November 2023

Cooper Graves, a 2017 NMU hospitality management graduate, is the executive chef at Tupelo Honey Southern Kitchen & Bar in Grand Rapids. He appeared on television Tuesday morning to promote the dining establishment as part of Grand Rapids' Restaurant Week.  

Northern Michigan University 2006 alumna Jenna Nelson will begin her role as Marquette County's first female prosecuting attorney on Monday, Nov. 27. She currently serves as Marquette County's chief assistant prosecuting attorney. She will assume office upon the resignation of current Prosecuting Attorney and NMU alumnus Matt Wiese, who was recently appointed 25th Circuit Court Judge. 

Northern Michigan University will present its 23rd annual Sonderegger Symposium exploring Upper Peninsula topics from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, Nov. 10, in the Northern Center Ballroom. This year's theme is “Perspectives on 1820 and Beyond.” All sessions will relate to the Beaumier Center's current exhibit, “Claiming Michigan: the 1820 Expedition of Lewis Cass.”

November is Native American Heritage Month, and the Center for Native American Studies at Northern Michigan University has a variety of events planned throughout the month and slightly beyond to celebrate.

Northern Michigan University's Theatre and Dance Department marked its 60th anniversary by hosting an inaugural alumni awards celebration in late October to honor exceptional achievements in the entertainment arts. 

At Monday's university forum, attendees received a budget and facilities update before learning about the priority projects identified within each of the five new administrative pillars. President Brock Tessman led off with an introduction and said a forum each semester is among the planned strategies to enhance transparency and communication on campus.

Northern Michigan University dedicated the new Presque Isle Avenue location of its Behavior Education Assessment and Research (BEAR) Center on Thursday. The university clinic and research facility provides behavior and learning support to children, adolescents and adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities and/or traumatic brain injury. The $2 million renovation of the two-story building features new and expanded space to accommodate treatment, observation, workroom and classroom functions.

Northern Michigan University music and secondary education students attended the Regional American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) conference for Michigan. The students represented the student chapter of the ACDA on Saturday, Oct. 21, in Mount Pleasant.

Patrick Myers of Lake Linden felt like he was missing out on the fulfilling college experience his friends were having at Northern Michigan University. After high school graduation, they enrolled at NMU and started telling him about the amazing campus environment and the incredible opportunities it offered. Myers was going to college elsewhere, but decided to transfer so he could also be part of Northern. 

Dan Stencil, a 1976 NMU graduate, was recently honored twice in two days for his 43 years of service to Oakland County Parks: first by being inducted into the mParks Hall of Fame in Canton; and then with a plaque dedication at the Oakland County Farmers Market in Waterford.