All News Releases

The Northern Michigan University Department of Theatre and Dance will present the world premiere of "A Complicated Hope" by John Mabey of Atlanta, winner of NMU's 2021 Panowski Playwriting Award. Show times are 8 p.m. Wednesday, June 8 through Saturday, June 11, and 2 p.m. Sunday, June 12. A sensory-friendly Theatre for All performance will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday. 

A poverty-stricken childhood in Washington, D.C. did not stop NMU alumnus and boxer DaVarryl “Touch of Sleep” Williamson from compiling a long list of impressive achievements and accolades—not only for his powerful punch in the ring, but for his dedication to community service and education. The two-time national Golden Gloves champion, 10-time national amateur champ and former professional heavyweight was recently among six 2022 inductees into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame. 

The long-awaited sequel to "Top Gun" has hit movie theaters, treating viewers to another round of visually engaging and intense flying sequences. NMU alumnus and U.S. Navy Lt. Zach Fini put his media production degree to use creating videos that project a similar feel, but in an authentic context depicting actual Navy Growler pilots, not actors. Assembling live footage from jet cockpits and the flight deck, along with musical backdrops, he produced some of YouTube's most popular Navy cruise videos. 

Northern Michigan University alumna Nanette Hanson has been named the 2022-23 Michigan Teacher of the Year. She is a first-grade teacher at Lemmer Elementary School in Escanaba. Hanson earned a bachelor's degree in elementary education and creative arts from NMU in 1994, and a master's in educational administration and supervision in 2009.

Northern Michigan University student Gwen Feamster, a political science major from Linden, Mich., has been selected to serve on the Michigan Department of State's Collegiate Student Advisory Task Force. She is among 25 undergraduates chosen from more than 200 applicants who will act as civic engagement liaisons between the Secretary of State's office and their campuses throughout 2022.

The Northern Michigan University Arts and Athletics Golf Outing will be held on Thursday, June 23, at the Marquette Golf Club. This is the 4th annual event, which supports students and programs associated with the Departments of Theatre and Dance and Intercollegiate Athletics.

The Northern Michigan University Department of Theatre and Dance world-premiere production of Above the Timberline won 14 special achievement awards at the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival national awards ceremony, a virtual event streamed May 21 from Washington, D.C. Productions from institutions invited to the eight regional festivals held earlier this year were eligible for national recognition of the outstanding work by individuals and ensembles.

Northern Michigan University Alumni Relations continues its Northern Now digital event series with a campfire cooking segment at 7 p.m. EST Wednesday, June 8. Chef Alden Griffus CCC '10, executive chef for NMU Dining Services, will showcase her favorite campfire dinners that can be made either in the kitchen or over a campfire. Current hospitality management student Trixie Maguran Jacobson will cook alongside Chef Alden.

The 2022 IncredibleBank Hope Starts Here Challenge, which raises funds and awareness for the Upper Michigan Brain Tumor Center, will be held in person Saturday, June 11. There is also a virtual participation option. 

Northern Michigan University's branch of the national Student Veterans of America organization, along with several local volunteers, cleaned about 50 veteran tombstones at Holy Cross Cemetery in Marquette on Saturday. 

Northern Michigan University is among 171 colleges and universities nationwide and one of only three public institutions in Michigan named to the 2022 Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) Honor Society's Transfer Honor Roll for “creating dynamic pathways” to support transfer students.

This winter, the Northern Michigan University Center for Rural Health brought Upper Peninsula universities together for the second annual Fight the Flu competition. Students, staff and faculty from Finlandia University, Michigan Technological University and Northern Michigan University competed to see which school could get the highest percentage of its total population vaccinated against the flu. Based on the self-reported statistics, the winner for the second year in a row is Finlandia University, coming in at a 17.6% vaccination rate.

Northern Michigan University alumna Amber Kinonen, a full-time English instructor at Bay College, is one of the recipients of Bay's Outstanding Educator Award. She is being honored not only for her "tremendous knowledge, but her commitment to the Arts and Letters Division and her passion to help students succeed." 

STEM educators are eligible to apply for mini grants to support innovative projects through the Central Upper Peninsula MiSTEM Region, based at Northern Michigan University's Seaborg Center. The first two recipients of $1,000 awards were Kurt Corcoran of Aspen Ridge Middle School and Cameron Bancroft of Bothwell Middle School.

Northern Michigan University's Center for Economic Education and Entrepreneurship (CEEE) will launch the Wildcat Economics Reading Program this fall. Students from all academic majors and backgrounds are encouraged to apply. Participants in the one-semester, non-credit group will read, meet and discuss non-technical selections on contemporary topics ranging from health care, property rights and freedom of speech to the environment, economic systems and discrimination.

Lanae Joubert, an associate professor in NMU's School of Health and Human Performance, contributed her personal and professional expertise in rock climbing to a recent feaure story in The New York Times titled "A Beginner's Guide to Bouldering." The story addressed the resurgent popularity of indoor rock climbing gyms for the intense workouts and social scene.

Northern Michigan University Board of Trustees has set room and board rates for the 2022-2023 academic year and approved seven new academic programs that will launch in the fall semester.

Five individuals and five agencies who assisted in the lifesaving rescue of Northern Michigan University employee Stephanie Penhale were publicly recognized at the April 29 NMU Board of Trustees business meeting. Penhale is director of the Network Infrastructure Center. She and her 22-year-old daughter, Lily, attended the session to personally thank those whose quick actions made a critical difference until more advanced medical care could be provided.

The Northern Michigan University Board of Trustees presented trustee emeritus plaques to Rick Popp and Thomas Zurbuchen in recognition of their distinguished service to NMU. The two men were honored at the board's April 29 meeting.

Northern Michigan University NCAA champion swimmer Ondrej Zach, who won the men's 1,650-yard freestyle at the Division II national meet in March, was formally recognized for his achievement at the April 29 NMU Board of Trustees meeting.