March 2024

The Michigan Association of Broadcasters presented WNMU-FM with three 2023 Broadcast Excellence Awards. News Director Nicole Walton won “Best in Category” for Hard News and Current Event Story for Social Media Extortion, about a case that ended in the suicide of a Marquette teenager. Classical Music Host and Producer Kurt Hauswirth won “Merit” awards in both the Musical Programming and Music Feature categories. Both are NMU alumni.  

Northern Michigan University alumna and Ironwood native Beth Rondeau Deacon will return to campus on Wednesday, March 13, for a series of events related to her work as a screenwriter, book author and mathematics teacher. She and director/producer Terence Gordon will present a free 6 p.m. showing of the movie based on Deacon's first screenplay, Intent Unknown, followed by a Q&A in Jamrich 1100. The psychological thriller stars Eric Roberts and revolves around four ambitious psychology students who embark on a risky experiment to unravel the mysteries of human behavior.

Northern Michigan University's UNITED Conference will feature workshops and presentations that revolve around a "Continue the Conversation" theme as it relates to the intersection of well-being and diversity, equity and inclusion. The main conference runs from 8:45 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday, March 21, in the Northern Center. Keynote speakers are: Patrick Yankee from Corktown Health, on affirmative healthcare for the LGBTQ+ community; and Stefanie Foo, author of "What My Bones Know: A Memoir of Healing from Complex Trauma," this year's selection for NMU's Diversity Common Reader Program. All events are free and open to the public.

Scottish folk-rock group Skerryvore will return to Northern Michigan University on Thursday, March 14. The band's frontman Alec Dalglish participated in a Zoom interview to preview the concert and provide some background on the group. Skerryvore is a three-time winner of Scotland's “Live Act of the Year” award and performs for audiences worldwide.

Immunizations are an essential component of public health against infectious diseases. A Northern Michigan University assistant professor co-authored a recent publication that contends the COVID-19 pandemic provides a case study for how social equity is a global issue. Dr. Jongeun You in the Department of Political Science and Public Administration examined vaccine sharing policies across nations and found a significant imbalance in the international distribution of COVID-19 vaccines to lower-income nations, leading to severe disparities in access and vaccination rates.