April 1, 2025
Ferris State students, donors honor late professor Paul Klatt by supporting Osprey Cam during One Day for Dawgs
Ferris State President Bill Pink conferred faculty emeriti status to the late professor Paul Klatt nearly a year ago to celebrate his life and legacy – and a special project.
“Paul meant, and still does, mean so much to this institution,” Pink said during the 2024 commencement. “His footprint remains on our campus through his work serving students and starting the Osprey Cam, overlooking an osprey nest right here at Ferris State.”
Friends, colleagues, and former students are supporting the ongoing work of sharing Dr. Klatt’s Osprey Cam with the world. A One Day for Dawgs cause will be featured during the university’s day of giving on April 9 to raise funds for the continued maintenance and long-term operation of the project.
People can donate to support the Osprey Cam and many other campus students, projects and organizations at ferris.edu/oneday.
Ashley Ottjepka, a Cadillac native and third-year PharmD student, met Klatt through the Tri-Beta National Biological Honors Society chapter at Ferris State.
“I think if you boil it down, he was a noticer and a ‘care-er,’” she said. “He always paid attention to those around him. He was intentional when he talked to you and genuinely cared about you as a person.”
Ottjepka shared a difficult time in her educational career and personal life when she decided to attend the annual Tri-Beta birdwatching event with fellow students, led by professor Klatt.
“I don’t know how he knew, but he could tell I was not myself,” Ottjepka said. “He made his way to me as we started walking and told me he was proud of me. He never could have known how much that meant to me.”
Klatt had a keen eye for details others miss. In a 2022 interview, Klatt shared the story of how the idea for an osprey cam began.
“When I saw an osprey on campus was carrying a stick, I broke into a run to keep an eye on it,” Klatt said. “I saw it take the stick to the top of a light pole in a parking lot near the Swan Building. At that moment, I decided there needed to be a camera to observe and display the development of our osprey.”
The osprey web cam dream was realized nearly two years later with help from a committee of collaborators working with professor Klatt from across the university.
In its 17th year, the osprey cam has become an invaluable tool for educators across the country. The photos and live footage inspire curiosity in students of all ages – a testament to Klatt’s incredible passion.
Kyla Buccini, a 2024 Dental Hygiene alumna from Grosse Ile and former leader of the Tri-Beta student group, smiled as she remembered the story of professor Klatt’s osprey camera project.
“It’s a perfect example of the extension of curiosity and passion that he inspired in everyone he met,” she said. “He was so dedicated, and his relentless efforts to collaborate across campus helped make that camera a reality. We’re lucky to have such a great educational tool for students at Ferris State because of him.”
Throughout his 20-year career at Ferris State, Klatt inspired students in the classroom and beyond. He was often focused on showing students they could follow their own interests and passions to be successful, using his own love of ornithology and his work in the biology department to illustrate that point.
“His class was about so much more than just birds,” said 2024 Technical and Professional Communication alumnus Nate Mathewson of South Lyon.
“’P.K.’ really changed our perspective. He approached everything in life with the utmost enthusiasm and always made everyone he interacted with feel so important. I think we left those classes striving to make others feel that way, too.”
Now, nearly one year after his death, Klatt’s life continues to inspire students around the country through the Osprey Cam he worked to create. The educational tool is used in classrooms from elementary schools to universities and is publicly available online at osprey.ferris.edu. The camera has thousands of viewers each year.