Mr. Jonnell Sanciangco will take his oral comprehensive examination
All Geography faculty may attend and participate in the oral examination. Geography graduate students and other non-committee members (e.g., family and friends) may attend with prior approval of the student being examined.
Committee:
Ashton Shortridge (Chair)
Amber Pearson
Harold W. Neighbors (CHM-Flint)
Paul L. Delamater (University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill)
Mr. Rajiv Paudel will present and defend his dissertation proposal
Title: Analyzing Household vulnerability to food insecurity in Southern Mali
Two hours will be allowed for the presentation and subsequent questioning. An initial uninterrupted presentation of the proposed research should be 20-30 minutes in length. Anyone, including faculty, students, and staff, is welcome to attend the presentation. The student’s Advisor will moderate the question session that follows, and all Guidance Committee members will actively participate. However, all persons attending may ask questions and offer comments.
Committee members:
Arika Ligmann-Zielinska (chair)
Leo Zulu
Bruno Basso (Earth and Environmental Sciences)
Laura Kathryn Schmitt Olabisi (Community Sustainability)
Please contact Sharon Ruggles, at ruggles@msu.edu to receive an electronic copy of the proposal.
Read More →Mr. B.J. Baule will present and defend his dissertation proposal.
Title: Climatic Variability and Change in the Midwestern United States: Implications for Nitrogen Loss and Management in Agricultural Systems
Two hours will be allowed for the presentation and subsequent questioning. An initial uninterrupted presentation of the proposed research should be 20-30 minutes in length.
Anyone, including faculty, students, and staff, is welcome to attend the presentation.
The student’s Advisor will moderate the question session that follows, and all Guidance Committee members will actively participate. However, all persons attending may ask questions and offer comments.
Committee members:
Jeff Andresen (chair)
Julie Winkler
Bruno Basso (Earth and Environmental Sciences)
Amor Ines (Plant Soil, and Microbial Sciences)
If you would like an electronic copy of the proposal, please contact Sharon Ruggles ruggles@msu.edu
Read More →Mr. Jonah White will present and defend his dissertation proposal at the following date and time:
Title: A Greening but Unequal City: Environmental Justice and Gentrification in Seattle, 1980-2000
Two hours will be allowed for the presentation and subsequent questioning. An initial uninterrupted presentation of the proposed research should be 20-30 minutes in length. Anyone, including faculty, students, and staff, is welcome to attend the presentation. The question session that follows will be moderated by the student’s Advisor, and all Guidance Committee members will actively participate. However, all persons attending may ask questions and offer comments.
Committee members:
Igor Vojnovic (chair)
Arika Ligmann-Zielinska
Zachary Neal (Psychology)
Zeenat Karamchandani-Kotval (School of Planning, Design, and Construction)
Please contact me Sharon Ruggles at ruggles@msu.edu if you would like to be sent an electronic copy of the proposal.
Read More →Mr. Dan Wanyama will take his oral comprehensive examination
All Geography faculty may attend and participate in the oral examination. Geography graduate students and other non-committee members (e.g., family and friends) may attend with prior approval of the student being examined.
Committee:
Nathan Moore (Chair)
Kyla Dahlin
Arika Ligmann-Zielinska
Amor Ines (Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences)
Bandana Kar (Oak Ridge National Lab)
Ms. Amanda Kreuze will present and defend her dissertation proposal
Title: Maternal and Infant Health in East Central Michigan: Environmental Health Investigation of Toxic Release Inventory Emissions
Two hours will be allowed for the presentation and subsequent questioning. An initial uninterrupted presentation of the proposed research should be 20-30 minutes in length. Anyone, including faculty, students, and staff, is welcome to attend the presentation. The student’s Advisor will moderate the question session that follows, and all Guidance Committee members will actively participate. However, all persons attending may ask questions and offer comments.
Committee members:
Sue Grady (chair)
Kyla Dahlin
Igor Vojnovic
Jade Mitchell-Davis (Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering)
Please contact Sharon Ruggles at ruggles@msu.edu if you would like an electronic copy of the proposal.
Read More →Ms. Ida Djenontin will take her oral comprehensive examination.
All Geography faculty may attend and participate in the oral examination. Geography graduate students and other non-committee members (e.g., family and friends) may attend with prior approval of the student being examined.
Committee:
Leo Zulu (Chair)
Arika Ligmann-Zielinska
Pascal Nzokou (Forestry)
Robert B. Richardson (Community Sustainability)
Ms. Yingyue Juno Liu will take her oral comprehensive examination
All Geography faculty may attend and participate in the oral examination. Geography graduate students and other non-committee members (e.g., family and friends) may attend with prior approval of the student being examined.
Committee:
Arika Ligmann-Zielinska (Chair)
Kyle Evered
Raechel Portelli
Paul B. Thompson (Philosophy)
Ms. Cheyenne Lei will be presenting and defending her dissertation proposal
Title: Albedo on Biofuel Ecosystems: Impact Assessment for Climate & Global Warming Impact 
Two hours will be allowed for the presentation and subsequent questioning. An initial uninterrupted presentation of the proposed research should be 20-30 minutes in length. Anyone, including faculty, students, and staff, is welcome to attend the presentation. The student’s Advisor will moderate the question session that follows, and all Guidance Committee members will actively participate. However, all persons attending may ask questions and offer comments.
Committee members:
Jiquan Chen (chair)
Lifeng Luo
Joseph P. Messina
Philip Robertson (Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences)
Please contact Sharon Ruggles if you would like an electronic copy of the proposal.
Read More →Mr. Teng Zhang will take his oral comprehensive examination.
All Geography faculty may attend and participate in the oral examination. Geography graduate students and other non-committee members (e.g., family and friends) may attend with prior approval of the student being examined.
Committee:
Ashton Shortridge (co-Chair)
Siddarth Chandra (co-Chair) (Asian Studies Center)
Kyle Evered
Ronen Steinberg (History)
Mr. Jiang Chang will present and defend his dissertation proposal.
Title: The Underprivileged and Displacement: Gentrification in Hong Kong, 1986 to 2016
Two hours will be allowed for the presentation and subsequent questioning. An initial uninterrupted presentation of the proposed research should be 20-30 minutes in length. Anyone, including faculty, students, and staff, is welcome to attend the presentation. The student’s Advisor will moderate the question session that follows, and all Guidance Committee members will actively participate. However, all persons attending may ask questions and offer comments.
Committee members:
Igor Vojnovic (chair)
Guo Chen
Laura Reese (Political Science)
Zeenat Karamchandani-Kotval (School of Planning, Design, and Construction)
If you would like an electronic copy of the proposal, please contact me ruggles@msu.edu
Read More →Greetings!
SWIG is a community for geographers at all levels— faculty, grad, undergrad and staff. If you support women in geography, you’re in! We’re a nation-wide organization developed at Penn State University, and our own chapter was initiated just a few years ago by Dr. Raechel Portelli, Cadi Fung, and April Franke.
Why join SWIG?
Each year SWIG members benefit from activities such as:
1) Guest speakers during a Coffee and Bagels networking hour
2) Mentorship between graduate/undergraduates in Geography
3) Award scholarships to undergrad/s for application fees to graduate school
4) Participate in activities related to Geography Week
5) Volunteer on campus and in the community
6) Collaborate with campus programs on diversity and inclusion
7) Organized game/movie nights and day field-trips
8) Build a sense of comradery and support
That said, our first meeting is meant to bring us all together for some goal-setting as well.
Please join us!
