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To celebrate its 60th anniversary, Northern Michigan University Theatre and Dance invites youth ages 13 through high school seniors to attend a musical theater and dance intensive. The event runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, with lunch provided, in Forest Roberts Theatre.

A Halloween concert tiled "The Witching Hour," with performing artists and a costume contest, will take place at Northern Michigan University. The event begins at 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, in the Northern Center's Grand Ballrooms. It is the second annual concert presented by Northern Michigan Artist Discovery (NoMAD). The general public pays an entry fee of $10 cash, and NMU students enter for free with a student ID.

The Northern Michigan University Board of Trustees today approved a 2023-24 general fund operating budget that includes $3.3 million in new investments and initiatives. NMU will increase financial aid and scholarships by $1.5 million. A majority of this support is made up of new awards such as Tuition Advantage, a “last dollar” scholarship that covers the remaining balance after federal, state and institutional funding is applied, and the Bridge Award, which fills the out of state tuition gap. The budget also recognizes the elimination of the NMU undergraduate application fee.

Northern Michigan University alumnus and renowned eagle researcher William Bowerman ('91 MA) was among three innovators to receive the 2023 Lowell Thomas Award from The Explorers Club, an international professional society dedicated to the advancement of field research, scientific exploration and resource conservation. The ceremony was held last weekend in Oslo, Norway. The Munising native joins an impressive list of past recipients including Carl Sagan, Sir David Attenborough, Isaac Asimov, Sir Edmund Hillary, Buzz Aldrin and Louise Leakey.

Kathy Andel of Marquette has not missed a Northern Michigan University home football game in 24 years. She is also a hockey regular and routinely attends other Wildcat athletic events. Her unwavering loyalty could easily be tested at times, but she remains a fixture in her front-row seat on the 50-yard line. Even health conditions that now require her to use a walker and portable oxygen, or have thinned her hair to the point she no longer spray-paints it with team colors, have not diminished Andel's spirit. She still wears Wildcat apparel accented by a feathery boa and other “bling” while cheering on the players. She's also there to support her son, Hans, the equipment supervisor for all NMU varsity sports except hockey.

A well-known fact in the recruitment and admissions office at Northern Michigan University is that the campus visit is a key factor in attracting students to NMU and Marquette. Adeline (Addi) Pavlo had heard great things, but it wasn't until she set foot on campus that she was convinced NMU was the place for her.

NMU alumna Michelle Perttunen, assistant project manager with Mortenson, is featured as the “Rising Young Professional of the Year” by The Daily Reporter, a construction industry news source that also honors top professionals in the field. She grew up helping her dad with house projects and earned two related degrees from Northern: a 2017 associate in engineering design; and a 2018 bachelor's in mechanical engineering technology with a concentration in design.

Northern Michigan University is seeking student applications and community project proposals for the newly created Rural Leadership Fellowship Program, which is designed to support immersive project-based learning for students while also supporting Upper Peninsula economic and community development projects. The fellowship is a paid and scholarship-supported applied learning experience for students interested in rural economic development and public sector careers.

The Northern Michigan University Regional Police Academy will hold an informational meeting at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 8, in room 504 of the Jacobetti Complex. 

October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month, drawing attention to potential threats and the importance of having adequate safeguards in place to thwart hackers. Critical infrastructure components can be primary targets because any disruptions in their operation can have a widespread impact. Northern Michigan University assistant professor of political science Jongeun You recently wrote an article for the IBM Center for the Business of Government that contends the U.S. water sector is particularly vulnerable.

Andrew Port, a leading scholar of modern Germany and professor at Wayne State University, will present “Never Again: Germans and Genocide after the Holocaust” at Northern Michigan University on Thursday, Oct. 19. He will discuss how the Holocaust shaped German responses to modern-day genocides in other countries after 1945, and how these foreign atrocities recast Germany's understanding of its horrific history. NMU professors will also be present to contribute their expertise on the topic.

High school seniors who reside in the Upper Peninsula and plan to pursue studies in a healthcare-related field at a college or university next fall are invited to participate in the fourth annual National Rural Health Day Essay Contest. The Northern Michigan University Center for Rural Health is coordinating the contest with the Michigan Center for Rural Health and the Literacy Legacy Fund of Michigan. The essay submission deadline is Wednesday, Oct. 25.

Northern Michigan University is committed to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, and the task force dedicated to realizing that goal is seeking campus input on the draft plan for how to get there. While NMU has already reduced its carbon footprint by more than 30% since 2010 and has one of the smallest footprints among the state's public universities, it is striving for further reductions. Remaining information sessions on the plan are scheduled at 1 p.m. Monday, Oct. 16 (via Zoom), and 2 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 19, in Jamrich 1322. A flipbook and feedback survey are also available online.

As a Northern Michigan University trustee, Greg Toutant recently attended the dedication of the new WellBeing Center on campus, which provides comprehensive physical and mental health services in one easily accessible location. A few weeks earlier, in his full-time role as CEO of Great Lakes Recovery Centers Inc., he had participated in a ribbon-cutting and open house for the John Kivela Center, a new behavioral health campus in Negaunee that also offers integrated care and services under one roof.

“Perhaps We Wrong Them,” a choreographed dance film that visually explores powerful themes relating to childhood trauma and its lingering effects on a survivor's everyday adult life, won Screendance Short of the Year at the 2023 Independent Shorts Awards International Film Festival in Los Angeles. The film was conceived and produced by 2015 NMU theater alumnus John Scheibe of Yonder Studio in Marquette and stars Karina Johnson, NMU director of dance and assistant professor. Alumna Kasey Scheibe served as production manager and Riley Owen was choreographer. All four walked the red carpet at the September awards ceremony.

Northern Michigan University has welcomed 40 new international students this fall, including exchange program participants and new freshmen, transfers and graduate students. Combined with returning students, the total international enrollment is 88 from 40 countries—the most NMU has had in recent years. While all of these students help to enhance diversity on campus and contribute their unique global perspectives, seven are employed as graduate assistants who actively support NMU faculty in various departments.

Northern Michigan University's School of Clinical Sciences is hosting its second annual Open Lab Day. The event is from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 24, and takes place in rooms and labs around The Science Building.

Northern Michigan University's Visiting Writers Series will host poets Christina Olson and Matthew Minicucci from 7-8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 26, in the Northern Center Peninsula II. The event will showcase Olson's “The Anxiety Workbook: Poems” and Minicucci's scheduled October release, “Dual.” It is free and open to the public.

Northern Michigan University's Carbon Neutrality Task Force is gathering input on its draft plan outlining NMU's path to achieve the goal of carbon neutrality by 2050 or sooner. A flipbook of the plan and feedback survey are available online at nmu.edu/president/carbon-neutrality-task-force. Also, information sessions are scheduled as follows this month:

North Carolina-based artist, curator and author Endia Beal will visit Northern Michigan University, where she will give a keynote presentation at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 16, in Art & Design room 165. Those who register to attend can also sign up to participate in a two-hour workshop with Beal at 3 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 18, in the Peninsula V room at the Northern Center.