ITM Students Earn Awards
Three UMC students were recognized April 15 with Achievement in Information Technology Awards at the annual UMC Student Awards Reception:  Richard Breton of the U.S. Virgin Islands, Thaddeus Hogan of Blaine, and Kelly Nelson of Middle River. The three earned the awards for significant contributions to the ITM program.

(above from left)  David DeMuth, assistant professor of physics and math, Kelly Nelson, Richard Breton, Thaddeus Hogan, and Bruce Brorson, associate professor of marketing and information technology.
Posted April 30, 2004

ITM Student Presents at National Conference for Undergraduate Research

UMC student Ryan Owens, a senior from Anoka, Minn., and an information technology management major, presented a poster at the National Conference for Undergraduate Research (NCUR) in Indianapolis, IN, Friday, April 16. He presented, “The Impact of Computer Mediated Learning Module on Student Retention,” detailing the research project he completed with Doug Knowlton, former UMC vice chancellor for academic affairs. The project aimed to determine whether an increase in retention of class material in a psychology class would be produced by creating a learning module that could be accessible via the World Wide Web. There was significant difference between results indicating that students increased retention on lecture material included in the learning module, as compared to material not included in the learning module, supporting the assertion that computer mediated learning creates a positive impact on learning. NCUR Participants attended from over 400 colleges and universities representing almost every state in the nation.
Posted April 21, 2004

I.T. Professionals Host LAN Party

About a dozen student gamers attended the all night LAN Party sponsored by the UMC I.T. Professionals on April 3-4. The group played Battlefield 1942 (the unanimous favorite), Battlefield Veitnam, UT 2004, Age of Empires II, and Desert Combat. UMC alumni and past presidents of the I.T. Professionals Matt Smith and Josh Clark also attended. Posted April 21, 2004

Spending Spring Break Underground

UMC assistant professor David DeMuth and students Andrew Sheppard, Thaddeus Hogan, and Kelly Nelson (pictured above from left) visited the Soudan Underground Mine State Park in northeastern Minnesota for three days during UMC's spring break.  There, they worked to upgrade an information kiosk for the Soudan Welcome Center.  The technology for the kiosk was custom built by UMC students using a touchscreen interface on a networked computer running a Linux operating system. Using Macromedia Flash, the display provides an additional opportunity to state park visitors to study the high energy physics experiments underway at the Soudan Laboratory. See www.sudan.umn.edu for more information. The kiosk project is funded by the Frank W. Veden Trust and by a Minnesota Space Grant.
Posted March 25, 2004

Discussing Rural Technology Trends and Issues

A group of chief information officers and telecom leaders from North Dakota and Minnesota met on the UMC campus August 13 and 14 to discuss industry trends and emerging technologies. The group was brought together by Bruce Brorson, program manager for UMC's Information Technology Management program.
Posted August 18, 2003

Impressing the President
UMC students Tim Gerla, Dan Oberg, and Ryan Tripp traveled to Minneapolis Wednesday, February 26, to take part in “Impress the President—Public Engagement and Research Initiatives:  A Student Expo” at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities.  Students from across the U of M system presented information about undergraduate research and other projects in which they have taken part.   The event was held in Coffman Union's Mississippi Room and was part of U of M Founders Week.  It was sponsored by the Graduate and Professional Student Assembly, Minnesota Student Association, and Coffman Board of Governors.

Tim Gerla (at right, seated), a UMC senior majoring in information technology management, presented work he has done with assistant professor David DeMuth (left) in the development of Web-based tools for the MINOS Experiment.  Gerla has developed several Web-based applications for the scientists working on this international neutrino detection experiment based at the Soudan Underground Laboratory in northeast Minnesota.  They include a housing scheduler and a notebook system that allows scientists to record data, notes, thoughts, and discussions online in a universally accessible medium.  Gerla is from Climax, Minnesota.
Posted Febraury 28, 2003

Josh Clark, a senior majoring in information technology management, participated in the “Fastest Geek Competition” sponsored by PC Week Magazine and Systemax at Comdex, in Las Vegas.  The contest was a race to see who could install the various components of a computer the fastest and boot the machine successfully.  Josh won the day and qualified for finals on Monday, November 18, with a time of 5 min., 48 sec.  On Tuesday, November 19, the top four finalists competed for a personal computer worth approximately $3,000.   Josh achieved a time of 5 min., 27 sec.—the fastest time—but incurred a penalty because of a loose power cable and forfeited the contest.  The final contest was shown on CNN and TechTV’s “Tech Live.”
Posted November 2002