Alumni

Northern Michigan University alumna and U.P. native Kaci Murringer celebrated her 30th birthday by running her first Iditarod Sled Dog Race in Alaska. She was the 34th and final musher to complete the trip to Nome, in a field that began with 57. She won the Red Lantern award as the last across the finish line at the 48th Iditarod. 

The stock market response to COVID-19 has fueled extensive media coverage and some consternation among investors. But on a related positive note, former Wildcat hockey defenseman, NHL player and "Survivor" contestant Tom Laidlaw helped to ring the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange in February, before the pandemic escalated in the U.S.

NMU alumna Melissa (Missie) Holmquist, president and CEO of Upper Peninsula Health Plan (UPHP) in Marquette, has been appointed secretary of the Medicaid Health Plans Board of Directors. She is also one of Crain's Detroit Business' 2020 Notable Women in Health.

A couple who wishes to remain anonymous has established a $600,000 endowment at Northern Michigan University to help Kalamazoo Promise students from Kalamazoo Central High School pay for books, room and board. 

Alumnus Stephen Dupuie is putting his NMU education to use renovating an old Kalamazoo church building into a new venue for his sketch comedy group, The Dormouse Troupe. The facility will also host music shows and other performances that are “off the beaten path” of traditional theater.

Northern Michigan University alumnus Kevin Beauchamp will serve as the next president of Galloway Company, a specialty dairy product manufacturer based in Neenah, Wis. 

Martin Heikel, a former Verizon vice president and founder/CEO of Flatiron Apps Company in New York City, will discuss his professional journey from corporate executive to startup founder during a free public presentation at Northern Michigan University. He will draw upon his career after graduating from NMU to address lessons learned along the way and factors that contribute to business success. 

Northern Michigan University alumna Kassy Dumke ('13 BS) was identified as one of Minnesota's “Seven Young Conservationists to Watch” by Star Tribune columnist Dennis Anderson. She is a Ducks Unlimited waterfowl biologist in Windom, Minn.

Six years ago, NMU alumnus Mylan Murphy posted a photo caption on Facebook that stated “It Only Takes 1”—as in one person, place, thing or opportunity to change someone's life. That is the guiding principle that has propelled him to personal and professional success in the face of challenges since he was a teenager. Now it is also the title of his first self-published children's book.

Two NFL coaches with Northern Michigan University ties will face off in Sunday's NFC championship game. Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur, who calls the offensive plays executed by Aaron Rodgers, served as NMU's quarterback coach early in his career (2006). San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh, one of the league's prime head coaching candidates, was an all-conference tight end as a Wildcat (1998-2002) and graduated from NMU with a bachelor's degree.