All News Releases

Northern Michigan University 1987 financial management alumnus Joe Havican has been promoted to senior loan officer with First Bank, Upper Michigan. He joined the organization in 2022 as vice president, commercial loan officer in the Marquette office.  

The Northern Michigan University student-dominated crew that produces video coverage of Wildcat hockey games surpassed seven larger institutions nationwide in its division to win the outstanding live game production award in the Sports Video Group (SVG) 2023 College Sports Media Awards. The five-minute video clip they submitted for the competition showed the conclusion of a Wildcat hockey game in which NMU beat rival Michigan Tech in overtime on a breakaway goal.

Northern Michigan University President Brock Tessman will meet with NMU alumni and friends at a reception-style event from 5:30-7 p.m. Wednesday, July 12, at the Houghton venue Bonfire at The Continental Fire Company. He will provide a university update and chat with attendees over complimentary hors d'oeuvres and beverages. 

Marcus Tucker, a 2016 Northern Michigan University criminal justice alumnus and former Wildcat football star, is the new head coach of Westwood High School's varsity football team. He played professionally over six years with the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers and the Canadian Football League's Hamilton Tiger-Cats. 

Dr. Ashley Parent, a 2012 Northern Michigan University graduate, has joined the Marquette Family Medicine Residency Program as a faculty member, according to an announcement from UP Health Systems and Michigan State University. 

NMU alumni Becca Fitch and Grace Krajenka have published their research projects in peer-reviewed international scientific journals. The students each worked for more than two years in the Cumberlidge Crustacean Systematics Laboratory and Museum in NMU's Biology Department under the supervision of Professor Neil Cumberlidge.

Northern Michigan University has created an open educational resource (OER) Faculty Learning Community representing a broad range of academic departments as part of a two-year pilot program to increase OER use across campus and provide related professional development opportunities. 

Northern Michigan University's most recent admissions viewbook, which is distributed to prospective students at high school and community college recruiting events and often serves as a “first impression” of NMU, has earned a gold award for individual student recruitment publication in the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) Circle of Excellence Awards. NMU Admissions and University Marketing and Communications collaborate on the annual project, which drives the messaging for other NMU recruitment materials.

Marquette native and former Northern Michigan University student Leah Hocking has appeared in 10 Broadway shows, including Billy Elliot, Mama Mia, The Wild Party and Hairspray. She will return to her hometown to present Out of the Window, an evening of songs and remembrances about her life and career. The show is scheduled at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 28 through Friday, June 30, at NMU's Forest Roberts Theatre.

Northern Michigan University will remain second-most affordable among the state's 15 public universities after the NMU Board of Trustees approved new tuition and fee rates for the 2023-24 academic year. Northern will also invest $2.7 million in new initiatives that will increase student access and enhance campus wellbeing, safety and the student experience.

NMU 2020 alumnus Simon Berghoef is featured in a June profile in SNOWBOARD Magazine for his Midwest action photography, which focuses on snowboarding, lake surfing and skateboarding. Berghoef is from Grand Haven. He said he found his niche documenting and photographing the snowboarding runs of friends he had shredded with, and cemented his love for the medium in high school classes before pursuing a BFA with a photography concentration at NMU.

Northern Michigan Athletic Director, former Wildcat hockey head coach and 1973 MAE alumnus Rick Comley will be among the 2023 inductees into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame, according to Bally Sports Detroit. 

Northern Michigan University's Criminal Justice Department and Regional Police Academy recently hosted Alpena Community College (ACC) Director of Criminal Justice Robert Mills. The two schools are firming up a partnership to offer a 3+1 program, in which students would attend ACC for three years before transferring and completing a bachelor's degree at Northern.

Northern Michigan University Alumni Relations will present a virtual family cooking segment with NMU Dining Services Executive Chef Alden MacDonald, CEC, at 7 p.m. EST Wednesday, June 28. To help attendees prepare for 4th of July festivities, MacDonald will showcase red, white and blue recipes that can be made and enjoyed by the whole family. She will be cooking inside the state-of-the-art kitchen at the Northern Center, the new home for the NMU Hospitality Management program, and provide a behind-the-scenes look at the facility.

Five randomly chosen local organizations will receive automated external defibrillators (AEDs) donated by the Green Bay Packers. This winter, the Packers and Bellin Health announced that the team would fund $100,000 toward providing 80 AEDs to eligible organizations in need throughout Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The decision was made in the wake of the January cardiac emergency experienced by Buffalo Bills player Damar Hamlin.

The Northern Michigan University (NMU) Foundation, in partnership with the City of Marquette, has selected Adamo Group, a family-owned demolition company founded in 1964, based in Detroit, as general contractor for the blight elimination project at the former hospital property adjacent to NMU's campus in Marquette. It was the lowest of seven bidders. Adamo Group and the NMU Foundation entered into a demolition services agreement on June 12 after finalizing approvals with funding partners, including the State Land Bank Authority, City of Marquette, and Michigan Economic Development Corporation.

Northern Michigan University researchers are exploring the feasibility of using hemp to remediate soil contaminated with PFAS, a group of manufactured chemicals that make a wide range of industry and consumer products non-stick, greaseproof and flame retardant. NMU Chemistry Professor Lesley Putman said the hope is that hemp will not only draw up PFAS from the ground, but ultimately be able to degrade them, unlike the typical and more costly remediation methods using granular activated charcoal or reverse osmosis.

The Two Books Two Communities committee is pleased to announce its 2023 selections: Chevy in the Hole, a novel set in Flint, Mich., by Kelsey Ronan; and A Psalm for the Wild-Built, a “solar punk” sci fi novella set on a rewilding moon by Becky Chambers. The Two Books Two Communities program fosters a sense of community by bringing together Northern Michigan University and Marquette and Alger County readers. Community members can add these titles to their summer reading lists in order to join the conversation at related events this fall.

NMU 1970 art education alumnus John Prusak, who became a legend for growing the filmmaking community in his hometown of Detroit and launching the careers of Oscar winners, is featured in a posthumous tribute article in the June issue of HOUR DETROIT magazine. His 60 film credits included camera operator for Michael Moore's Roger & Me, but most were for local, independent projects that often related to the city he loved. For a half century, Prusak also was an instrumental member of the Royal Oak-based nonprofit Digital Arts, Film & Television (DAFT), which offers related training for students and teachers.