All News Releases

Northern Michigan University Theatre & Dance is bringing back its “Letters to Santa” program starting Monday, Nov. 14. These letters can be found at either Forest Roberts Theatre or the Northern Center. Anyone who fills it out and sends the letter will get a signed postcard from Wildcat Willy in a holiday suit with a promo code for a buy-one-get-one coupon to use for a future show.

Northern Michigan University will continue its Science on Tap series at Ore Dock Brewing Company with a presentation by NMU Biology Professor Kurt Galbreath titled “Where the Wild Things Are: Discovering Mongolia's Hidden Diversity." The event begins at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 10. 

Northern Michigan Univerity's Siril Concert Series hosts soprano Mimmi Fulmer and pianist Craig Randal Johnson at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 11, in Reynolds Recital Hall.

For the first time, all Upper Peninsula universities and colleges will participate in the annual "Fight the Flu" competition hosted by the Northern Michigan University Center for Rural Health. Now in its third year, the contest determines which school can get the highest percentage of students, staff and faculty vaccinated against the flu.

Northern Michigan University 2004 alumna Aidan McKindles was recently appointed as Marquette County's new register of deeds. She will be the official recorder of land records in the county. McKindles earned a bacehlor's degree in political science with a minor in English.

Northern Michigan University Alumni Relations will kick off the holiday season with a cooking segment featuring nostalgic recipes and a look inside the hospitality management program's new state-of-the-art kitchen in the Northern Center. NMU Dining Executive Chef Alden MacDonald CCC '10 BS will be joined by student Trixie Maguran Jacobson for this digital presentation at 7 p.m. EST Wednesday, Nov. 16. They will showcase recipes that hold significance for their love of food and provide a behind-the-scenes view of the new facility and equipment.

Documentation prepared and signed by Northern Michigan University history alumnus Logan Hartz during a “career-changing” internship for law school will end up on the desk of the president of the United States. While working for a nonprofit public interest law organization, he completed clemency applications for four clients—including one from Michigan—serving up to 60-year federal prison terms for nonviolent cannabis crimes.

NMU Trustee Greg Seppanen has a penchant for planning and for preserving the environment—two elements that he said should frequently intersect. The NMU alumnus and retired teacher has served more than 40 years on planning commissions, and as a member of the Marquette County Climate Adaptation Task Force and other environmental organizations, to achieve his long-term goal of leaving the community in a better position than it is now. Seppanen said there is an opportunity for his alma mater to play a critical role in addressing climate change at the local level.

Former NMU student Richard “Duke” Mayo of Cheboygan will spend Veterans Day marking the 40th anniversary of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial—also known as The Wall—in Washington, D.C. He is making the trip with the Michigan State Council of the Vietnam Veterans of America. Mayo was a member of the student Vets Club at Northern after his own service in Vietnam. His continued involvement in veterans' organizations and causes earned him a Hometown Hero of the Month award from the Cheboygan County Veterans Subcommittee earlier this year.

Northern Michigan University alumnus Stephen Shepherd has published a new collection of spiritual essays titled Losing the Sound of Your Own Stride. He is also a singer-songwriter whose two most recent albums rose to #1 on the U.S. Roots Music Chart, according to his website. Shepherd is a former voting member of the Recording Academy, which presents the GRAMMY Awards, based on six CDs consisting of 68 original songs.

Northern Michigan University will host a public panel discussion on forceful displacement and immigration titled “Refugees Now: People Over Policy” on Tuesday, Nov. 8.  Guest speaker Dilli Gautam spent 16 years in a Nepal refugee camp and now works with a Bethany Christian Services team helping refugees relocate to West Michigan.

Northern Michigan University student Gwen Feamster, who was selected to serve on the Michigan Department of State's Collegiate Student Task Force, has one goal for everyone this election season: vote. She and other members of the task force have been informing their peers of their voting rights, promoting awareness of the newly redistricted electoral maps, and combating and dispelling election misinformation on college campuses.

An external auditing firm issued a clean opinion—the highest standard—on Northern Michigan University's fiscal year 2021-22 financial statements. The results of the audit by Rehman show that NMU continues to remain in solid financial shape and is well-positioned for the future. The NMU Board of Trustees approved the report and two other agenda items during a brief special meeting held this morning via Zoom.

Northern Michigan University alumna Jess Parker is in the process of writing a children's book, a departure from her previously published award-winning collection of poems titled Star Things. She said she is excited to be able to continue her writing and branch out to other genres.

First-year college students may have some trepidation when they move into campus housing with a stranger, wondering whether it will be a good fit. For a group of seven Northern Michigan University alumni, it turned into an opportunity to grow friendships to last a lifetime. They had such a positive experience in the former Gant hall that they moved into an off-campus house together and continue to meet annually 30 years later.

Writer JJ Peña, who has a story featured in The Best Microfiction 2020 anthology, will be the next guest writer hosted by Northern Michigan University's Visiting Writers Program. The event takes place at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov 10, in the Northern Center Peninsula I room. Admission is free.

Northern Michigan University graduate Emily Doskey ‘14 BSN and her husband, Luke Doskey—both Houghton natives—are in the Top 50 in Michael Bublé and Derek Hough's national "Higher" Dance Contest. They are hoping to crack the Top 25 in public voting that closes early Sunday at 3 a.m. EST. The couple entered the competition by submitting a video of them dancing the Argentine tango to Bublé's song "Higher."

The Beaumier U.P. Heritage Center is hosting the 22nd installment of the Sonderegger Symposium, a series of presentations about Upper Peninsula topics revolving around a theme, from 8 a.m. to 5:35 p.m. Friday, Nov. 4, in the Northern Center Ballroom III. Admission is free. Attendees will be provided a free lunch, during which the U.P. Folklife Awards will be presented. 

The Irish folk band Altan is coming to Northern Michigan University as a part of the Beaumier Heritage Concert series. The concert will take place at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 2, in the Northern Center Ballrooms.

Historic photograph preservationist Jack Deo of Marquette and local quilter and textile preservationist Alice Johnson are the 2022 recipients of the Upper Peninsula Folklife Awards presented by the Beaumier U.P. Heritage Center at Northern Michigan University. They will be honored at noon Friday, Nov. 4, at the Sonderegger Symposium luncheon in Ballroom III of the Northern Center. The event is free and open to the public.