May 11, 2026 | Intercom, Media Mentions
The following college events and stories have appeared in the media recently. We want to share your media involvement too. Please send information about your NMC-related interview or appearance to publicrelations@nmc.edu. If possible, please include a link to the piece and information about where and when it was used.
Please note access to some stories may be limited by paywalls set up by the media outlet. This includes the Traverse City Record-Eagle, which limits free clicks to five per month. You may also read Record-Eagle articles in the print edition at the NMC Library.
(more…)
May 11, 2026 | Intercom, Student Events
Matt Shepard is a Friend of Mine will screen at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, June 17 in the Dutmers Theater as part of NMC’s Global Cinema Series.
Admission is FREE and is open to students, staff and the community, although seating is limited. Doors open and 5:30 p.m. and films begin at 6 p.m. in the Dutmers Theater at the Dennos Museum on NMC’s Front Street Campus.
May 11, 2026 | Intercom, Student News
The Michigan Virtual EdTech Pitch Contest and Innovation Bootcamp is built for Michigan educators, school leaders, parents, recent grads, education professionals and anyone connected to our education ecosystem who has an idea for a technology-driven solution and wants to take it further. The Bootcamp gives participants hands-on training in startup fundamentals, and the Pitch Contest awards over $22,000 in grant funding to help winners bring their ideas to life.
-
- Applications accepted May 1 through June 12
- Bootcamp: June 22–25 (live online, 8:00 a.m.–noon daily)
- Final Pitch Contest: July 23
- Over $22,000 in prizes, including $10,000 for first place
- Michigan educators can earn 20 SCECH credits through the Bootcamp
All the details — eligibility, how to apply, and program structure — are available at michiganvirtual.org/edtechcatalyst.
Please note: This is for idea-stage programming. The Conquer EdTech accelerator, focusing on growth and scale of already founded companies, will open for applications later this summer.
May 11, 2026 | Intercom
The 32nd Annual Smart Commute Week is June 1–5. The week consists of events that promote cycling, walking, taking the bus and carpooling—anything creative and human-powered that gets you where you need to go!
Free daily breakfasts are hosted at various locations around town for smart commuters. Every year community members challenge each other to a friendly competition known as the Commuter Cup Challenge. The Challenge is open to ALL and totally FREE to participate. If you would like to join the NMC Swoop Loops team, please contact Dave Weaver, the team captain, at dweaver@nmc.edu.
For more information about Smart Commute Week, visit the TART trails website.
May 11, 2026 | Intercom, Student Events
Every summer, Traverse City hosts talented college students who intern at local businesses, take seasonal jobs and begin imagining what their future could look like in northern Michigan.
To help students and young professionals connect with the community, the Traverse Area Human Resources Association (TAHRA) and Michigan’s Creative Coast are hosting a free networking event from 5:30–7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, June 3, at the Hagerty Garage.
The evening will include local stories from people who chose to build their lives and careers in northern Michigan, good music, catering by Las Lagunas and the Hagerty Garage’s incredible lineup of classic cars. Housing connection resources will be provided by Liv in TC. Learn more by emailing hbaugh@livcommunities.com or at Livintc.com.
If you are interning or employing an intern this summer, attending this event event is a great opportunity to plant seeds for future careers and connections in the Traverse City region.
Please RSVP if you plan to attend.
May 11, 2026 | HR Corner, Intercom
The following employees are celebrating an anniversary soon. Please join us in congratulating them!
(more…)
May 11, 2026 | HR Corner, Intercom
Kudos to Heather VanStratt! NOMIAC in September of 2024—This quarterly meeting took place at Baker College in Cadillac. Attendees included representation from HBA, NWMiW!, GVSU, MMTC, Baker College, and more. Heather VanStratt, Grant Manager & Community Coordinator through the Sixty by 30 grant initiative, leads the NOMIAC; the common agenda planning, and the identification of six regional strategic pathways that align with the Hot Jobs Report, MCCA data, and other regional data and industry input.
Kudos to Dan Hoesit, Max McColl, Jeremy Maloney, Cam Palmer and Tom Caswell! Dan, Max, Jeremy and Cam were performing spring clean up around Scholars Hall during Finals Week and as a part of that work they were using leaf blowers, and happened to be working right underneath the windows of my public speaking class as they were delivering final speeches. Concerned that the noise was distracting my students during their last speeches I walked downstairs and asked them if they could work somewhere else until 3 p.m. when our class ended. They were all really, really gracious and agreed to work in a different area to minimize the disturbance, allowing our class to finish up. The students appreciated their flexibility!
Kudos to Cathy Warner, Brandon Everest, Kristy McDonald, Becca Richardson and Charles Macphee! Kudos to Cathy Warner (ENG 111), Brandon Everest (SOC 201), Kristy McDonald (BUS 231), Becca Richardson (MTH 120), and Charles Macphee (EGY 105) for opening their final class presentations to NMC and the community for the 5th Annual NMC Learning Symposium. Their student presentations were outstanding!
Kudos to Caroline Schaefer-Hills, Kyle Morrison and Sarah Montgomery-Richards! Kudos to those who participated in the 5th Annual NMC Learning Symposium Reflective Table Talk session! Caroline Schaefer-Hills had her Studio Visual Communicarions students share their final projects. Kyle Morrison shared the accomplishments of this year’s E-Sports team. Sarah Montgomery-Richards had three students share their reflections from the GVSU Interfaith Learning Lab. It was a pleasure to hear the students’ reflections and pride in their work!
Experts suggest maintaining an “attitude of gratitude” increases positivity for yourself and for others. Please encourage your colleagues by submitting a KUDOS. Let them know you appreciate their hard work and are thinking of them!
May 11, 2026 | HR Corner, Intercom
These employees recently started working at the college. Let’s welcome them to the NMC community!
- Julie Merchant, supplemental employee – Test Proctor
- Remy Carlson, supplemental employee – Hagerty Center Banquet Server
- Jack Hlavach, student employee – Aviation Line Crew
May 11, 2026 | Intercom
Did you know that your tuition waiver benefits extend beyond credit classes? Take a fitness class, learn a new hobby, or even enjoy a date night with your partner. Check out these exclusive employee passes (remember, you must be logged into your student account to view) and browse classes for you and yours this spring!
Tired of waiting for repairs and frustrated by high contractor costs? Empower yourself! Master essential DIY skills to tackle everyday home improvement projects that you absolutely can do yourself. Learn how to take on basic electrical projects, basic plumbing projects, and common carpentry projects, and more. Read more about Homeowners 101.
3 sessions; Fridays, June 6 – June 19; 9 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
Tuition Waiver Price: $75 per person (public price $249)
Aerobic exercise is not enough to keep the body well-conditioned; research shows the need for the addition of weekly weight strengthening. We will focus on all major muscle groups resulting in increased strength, better posture, greater mobility, improved metabolism, and a slowing of the development of osteoporosis. Read more about Weight Strengthening.
14 sessions; Tuesday/Thursdays, June 23 – August 6; 7–8 a.m.
Tuition Waiver Price: $46 per person (public price $249)
Michigan reigns supreme as a top asparagus producer, so it is time to give these “mighty green giants” the spotlight they deserve. Ditch the boring steamed stalks and dive into a world of flavor. Read more about Date Night: Amazing Asparagus.
Thursday, May 28; 6–9 p.m.
Tuition Waiver Price: $46 for two people (public price $199)
Cost includes a glass of wine or NA beverage for each
May 8, 2026 | Intercom, Student News
Yesterday, May 7, Instructure, owner of the Canvas Learning Management System utilized by NMC, experienced additional unauthorized activity relating to the same security breach reported earlier this week in Intercom. At this time, there remains no indication that NMC student data has been compromised. Our information security teams are continuing to investigate and monitor this fluid situation, and we will provide updates as they become available.
After a brief outage last night, NMC’s Canvas system is online and fully functional. As Instructure and the media continue to commmunicate on a wider scale, the best place to get information about how this situation affects NMC students, staff and faculty will be communicated directly through NMC channels like Intercom. Thank you.
May 6, 2026 | Intercom, Student News
May 6, 2026
NMC’s class of 2026 increased by 10% and the number of degrees and certificates those graduates earned rose nearly 12% over 2025, a rise most likely due to two state scholarship programs.
An NMC graduate receives her diploma during the 2026 Commencement ceremonyA total of 579 students earned 632 degrees and certificates over the 2025–26 academic year, pending final grades. More than a third of the graduates are recipients of the Community College Guarantee or Michigan Reconnect, the statewide scholarship programs. The CCG offers free tuition to recent high school graduates, while Reconnect is for adults 25 and older who don’t already have a degree or certificate.
The CCG was first offered in fall 2024. It imposes no income or GPA requirements, but does require full time enrollment (minimum of 12 credits per semester.) Research shows that the likelihood of graduation is associated with full-time enrollment, due to the momentum students establish.
“Scholarship programs like the Michigan Community College Guarantee are the spark for many students,” said Lindsey Dickinson, NMC’s director of student success and retention. “But their ability to shift their attention from financial burdens to ‘completion mode,’ where they can focus on the finish line of graduation, is the engine that keeps them moving forward.”
Reconnect started in 2021 and requires students to be enrolled in at least 12 credits for the academic year. Both programs were implemented to meet Michigan’s Sixty by 30 goal of having 60% of the working population with a post-high school degree or certificate by 2030. The region started at 34.2% in 2017 and now stands at 53%.
The high school class of 2026 is eligible for the CCG for 15 months. Class of 2025 graduates are eligible until the start of the fall 2026 semester.
Commencement ceremonies also honored NMC’s 75th anniversary. Each graduate wore special green cords with their caps and gowns, in recognition of the anniversary. Watch the recorded ceremony on NMC’s YouTube channel.
May 5, 2026 | Intercom, Student News
Instructure, the company that creates Canvas, NMC’s Learning Management System, experienced a security breach April 30. The organization claiming the attack released a list of 8,800 K-12 schools, community colleges and universities whose potentially Personally Identifiable Information (PII) was leaked. NMC was not included in the list.
Instructure has not corroborated the list, but at this point, to the best of our knowledge, no NMC student, faculty or messaging information stored on the Canvas servers was compromised. We will update you if that changes. Instructure also maintains a public status record.
May 5, 2026 | Intercom, Student Events
TRAVERSE CITY — The International Affairs Forum (IAF) at Northwestern Michigan College (NMC) is proud to partner with On The Ground Global for a screening of the documentary Land of Canaan with filmmaker Q&A on May 14 at Milliken Auditorium in Traverse City.
“This project – and interaction with visiting filmmakers – represent a rare opportunity to bring humanity and compassion into public dialogue, around a region that has seen so much inhumanity, today and over many generations,” said Alexander Tank, Director of the International Affairs Forum at NMC. “Our partners at On The Ground Global have developed lasting, impactful relationships with Dr. Nasser Abufarha, the film’s protagonist. We are so honored to collaborate and shine light on this story for our community. This free event is a continuation of IAF’s investment in public discourse on the difficult issues we face as Americans and global citizens.”
On The Ground Global, founded by Chris Treter, has developed a long-standing partnership with Nasser Abufarha through shared work supporting Palestinian olive farmers, including expanding fair-trade markets, replanting olive trees, and strengthening farmer cooperatives through Canaan Fair Trade. This collaboration—also central to The People and the Olive—has connected Midwestern communities directly with growers in the West Bank, bringing depth and lived experience to the film Land of Canaan and the dialogue this event encourages.
About the film & filmmakers
May 14 | Land of Canaan
This documentary feature film presents a rare and intimate view of Palestinian farmers and their ancient olive trees – symbols of resilience, heritage, and home. Faced with ongoing political violence and the loss of their land, a visionary olive farmer in the occupied West Bank brings thousands of small-scale olive farmers together in fair trade cooperatives that connect them to global markets and create a future for their families, one that is life-affirming and nurtures their ancestral relationship to the land and the ancient olive trees they serve.
Nasser Abufarha, Ph.D., Protagonist & Producer, Anthropologist
Dr. Nasser Abufarha was raised among the olive groves of Jenin. Abufarha founded Canaan Palestine, the world’s first fair‑trade and organic olive oil company. Through his work he has connected more than 2,000 small‑scale Palestinian farming families to global markets, brought Palestinian olive oil to international recognition and funded scholarships and women’s cooperatives. His vision of sustainable, community‑based trade has been celebrated worldwide and is even more relevant today as conflict threatens to sever farmers from their land.
Maggie Lemere, Director
Award‑winning filmmaker and oral historian Maggie Lemere is a National Geographic Explorer and co‑founder of the Rhiza Collective. Lemere’s storytelling focuses on the intersections of humanity and the environment; she is currently directing Land of Canaan, “a National Geographic Society‑supported feature film about Palestinians’ relationship with ancient olive trees” . In a recent interview, she said that making the film has become one of the hardest things she has ever done; as violence escalated in the West Bank the project “became a historical document … because of the horrible escalation of violence in the communities where we filmed”. Lemere’s approach uses oral history to foreground love, joy and connection rather than trauma alone, revealing a seldom‑seen side of contemporary Palestine.
Event Details
Date: May 14
Time: 6 p.m. reception w/ olive oil sampling | 6:30 p.m. film screening | 8 p.m. filmmaker Q & A
Location: Milliken Auditorium, The Dennos Museum, 1410 College Dr, Traverse City
Cost: This event is free and open to the public. Register in advance at tciaf.com.
Reception in-kind donors
- Canaan Palestine Olive Oil
- Common Good Bakery
- Higher Grounds Trading Co.
Release date: April 30, 2026
For more information:
Alexander Tank
Director, International Affairs Forum at Northwestern Michigan College
(231) 995-1844
atank@nmc.edu
Chris Treter
Co-founder, On The Ground Global
chris@highergroundstrading.com
Non-Discrimination Policy Notice
Northwestern Michigan College is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, disability, genetic information, height, weight, marital status or veteran status in employment, educational programs and activities, and admissions. nmc.edu/non-discrimination
May 4, 2026 | Intercom
The NMC Board of Trustees Building & Site Committee will meet Wednesday, May 6 at 2 p.m. in Timothy J. Nelson Innovation Center, Room 104/105. More information is available here.
For more information, please contact the President’s office at (231) 995-1010.
May 4, 2026 | Intercom, Student News
To find these selections and many other new titles, see the NMC library catalog.
(more…)
May 4, 2026 | Announcements & News, Intercom, Student News
On Monday, May 4 from noon to 8 p.m., and Tuesday, May 12 from 4 to 8 p.m., Central High School will host track meets.
Campus Safety Coordinator Garrett Croon has given verbal permission for the organizers (Traverse City Area Public Schools) and attendees to park on NMC’s campus. School buses will park on the south side of the Maple Lot.
Be aware that parking may be difficult in the Cedar Parking Lot during these times.
May 4, 2026 | HR Corner, Intercom
Thank you to everyone who participated in our first ever Wellness tournament! Congratulations to our 2026 Employee Cornhole Champion Nathan Richey! And a huge shout-out to our runner-up Ashleigh Fender for an amazing competition!
This was an incredible end to the Spring semester, and we can’t wait for the next wellness event!
May 4, 2026 | Hawk Owl Helpers and Heroes, Intercom
Kudos to Lisa Rabaut, Denver Peters, and Lisa Cooper! Northern Michigan Start-up Week (NMSW) is an annual event designed to showcase the innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystem of Traverse City. It is a grassroots effort requiring support from all connected organizations in the region. Denver Peters and Lisa Rabaut represented NMC and were instrumental in joining the planning committee to design and build out a robust week of offerings. In addition, they planned and executed events including OOPs for Education, a BlueTech Ideation Challenge, a future of drones panel, marine technology / Freshwater Research and Innovation Center offerings, and more. Lisa Cooper assisted with planning and logistics for the events on NMC’s campus, helping events run smoothly.
Thank you to everyone at the college that supported aspects of NMSW!
Kudos to the Facilities Team! Kudos to the Facilities Dept. for helping with setting up the 5th Annual NMC Learning Symposium events!
Kudos to Tali Morrison! Congratulations to Tali Morrison, our student success and retention office manager, for her incredible work on our successful Career & Majors Fair. The logistics of an event this size are daunting, but Tali managed it with total professionalism and calm. Thanks to her planning and leadership, we hosted over 200 students and community members, 60+ employers, and 18 academic departments. A big thanks goes out to all of the academic areas for their participation and outreach to advisory board employers as well! Creating a space where students can bridge the gap between their learning at NMC and their future careers is core to our mission, and this event executed that vision perfectly. Tali’s ability to coordinate diverse stakeholders and manage complex logistics was the primary reason this event was our most successful yet. Please join me in thanking Tali for her leadership, dedication, and hard work!
Kudos to Elizabeth Sonnabend! With the help of an anonymous industry partner, Extended Education & Training is bringing back entry level manufacturing seminars through NMC. This partner has started a fund with the Foundation to support EET in resourcing these seminars and other similar training. His goal is to keep the cost down for students, so that we can have more skilled entry level manufacturing employees. These students will have the ability to continue on through credit programs through the strategic pathways laid out by the NOMIAC and NMC’s strategic plan. Thank you, Elizabeth, for making this happen!
Who’s been a Hawk Owl Helper or Hero for you? Let us know at publicrelations@nmc.edu!
