It’s not uncommon to see Kaysie Bakke, a senior outside hitter for Northern Michigan University’s volleyball team, hard at work on the team’s bus as she travels between matches.
That’s because not only is she a student athlete set to graduate in December with a bachelor’s degree in political science, but she’s also a member of the most recent cohort of the university’s Rural Leadership Fellowship Program.
“It kind of scares me to be still,” Bakke said, with a laugh. “I think all athletes, especially at this level, have to develop a kind of discipline and self-motivation. No one’s going to hold your hand while you're doing things. You’ve got to take it upon yourself.”
Bakke has taken many things upon herself in her career as an NMU student athlete, including applying for the Rural Leadership Fellowship as an undergraduate.
“I definitely was hesitant to take on this opportunity, but I’m so glad that I did,” Bakke said.
NMU’s Rural Leadership Fellowship Program is a paid and scholarship-supported applied learning experience for students interested in rural economic development and public sector careers. The program is conducted in partnership with InvestUP, a non-profit economic development organization supported by the region’s major employers to drive prosperity across the U.P., and is funded by a rural capacity-building investment supported by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation.
Student fellows are mentored by an advisory committee on planning and executing a project of their choosing in the Upper Peninsula that has been identified as a community economic development priority.
Past cohorts have completed projects that include updating the City of Manistique's five-year recreation plan, rolling out the City of Marquette’s Community Master Plan, developing the Village of Laurium’s first five-year Parks and Recreation Plan and a statewide project supporting rural community capacity-building with the Michigan Office of Rural Prosperity, among other projects.
After being accepted into the program, Bakke chose Forsyth Forward for her project, where she works as assistant executive director. The nonprofit organization is dedicated to promoting the economic, educational and cultural growth of Forsyth Township.
“I’m learning so much and I’m working in the field that I would hope to be in one day,” Bakke said. “I’m definitely very busy, but I don’t think I would change it.”
Alan Cook, Forsyth Forward executive director, said having Bakke as a rural fellow has been incredibly beneficial to his young organization, which was formed in 2025.
“I wish NMU could be in my shoes and see what their student is bringing to the community and the organization,” Cook said. “The community will never know the impact that she has had being a student in this program.”
Cook said Bakke’s responsibilities mirror his own, which was a focus for him in applying for a fellow. He needed someone who could step into his role if he wasn’t available. That means she’s running the organization’s social media, writing blog posts, creating and managing a listing of available grants and managing marketing efforts. She has also already created a foundational digital framework for the organization and was instrumental in helping create the organization’s first strategic plan. In addition, Bakke works with local businesses, area nonprofits, municipalities and economic development organizations to achieve the goals set out in the strategic plan she helped create.
“She’s had the ability to be in a leadership role and learn what that looks like in a developing nonprofit that’s going through all of the trials and tribulations of finding its way, and she’s done that for the last year,” Cook said. “The things that Kaysie has done have been extraordinary.”
In between volleyball practice, traveling with her teammates to away matches and attending her final courses at NMU, Bakke has written several grants in her fellowship role as assistant executive director, garnering nearly $25,000 for projects in Forsyth Township, including a $10,000 TRAILS grant from Polaris Inc. which will support the development of area trail networks and kiosks, along with wayfinding tools such as digital app and map integration for the township’s ORV and ATV trail system.
Bakke is also the local administrator for a recently announced $100,000 grant to Forsyth Forward from the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, which will be used to develop a non-motorized trail network connecting the communities of Gwinn, K.I. Sawyer and Little Lake.
“That’s a pretty cool thing for a senior in college to have that grant administration piece,” Cook said. “She’s doing it right now under the Rural Leadership Fellowship, but when she’s done with the program in December, she’ll get compensated under a contract to finish that out.
“It’s wonderful for her, and she deserves it,” Cook added. “She’s done a wonderful job.”
Cook said he was thrilled when the news broke that his organization would receive the $100,000 MDARD grant, and he was pleasantly surprised to find that the state’s administrator for the grant would be Travis Garvey, an NMU alumnus and former Rural Leadership Fellow. Garvey’s fellowship was with the Michigan Office of Rural Prosperity, where he worked to support the rollout of a new program assisting underserved rural communities in developing plans for priority projects.
“You have a student in the program that is the grant administrator for this MDARD grant, and last year’s fellow is the Michigan State representative administering the grant funds,” Cook said. “That’s impressive.”
Jongeun You, one of Bakke’s political science professors and the director of NMU’s Master of Public Administration program, said Bakke’s experience in the program is part of “what is special about NMU.”
“She was given an opportunity, even as an undergraduate, to move beyond the classroom and serve in a substantive leadership role with a community organization," You said. “The Rural Leadership Fellowship allows her to connect academic learning with the needs of a rural Upper Peninsula community while developing the confidence and practical experience she will carry into a public service career.”
Bakke expressed a similar sentiment, citing classwork as critical to learning, but also stressing the importance of applying learned skills in a real-world environment before graduating.
“It’s so important – I learn a lot from class but it’s just not the same as real-world experience,” Bakke said. “You can’t really learn unless you’re doing it.”
True to form, Bakke had already sought out experience in nonprofit work prior to applying to the Rural Leadership Fellowship Program, having volunteered at Invisible Wounds Project in her hometown of Forest Lake, Minn. The organization offers support to veterans, first responders, frontline medical staff, corrections staff, 911 dispatchers and their families.
“I knew that would set me up for success,” Bakke said of her volunteer work there. “It helped me get this rural (fellowship) position. They said that was definitely something they noticed when the board was reviewing applications.”
Not only was the work a great resume builder, but Bakke said it was incredibly rewarding.
“It was really engaging and gave back to people in the community. I really enjoyed my experience there,” Bakke said. “Helping people, helping communities move forward, I think it’s great. Not a lot of people are drawn to that kind of work.”
It’s the kind of work she’s doing in the Rural Leadership Fellowship Program, and it’s the kind of work she’ll continue to do after graduating in December, allowing her to start her professional career while also staying in the area.
“I’m definitely excited,” Bakke said. “I’m not ready to be done with Marquette quite yet.”
Visit the Rural Leadership Fellowship website for more information on the program. To support future cohorts of student fellows, contact David Nyberg, executive director of Business Engagement and Economic Development.
Visit the NMU Women’s Volleyball site for its remaining schedule of games this year.
