Hawk Owl Health program reminders!

The NMC wellness program, Hawk Owl Health, is up and running!  After the first month, twenty people completed their health assessment and earned the $10 gas card (deadline for gas card is 9/30/22).  These employees are now able to engage with the wellbeing platform to earn points that will put them in the drawing for a $25 gift card in October.

If you have not yet registered for our new wellbeing platform powered by Virgin Pulse, please do so today!  Once you have registered and completed the health assessment, you can begin to take advantage of all the many health and wellbeing resources personalized for you based on your current interests, needs, and health risks. 

  • Register: Log in or sign up for your member account
    • Choose Healthy Living-Wellbeing Hub
    • Accept the terms and conditions and you are ready to use the Virgin Pulse platform
  • If you prefer to use a mobile device, download the Virgin Pulse app from the App Store or Google Play after you have completed the registration process above

Virgin Pulse login

Remember that this year’s program gives you the chance to earn points every day, all year long and new gift card winners are drawn every quarter.  So, join the program to find your balance, get a daily dose of inspiration, and experience the rewards of living your best life. Go Hawk Owl Health!!

  • Questions? Contact Virgin Pulse Customer Service

Check out the Wellness web page for more information!

Welcome our newest hires

These employees recently started working at the college. Let’s welcome them to the NMC Community!

  • Madison Blough, Student Employee – Elementary Reading Tutor
  • Sandra Kroh – Adjunct Communications Instructor
  • Jeremy Flannery – Supplemental Automotive Lab Assistant
  • Raymond Chabitch, Student Employee – Engineering Tech Lab Assistant
  • Rin Martin, Student Employee – Residence Life
  • Maria Leggett – Adjunct Culinary Arts Instructor
  • Patrick Kawula – Programmer
  • Bridget Sova – Academic Advisor
  • Sereta Fager, Student Employee – Library
  • Patti Rigan – Adjunct Clinical Nursing Instructor
  • Ryan Younce – Adjunct Music Instructor
  • Molly Hidley, Student Employee – Student Life Office
  • Jennifer Ramsey – Adjunct Clinical Nursing Instructor
  • Daryl Case – Adjunct Law Enforcement Instructor
  • Adam Raupp – Adjunct Culinary Arts Instructor
  • Jack Wenz – Adjunct Culinary Arts Instructor
  • Marissa Rochefort – Adjunct Surgical Technology Instructor
  • Matthew Richmond – Adjunct Law Enforcement Instructor
  • Jenny Washburne – Adjunct Communications Instructor

200 named to summer Dean’s List

TRAVERSE CITY — NMC’s Dean’s List recognizes students who have earned a grade point average of 3.5 or above out of a possible 4.0 while taking five or more credits in a semester. A list of students who have achieved Dean’s List honors for the summer 2022 semester is available here.

 

RELEASE DATE: August 26, 2020

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Diana Fairbanks
Associate Vice President of Public Relations, Marketing and Communications
(231) 995-1019
dfairbanks@nmc.edu

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

Success story: New specialty certificate will fill high industry demand

August 24, 2022

Entry-level salary: $60,000.

Entry-level vacation: Six months.

That’s what students who graduate with NMC’s new Culinary Arts certificate with Maritime emphasis, a specialty field with high industry demand, can expect.

Culinary student Megan Cook with a cake she baked aboard the Training Ship State of MichiganApproved by NMC’s Board of Trustees Monday, the one-year certificate formalizes an internship program that’s existed for about five years. Students in NMC’s Great Lakes Culinary Institute have interned as cooks aboard the T/S State of Michigan, the training ship for NMC’s Great Lakes Maritime Academy. All have been immediately employed upon graduation, including 2021 intern/2022 graduate Megan Cook (above).

She anticipates finalizing her job offer this week, after wrapping up a second short-term gig in the training ship’s galley. Cook will sail on the Great Lakes for the May–January shipping season, working a 60 days on/30 days off schedule. She’ll earn a salary of between $60,000 and $70,000.

“This is such a great program. It’s going to be amazing,” said Cook, 20, originally from Sylvania, Ohio. “It makes me so happy that all my hard work paid off.”

The shipping industry hopes to find more cooks like Cook. To meet that demand, NMC hopes to enroll 20 students in the certificate program during the first year, 2023–2024.

“Skilled culinary staff is critical to a well-managed vessel. The maritime industry continues to see this need across all areas. I would 100 percent encourage any culinary student who is seeking adventure while honing their craft to pursue a career at sea,” said Jenny Johnson, director of Labor Experience and Recruitment at Crowley. The Florida-based company has hired past GLCI graduates for its shipping division of more than 200 vessels, in addition to recruiting graduates of NMC’s Great Lakes Maritime Academy.

Culinary student Carolyn Fairchild carving meat aboard the Training Ship State of MichiganGLCI student Carolyn Fairchild (left) interned aboard the ship this summer. She says she’s 90 percent sure she’ll seek shipboard employment after she graduates in spring 2023. 

“I really like traveling. It was something different than a normal restaurant,” said Fairchild, 20. A Flint native, she transferred to GLCI from Michigan Tech after discovering how much she enjoyed the hands-on and creative aspects of cooking on a prep cook job.

“You can be cooking every day, but not make the same thing for months, and that’s really appealing,” Fairchild said.

Creation of the certificate is an objective within NMC’s strategic plan. It originated in a yearlong reimagining project for the Great Lakes Culinary Institute, which sought to increase enrollment and improve GLCI’s future sustainability.

“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

It combines and repackages existing curriculum in both the culinary and maritime programs and maximizes assets like the State of Michigan when it is not at sea. Students will take a specialized galley cooking course in the spring semester, the only new course.

“It’s challenging, spacewise and inventory-wise,” Cook said of working in a galley. The course as well as help obtaining maritime credentials will give certificate students a big advantage.

“They’ll get a huge kickstart to being able to sail on a ship,” she said.


More culinary news:

  • Farm-to-table dinners at Lobdell’s Teaching Restaurant: September 15, September 29 and October 6. Reservation line opens Aug. 30: (231) 995-3120.
  • November and December happy hours at Lobdell’s, hosted by GLCI’s Beverage Management class. Subscribe to the GLCI newsletter to be notified of dates.
  • New curriculum emphasizing sustainability: Limited waste, local food, and green cuisine.
  • New curriculum emphasizing health and nutrition: Plant-based, gluten-free, and dairy alternatives.
  • New content delivery–two short sessions per semester. Students will take fewer courses at the same time, allowing more concentrated learning and quicker goal achievement.
  • Lobdell’s lunches are paused for fall semester but will return in February 2023.

Culinary-Maritime certificate approved for fall 2023

Carolyn Fairchild, GLMA culinary internDownload a high-resolution photo of Carolyn FairchildTRAVERSE CITY — Next fall, NMC will offer a new Culinary Arts certificate with Maritime emphasis, a specialty field with high industry demand and high salaries, following unanimous approval by the Board of Trustees Monday. Creation of the certificate is an objective within NMC’s strategic plan. It originated in an 18-month reimagining project for the Great Lakes Culinary Institute, which sought to increase enrollment and improve GLCI’s future sustainability.

For the past five years a small number of culinary students have completed an internship onboard NMC’s training ship State of Michigan. That collaboration was due to demand for cooks seen by another NMC program, the Great Lakes Maritime Academy. Those culinary students were employed immediately upon graduation.

“Skilled culinary staff is critical to a well-managed vessel. The maritime industry continues to see this need across all areas. I would 100 percent encourage any culinary student who is seeking adventure while honing their craft to pursue a career at sea,” said Jenny Johnson, director of Labor Experience and Recruitment at Crowley. The Florida-based company has hired past GLCI graduates for its shipping division, which includes more than 200 vessels, in addition to recruiting graduates of NMC’s Great Lakes Maritime Academy. Based on that demand the reimagining committee chose to create a formal certificate. It is the first time a state maritime academy has partnered with a culinary program to provide this credential to serve the commercial maritime industry.

It combines and repackages existing curriculum in both the culinary and maritime programs and maximizes assets like the State of Michigan when it is not at sea.

Megan Cook, GLMA Culinary InternDownload a high-resolution photo of Megan Cook“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.

The program’s first-year enrollment goal is 20 students. In the fall semester, students will take culinary courses offering foundational theory and practical applications of savory cooking, butchery, baking, sanitation, nutrition, food and beverage operations, and menu planning. They will apply for and earn necessary maritime credentials while in the program as well.

In the spring, students will take a specialized galley cooking course–the only new course–on the training ship while it is in port. Students will then complete an internship on the State of Michigan or a commercial vessel. Graduates with this certificate can sail as credentialed mariners on U.S. flag vessels, in Great Lakes service, in the steward department in culinary positions such as second cook.

Students whose goal is to sail on an ocean-going vessel will need to complete additional training on a commercial vessel. Within the next three years the Great Lakes Maritime Academy will amend its U.S. Coast Guard approval to offer this course in Traverse City.

Read more about the Great Lakes Culinary Institute, which is accredited by the American Culinary Federation.

Read more about the Great Lakes Maritime Academy, which offers a bachelor’s degree in maritime technology.

State of Michigan galley images: 2022 intern Carolyn Fairchild, top; 2021 intern Megan Cook, bottom.

Release date: August 23, 2022

For more information:

Kerry Fulcher
Great Lakes Culinary Institute Admissions Specialist
kfulcher@nmc.edu
(231) 995-1196

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

Culinary-Maritime certificate approved for fall 2023

Carolyn Fairchild, GLMA culinary internDownload a high-resolution photo of Carolyn FairchildTRAVERSE CITY — Next fall, NMC will offer a new Culinary Arts certificate with Maritime emphasis, a specialty field with high industry demand and high salaries, following unanimous approval by the Board of Trustees Monday. Creation of the certificate is an objective within NMC’s strategic plan. It originated in an 18-month reimagining project for the Great Lakes Culinary Institute, which sought to increase enrollment and improve GLCI’s future sustainability.

For the past five years a small number of culinary students have completed an internship onboard NMC’s training ship State of Michigan. That collaboration was due to demand for cooks seen by another NMC program, the Great Lakes Maritime Academy. Those culinary students were employed immediately upon graduation.

“Skilled culinary staff is critical to a well-managed vessel. The maritime industry continues to see this need across all areas. I would 100 percent encourage any culinary student who is seeking adventure while honing their craft to pursue a career at sea,” said Jenny Johnson, director of Labor Experience and Recruitment at Crowley. The Florida-based company has hired past GLCI graduates for its shipping division, which includes more than 200 vessels, in addition to recruiting graduates of NMC’s Great Lakes Maritime Academy. Based on that demand the reimagining committee chose to create a formal certificate. It is the first time a state maritime academy has partnered with a culinary program to provide this credential to serve the commercial maritime industry.

It combines and repackages existing curriculum in both the culinary and maritime programs and maximizes assets like the State of Michigan when it is not at sea.

Megan Cook, GLMA Culinary InternDownload a high-resolution photo of Megan Cook“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.

The program’s first-year enrollment goal is 20 students. In the fall semester, students will take culinary courses offering foundational theory and practical applications of savory cooking, butchery, baking, sanitation, nutrition, food and beverage operations, and menu planning. They will apply for and earn necessary maritime credentials while in the program as well.

In the spring, students will take a specialized galley cooking course–the only new course–on the training ship while it is in port. Students will then complete an internship on the State of Michigan or a commercial vessel. Graduates with this certificate can sail as credentialed mariners on U.S. flag vessels, in Great Lakes service, in the steward department in culinary positions such as second cook.

Students whose goal is to sail on an ocean-going vessel will need to complete additional training on a commercial vessel. Within the next three years the Great Lakes Maritime Academy will amend its U.S. Coast Guard approval to offer this course in Traverse City.

Read more about the Great Lakes Culinary Institute, which is accredited by the American Culinary Federation.

Read more about the Great Lakes Maritime Academy, which offers a bachelor’s degree in maritime technology.

State of Michigan galley images: 2022 intern Carolyn Fairchild, top; 2021 intern Megan Cook, bottom.

Release date: August 23, 2022

For more information:

Kerry Fulcher
Great Lakes Culinary Institute Admissions Specialist
kfulcher@nmc.edu
(231) 995-1196

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

Welcome Week Volunteers

Thank you to the many Welcome Week volunteers who will be helping our resident Hawk Owls move in later this week and become adjusted to campus life at NMC as well as the faculty and staff across the college who are working hard to prepare for the beginning of a new school year.

2022 Welcome Week kicks off on Wednesday, August 24. The complete event schedule can be found on the 2022 Welcome Week page.


Who’s been a Hawk Owl Helper or Hero for you? Let us know at publicrelations@nmc.edu!

Parking enforcement starts Sept. 5

The Traverse City Parking Patrol will begin issuing warnings at NMC Saturday, Aug. 27 and start issuing citations for parking violations on Monday, Sept. 5. All NMC students and employees must have their 2022-2023 permits displayed then. If you haven’t received your permit, they’re available at the Campus Safety & Security office in the Timothy J. Nelson Innovation Center (#9 on the Main Campus Map) and the Enrollment Services office on the main level of the Tanis Building (#5 on the Main Campus Map).

The Traverse City Police Department has provided the following information on how to avoid parking tickets on campus by properly displaying your parking permit:

  • Place your permit in the bottom left-hand corner of your windshield.
  • Place your permit right side up. An upside-down permit will be considered invalid.
  • Hang tags must be on the rear view mirror. 
  • Be sure that the expiration date on your permit can be seen from the outside of your vehicle. (Some vehicles have a tint on the edges of their windshield, so be sure your permit is not behind a tint, as it will make it difficult to see from the outside.) When it doubt, get out of your vehicle and be sure you can see the entire permit from the outside.

If you do get a ticket, payment can be made at the red drop-off payment box at the east end of the Cedar lot in front of the Health & Science Building on main campus. You can also mail the fine in to the city, or pay at the parking services office in the public parking garage at 303 E. State St. Payment information is also on each ticket.

If you have any questions about parking enforcement on campus, please call Campus Safety & Security at (231) 995-1111.

Welcome our newest hires

Welcome to NMC!

  • Tim Alzoubi – Computer Information Technology Instructor
  • Jocelyn Joseph, Student Employee – Residence Hall Front Desk
  • Sonni Rogers, Student Employee – Writing Center Reader
  • Johnny Force, Student Employee – Residence Hall Front Desk
  • Anna Bennett – Supplemental Groundskeeper

Fall Exhibit Opening at the Dennos Museum

Fall exhibit opening receptionJoin us on Friday, September 23 from 7–9 p.m. for the opening of Jason S. Yi: Dissimulations and Infinite Splendor, Infinite Light: The Bruce Walker Collection of Religious Tibetan Art.

Enjoy an evening with light refreshments from Burritt’s Fresh Market, a cash bar, and live music by Jordan Hamilton. At 7:30 p.m., Jason S. Yi will lead an informal tour in the MacFarlane Gallery of his work. 

Members will receive two drink tickets each upon arrival. Additionally, members can enjoy double discounts in the Museum Store the night of the event. Guests of members and the public are welcome to attend the event, but will not receive drink tickets upon arrival.

Please RSVP if you plan to attend. 

Media Mentions for August 22, 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.

Adapted in TC: On the way to surgery
Instructor Susan Odgers’ monthly column on living with disability, Record-Eagle, August 21
(more…)

Michigan Reconnect milestone

NMC’s Enrollment Services has helped more than 300 adults over the age of 25 return to NMC to finish their degree or start for the first time through the Michigan Reconnect program.

Michigan Reconnect provides free in-district tuition and reduced out-of-district tuition for adults who are 25 years or older and don’t have a college degree or GED.


Who’s been a Hawk Owl Helper or Hero for you? Let us know at publicrelations@nmc.edu!

Jason Dake Farewell Celebration

Jason DakeJason Dake, the Deputy Director of Museum Programs & Learning, is leaving the Dennos after almost 10 years of service to the college and Traverse City communities. His last day will be Thursday, September 15. Come wish Jason well on his next chapter!

When: Thursday, September 8, 3 – 5 pm
Where: Sculpture Court, Dennos Museum Center

Questions? Contact the Dennos Museum at (231) 995-1055

Media Mentions for August 15, 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.

Remeasuring ‘zero:’ Great Lakes datum survey in motion
Record-Eagle, August 14
(more…)

Registration is open for fall Lifelong & Professional Learning classes

The fall catalog of Northwestern Michigan College Lifelong & Professional Learning classes is now available online and by mail. Registration is open for over 270 learning options.

NMC Extended Educational Services is pleased to once again offer a range of in-person classes, as well as some livestream and online courses. The informal, short classes are taught by local experts on a wide variety of topics including cooking, art, outdoor recreation, business skills and more. New class series include Still Life Saturdays, Wine Tasting and Appreciation, Food For Thought, Narrative Writing, Digital Essentials, and more.

This fall marks the launch of the Global Certificate program. Enrolled students will embark on a journey of topics, such as diversity, global issues, local issues, culture, religion, history, and politics. Enrollment in the global certificate program also includes events at the Dennos Museum and International Affairs Forum.

NMC Extended Education offers accelerated solutions for those looking to start a career, upskill, or change careers. Professional development classes are available as well as custom training and/or corporate retreats. Contact ees@nmc.edu for additional information.

Full-time NMC employees can apply the tuition waiver to these classes. Take advantage of this generous benefit and enhance your skills or try something new!

View and register for classes at www.nmc.edu/ees or call NMC Extended Education at (231) 995-1700 to receive a catalog by mail.