Around NMU

The NMU Food Pantry is on track to record its highest usage ever, topping the 2,000+ visits last year. Thanks to a collaboration with the controlled environment agriculture (CEA) program, there are now greens and herbs to expand the pantry's offerings in Gries Hall and at its satellite location in the Jacobetti Complex. Two CEA students are engaged in a service-learning initiative to grow the fresh, nutritious produce for their peers in hydroponic units funded through part of a $125,000 Swipe Out Hunger grant.

Northern Michigan University students had an opportunity to design and prepare original dishes that they recently presented to their professor and a team of alumni representing the Delft Bistro in downtown Marquette. The restaurant is running select creations as a special feature menu Dec. 1-28, and students whose dishes were chosen will receive a complimentary dinner at the Delft for themselves and a guest to celebrate their achievement alongside classmates.

Students at Northern Michigan University are helping to map Marquette County's waste stream and reimagine how communities can keep materials in use longer through the SpheriCity Project. NMU is one of 11 universities selected to participate in the national research initiative, which aims to create a more sustainable approach to materials management.

Northern Michigan University senior McKenna Wnuk (wen-UHK) of Lapeer, Mich., will take advantage of a rare opportunity to compete in the Alpine Luge World Cup in Italy and Austria during the holiday break between semesters. She is the newest member of the U.S. team that trains at Negaunee's Lucy Hill, the only full-length natural luge track in the country. 

Northern Michigan University's Police Department will hold its annual Food for Fines event Dec. 1-12.  In partnership with the NMU Food Pantry, students and staff can donate one regular-sized grocery bag of non-perishable, non-expired food items and/or personal care products to alleviate $25 worth of parking citations.

Northern Michigan University Theatre and Dance will present a family friendly, “amped-up spectacle” of the holiday classic "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" Dec. 4-6 and 11-13. On a related note, Theatre and Dance will bring back its “Letters to Santa” campaign in collaboration with Honor Credit Union. Children who participate will receive a buy one-get one ticket offer for this or a future NMU production. 

The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, the nation's longest-running and most prestigious scholarship and recognition program for creative writers and artists nationwide in grades 7-12, are accepting entries. More than $450,000 in monetary prizes—the most in program history—will be awarded. The submission deadline for U.P. students is 11:59 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 3. The Northern Shores Storywork Writing Project site at Northern Michigan University serves as the Upper Peninsula affiliate of the awards.

Northern Arts and Entertainment will present a concert for NMU students featuring musical acts Adam Paddock and iDKHOW (I Don't Know How But They Found Me) on Thursday, Nov. 20 in the Northern Center Ballrooms. Doors open at 6 p.m., with opening act Paddock at 7 and headliner iDKHOW at 8

Northern Michigan University is featured in the Princeton Review's Guide to Green Colleges: 2026 Edition. NMU earned a GreenScore of 91 points out of 99, securing a spot on the list of 388 unranked colleges that meet the standards for practicing and promoting environmental responsibility. This is NMU's second appearance in the guide.

The DeVos Art Museum at Northern Michigan University is hosting a new exhibit titled “SAME AS NEVER [anything to get out of here, right?]” through Dec. 15.