorto’s research in MSU’s Department of Plant Sciences and Plant Pathology focuses on the development of a wheat germplasm that offers greater resistance to a family of crop-destroying fungal diseases collectively known as rust. He described his work in his abstract, “Development of new rust resistant germplasm via modifications of wheat MYC4 transcription factors.” Nyamesorto is from Ghana, where he grew up as the son of a cattle rancher in a family of 18. His father cultivated rice crops during the seasonal flooding, which sparked Nyamesorto’s interest in cereal grains. “Cereal crops are major food staples for most people in the world, so any effort to increase these crops is very important,” Nyamesorto said. Nyamesorto and other scientists are using genetics to make wheat crops less susceptible to any one of three types of fungal rust, a condition that can quickly wipe out entire fields of crops. “Yellow rust is most prevalent in Montana, and it is something that every wheat farmer must worry about,” Nyamesorto said. His work focuses on deactivating the part of the wheat genome that makes it vulnerable to rust, while taking care not to harm the plant. “What makes our work unique is that the procedure we use makes it faster, easier and efficient for making rust-resistant germplasm available that wheat breeders can use. We’re seeking to create resistance directly within the wheat itself.” Nyamesorto, who joined Li Huang’s lab in 2016, says he will eventually return to Africa, but not before he does additional graduate work and gains more field experience that he said would be “a way to thank America at-large for giving me the opportunity to study at this level.” “I will return to Africa,” he says, “but before then ... I think I need lots more experience before I can impact the agricultural community of my childhood, in Ghana in general, and as much of Africa where my work is applicable to help people.”

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MSU Graduate’s Research of Wildlife Movement Patterns Wins Recognition from Ecology Organization (Excerpted and adapted from MSU News Service) Meredith McClure, who earned her doctorate in MSU’s Department of Ecology in 2012, won the Outstanding Paper Award in Landscape Ecology from the U.S. Regional Association of the International Association for Landscape Ecology. McClure was lead author of the winning paper based on her dissertation, which compared the efficacy of two methods for mapping wildlife corridors using migratory elk patterns and wolverine dispersal patterns as case studies. McClure’s research, “Connecting models to movements: Testing connectivity model predictions against empirical migration and dispersal data,” was published in the Journal of Landscape Ecology in September 2016. Co-authors include her adviser, Andrew Hansen, professor of ecology in MSU’s College of Letters and Science, and Robert Inman, who at the time was a researcher with the Wildlife Conservation Society. “The central goal of this paper was to examine how well two predictive models — circuit theory and least-cost path — are identifying the corridors used by animals,” said McClure, who is now a lead scientist at Conservation Science Partners, Inc., a nonprofit organization based in Truckee, California. “We learned which type of movement each model is better at predicting, and that can help us choose the right tool for the job and map wildlife corridors more accurately.” McClure explained that circuit theory and least-cost path models borrow concepts from other fields. Least-cost path models are what a phone uses to map directions to a destination. “For wildlife,” McClure says, “this means considering distance and habitat quality to minimize energy expenditure or risk.” She says that circuit theory models treat the landscape like an electrical circuit. “Places with good habitat have high conductance; places with poor habitat have high resistance.” For her research, McClure, who also earned a graduate certificate in statistics, used data gathered from GPS collars placed on elk and wolverines in previous studies to gauge the effectiveness of circuit theory and least-cost path models. Better understanding the movement patterns of animals — whether seasonal migrations of herds or a one-time journey of a single animal to a new habitat — will lead to wildlife corridor maps that better inform conservation efforts and enable highway planners to strategically place overpasses and underpasses to keep wildlife off roadways. Professor Andrew Hansen says that “as people increasingly develop the Mountain West, wildlife managers are challenged to map and maintain habitats through which wildlife species make seasonal and annual movements. Dr. McClure and colleagues evaluated statistical methods to quantify the movement pathways of wolverine and elk. They found ‘best methods’ differed among the species. The states of Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming are now using results from her work to project wolverine connectivity in the northwest U.S. as a basis for wolverine conservation.”

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Catching up with Recent Graduates Gini Mohr, Ed.D. in Curriculum and Instruction, graduated Magna Cum Laude from MSU Billings in 1982 and again graduated from MSU this spring with her Ed.D. in Curriculum and Instruction. We asked Gini about her experience as a non-traditional graduate student: “Why would a grandmother plow through seven years of post-baccalaureate study — bravely taking on graduate-level statistics courses after a 45-year hiatus from academic coursework? Like most life changes, this one began years ago when a friend recommended me to the MSU department of education as a possible mentor for student teaching candidates placed in local K-12 schools. Having been a Spanish teacher for eight years hardly prepared me to mentor a French intern, but such was my first experience. As my connections with the department tightened over the years, I worked with more teacher candidates in schools across the local placement area, with pre-student teaching practicum students, and in adjunct positions as need arose. The plunge into graduate school came when I reached a personal career crossroads. Desiring more involvement in higher education, I completed a graduate school application, spent one summer studying for the “Conducting research at MSU GRE, and eventually found myself, in summer 2011, once again a student! allowed me to progress as an I have since told other non-traditional graduate students about the night I left my introductory statistics course, academic while learning skills went to the bathroom, and cried my eyes out — only to pick up those same problems the next day and grind and topics that will help me my way through. I have sympathized with the plight of older students taking on graduate work in a world of as a professional geotechnical engineer. The coursework miniaturized PC technology; in 1982, the smallest PC truly covered an entire desktop! Thanks to amazing and engineering professors professors, understanding employers, and a commitment to working seven days a week for seven years, I not only achieved my Ed.D. this spring 2018, but along the way, I was accepted for the position of MSU Assistant provided an excellent learning Director of Field Placement and Licensure, where it is my joy to work with MSU education environment and allowed me to build relationships that will students on a daily basis. continue beyond school.” If I have learned anything in these seven years of toil, it is to stay humble, keep Henry Haselton, my sense of humor, and persevere my heart out. I spent the night my first M.S. in Civil Engineering, granddaughter was born in the waiting room formatting my master’s thesis. This Spring 2018 go-round, I barely completed my dissertation defense prior to the birth of my second granddaughter. I know (now) that correlation does not equal causation, but I hope that I do not need more degrees to collect more grandchildren!”

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Dr. L.J. Krumenacker, Ph.D. in Earth Sciences, Summer 2017 L.J. Krumenacker grew up in Blackfoot, Idaho as a rockhound and fossil hunter. He served on an LDS mission to Sydney, Australia, and then attended Idaho State University in Pocatello, where he received three undergraduate research grants that paved the way for his graduate studies. L.J. received his M.S. in Geology from BYU-Provo and worked as a paleontological consultant in Vernal, Utah before being admitted to The Graduate School at MSU for his Ph.D. While at MSU, L.J. worked with Dr. Varricchio, received grants from The Graduate School and the Jurassic Foundation, and received an award from the Department of Earth Sciences for being an exemplary TA. In His Own Words: Why did you choose to attend graduate school at MSU and what are some memorable experiences? I met my doctoral advisor, Dr. Varricchio, as an undergraduate. We shared an interest in the Cretaceous-age rocks and fossils of Idaho. When I began looking for Idaho dinosaurs as an undergrad, I found remains of the Oryctodromeus cubicularis, a very interesting little dinosaur. It is a small, plant eating animal that cared for its young in underground burrows. When Dr. Varricchio started working in the same rocks, he found the same animal. For my doctoral project, we decided I should address the skeletal anatomy of this animal, possible biases and explanations for this animal being the most common dinosaur found in these rocks, and how this animal grew up in comparison to other dinosaurs. Between specimens from Montana and Idaho, we had enough fossil material to provide some initial answers to these questions. Fieldwork is the most fun, but every hour in the field might mean ten in the lab. We once had to run a student to the hospital, 60 miles from the field site, at 2 am! I spent a lot of time in the Paleohistology Lab at the Museum of the Rockies, and enjoyed working with Ellen-Therese Lamme, who made slicing up dinosaur bones with power equipment fun and less intimidating. What are you doing now? I am currently a seventh grade science teacher in the same classroom I was taught seventh grade science. I am affiliate faculty in the Department of Geological Sciences at ISU and associated as a researcher with the Idaho Museum of Natural History. I am continuing my research into Mesozoic fossils in Idaho. I spend my free time with my amazing six year-old son and eleven year-old daughter, who are both scientifically inclined! I have many papers in peer review in which my colleagues and I describe new families, genera, and species of invertebrates and vertebrates from a 250-million year old fossil site in Idaho I discovered. We just published one description of a new family and genus of fossil cephalopod from this same site. I am also blessed to be involved with naming new fossil mammal species from Idaho! What advice would you give to aspiring graduate students? Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get your heart set on any one idea or plan. Be flexible and be prepared for unexpected things to happen in your personal and research lives. Take full advantage of your committee and any other resources you have. Build and maintain a good support system for stresses that may arise. Depression can be an issue for grad students, so donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be afraid to use the Counseling and Psychological Center. Make sure to keep up on your family responsibilities and maintain a balance between school and home.

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Tatsuya “Tats” Akiyama, International Student, Ph.D. in Microbiology, Spring 2018 Tatsuya “Tats” Akiyama loves bacteria. “I cannot find a better way to explain myself,” he says. Akiyama graduated in the spring of 2018 from MSU with a Ph.D. in Microbiology. Originally from Kanaya, Shizuoka, Japan, a small town famous for steam locomotives and green tea fields, his childhood was filled with the wonders of biology. As he read science magazines and learned about international projects, his interest in coming to the US grew, but he had never been outside of his country. Despite not knowing English well, Akiyama got on his first airplane, headed to Tahlequah, Oklahoma, and began his undergraduate studies in biology at Northeastern State University. He learned English by joining a rugby team and participating in summer research internships. During his senior year, he studied a potential use of bacteria as an indicator of fecal contamination from chicken litters in water samples. Akiyama obtained his M.S. from the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, where he studied the impacts of treated wastewater effluent on the spread of antibiotic resistant bacteria in local streams. Akiyama remembers, “My love for microbiology emerged while studying antibiotic resistance.” To further pursue this interest, Akiyama moved his studies to the National Center for Toxicological Research, where he worked on the molecular characterization of antibiotic resistance in Salmonella isolates from a local hospital outbreak in the U.S. and in imported foods. Akiyama says he finds the global spread of antibiotic resistance very scary, but also fascinating. In His Own Words: Why did you decide to attend graduate school at Montana State University? One day, I came across a paper written by Dr. Phil Stewart and Dr. Mike Franklin that changed my view of the microbial world. Then, when I presented a research poster at a conference in New Orleans in 2011, I stopped by a poster which was created by Dr. Franklin. When I received an email from a graduate coordinator about the Molecular Biosciences Program at MSU, it was perfect timing. My subsequent interview with Dr. Franklin went well and he later became my PhD advisor! What are your favorite memories from MSU? We studied a subpopulation of biofilms — the “slimes” on riverbeds and toilets — which are often associated with hard-to-cure, antibiotic-resistant, chronic infections. We published a paper on the importance of a “hibernation promoting factor” to viability during nutrient starvation induced dormancy and the focus of my dissertation was to determine how the expression of these factors is regulated. Through our work, we hope to eliminate antibiotic-resistant dormant cells in chronic infections. I enjoy sharing my passion for microbiology and love stopping by Dr. Franklin’s class. My favorite project is Agar Art, which is created using bacteria and special nutrient media for growth. Along with Rhonda Craver from MBI, I generated a “pathogenic cherry blossum” using disease-causing bacteria. I see great potential in Agar Art as a way to communicate microbiology and I hope to start an Agar Art class!

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Native Student Success Montana University System Sloan Indigenous Graduate Partnership (SIGP) SIGP is a scholarship program supported by the A.P. Sloan Foundation. Since 2012, Native students in eligible STEM degree programs at MSU have benefited from these competitive scholarships to supplement their graduate research/teaching stipends. The SIGP grant renewal was successful and the program will be funded through the 2019-2020 academic year. Currently, there are six graduate students in the program, and three more students have been accepted to begin graduate studies in fall 2018. The Indigenous Mentoring Program (IMP) is a research-based series of workshops developed by a team of researchers, including co-Principal Investigator Sweeney Windchief, Assistant Professor of Education, to prepare STEM faculty to be more effective mentors to Native graduate students. STEM faculty who are currently or interested in mentoring Native graduate students have participated in these workshops, which have been offered since 2015. Beginning in fall 2018, the program will be offered in collaboration with the Center for Faculty of Excellence as an informational session and a fullday workshop.

Top photo: SIGP Scholars at MSU’s 125th Celebration Poster Session. From left to right: Robert Dorsey (MS, Industrial Engineering), Audrey Harvey (MS, LRES), Emery Three Irons (MS, LRES), Anita Moore-Nall (PhD, Earth Sciences, 2017), Roland “Clark” Rubel (MS, Mechanical Engineering). Bottom photo: Roland (Clark) Rubel IV, Matthew Weingart, Kyle Matt, Joshua Matt, Stephanann Costello, Mariah Romero, Audrey Harvey, Robert Dorsey, Emery Three Irons.

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Audrey Harvey, Graduate Student in Land Resources and Environmental Sciences Audrey is DinĂŠ (Navajo) of the Charcoal Streaked Red Running into the Water People and born for the Big Water People. She grew up in the small town of Tselani Springs on the Navajo Reservation. As an M.S. candidate in the Land Resources and Environmental Science Department, she studies invasive annual grasses and plant community dynamics with a focus on the restoration of range and wildlands. Her work is guided by Dr. Jane Mangold in the Extension Office for Invasive Plant Species. She is a fellow of the Alfred P. Sloan Indigenous Graduate Fellowship, American Indian Graduate Fellowship, and a recipient of the Navajo Nation Graduate Award throughout the 2016-2018 academic years. A rez (reservation) kid at heart, Audrey grew up with an innate curiosity for the natural world. Her studies have allowed her to explore these dynamics and further pursue a career in environmental science.

In Her Own Words: How has being a Sloan Indigenous Graduate Program scholar guided your graduate studies? The Sloan Fellowship has given me the financial and community support needed to successfully complete my graduate degree. Our monthly group breakfasts and professional development workshops have encouraged my academic and career pursuits. I have mainly benefited from fostering a relationship with my advisor, Jane, through various Sloan activities. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s one thing to feel like a fish out of water, so far from my culture and family, but knowing there is an MSU community I can fall back on is heartening. As part of my thesis research, I am working on three independent projects which have all required my full attention. I am quite proud of the work I have put into all my studies, but what has made each project fulfilling is being able to share that research with land managers and private landowners. Working in the Extension Office for Invasive Plant Species has given me the opportunity to share my research locally through MSU Extension and community events like Montana 4-H Congress Workshops and publishing MSU Extension materials. What advice do you have for aspiring Native American students? It is easy to get swallowed up by Western culture and science, so it is important to remember why you chose your path. You are here to make the world a better place and to be a resource for your people and communities. In whatever career you choose, always work hard, be kind, and never forget where you come from.

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Robert Dorsey, Graduate Student in Industrial Engineering Robert Dorsey is from Browning, Montana and a member of the Blackfeet Nation. He earned his A.S. in Computer Science Information Systems at Blackfeet Community College and his B.S. in Industrial & Management Systems Engineering from Montana State. A member of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society and the EMPower Peer Mentoring Program, Robert has earned a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Honorable Mention and a Dennis & Phyllis Washington Foundation Native American Graduate Fellowship. In His Own Words: How has being a Sloan Indigenous Graduate Program scholar guided your graduate studies? I chose to enter Montana State University’s Industrial Engineering Master’s program to further my research skills while, at the same time, investigating ways to improve healthcare services in my home town of Browning, MT. My research focuses on how miscommunication and lack of understanding of expectations can result in lower satisfaction of those accessing healthcare services. I aim to design a more patient-centered process by collecting and analyzing input from both patients and providers regarding changes needed in rural reservation healthcare services. Eliciting input from patients will allow medical and office staff to be more effective in their engagement and improve the patient experience. MSU offers amazing support and personal investment of time and resources from faculty and staff while allowing me to gain expertise and research skills in my discipline. My graduate advisor, Dr. David Claudio, has been a professor of mine since my undergraduate studies. Our shared interests in healthcare improvement and good working relationship encouraged me to go beyond my Bachelor’s degree. That relationship has been key in my research and progress in my studies. I have made it a priority to encourage and help others to succeed in engineering fields. I have volunteered as a mentor for undergraduate and international students through the EMPower Program, which has allowed me to grow my personal and professional network, all the while assisting others in their success at Montana State University. Being a mentor for me has meant becoming a part of an academic family and providing support beyond tutoring. Both as a mentor and a student, I recognize the importance of a support system that can help overcome challenges both in the classroom and outside of it. I recognize that my research and mentoring may be a tiny segment of a bigger picture, but I hope that my work encourages others to follow in my footsteps. What advice do you have for aspiring Native American students? My advice to future graduate students would be to volunteer and work with those who may be inspired by you. Taking your time to visit, work with others, and be part of a bigger picture motivates those on the same path to continue to strive for more — just as you did. It also offers possibilities of opening doors in your own future.

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Faculty Excellence MSU Researchers Develop Storytelling to Teach Computing Skills (Excerpted and adapted from MSU News Service) Researchers at Montana State University have begun an interdisciplinary project to use storytelling — an important part of American Indian tradition — to engage American Indian and other middle school students with computer science. The project, which formally began after the researchers received a $1.2 million grant from the National Science Foundation, will use a graphical computer program called Alice that allows students to craft stories by animating people, animals and objects in virtual worlds using a drag-and-drop interface and intuitive programming language. By developing classroom tools that could be shared throughout Montana, the project aims to increase the number of students who pursue computer science degrees, as well as to help teachers meet state education requirements. “We are raising awareness of computer science in young students throughout the state through our outreach activities and eventually our curriculum development,” said Brittany Fasy, the project’s principal investigator and an assistant professor in the Gianforte School of Computing in MSU’s College of Engineering. Montana’s Indian Education for All Act, which the Montana Clockwise from top left: Suzie Hockel, Connie Chang, Jachike Madubuko, Allison Theobold, legislature passed in 1999 to reinforce educational goals stated Sweeney Windchief, Brittany Fasy, Brendan Kristiansen. Photo by Adrian Sanchez-Gonzalez in Montana’s 1972 Constitution, requires that “every Montanan, whether Indian or non-Indian, be encouraged to learn about the distinct and unique heritage of American Indians in a culturally responsive manner.” According to Fasy’s research team, many Montana teachers find it challenging to develop their own curricula to meet those requirements. On top of that, teachers are trying to respond to the increasing importance of computer programming in the modern classroom and workplace. The project aims to help teachers address both those challenges at once, Fasy said. Jachike Madubuko, a senior majoring in computer science at MSU, has contributed to some of the half-dozen Alice workshops over the past year. Last spring, he helped with a workshop at MSU that was attended by middle school students from Hardin. “We start by asking them what their favorite story is, and that helps build a bridge to this mysterious thing called an ‘algorithm,’” which is a term used to describe a sequence of computer code, he said. “Just like a story, an algorithm has a beginning, middle and end.”

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Top Faculty Awards

Photos from left to right: Jim Becker, Suzanne Held, Eric Boyd, Stephen Sofie, Angela Des Jardines, Aubree Roth • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Jim Becker, associate professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, President’s Award for Excellence in Teaching Suzanne Held, professor of community health in the Department of Health and Human Development, Women in Science Distinguished Professor Award Eric Boyd, assistant professor in MSU’s Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Fox Faculty Award Stephen Sofie, professor in the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, James and Mary Ross Provost’s Award for Excellence Angela Des Jardins, assistant research professor in the Department of Physics, and Aubree Roth, farm to school coordinator for the Montana Team Nutrition Program, Excellence in Outreach Award Sheila Nielsen, director of Health Professions Advising office, Rufus T. Firefly Award for Excellence in Innovative Service Tomomi Yamaguchi, associate professor of anthropology, Betty Coffey Outstanding Achievement Award Graham Austin, marketing, Meta Newhouse, graphic design, Mary Stein, sustainable food & bioenergy systems, Teaching Innovation Award Cathy Cripps, professor in MSU’s Department of Plant Sciences and Plant Pathology, and Gretchen Minton, professor in MSU’s Department of English, Phi Kappa Phi Anna K. Fridley Award Douglas Fischer, Tony Hartshorn and Scott Powell, Spirit of Discovery Award Ann Ellsworth, professor in the Department of Education, Excellence in Online Teaching Award Elizabeth Ann R. Bird, project development and grants specialist for the College of Education, Health and Human Development, Women’s Faculty Caucus Distinguished Mentor for 2018 Catherine Dunlop, associate professor of history, Cox Faculty Award for Creative Scholarship and Teaching Lisa Musgrave, undergraduate advising coordinator in the Department of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, and Ross Snider, associate professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, 2017 Academic Advising Award Edward Schmidt, professor in MSU’s Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Charles and Nora Wiley Faculty Award for Meritorious Research Ron June, associate professor in the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Vice President for Research Meritorious Technology/ Science Award Gregory Young, professor of music, Provost’s Award for Undergraduate Research/Creativity Mentoring Matthew Fields, professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology and director of the Center for Biofilm Engineering, Provost’s Award for Graduate Research/Creativity Mentoring Sara Rushing, associate professor in political science, President’s Commission on the Status of University Women Award Thomas McNab, a member of the faculty in the School of Architecture, President’s Award for Excellence in Service Learning

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MSU Professor Wins Prestigious Award from National Science Foundation (Excerpted and adapted from MSU News Service) Charting an ambitious path for unraveling the mysteries of liquid-gas interactions, Mark Owkes, assistant professor of mechanical engineering in the Norm Asbjornson College of Engineering, has earned the National Science Foundation’s most prestigious award for early career teacherscholars. The five-year, $500,000 Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award, which Owkes won in April, honors outstanding tenure-track scientists, and is notable because it goes to a single person instead of a team. “This really points to the quality of Mark’s research and his future potential,” said Dan Miller, head of the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering. The research, he added, has broad applications and “could increase the efficiency in a lot of processes that we care about from a sustainability perspective,” including vehicle engines, various energy technologies and thermal control of buildings. Owkes describes his research as a hybrid of engineering and computer science that is “math and code-intensive.” In order to understand how fluids behave in a spray, he creates mathematical models that describe the breakup of liquid into droplets, then runs the simulations on supercomputers such as MSU’s Hyalite Research Computing Cluster, which is the largest supercomputer in Montana and can take days or weeks to arrive at an answer. “I spent a lot of time in the machine shop,” he said. “You can do experiments with (computer) code that you can’t in real life.” MSU Researcher Wins Major Award to Engineer Microbial Biofilms (Excerpted and adapted from MSU News Service) Just as an entomologist studies how ants organize themselves in a colony, Montana State University researcher Connie B. Chang is studying how microbes function in their own communities, called biofilms — research that could shed new light on how microbes cause disease or generate biofuel. Chang, an assistant professor in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering in MSU’s Norm Asbjornson College of Engineering, has also won the National Science Foundation’s $500,000 Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award to advance her research. “This project will allow us to study interactions between single cells in biofilms in order to understand their population-level behavior,” Chang said. According to Chang, the results could lead to new ways of treating harmful biofilms — and creating beneficial ones. Understanding exactly how antibiotic-resistant biofilms are organized could help researchers pinpoint ways to disrupt the biofilm’s microbial community. “Few other topics have such far-reaching implications,” said Matthew Fields, director of the Center for Biofilm Engineering, adding that the research will significantly advance the center’s research goal: to understand the assembly, evolution, stability and function of microbial biofilms.

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Administration Comings and Goings Administrator and Experienced Professor Named Dean of MSU’s College of Nursing (Excerpted and adapted from MSU News Service) Sarah Shannon, professor and senior associate dean for academic affairs at Oregon Health and Science University’s School of Nursing, has been selected to be the next dean of MSU’s College of Nursing. Shannon succeeds Helen Melland, who retired in June after serving as dean since 2009. Prior to her tenure at OHSU, Shannon was a faculty member at the University of Washington in the School of Nursing’s Department of Biobehavioral Nursing and Health Systems, as well as an adjunct in the Department of Bioethics and Humanities in the School of Medicine. She was chief of the ethics consult service for Northwest Hospital and Medical Center, an ethics consultant for UW Medical Center, and has worked as a nurse in critical care, medical and surgical settings. Her research focus is on improving communication between health care teams, patients and their families around ethically challenging issues. Shannon is honored to to serve the state of Montana as the next dean of the College of Nursing. “After more than 30 years in the Pacific Northwest, I am delighted to be returning to Montana, where I spent my childhood,” she said. “Healthcare is rapidly evolving. In turn, the education of health care professionals, including registered nurses, nurse practitioners, nurse leaders and nurse educators, needs to respond with equal innovation and agility. I look forward to partnering with the MSU CON faculty and students, the university leadership team and clinical agencies across the state to ensure that MSU CON graduates are prepared to meet the healthcare and workforce needs of Montanans today and tomorrow.” Trevor Huffmaster Named New Director of MSU’S Blackstone LaunchPad (Excerpted and adapted from MSU News Service) An entrepreneurship program at Montana State University that has helped generate more than 90 ventures since its inception in 2013 has a new director. Trevor Huffmaster has served as interim director of the Blackstone LaunchPad at MSU since 2017 and as director of its 406 Labs accelerator component since 2015. The MSU Blackstone LaunchPad, which is housed under the Jake Jabs College of Business and Entrepreneurship, is an entrepreneurial resource for students, alumni and faculty across the university and community. As director, Huffmaster helps guide MSU students, faculty, staff and alumni as they develop their ideas into entrepreneurial opportunities. “I am extremely excited and honored for this new role at the Blackstone LaunchPad,” Huffmaster said. “This is an amazing opportunity to work even more with our talented students, faculty and alumni to leverage entrepreneurial thinking to solve big problems.” An entrepreneur himself, Huffmaster has more than 18 years of experience creating and managing health care and business organizations, as well as more than 15 years of experience managing and implementing complex information technology and business projects.

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Longtime Head of MSU’s Museum of the Rockies Retires (Excerpted and adapted from MSU News Service) Executive Director Shelley McKamey, the longest-serving director in the museum’s history, joined the museum in 1987 as its first marketing director. She held marketing, public relations, development, membership, publications and operations responsibilities until 2003, when she was named head of the museum. “We extend our deepest thanks to Executive Director McKamey for her many years of service and devotion to the MSU Museum of the Rockies,” said MSU President Waded Cruzado. “Her work has helped position the Museum of the Rockies as one of the world’s finest research and history museums.” During McKamey’s 14 years as executive director, she and the staff completed a number of privately funded projects which changed the face of the museum, including opening the Siebel Dinosaur Complex with its “Dinosaurs Under the Big Sky” exhibit, renovating and upgrading the Taylor Planetarium to a digital format, developing the Living History Farm, opening the “Tyrant Kings” exhibit starring Montana’s T. rex, and expanding the Children’s Discovery Center with its “Welcome to Yellowstone” theme. With agreement from the board of trustees, McKamey broadened the philosophy of the museum’s changing exhibits to “bring the world to Montana and share Montana with the world.” The series of successful exhibits brought to Bozeman helped make the museum one of the state’s top 10 tourist destinations and the most visited museum in Montana. MOR welcomed a record 196,201 visitors to the museum in 2017 and an independent research group determined in 2014 that the Museum of the Rockies had a $47 million economic impact on Gallatin County annually. Under McKamey’s leadership, the museum earned its third accreditation from the American Alliance of Museums in 2008. It became a Smithsonian affiliate in 2005 and has continued to serve as a repository for fossils found on federal lands. McKamey said she considers her greatest accomplishment at MOR to be assembling and nurturing an “outstanding” team of professionals, and she is proud of the museum’s wide-ranging impact. “I am most proud of the impact MOR has had on people’s lives, whether they were kids who were inspired because of something they saw at the museum, tourists who learned something new about Montana history or our ‘Big Sky,’ volunteers and docents who found their efforts rewarding, families who had new opportunities with their children, MSU students who pursued their career choices, or staff who saw their work contribute to the museum’s reputation for excellence,” McKamey said. Michael Conlon, president of the museum’s board of trustees, said the board values McKamey’s long experience and deep knowledge. “She knows the museum inside and out, and that knowledge has led to a number of successes over the years at the Museum of the Rockies,” Conlon said. “We are certainly going to miss her.”

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Data on Graduate Education Fall 2017 Enrollment by College

College of Agriculture College of Arts & Architeture College of Business College of Education, Health & Human Development College of Engineering College of Letters & Science College of Nursing The Graduate School

205

113

387

207

662

101 0

100

200

266 300

Fall 2017 Enrollment by Degree Type College Specialist 0.81% NonDegree 11.81%

Certificate 6.66%

500

600

College of Agriculture College of Arts & Architeture College of Business College of Education, Health & Human Development

College of Letters & Science Doctoral 30.14%

College of Nursing The Graduate School

700

2017-2018 Degrees Awarded by College

Degree Level

College of Engineering

Master 50.58%

400

Degree Level

Doctoral Master Master Master Certificate Doctoral Master Specialist Doctoral Master Certificate Doctoral Master Doctoral Master Certificate

Certificate Doctoral Master NonDegree Specialist

100

120

140

160

180

200

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When you support graduate education at Montana State University, you are saying “Yes!” to Creating Knowledge, Elevating Discovery and Striving for Innovation. Your thoughtfulness today will have an impact on the word of tomorrow. Donate online at montana.edu/gradschool/give_now.html To find out more about making a gift, contact the Alumni Foundation at 406-994-2053

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New Building Updates Montana State Breaks Ground on Applied Research Lab (Excerpted and adapted from MSU News Service) Montana State University hosted a ceremonial groundbreaking for its new Applied Research Lab on February 23, 2018, opening a new chapter for the university in U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Department of Defense research. The Applied Research Lab will allow university faculty, students and industry partners to work on energy and defense-related research projects previously out of reach due to the lack of a secure facility. “MSU has long-standing expertise in lasers and photonics, advanced manufacturing, advanced materials and cybersecurity that could be expanded with the departments of Defense and Energy with this facility,” said Renee Reijo Pera, MSU vice president for research and economic development. “For more than 30 years, MSU’s research into photonics helped nurture a thriving cluster of laser optics businesses in Bozeman,” said Joe Shaw, director of MSU’s Optical Technology Center. “The Applied Research Lab will make strong use of the expertise of MSU and of these local businesses.” The grant funding generated by the lab is expected to pay for its cost. No student tuition or state taxpayer dollars are being used to finance its construction. “We see some great opportunities for faculty, graduate students and undergraduate students in this facility,” Reijo Pera said. “Students will get incredibly valuable experience working on projects applicable to the nation’s energy and defense programs. Additionally, we think the research conducted in the lab will both be a magnet for large industry as well as an incubator for new Montana businesses.” Norm Asbjornson Hall Set to Be Completed in 2019 Norm Asbjornson committed to give MSU $50 million for its College of Engineering. Asbjornson’s gift will fund the construction of an innovative laboratory and classroom facility that will enable collaborative, hands-on learning and leadership. The buildling has been under construction since September 2016 and is expected to be completed in 2019. Norm Asbjornson Hall is envisioned to promote dynamic interdisciplinary engagement, meaningful student-faculty interaction, and accelerated innovation that responds to and anticipates emerging trends in education, industry and society.

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August 21, 2017: Total Solar Eclipse

(Partially excerpted from MSU News Service) On August 21, 2017 a total solar eclipse was viewable from much of the United States. At MSU, a partial eclipse — about 90% — was visible. Members of the MSU Physics Department distributed glasses and provided solar telescopes for on-campus viewing. The path of totality was a roughly 70-mile-wide area stretching from Oregon to South Carolina. A team from MSU collaborated with 54 other teams to livestream the eclipse using high-altitude balloons as part of the MSU-led Eclipse Ballooning Project. “It’s a space-like perspective,” said Des Jardins, who initiated the project in 2014. Helium-filled balloons carried cameras to an altitude of more than 80,000 feet to capture the video. “From that height you can see the curvature of the Earth and the blackness of space.” The video, including footage from Rexburg, which was in the path of totality, was livestreamed on NASA’s website. The next total solar eclipse that will be visible from the United States won’t take place until 2024.

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P.O. Box 172580 | Bozeman, MT 59717-2580 | 406-994-4145 Visit us at www.montana.edu/gradschool