Around NMU

NMU alumna Amanda Monthei wrote an article that was featured in a recent Patagonia catalog. Monthei wrote about the intersection of her two passions: firefighting and fly-fishing. Her article specifically addresses how high-intensity wildfires are affecting native and non-native fish populations, such as cutthroat and rainbow trout in the Southwest.

The critical shortage of medical supplies and personal protection equipment (PPE) impacts health care professionals working the front lines in a variety of settings. When the Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency reached out on behalf of the D.J. Jacobetti Home for Veterans in Marquette, two NMU entities stepped up to help keep U.P. veterans safe.

NMU-National Training Site Greco-Roman wrestler Spencer Woods had qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials, scheduled April 3-4. With the competition canceled, the Summer Olympics postponed and his dream deferred, he has returned to his home state of Alaska. Woods is on self-quarantine, living in an Arctic oven tent with a wood stove until he can join his parents in their village.

Northern Michigan University alumnus Brandon Williams is answering the call to action during the COVID-19 pandemic. He's having his Traverse City-based company manufacture 3D-printed antimicrobial face masks, charging only for material costs, for distribution to customers.

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. 

NMU student Maggie Compton of Marquette had already departed on a plane bound for South Korea in February when she received official notification that her study-abroad semester at Konkuk University in Seoul would be delayed by COVID-19. She decided to stay put and said she is happy with her choice, as the semester is now underway.

The Northern Michigan University Board of Trustees approved a motion to offer an $820 credit, plus a carryover of any remaining Dining Dollars to next semester, to students who check out of their residence hall rooms before 5 p.m. Friday, April 3. Students can also forego the credit and opt to remain on campus through the remainder of the semester, which ends May 2.

When modern environmentalism posed an economic threat to extractive industries such as mining and timber, there was a movement in the Upper Peninsula to sever political ties with lower Michigan and form a new state. Dan Truckey, director of NMU's Beaumier U.P. Heritage Center, is featured in a news article about this divisive period in the 1970s.

Northern Michigan University will continue remote instruction through the end of the semester, including final exam week, and has postponed the May 2 commencement ceremony. NMU also has restricted some traffic on campus in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. A recent example is the Admissions office's decision to suspend hosting in-person visits as part of its Campus Visitor Program.

NMU alumna Elle Gallager recently found herself on lockdown in the Veneto region of northern Italy, one of the first COVID-19 hot spots in the country. Her earlier-than-planned journey back to the U.S. on March 17 was markedly different than when she left, with added declaration documentation, temperature screenings and face masks required for air travel.