Sep 15, 2023 | Intercom, Student News
Do you have an idea or project that needs resources to reach its full potential? If so, the Office of Possibilities wants to hear from you! OOPS seeks to provide resources for education-related projects as well as projects related to community partnerships with NMC.
Upcoming pitch dates will be held on December 1, 2023 and March 15, 2024 from 3-4:30 p.m. in the Timothy J. Nelson Innovation Center, room 104/105.
Those interested in presenting a pitch are encouraged to participate in one of the two upcoming Design Thinking workshops.
Design Thinking
November 1, 8, and 15
Wednesdays, 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Design Thinking
February 5, 12 and 19
Mondays, 5-7 p.m.
For more information, please contact the Office of Possibilities at oops@nmc.edu.
OOPS office hours:
Tuesdays, 9-11 a.m., Commonplace (NoBoMkt), 414 E. Eighth Street, Second Floor
Thursdays, 8-11 a.m., Timothy J. Nelson Innovation Center, room 116
Sep 15, 2023 | Intercom, Student Events
As part of National Voter Registration Day, volunteers from The League of Women Voters of the Grand Traverse Area (LWVGTA) will help new voters register and find their precincts on Tuesday, September 19 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Timothy J. Nelson Innovation Center lobby. NMC students, employees and the community are welcome.
Sep 15, 2023 | Intercom, Student Events
NMC’s Jazz Big Band will perform at the 9th Annual Leelanau UnCaged Festival on September 30. The Big Band will perform at 5:45 p.m. on Center Stage and will feature an appearance from former NMC Jazz Band directors Mike Hunter and Laurie Sears. Many of the members of NMC’s big Band are working professional musicians in the area with their own groups and are scheduled to perform other sets throughout the day.
Fore more information and to view the full event schedule, visit leelanauuncaged.com.
Sep 15, 2023 | Intercom, Student News
To find these selections and many other new titles, see the NMC library catalog.
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Sep 15, 2023 | Intercom, President Updates
Dear NMC community:
I have an important development to share with you.
A group known as Best Benzie, comprising dedicated Benzie County residents, is actively exploring the possibility of Benzie County joining the NMC district through an annexation vote that could occur in November 2024. Currently, Benzie County is not part of any community college district.
Here are the key highlights of this annexation initiative:
- Enhanced educational access: If approved, Benzie County residents would gain the opportunity to attend NMC as in-district students, benefiting from significantly reduced tuition rates compared to the current out-of-district rates.
- Access to programs: Approved annexation would enable Benzie County residents to participate in valuable programs such as Michigan Reconnect as in-district students, ensuring they receive the full range of program benefits.
- Millage rate: Benzie County landowners, in the event of approval, would be subject to a millage rate of 2.0574 mils, aligning with the current rate for Grand Traverse County landowners.
- Financial impact: NMC stands to gain an additional $2.6 million of tax revenue annually if the annexation proposal is approved.
- Democratic process: It’s important to note that the decision to allow this issue onto the ballot rests with the NMC Board of Trustees. They will evaluate the level of interest from Benzie County residents and decide accordingly. After that, it would be up to the eligible voters to decide.
- Community collaboration: Should voters endorse the annexation and millage, NMC is committed to collaborating closely with community members and various groups to shape an educational facility and staffing model that aligns with the missions and needs of the Benzie community.
- Education center: In line with this commitment, NMC envisions establishing a physical presence in Benzie County, including teaching and classroom space, a state-of-the-art computer lab, technology resources for students, versatile meeting spaces for interactions with students and community groups, and dedicated office space for permanent and visiting staff.
This potential annexation discussion is still in the early phases. I will be representing NMC in these talks along with several trustees and college executive staff members. Next steps include:
- Stakeholder gathering: On September 19, Best Benzie will hold a meeting to inform key stakeholders of the desire to move forward with annexation.
- Town Hall: In October, Best Benzie will hold a town hall meeting to share the intention of annexation with the Benzie County community.
- Listening sessions: Following the Town Hall, NMC will host listening sessions from October to December to better understand the Benzie County community’s needs.
This annexation initiative holds the potential to significantly enhance educational opportunities in our region, foster collaboration, and positively impact the lives of Benzie County residents. We will continue to keep you updated as this process unfolds. In fact, we’ll be holding upcoming meetings on our campus to keep you further informed of what’s unfolding.
Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions.
Sincerely,
Nick
Nick Nissley, Ed.D. | President | Northwestern Michigan College
Sep 12, 2023 | Intercom, Student News
The Rajkovich Physical Education Building is open to all NMC students, staff and faculty members on Mondays and Thursdays from 7-10 p.m.
The gym has equipment for a variety of activities such as :
-
- Basketball
- Volleyball
- Soccer
- Dodgeball
- Badminton
- Pickleball
- Corn hole
- Ping pong
Bring your fellow friends and colleagues!
For questions, please contact Marcus Bennett at mbennett@nmc.edu, C.J. Schneider at cschneider@nmc.edu or Isaac Dedenbach at idedebanch@nmc.edu.
Sep 11, 2023 | EES Opportunities, 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 upcoming classes! Place the class in your shopping cart in order to see the discount.
Barre Express
September 15 – October 27 (7 classes), Fridays, 12–12:45 p.m.
Employee price: $20 (public price: $75)
Looking for a quick lunchtime workout? Whether you are new to fitness or you’ve danced for many years, get ready for a fun way to strengthen your entire body!
Register
Sheet Pan Dinners
Thursday, Sept. 21, 6-9 p.m
Employee price: $35 (public price: $99)
Want a dinner that’s easy to assemble and a snap to clean up? These all-in-one dinners will become your new family favorites. Learn how to cook a healthy and family-friendly meal by using a single sheet pan.
Register
Beginning Spanish
Sept. 20 – Nov. 8 (8 classes), Wednesdays, 6:30–8 p.m.
Price: $25 (originally $149)
Get started or brush up on those Spanish language skills to enhance your travel experience, empower your business skills, and/or exercise and improve your brain function! You will learn vocabulary, phrases, sentences and essential language structure; and gain interesting insights into Spanish culture.
Register
Sep 11, 2023 | Hawk Owl Helpers and Heroes, Intercom
Over 600 students attended Welcome Week events this year. Thanks to all those who helped show them that NMC is a place they belong.
Who’s been a Hawk Owl Helper or Hero for you? Let us know at publicrelations@nmc.edu!
Sep 11, 2023 | 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.
Federal grants help preserve Dennos Museum’s cultural assets
Record-Eagle, Sept. 10
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Sep 11, 2023 | Intercom
Faculty goals are due Friday, September 15, in NEOED. Two virtual meetings are scheduled for this week to help faculty members get answers to any questions they have and provide support for entering goals into NEOED.
The meetings will be held on:
-
- Tuesday, September 12, 9-10 a.m.
- Wednesday, September 13, 2-3 p.m.
Calendar appointments for both of these meetings were previously sent to NMC faculty members. For questions, email Lori Hodek at
lhodek@nmc.edu.
Sep 11, 2023 | HR Corner, Intercom
Kudos to Marcus Bennett! Thank you Dr. Bennett for bringing in Ken James from MCC to talk about DEI issues at the community college level and adding more strategies for ways we can support our students.
Kudos to Lisa Molmen! Lisa has been so instrumental in getting all of our new employees set up during the August hiring craze. She is quicker than the flash to get files pushed through so our employees have needed access and is always there to help when things don’t work the way we want them to. Thank you, Lisa, for helping us make it work—we couldn’t do it without you!
Kudos to Alison Thornton, Michelle Beckett, Elliot Richards, and Ricky Hagberg! The fabulous Technology Help Desk team is always there to make sure our new hires have everything set up that they need to be successful. They are quick to help and always with patience and a smile. Thank you all!
Kudos to Elizabeth Sonnabend! Elizabeth Sonnabend continues to grow Workforce Training opportunities for our community by creating local partnerships. These partnerships not only ensure high quality learning, but also provide hands-on, real experiential learning as part of the curriculum, which lead to a living wage career pathway. Thanks to Elizabeth, NMC Extended Education & Training’s online Medical Billing Specialist program will be implemented in Thirlby Clinic’s new Medical Billing Apprenticeship Program. The agreement was signed at the Apprenticeship Launch Network’s conference at Great Wolf Lodge and is available for registration through the MITC (Michigan Talent Connect) website: mitalent.org/mitc. Thank you, Elizabeth, for ensuring that NMC Extended Education & Training’s programs lead to careers that are both needed in our area, and provide sustainable living wages.
Kudos to Amy Klei! We have had several changes in the Michigan Reconnect and Futures for Frontliners Scholarship programs. We are also implementing the Michigan Achievement Scholarship for 2023 graduating seniors. These programs have required numerous IT programming changes. Amy has done an amazing job in providing professional support and timeliness and crafting these changes to the benefit of the Financial Aid Department and ultimately our students.
Kudos to Lisa Thomas and Amanda Clark! Thank you for organizing Pine Palooza 2023! The students and staff were engaged in what NMC has to offer. It was a great way to start off the academic year.
Kudos to Erika Cotner! GLMA has been advertising for an assistant engineer for the training ship for greater than one year. Over this period of time Erika continuously revised the job description, researched additional avenues for advertising the position and worked with GLMA to find a candidate. Additionally, she was incredibly flexible with facilitating the ability for search team members to complete interviews while they were sailing on the training ship.
Kudos to our Student Success coaches! Once again, the Student Success coaches here at NMC provided a great opportunity for incoming students and returning students to join in various Welcome Week activities. Thank you for making our students feel a sense of community and belonging here at NMC. Go Hawk Owls!
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!
Sep 11, 2023 | HR Corner, Intercom
These employees recently started working at the college. Let’s welcome them to the NMC community!
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- Will Stanton, student employee – Writing and Reading Center
- Molly Kostrzewa – Adjunct Nursing Instructor
Sep 11, 2023 | HR Corner, Intercom
We need you to bring your innovation mindset to October Conference on October 10 to advance projects central to the college’s mission. October Conference features problem-solving training followed by workshop time to focus on projects related to the strategic plan, the master plan or other college goals. Appropriate projects should be already vetted and, preferably, cross-departmental. Projects can have an existing working group or be open to additional participants. Projects can be just getting started or approaching completion.
Got a project you’re working on that needs support? Project leads should complete the form as soon as your project has been identified, no later than Friday, September 15, so we can begin registering project team members.
Facilitator training will be available before this event. Employee registration begins soon.
If you are not sure if your project is a fit for October Conference or if you have any questions, contact Lori Hodek at lhodek@nmc.edu or (231) 995-1143 and Janet Lively at jlively@nmc.edu or (231) 995-1231.
Sep 8, 2023 | Intercom, Student Events
NMC Campus Life will be hosting a 3 on 3 basketball tournament on Friday, September 15 from 5:30-8 p.m. This tournament is open to all NMC students, staff and faculty and will be held at the outdoor basketball courts behind East Hall.
Teams must sign up by Thursday, September 14.
Questions? Contact Marcus Bennett at mbennett@nmc.edu or (231) 995-1401.
Sep 7, 2023 | Intercom, Student News
TRAVERSE CITY — Northwestern Michigan College’s (NMC) Great Lakes Maritime Academy (GLMA) training ship, the T/S State of Michigan, will call on Milwaukee for the first time in over a decade on Sept. 15-16 to raise funds for the Wisconsin Navy League’s scholarship at GLMA .
Media is invited to tour the training ship, a 224-foot former Navy submarine surveillance vessel, from 1-4:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 16 at the Pier Wisconsin Cruise dock, 530 N Harbor Dr., Milwaukee. The T/S State of Michigan is the flagship of NMC’s Great Lakes Maritime Academy, one of only six state maritime academies in the nation and the only one on freshwater.
The Milwaukee stop is part of a training cruise for the 18 GLMA cadets aboard, as well as two from the Texas A&M Maritime Academy. All cadets are required to earn 360 days of sea time while enrolled at the Academy. The ship will arrive in Milwaukee Friday from Traverse City and depart Saturday afternoon for Grand Haven, Mich. Read more about the ship.
The Wisconsin Navy League is seeking to endow the $1,000 annual scholarship, established in 2021 for Maritime cadets from Wisconsin. It honors the life of World War II Merchant Marine veteran Francis Murphy of La Crosse, Wis., who enlisted in 1944 as a newly-minted high school graduate. During his service to the nation from 1944 to 1951, Seaman Murphy made 57 round-trip Atlantic Ocean crossings on eight different ships.
Founded in 1969, NMC’s Great Lakes Maritime Academy educates and trains deck and engineering officers for the U.S. Merchant Marine. Graduates earn a bachelor’s degree, and an unlimited tonnage/horsepower merchant marine license. Read more at nmc.edu/maritime. NMC’s Great Lakes Culinary Institute also offers a culinary-maritime certificate program which trains students to be shipboard cooks, who are in high demand by the shipping industry.
The Navy League of the United States, founded in 1902, is a nonprofit civilian, educational and advocacy organization that supports America’s sea services: the Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and U.S.-flag Merchant Marine.
Release date: SEPTEMBER 7, 2023
For more information:
RADM Jerry Achenbach
Great Lakes Maritime Academy Superintendent
(231) 995-1203
gachenbach@nmc.edu
NON-DISCRIMINATION POLICY NOTICE
Northwestern Michigan College does not discriminate in admission, campus activities, education, employment, housing, public accommodation or public service on the basis of age, color, creed, disability, gender identity/expression, handicap, height, marital or familial status, national origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, service in the military, veteran’s status, weight, or any other legally protected status under federal, state, or local law. No act of retaliation shall occur to any person making a charge, filing a complaint, testifying or participating in any discrimination investigation or proceeding. nmc.edu/non-discrimination
Sep 6, 2023 | Intercom, Student News
September 6, 2023
Students embarked on three brand-new credentials this fall, preparing for careers in high-demand fields in which NMC has established leadership, while overall enrollment among the more than 60 programs ticked upward slightly.
Enrollment is up 1.6 percent in terms of headcount, or 48 students. While a small increase, it’s a welcome change from the pandemic-accelerated enrollment declines of recent years. This fall’s study body includes the first Michigan Achievement students, 2023 high school graduates who received up to $2,750 from the state, and the third class of Michigan Reconnect students, which provides free in-district tuition for students 25 and older who don’t have a college degree.
The new programs, all approved by NMC’s Board of Trustees, are:
Culinary maritime certificate: Most of the 11 students enrolled are adding the culinary maritime certificate onto their associate degree. The certificate formalizes what began as an intra-campus partnership between NMC’s Great Lakes Culinary Institute and Great Lakes Maritime Academy. For several years, a small number of culinary students have completed an internship onboard the Academy training ship State of Michigan. Due to the strong demand for shipboard cooks, they were employed immediately upon graduation, at high salaries.
Students in the certificate program, the only one in the U.S., will earn both the culinary and maritime credentials required to sail on U.S. flagged vessels.
“This certificate creates a unique offering that will distinguish the Great Lakes Culinary Institute from other programs. It also gives our students more options and meets the needs of industry,” said NMC President Nick Nissley.
UAS degree: Creating a standalone Uncrewed Aerial Systems degree instead of a specialty within NMC’s Engineering Technology degree creates a clearer path for students, said UAS program coordinator Tony Sauerbrey. So far, seven students have enrolled.
NMC first offered drone classes in 2010, several years before the FAA established a commercial license in 2016. Today drones are used for inspection and monitoring in multiple economic sectors, from agriculture to infrastructure. NMC’s Police Academy also offers drone operator certification to its students, the only one in Michigan to do so.
“The new degree will allow for greater flexibility in meeting the needs of the ever-changing drone industry,” Sauerbrey said. “The UAS industry is continuing to grow with a need for workforce development.”
Wet Tech degree: The only one of its kind in Michigan, the degree utilizes existing courses from surveying and unmanned aerial systems programs as well new courses in environmental site assessment, aquifer sampling, and groundwater monitoring. An internship is also required.
Four students have declared it as their program so far.
“This program will focus on training a workforce supporting the direct monitoring and cleanup of waters within the Great Lakes watershed and focusing on the direct impact to the quality of our water resources,” said Great Lakes Water Studies Institute Executive Director Hans Van Sumeren.
Another program, Marine Technology, enrolled its largest class yet this fall, at 14 students.
Besides these three credentials, this summer NMC also began partnering with Davenport University to offer a bachelor of science degree in nursing. Eight students total are now enrolled in the fast-track program.
The new credentials and, for nursing, the accelerated delivery, are part of NMC Next, the college’s strategic plan, specifically offering future-focused education and building on areas of institutional distinction.
Sep 5, 2023 | Hawk Owl Helpers and Heroes, Intercom
Thanks to the Automotive Technology department for organizing this annual event on Saturday, Sept. 9 that benefits the program and scholarships. Classic cars, 4X4s, dragsters, sports cars, modified late models, motorcycles and more will be on display from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at NMC’s Automotive Services Building. Admission is free for spectators. The event includes food, music, prizes and a silent auction.
Who’s been a Hawk Owl Helper or Hero for you? Let us know at publicrelations@nmc.edu!
Sep 5, 2023 | 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.
Freshwater research: High hopes for Traverse City’s new Innovation Center
WDC TV News, Sept. 3
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