Alumni

Several members of the NMU Student Veterans of America organization, along with alumni veterans, participated in the "Ghosts of Lighthouse Point" fundraiser Oct. 20-22, which raised more than $4,000 for the Marquette Maritime Museum. The annual event also gathered hundreds of pounds of nonperishable donations for the NMU Food Pantry.

Northern Michigan University alumnus Matthew Bizoe is among the 16 individuals selected by the Michigan Arts and Culture Council for its 2022-23 cohort of Rising Leaders. He is the marketing manager for Krasl Art Center in Saint Joseph, Mich. Bizoe is responsible for developing marketing strategies for exhibitions, education, development and events, including the nationally recognized Krasl Art Fair on the Bluff.

Northern Michigan University MBA alumnus Ben Collins was recently hired as the new general manager for Cedarburg Light & Water Utility in Wisconsin.  He previously served as manager of utility planning and projects for Marquette Board of Light and Power. 

Megan O'Connor, a 2018 Northern Michigan University graduate, has joined WZMQ-TV 19 for a weekly segment that launched earlier this month. O'Connor talks about popular events and top Upper Peninsula trends in “What's UP with Megan,” which airs at 6 p.m. each Tuesday.

Northern Michigan University alumnus Jeff Vande Zande will give a reading from his newly published fifth novel, "Rules of Order," at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 10, at Peter White Public Library. The 1993 graduate had previously published a short story collection and was inspired to expand upon one of the pieces contained within it. Soon after Vande Zande began the project, his writing intensified during the early stage of the pandemic. He managed to complete a book-length draft in only six weeks.

NMU alumna Rebecca Normington, who earned a bachelor's degree in English in 1990, was appointed director of marketing communications for Security Health Plan of Wisconsin Inc., after almost 20 years in the affiliated Marshfield Clinic Health System.

Northern Michigan University alumnus Tim Hamill was hired by the Outdoor Sportsman Group (OSG) ad sales department as the national endemic account executive.

At least two of the documentaries being screened at the Fresh Coast Film Festival Oct. 13-16 in Marquette were created by NMU alumni and students. Cameron Mattson and Kevin Paczesny, who began collaborating on projects as NMU digital cinema students, will premiere "All Hop'd UP," which explores the unique craft brewing subculture that has been growing in the Marquette area since the mid-1990s. Current student Fischer Genau's first film, "From the Ground Up," is about Partridge Creek Farm in Ishpeming, where he is completing an internship.

Northern Michigan University Alumni Relations is celebrating the return of 1973 alumnus Rick Comley as NMU's athletic director with a special Northern Now digital event at 7 p.m. EST Wednesday, Oct. 19. Alumni and friends are invited to join to hear his vision for the future of NMU Athletics, and also receive updates from NMU Volleyball Head Coach Mike Lozier and NMU Women's Basketball Head Coach Casey Thousand.

Sault Ste. Marie's Downtown Development Authority recently appointed Northern Michigan University alumna Stephanie Sprecker as the new DDA director. She completed NMU's master of public administration (MPA) program in 2022.