February 2026

Featured News

NMU Joins Bee Campus USA Program

Study Offers Insight on Evolution of Gut Microbiomes

Rylee Jensen, a 2024 master's graduate of Northern Michigan University, and NMU Professor Diana Lafferty recently coauthored a journal article on a study of wild African herbivores. Collaborating with other researchers, they determined that environmental conditions, beyond strictly diet and anatomy, can influence the evolution of gut microbes that play a critical role in animal health and well-being.
Photo by James C. Beasley

Alumna Coauthors Publication

Taylor Galaszewski, a recent Northern Michigan University biology alumna, coauthored a recent publication titled “On the taxonomic status of two large species of East African freshwater crabs” with NMU Biology Professor Emeritus Neil Cumberlidge and other collaborators.

Regional Scholastic Art and Writing Award Winners Announced

Northern Michigan University's Northern Shores Storywork Writing Project has announced 46 regional award winners, from among 130 Upper Peninsula submissions, of the 2026 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. Presented by the nonprofit organization the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards are the country's longest-running and most prestigious scholarship and recognition program for creative students in grades 7–12.
Alliance for Young Artists & Writers Scholastic Art & Writing Awards logo

Two Former Wildcats Compete in Olympics

Former Northern Michigan University student and Wildcat football player Nick Baumgartner is competing in his fifth straight Olympics at age 44 as part of the USA snowboard cross (SBX) team, following his gold-medal win at the last Winter Games. Former Wildcat Nordic skier and 2020 economics alumnus Zak Ketterson is appearing in his first Olympics as a member of the U.S. cross-country ski team.
Baumgartner (left) celebrating gold in 2022; and Ketterson representing Team USA during the 10 k Classic in Toblach, Italy, as part of the 2026 Tour de Ski Photo: Vanzetta/NordicFocus)

Thorburn's Poetry Features Cultural Legends in Imaginative Scenarios

“Letters Jim Harrison May Never Read.” “Walt Whitman and His Lake Superior Baptism.” “John Lennon at the Old Marquette Inn.” “Chagall Taught Me How to Drive.” These are some of the titles featured in Northern Michigan University English Professor Russell Thorburn's latest collection of poetry, And the Heart Will Not Quicken. The book is populated by imaginative scenarios featuring pop culture, artistic and literary legends who move freely across various decades and countries.
Russell Thorburn