Welcome our newest hires
Welcome to NMC!
- Leah Nelson — Residence Hall Front Desk
- Ryan Ward — Adjunct Aviation Instructor
- Tiff Falls — Milliken Auditorium Technician Assistant
Career Fair open to students and community
NOTE: Updated March 1 to note that face masks are now recommended rather than required.
TRAVERSE CITY — Employers are invited to register for Northwestern Michigan College’s 16th annual Career Fair, to be held March 3 at the Hagerty Center on the Great Lakes Campus.
Held in partnership with Northwest Michigan Works and Networks Northwest, the Career Fair runs from 2–6 p.m. Employers will have the opportunity to recruit job-seekers for career-track, seasonal and entry-level positions as well as internships and service learning.
The event is open to students, NMC alumni and community members. Employer registration is $25 and available online. Due to COVID-19, participants are limited and face masks are recommended at the event.
To register or for more information, visit nmc.edu/career-fair.
Release date: JANUARY 27, 2022
For more information:
Katie Sommer-Ford
NMC Advising Center
ksommer@nmc.edu
231-995-1040
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-discriminationCareer Fair open to students and community
NOTE: Updated March 1 to note that face masks are now recommended rather than required.
TRAVERSE CITY — Employers are invited to register for Northwestern Michigan College’s 16th annual Career Fair, to be held March 3 at the Hagerty Center on the Great Lakes Campus.
Held in partnership with Northwest Michigan Works and Networks Northwest, the Career Fair runs from 2–6 p.m. Employers will have the opportunity to recruit job-seekers for career-track, seasonal and entry-level positions as well as internships and service learning.
The event is open to students, NMC alumni and community members. Employer registration is $25 and available online. Due to COVID-19, participants are limited and face masks are recommended at the event.
To register or for more information, visit nmc.edu/career-fair.
Release date: JANUARY 27, 2022
For more information:
Katie Sommer-Ford
NMC Advising Center
ksommer@nmc.edu
231-995-1040
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-discriminationReminder: Virtual Town Hall on Friday, January 28, 2022
It’s an exciting and busy time at NMC! Please join us for a virtual town hall to hear the latest from President Nissley on the work that unites us as a college community, including the official launch of NMC Next our new strategic plan!
The event is planned for this Friday, January 28, 2022, from 8–9 a.m. Topics will include: enrollment, NMC Next Strategic Plan, COVID-19, Q&A, and a little something for each of you!
The session will be recorded for those unable to attend.
To join, please use the Zoom webinar link included below or in the calendar appointment.
When: Jan 28, 2022 08:00 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Topic: Town Hall – Spring 2022
Please click the link below to join the webinar:
Or One tap mobile :
US: +16465588656,,92440559833# or +13017158592,,92440559833#
Or Telephone:
Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location):
US: +1 646 558 8656 or +1 301 715 8592 or +1 312 626 6799 or +1 669 900 6833 or +1 253 215 8782 or +1 346 248 7799
Webinar ID: 924 4055 9833
International numbers available: https://nmc.zoom.
We look forward to coming together as a college community Friday morning! See you then!
—
President’s Office
1701 E. Front Street
Traverse City, MI
Phone: (231) 995-1010
Success Story: Five strategic areas to guide college’s priorities
January 26, 2022
If a strategic plan is a roadmap, where will NMC Next take the college? Following unanimous approval by NMC’s Board of Trustees Monday, imagine the impact on the Grand Traverse region:
View/download the brochure »Residents who want to upskill or change careers are reaching their goals faster with accelerated programs, more online options and expanded credential choices. By engaging with hands-on, real-world problem solving, they’re also having a richer experience and becoming independent, self-directed learners, skills they’ll bring into the workforce.
In the most diverse era ever, the college is a model for diversity, equity and inclusion, exemplifying how other regional employers can attract talent and serve customers. Mutually beneficial partnerships, like the ones nursing enjoys with Munson Medical Center, and culinary with the region’s hospitality industry, are visible on multiple campuses. Taxpayers will report even higher levels of satisfaction with “our community’s college.”
All of those are among the plan’s 24 objectives and action items, which fall under five strategic goal areas:
- Future-focused education
- Student engagement and success
- Diversity, equity and inclusion
- Community partnership and engagement
- Institutional distinction and sustainability
Progress will be measured and made available through trackers for each area at nmc.edu/strategic-plan.
The vote is the culmination of NMC’s most comprehensive strategic planning process in decades, which began in February 2021 and drew input across all college constituencies. From community to students and trustees to faculty and staff, more than 1,000 participants provided input to the process, including answering surveys, participating in focus groups and feedback sessions and serving on the work team or steering committee.
“The voices and critical insights of the entire NMC community are central to the success of NMC Next, and I’m so gratified by how generously our many stakeholders have shared their time and talents,” said NMC President Nick Nissley. “This data-driven plan positions us to meet the needs of the region, be a community college leader, yet also agile enough to adapt to changing conditions in higher education.”
College’s strategic plan, NMC Next, approved
TRAVERSE CITY — Northwestern Michigan College’s Board of Trustees unanimously approved a new strategic plan, NMC Next, which will guide the college through 2025 at its regular meeting Monday.
The vote is the culmination of NMC’s most comprehensive strategic planning process in decades, which began in February 2021 and drew input across all college constituencies. From community to students and trustees to faculty and staff, more than 1,000 participants provided input to the process, including answering surveys, participating in focus groups and feedback sessions and serving on the work team or steering committee.
“The voices and critical insights of the entire NMC community are central to the success of NMC Next, and I’m so gratified by how generously our many stakeholders have shared their time and talents,” said President Nick Nissley. “This data-driven plan positions us to meet the needs of the region, be a community college leader, yet also agile enough to adapt to changing conditions in higher education.”
The college now will begin to measure progress on the plan’s 24 objectives and action items, which fall under five strategic goal areas:
- Future-focused education
- Student engagement and success
- Diversity, equity and inclusion
- Community partnership and engagement
- Institutional distinction and sustainability
Vice President for Strategic Initiatives Jason Slade will oversee the plan implementation. The college has already achieved one objective with the hiring of Marcus Bennett as special assistant to the president for diversity, equity and inclusion. Each area will see activity this year, involving the whole college, Slade said.
“We’ll need everybody’s help in getting to those goals,” he said, which will help keep NMC at the forefront of higher education.
The college will also hold itself publicly accountable by maintaining online progress trackers in each area, at nmc.edu/strategic-plan.
Release date: JANUARY 25, 2022
For more information:
Diana Fairbanks
Associate Vice President of Public Relations, Marketing and Communications
dfairbanks@nmc.edu
(231) 995-1019
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-discriminationNMC Next Strategic Plan
Thank you to the more than 1,000 participants in NMC Next, the year-long strategic planning process and plan scheduled for final approval by the Board of Trustees tonight.
NMC Next is the result of the effort and energy expended collegewide, from answering a survey to participating in a feedback session to serving on the work team or steering committee.
Welcome our newest hires
Welcome to NMC!
- Nic Pickard — Technology Help Desk Assistant
- Josie Clement — Environmental Science Laboratory Assistant
- Aric Fowler — Kitchen & Dining Room Help at Lobdell’s
Reimbursement for “at home” COVID-19 testing kits
Guidelines on Coverage:
Insurance companies and health plans are required to cover at no cost to the member eight individual over-the-counter at-home tests per covered individual within a 30-day period without a prescription from a healthcare professional. This means a family of four, all on the same plan, can purchase up to 32 tests covered 100% by their health plan per month. Note: this is per test, not box (so if there are two tests in a box, that counts for two tests).
Here is a description of the coverage from the U.S. Department Of Health And Human Services.
If you are enrolled in NMC’s Priority Health medical coverage, here is a link to the reimbursement form. Priority Health is working on an automated process so coverage works the same as all other prescriptions, but it has not yet been released.
DEI: I’m Black but look white
Check out this HuffPost article about a woman’s experiences as a Black woman who passes as white. Read the article here.
Please fill out this DEI Intercom Post Feedback Form to be part of our conversation and offer feedback or suggestions on what is being shared.
COVID-19 vaccination mandate followup
Hello all,
NMC’s leadership team continues to monitor the federal government’s efforts to mandate vaccinations or weekly testing for employees with 100 or more employees. We have been advised that this mandate will likely continue to be blocked by legal challenges. We are not planning to take additional steps toward implementing such a mandate at this time.
We will continue to pay close attention to these developments. Our priorities continue to be on safety and legal compliance, while limiting disruption to learning.
Mark
—
Mark Liebling
AVP of Human Resources
1701 East Front Street, Traverse City, MI 49686
(231) 995-1342
Media Mentions for January 24, 2022
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.
Rachel Johnson Named NMC’s Board Chair For 2022
The Ticker, January 20 (more…)
COVID-19 protocols for instructors
Dear Instructors,
With Spring semester underway and the prevalence of the omicron variant in our region, we’re experiencing an increase in reported COVID-19 cases in our campus community. In an effort to maintain a safe learning environment and improve the efficiency of contact tracing, we’d like to review our current protocols for what to do when a student or instructor tests positive:
If a student tests positive for COVID-19
- Report all positive (student) cases through NMC’s Red Flag incident reporting system:
- Check “Health Concerns” in the questions section.
- Please include:
- The best contact information for the student (cell and/or email)
- The room number of your class
- The time class met
- Any other information related to unusually close or lengthy contact with additional students (i.e. lab partner)
- Please ask the student to contact NMC Health Services to expedite reporting and follow-up.
- To maintain student privacy, we strongly discourage notifying an entire classroom if a student in your classroom tests positive.
- Health Services is responsible for contact tracing, focusing on close contacts since they are most at risk. Should the instructor choose to notify an entire class of a case in their classroom, it’s very important not to identify the student who tested positive. Exclude their name and other personally identifiable information.
- If Health Services is made aware of or discovers a student case before an instructor, they will notify the instructor as soon as possible.
- If Health Services identifies multiple classroom cases, they will notify the instructor and arrange a meeting to assess the need to pivot to virtual instruction or cancel for a period of time.
- Instructors should contact Health Services immediately (via the Red Flag process outlined above) if multiple student cases are discovered by the faculty member first.
- Instructors should then follow guidelines for “Multiple Classroom Cases” in determining whether to temporarily shift the course online.
If an instructor tests positive for COVID-19
- The instructor should notify their supervisor and Human Resources (include Hollie DeWalt and Mark Liebling).
- Coursework may be temporarily cancelled, adjusted or shifted online at the discretion of the instructor during quarantine (generally 5 days unless symptoms persist).
Rapid testing resources
- Health Services provides free rapid testing services for all students.
- Health Services also provides testing services to faculty and staff who experience on-the-job exposures. Due to limited resources, testing services are not available for employees who are exposed elsewhere in the community.
- Free COVID-19 rapid-testing sites near you can be found here and are also available through COVIDtests.gov
Please also note the dates and locations of potential campus exposures are posted to NMC’s COVID-19 dashboard by 4 p.m. weekdays.
Thank you,
Troy Kierczynski
Vice President of Finance & Administration
Administrative Services
(231) 995-1147 | www.nmc.edu
Trustees elect new officers
TRAVERSE CITY — Northwestern Michigan College trustees on Wednesday elected new officers for 2022.
Rachel A. Johnson was elected chair, Laura J. Oblinger vice chair, Kenneth E. Warner treasurer and Andrew K. Robitshek secretary.
Johnson was originally appointed to the Board November 14, 2016, to fill a vacancy. In November 2018, she was re-elected to serve the remainder of the vacancy term and in November 2020 was elected to serve a six-year term expiring in 2026.
Release date: JANUARY 19, 2022
For more information:
Diana Fairbanks
Associate Vice President of Public Relations, Marketing and Communications
dfairbanks@nmc.edu
(231) 995-1019
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-discriminationTrustees elect new officers
TRAVERSE CITY — Northwestern Michigan College trustees on Wednesday elected new officers for 2022.
Rachel A. Johnson was elected chair, Laura J. Oblinger vice chair, Kenneth E. Warner treasurer and Andrew K. Robitshek secretary.
Johnson was originally appointed to the Board November 14, 2016, to fill a vacancy. In November 2018, she was re-elected to serve the remainder of the vacancy term and in November 2020 was elected to serve a six-year term expiring in 2026.
Release date: JANUARY 19, 2022
For more information:
Diana Fairbanks
Associate Vice President of Public Relations, Marketing and Communications
dfairbanks@nmc.edu
(231) 995-1019
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-discriminationFree COVID-19 tests now available for order
Free at-home COVID-19 tests can now be ordered thorough the U.S. Postal Service at this address – special.usps.com/testkits.
U.S. households can each order one set of four individual rapid antigen COVID-19 tests, and the orders will start shipping in late January.
Trustee meetings will be livestreamed beginning Jan. 24
TRAVERSE CITY — Northwestern Michigan College’s Board of Trustees will begin livestreaming its regular meetings on the college’s YouTube channel beginning with this month’s Jan. 24 meeting.
The board unanimously approved adding the livestreaming option at its December 20, 2021 meeting with the goal of increasing transparency, accessibility and convenience. Participants wanting to make public comment may do so in-person at the meeting. Video of the meetings will continue to be posted to the college’s YouTube channel after the meetings.
The board usually meets the fourth Monday of each month at 5:30 p.m. The 2022 calendar is available here.
Release date: January 14, 2022
For more information:
Diana Fairbanks
Associate Vice President of Public Relations, Marketing and Communications
dfairbanks@nmc.edu
(231) 995-1019
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-discriminationFree COVID-19 vaccination clinic Jan. 24
Traverse Health Clinic will hold a free COVID-19 vaccination clinic from 1–4 p.m. Monday, Jan. 24 in the Innovation Center.
Protect yourself and help stop the spread of COVID-19 by getting vaccinated!