NMU senior Abby Persoon has found a unique way to combine her zoology major with her theater minor by matching different bird species to each of the principle characters in the Forest Roberts Theatre (FRT) production of Sweeney Todd. Persoon worked closely with FRT director Keli Truckey to base each character on a bird to capture an underlying theme of bird imagery that most people aren’t aware is included in the play.

NMU recently unveiled Studio 102, a new facility in the Harden Learning Resources Center that enables faculty to record content for online courses and explore virtual reality tools. The centerpiece is a glass lightboard that enables a professor to write in luminous liquid chalk while facing the camera, making “eye contact” with the audience and enhancing student engagement. Software flips the text so that it reads correctly during viewing. Studio lighting, along with acoustic panels on the walls and a rubber floor, also contribute to high-quality video and audio recording capability.

A new cybersecurity training hub at Northern Michigan University will accelerate talent development for the high-demand cybersecurity industry, creating jobs in the Upper Peninsula and making U.P. residents and businesses less vulnerable to attacks by hackers. Gov. Rick Snyder and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) today announced plans to open the hub as part of the Michigan Cyber Range Network.

Dan Truckey, director of the Beaumier U.P. Heritage Center at NMU, was awarded the Peninsulas Prize by the Michigan Museums Association at its annual meeting Oct. 29 in Dearborn. The statewide prize honors an individual or organization that has “demonstrated the significance and impact of community engagement over the last year.” According to the award description, it recognizes the “ability to engage with its community, showcase multiple perspectives, address community needs or concerns, and/or bridge the gap between the past and present.”

Northern Michigan University alumnus Bob Stefanski will present "Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Jobs." He is co-founder and managing director of eLab Ventures, a venture capital firm based in Silicon Valley and Ann Arbor that invests in technology startup companies at the forefront of artificial intelligence development. His talk is scheduled for 3 p.m. Monday, Nov. 12, in Reynolds Recital Hall. It is free and open to the public.