NMU President Fritz Erickson summarized the Campus Master Plan at Wednesday’s meeting of the Strategic Planning and Budgeting Advisory Committee. Key elements, all of which are contingent on external funding, include strengthening the academic core and creating an expanded arts corridor with a new university-community performance venue and parking ramp.

Ford Motor Company has donated a 2013 Ford Focus to Northern Michigan University’s automotive technology program. Assistant Professor Randy Klitzke said the car introduces students to a dual-clutch transmission, which is discussed in class, but was previously unavailable to demonstrate in the shop. The feature combines elements of both manual and automatic transmissions, with two clutches—one controlling odd gears and the other even—but no clutch pedal or stick shift.

Nine Northern Michigan University faculty members were honored at the Dec. 6 Excellence in Teaching and Scholarship celebration. Award recipients were: Gary Brunswick and Jon Sherman, Excellence in Teaching; Marek Haltof and James Strain, Excellence in Scholarship; David Donovan and Jessica Thompson, Excellence in Leadership; Shirley Brozzo, Excellence in Part-time Faculty Teaching; Stacy Boyer-Davis, Excellence in Online Teaching; and Mounia Ziat, Technology Innovation.

While some college students seek the fastest track to graduation, Kerry Hytinen of Ishpeming opted for the slow, deliberate route. She earned a bachelor’s degree in writing from Northern 20 years ago and soon re-enrolled to begin work on a master’s. After detours and delays—some intentional and others not—Hytinen will receive her degree on Saturday. She said it was rewarding to complete her requirements the same semester that her daughter first enrolled at Northern, but this is not the end of Hytinen’s education.

NMU alumnus Frederick “Fritz” Nelson (BS ’73) is coauthor of a paper published by Nature Communications that suggests permafrost thaw due to global warming may damage critical infrastructure by 2050, even if the Paris Agreement targets are met. This could pose a serious threat to the utilization of natural resources and the sustainable development of Arctic communities.