Nov 22
Apr 23, 2020
Five Lake Superior State University Students Awarded Michigan Sea Grant Internships
This winter, the Center for Freshwater Research and Education (CFRE) faculty and staff worked with five Lake Superior State University students to submit applications for a $5000 Michigan Sea Grant summer internship. All five students have been selected for funding for a 2 month summer 2020 undergraduate internship.
The students and their faculty sponsors include,
These students will all be conducting innovative research and community engagement projects as a result of this funding.
Michigan Sea Grant’s undergraduate internship program coordinates and funds undergraduate students from any accredited community college, college, or university in Michigan to work with private businesses, local government, state and federal agencies, and environmental non-profit organizations, or university faculty to plan or implement environmental stewardship in the Great Lakes.
Through this internship program, undergraduate students may propose projects they are interested in working on related to Great Lakes stewardship with sponsor organizations that will provide guidance and support for their research projects. The internship should last two months, however, start and end dates are negotiable to accommodate academic semester or other recipient needs.
The purpose is to promote Great Lakes stewardship by pairing undergrads with other organizations, including universities. Each of our students will be working with CFRE staff and faculty on research and education programs that will help promote the importance of conserving the Great Lakes. For example, Molly Wozniak was funded to add a community education component to her senior thesis research on the effects of a nuisance algae, didymo that was found in the St. Marys River. Other students will work on developing Great Lakes lesson plans for K-12 programs, outreach programs on the ecology and fishery of the AuSable River, and research on lake and river ecology.
All of the students will receive $5000 to support their work this summer. In addition to the funding, they will enhance their research and communication skills as they work alongside CFRE scientists on real-world Great Lakes issues.
Dr. Ashley Moerke indicated that “the resources provided by CFRE helped these students excel and stand out. CFRE is the host institution for all five of the students and it is our human and equipment resources, along with our ongoing research, that allow these students to leverage other unique opportunities like this. I think this is an example of the benefits a resource like CFRE can provide–value-added experiential education!”
Dr. Rodney Hanley, President of LSSU, stated, “I am very impressed by the work that our CFRE faculty have done in providing a superior education and experience for our students. Congratulations to the internship recipients, I look forward to your continued success.”
Lake Superior State University is one of Michigan’s most affordable public universities with One-Rate at Lake State tuition for all. Surrounded by three Great Lakes, LSSU is an unsurpassed location for research, focusing on real-world experiences. Well known for programs such as fisheries and wildlife management, engineering, nursing, criminal justice, and fire science; Lake State is also leading the way with innovative new programs, including cannabis chemistry, cannabis business and robotics engineering. For more information, visit LSSU.edu.
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