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For Thursday 02/06/25, the campus will be closed until 12 noon today due to the severe weather. All classes scheduled after 12 noon will take place as scheduled. Students should check Canvas for details on classes.

LTU celebrates diversity in inaugural ‘Circle Celebration’

April 24, 2023

SOUTHFIELD–Amid cheers and African drums, Lawrence Technological University’s Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion celebrated the graduation of students from diverse backgrounds Sunday in an inaugural “Circle Celebration” organized by the DEI office.

The university also turned the event into an awards ceremony, announcing the winner of idts John G. Petty Community Champion Award, Maria Vaz Beacon Award, and the inaugural Oliver Coleman Student Achievement Award.

Master of Ceremonies Mike Ellison opened the event with recognition of the Native Americans who occupied Southfield before the arrival of European settlers. Caryn Reed-Hendon, director of the LTU DEI office, welcomed the students, their families, and LTU faculty and staff by noting the students’ growth and development over the course of their academic journeys.

“Your time on campus has had mountain highs and valley lows,” she said. “New people, new concepts, and new ways to do things may have crowded your first few semesters. Even with all of your smarts, you didn’t know that most of what you would learn about life would not be in the classroom, but would happen in studio, on the court, on the field, in the workout room, in your dorm rooms, in group meetings, in late night discussions with friends and colleagues, on social media apps, and right here in the Blue Devil Cafe.”

Her remarks were followed by a “libation ceremony” performed by drummers Chinelo and Marwan Amen-Ra, pouring out water to honor the students’ ancestors.

Also welcoming the students was Patrick Nelson, interim dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, who told the audience that “Creating a new tradition and getting others on board is not easy, but we are at an inflection point where the times call for it.”

The fifth annual John G. Petty Community Champion Award was presented to former U.S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence. The award is named after John Petty, a 1965 LTU alumnus and the first Black member of the LTU Board of Trustees. Lawrence served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2015 to 2023, and before that was Mayor of Southfield and a member of the local school board. Before entering politics, she had a long career in the U.S. Postal Service, rising from letter carrier to human relations executive.

Also presented was the Maria Vaz Beacon Award, given annually to a person who contributed to the advancement of women at LTU. It’s named after former LTU professor and Provost Maria Vaz, who worked for the university for 37 years until her 2020 retirement. This year’s winner was Heidi Morano, director of the entrepreneurial engineering design program at LTU. She helped design LTU’s unique engineering design sophomore program, where students design assistive devices for real-world customers in the disability community.

Morano said she saw Vaz “a perfect blend of physics expert and university leader, who yet was completely approachable, and always impeccably dressed.” Morano credited a professor at the University of Michigan with inspiring her to go into research, go to graduate school, and become an academic. “Now, 30 years later, I relish that role as a mentor, to our female students in particular.”

Also presented was a new award, the Oliver Coleman Student Achievement Award. It’s named after Oliver Coleman, a special projects administrator for president emeritus Richard Marburger from 1976 to 1989, running Project TAB (Technical and Business). During that time, he led LTU outreach programs in the Detroit public schools, forming TAB clubs that would hear Black business and technology leaders and send them on field trips to STEM employers, encouraging them to pursue STEM education and careers.

Winning the award was LTU student government president JuJuan Jones. He was introduced by Alice Morse, a 1988 graduate of what was then the LTU College of Management, who credited Coleman with inspiring her to finish her degree.

The Coleman Award highlights an individual who has used a leadership position on campus to impact culture and improve engagement in academics and student life. Jones has been an active volunteer during his student days, mentoring younger students and helping establish the Student Philanthropy Council, of which he became president. He also helped create the LTU Student Pantry for students struggling with food security, and is a member of the National Society of Black Engineers LTU chapter and the LTU Black Student Organization. Said Jones: “LTU has been nothing but mind-blowing since I have been here. The faculty, staff, and students have been nothing but supportive to me and my family as I have grown as a person. Who knew that a university like LTU would care so much about me? They helped me stay and thrive here and gain valuable experiences.”

Capping off the event was keynote speaker Michelle Lollie, a Southfield native who is a laser scientist with Quantinuum, a United Kingdom-based company working to create quantum computing. Lollie got a bachelor’s degree in business administration and finance from Clark Atlanta University and worked in banking. Through reading, she became fascinated with physics, and started graduate school at Rose Hulman Institute of Technology at age 30. Eventually she became the first Black woman to earn a Ph.D. in physics from Louisiana State University. She said she had a two-word message for the students: Be extraordinary. She also told them to never give up, pointing out that she failed several graduate school classes enroute to her successful career. “People talked down to me, telling me ‘Maybe you aren’t cut out for this,’” she recalled. “I even had a professor suggest that I might have a learning disability….I’d like to see that professor today.”

The ceremony ended with students being presented stoles to wear with their graduation gowns. The stoles were presented by their families and others who have been a part of their time at LTU. Finally, Michelle Baker, secretary of the LTU Alumni Association, welcomed the new alumni and encouraged them to get involved with the group.

» Document Viewer

Use Your Cell Phone as a Document Camera in Zoom

  • What you will need to have and do
  • Download the mobile Zoom app (either App Store or Google Play)
  • Have your phone plugged in
  • Set up video stand phone holder

From Computer

Log in and start your Zoom session with participants

From Phone

  • Start the Zoom session on your phone app (suggest setting your phone to “Do not disturb” since your phone screen will be seen in Zoom)
  • Type in the Meeting ID and Join
  • Do not use phone audio option to avoid feedback
  • Select “share content” and “screen” to share your cell phone’s screen in your Zoom session
  • Select “start broadcast” from Zoom app. The home screen of your cell phone is now being shared with your participants.

To use your cell phone as a makeshift document camera

  • Open (swipe to switch apps) and select the camera app on your phone
  • Start in photo mode and aim the camera at whatever materials you would like to share
  • This is where you will have to position what you want to share to get the best view – but you will see ‘how you are doing’ in the main Zoom session.