Dear NMC Community,

I am writing to you this morning with a heavy heart after the tragic shooting Thursday at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon. An event of this kind is always unsettling, but occurring as it did on a community college campus makes it hit closer to home for us at NMC.

I want to assure you that Northwestern Michigan College does have a system in place to work to keep you safe on our campuses, as best we can.

Our campus security staff and Emergency Management Team regularly participate in emergency response training exercises on campus and work with Grand Traverse County emergency management personnel. One of those exercises is scheduled for today.  NMC also tests our emergency communications system the first Monday of each month. The next test is scheduled for Monday, Oct. 5.

You have a role to play, too. If you haven’t already, one of the most important things you can do is opt-in to receive emergency message alerts. You can do so here. You can find out more about our emergency protocols here.

We also have an experienced group of counselors available to you if you ever need someone to talk with about anything that is troubling you. Find out more here.

Please know that I am thinking about all of you today, just as I am thinking about everyone at Umpqua.

Tim