The Environmental Science department has been monitoring the health of bats and their impact on the state’s agriculture for approximately 10 years.  The new TCRAE award is focused on monitoring population stability, habitat and potential declines.  This proves to be a timely area of research as White Nose Syndrome (WNS), a fungus that is killing off bat populations, moves into North Dakota. WNS was reported to have reached North Dakota in early August.  Knowledge of the distribution and habitat requirements of these various bat species and the roles they play in the ecosystem with help with conservation efforts and mitigation plans if their population does decline.

UTTC students Berlin West, (Cheyanne River) Amy Jackson, (Navajo Nation) and Kimberly Blevins (MHA Nation) have been busy this summer as student researchers of the grant.  Berlin’s project is focusing on a less invasive way for the bats to be identified using DNA from guano and tissue samples.   Amy is using the bat guano to look at the viruses that are carried by bats.  Kim is using two different techniques to monitor the benefits bats have on agricultural in North Dakota.

At the end of the summer, students will compile their results and share them at several regional and national conferences.

At the end of the semester, students will compile research and results and be able to present their findings.

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Pots are clanging, whisks are flying, and Ebony Schultz is cracking her last egg when I walk into the UTTC kitchen.

Schultz, a first-year Culinary Arts and Nutrition student says this is where she feels most creative and most at home.

“[Cooking is] what I really love doing, and I guess, I was a really young mother and one of the things I told myself is that I always want to provide for my children and this is one of the main ways,” Schultz says.

Now, as a culinary student, she is taking her passion for cooking and making it a career.

“It’s creative and you get a tasty end result,” Schultz says.

But her main motivation to begin her classes here, at UTTC, has always been her kids.

“I felt like it’s more of a family than it’s a community,” Schultz says. “I felt like I fit in more here.”

Finding the place she belongs the moment she stepped into the kitchen.

“It’s a stress reliever for me and I feel good at the end of the project because you make something out of nothing,” Schultz says.

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If you know someone you would like to see featured as one of our Faces of UTTC you can email the name of your nomination along with contact information to media@uttc.edu.

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Bismarck, N.D. – When I met Danielle Peltier, UTTC pre-engineering student, she was sitting in an empty science classroom.

With a stack of paper spread out in front of her, Peltier was typing in the last few numbers of a problem into her calculator.

As a pre-engineering student, Peltier came to UTTC expecting to learn to solve problems. What she didn’t expect was the world of possibility she would find when she got here.

 “I have a lot of opportunities that many Native kids don’t have between the AISES (American Indian Science and Engineering Society) program, we travel many places and get connections, and get to know people,” Peltier says.

Peltier says one of her favorite places she has been able to visit through AISES is San Diego inspiring Peltier to work towards being the next UTTC student to take part in the NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars program.

“I know a lot of Natives don’t get off the reservation so [I try to be] a role model and a mentor to try to prove that you can do it,” Peltier says.

As a member of the UTTC Women’s Basketball Team, Peltier is a leader on and off the court.

“I know that a lot of kids aren’t as fortunate as I am to have a strong upbringing in my life so I just want to allow people to have the chance to lean on someone and to make sure they always have someone to listen to and talk to,” Peltier says.

Peltier serves as a mentor for the North Dakota Indian Youth Leadership Academy, a program put on by the North Dakota Indian Affairs Commission that seeks to help build leadership skills in Native American youth.

“It’s opened up my eyes to understand more people and how I can actually help people and prove to them they can do whatever they want,” Peltier says.

Leading by example, in the classroom, on the court, and in the UTTC community.

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If you know someone you would like to see featured as one of our Faces of UTTC you can email the name of your nomination along with contact information to media@uttc.edu.

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Office: 701-221-1355

Email: kpeltier@uttc.edu

Bismarck- N.D. – United Tribes Technical College (UTTC)  is committed to offering ways to support students, faculty, and staff in their journey towards health and wellness. One of the ways UTTC supports wellness is offering free exercise classes to students and staff. Fall classes are up-and-running and include boxing, abs, HIIT, and yoga in the Lews Goodhouse Wellness Center (Building 69) on the UTTC campus. Check out a full schedule below or for more information contact Kelsey Peltier, health promotions coordinator. Must be 18 years or older to attend classes.

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Contact: Kaley Schwab, Communications Specialist
Office: 701-221-1387
Cell: 701-946-8611
Email: kschwab@uttc.edu

UTTC Receives Federal Grant to Launch Intertribal Research and Resource Center

Bismarck, ND – United Tribes Technical College (UTTC) is the recipient of a $2.6 million dollar federal grant to establish an Intertribal Research and Resource Center (IRRC).

The grant will be used to address community needs and to improve the sustainability of natural resources and agricultural sustainability in Indian Country.

“United Tribes Technical College (UTTC) has a long history of serving as a resource for tribal nations throughout the Great Plains region. The Intertribal Research and Resource Center (IRRC) builds on a strong network of partnerships to enhance research activities to positively impact land management and the sustainability of natural resources,” UTTC President Leander R. McDonald says.

These federal funds will be made available through the National Science Foundation’s Tribal Colleges and Universities Program.

“UTTC has a great team and infrastructure to manage and implement the grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to the benefit of the region,” McDonald says.

The grant is expected to continue through 2023 with an additional $900,000 in federal funds expected to be made available.

Jeremy Guinn, chair of the Environmental Science and Research Program at UTTC, says this funding is a way to reach beyond academic programs and serve the community directly.

“The research areas are food, energy, and water. It is a broad area but these are interconnected fields and we are looking to provide research, information, and resources to the tribes in those three areas,” Guinn says.

The Intertribal Research and Resource Center will be in addition to the work already happening on the college campus through the Land Grant program and the Environmental Science and Research Program that focuses on cultivating sustainable food on campus as well as research into sustaining natural resources.

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Bismarck, N.D. – On a gray overcast day, SaNoah LaRocque was listening to Dakota Good House finish the last few lines of his lecture.

Just before books were closed and pencils were put away, I spoke to LaRocque about life at United Tribes Technical College (UTTC).

Though it’s LaRocque’s first semester at UTTC, she is no stranger to college life.

She began her college career at Harvard University three years ago.

“I’m taking a gap year from Harvard. I’m interning for Senator Heitkamp this fall,” LaRocque says.

In between stumping for the senator, LaRocque, originally from the Turtle Mountains, came to UTTC for something she could not find in those ivy-covered halls.

“At Harvard, we don’t have any Native faculty or any Native history classes and so my major motivation in coming to United Tribes was just the emphasis on Native education and building the leaders of Indian Country of tomorrow,” LaRocque says.

LaRocque herself is one of those leaders.

Not only is she taking Native history, but she is also taking on the classes that will prepare her for her next big goal, to become Dr. LaRocque.

But until then, LaRocque says she’s grateful for her time here at UTTC.

“I want to thank everybody who’s helped me come to the decision to be a student at United Tribes – I feel like I’m a part of something really special here,” LaRocque says.

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If you know someone you would like to see featured as one of our Faces of UTTC you can email the name of your nomination along with contact information to media@uttc.edu.

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Contact Information: Mara Yborra
Phone: 221-1435 • E-Mail: myborra@uttc.edu

Healthy Campus Week

September 24 – 28, 2018

*Student Health will be offering free blood sugar screens, blood pressure checks, and flu shots ($20 for employees & free to students) all week.
**Health Promotions will offer free BMI measurements all week.

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United Tribes Technical College Student Selected to Visit NASA in October

Bismarck, ND – Kate Gates of United Tribes Technical College (UTTC) has been selected to travel to NASA’s Glenn Research Center this fall to participate in the NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars (NCAS) onsite experience.

Gates has been selected as one of 319 community college students from across the U.S. to be part of the NCAS onsite experience.

The five-week online activity culminates with a four-day on-site event at a NASA Center and offers students the opportunity to interact with NASA engineers and others as they learn more about careers in science and engineering. While at NASA, students form teams and establish fictional companies interested in Mars exploration. Each team is responsible for developing and testing a prototype rover, forming a company infrastructure, managing a budget, and developing communications and outreach.

The onsite experience at NASA includes briefings by NASA subject matter experts, information on how to apply for internships and a tour of NASA’s unique facilities.

NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars is an activity funded in part by the Minority University Research and Education Program, or MUREP, which is committed to engaging underrepresented and underserved students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) in authentic learning experiences to sustain a diverse workforce. 

With this activity, NASA continues the agency’s tradition of engaging the nation in NASA’s mission.

“NCAS not only inspires community college students to advance in STEM fields, but it also opens doors for future careers at NASA.  NCAS has a legacy of alumni moving from NASA internships to and ultimately entering the NASA workforce.  It is rewarding to see the progression of a student from NCAS participant to NASA colleague,” Joeletta Patrick, Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP) Manager.

Gates is the second UTTC student to participate in the program this year. Brett Alberts, UTTC student, was chosen as a NASA Community College Aerospace Scholar earlier this year.

For additional information, please contact National Community College Aerospace Scholars by email at JSC-NCAS@mail.nasa.gov or by phone at 281-483-0493. For more information, visit:

http://ncas.aerospacescholars.org/

For more on MUREP visit:

www.nasa.gov/education/murep 

For updates on social media follow:

#NCAS2018 #MUREP

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