Around NMU

Northern Michigan University English Professor Robert Whalen has been awarded a $300,000 Scholarly Editions and Translations Grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The funding will support George Herbert: Complete Works, now under contract with Oxford University Press, the world's leading publisher of scholarly editions. This is the project's fourth NEH award.

Northern Michigan University alumnus James Winkler Jr. of Allendale was appointed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to the Michigan Athletic Trainer Board. He holds a bachelor's degree in health and fitness management (1998) and a master's in exercise science (2000) from NMU. Winkler is a senior staff athletic trainer at Grand Valley State University.

Effective today (Aug. 24), Northern Michigan University has revised its mask protocol so that all individuals, regardless of vaccination status, must wear masks when indoors at all campus facilities. President Fritz Erickson said the change aligns with CDC recommendations for areas with "substantial" COVID levels. Marquette County's classification recently shifted from moderate to substantial.

When 5-year-old Millie Gauthier fulfilled her wish of setting up a lemonade stand at her grandparents' summer home in Marquette, not far from campus at the corner of Spruce and Albert Streets, two NMU football players were among her first customers. The Wildcats not only paid generously for the lemonade, which was available by donation; they also texted their teammates. More than a dozen players showed up, helping young Millie earn a whopping $117 in the one-hour window her stand was open.  

Former NMU student C. William “Bill” Hager was announced as the 2021 U.P. Veteran of the Year during an Aug. 19 ceremony at the U.P. State Fair. The National Mine resident served more than 20 years in the military, including two tours in Vietnam. He attended Northern before and after serving with the U.S. Navy from 1963-67, and was president of the NMU Vets Club. 

Northern Michigan University's DeVos Art Museum has two ongoing exhibitions: “Personal to Political,” which is open for viewing through Oct. 31; and “Regional Perspectives by Women Artists,” which will be on display through 2022. The museum will also host “Cynthia Cote STILL: an Installation of Drawings and Objects” Monday, Oct. 4-Saturday, Dec.11.

Northern Michigan University President Fritz Erickson used his fall convocation to update the campus community with status reports on the new focus areas, outcomes and post-pandemic priority initiatives added to the NMU strategic plan during a revision earlier this year.

The Northern Michigan University Center for Rural Health has received a $194,421 grant from the Michigan Health Endowment Fund to explore the feasibility of an aggregation, distribution and light food processing facility serving Marquette and Alger Counties.

The Two Books, Two Communities program, a partnership between Northern Michigan University and the Marquette and Alger County communities, has announced its 2021 community reads and associated fall events schedule. The titles are Fried Walleye and Cherry Pie, edited by Peggy Wolff, and 2021 Michigan Notable Book Award Winner Teacher/Pizza Guy, a collection of poems by Jeff Kass.   

A new teaching certificate partnership between Northern Michigan University and Bay Mills Community College will begin this fall. It is designed to prepare K-12 teachers of Anishinaabemowin language and culture. The Michigan Department of Education granted the program initial approval through June 30, 2026.