The first annual faculty vs. staff kickball game will be held on Tuesday, October 11, 2022 at 3:45 p.m. at the NMC Athletic Field.
If you would like to join, please fill out the signup form.
Questions? Contact Marcus Bennett at (231)995-1401 or mbennett@nmc.edu
Decorate your car, get in costume, and hand out candy! Prizes for best decorations!
Want to Trick or Treat with the kids? Bring the family Wednesday, Oct. 26 from 5-7 p.m. for this outdoor Trunk or Treat fun!
Located in the Cherry Parking Lot across from the Timothy J. Nelson Innovation Center.
Northwestern Michigan College and the NMC Native American Student Organization are presenting an Indigenous Peoples’ Day Celebration on Monday, October 10 from 2–4 p.m. on the front lawn outside of the Osterlin Building.
The Grand Traverse Band, drummers, dancers, and other Native members will be under the pines to help educate and celebrate the day.
This event is free and open to the public. Be sure to bring a blanket or lawn chair.
Saturday, October 1, 2022
Solar Observation at the Dennos Museum: 2–4 p.m.
Lunar Observation at the NMC Observatory: 8 p.m.
Join the Astronomical Society and NMC’s Jerry Dobek, head of the Astronomy and Science Departments, for Solar Observation outside the Dennos Museum. Admission to the museum will be free. While at the museum, visit the Observing With NASA Kiosk in the Discovery Gallery to take, create, and share your own amazing space images, and learn about astro imaging technologies.
In the evening, observe the moon at the NMC Observatory. Public viewing at the Observatory is weather dependent. Visit gtastro.org for updates.
In general, animals are not allowed in any of NMC’s buildings across all of our campuses. However, the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Fair Housing Act allow for exceptions to this policy as a reasonable accommodation for someone with a disability living in NMC housing, under certain conditions.
We are a no-pets-allowed campus. A pet is commonly known as an animal one keeps for companionship and is not considered a service animal or emotional support animal. Pets are not allowed anywhere on our campus (except outdoors under the control of their owner).
A service animal (primarily dogs) is trained to provide a specific service in support a person’s disability. They are not pets. Service animals are allowed on campus including in the classroom. For more information about service animals you can check out this article from the Center for Teaching and Learning.
Emotional support animals are not specially trained and are not pets. They are meant to offer a therapeutic benefit to someone with a mental or psychiatric disability and have been prescribed by their mental health provider as part of their treatment plan. Emotional support animals, when approved through the accommodation request process, are to remain in the housing unit and are not allowed anywhere else in campus housing or any campus location.
If you have any additional questions, please contact Leanne Baumeler at lbaumeler@nmc.edu or (231)995-1929.
As a first-generation college student attending NMC, Alex Walsh had a lot of company. As an NMC graduate, he became one of a rarified few who transfer to an Ivy League college.
Now, with his 2022 Harvard University diploma adorning the wall of Walsh’s office in NMC’s Student Success Center, he’s eager to help more students complete paths like his, taking advantage of NMC to make a degree both more affordable and achievable.
“I want to help fellow community college students,” said Walsh, right, a college completion coach. He joined the Success Center staff in June through NMC’s partnership with the Michigan College Access Network (MCAN), and specializes in working with first-generation students from Antrim and Kalkaska counties.
Specifically, MCAN is aimed at achieving Michigan’s goal that 60 percent of residents have a post-secondary degree by 2030. Reaching more first-generation students like Walsh, 30, is key to that.
“The heart of MCAN is all about increasing access to higher education,” said Walsh, who graduated from NMC in 2012 and then enlisted in the Navy before starting at Harvard in 2019. “I saw it as a really good opportunity to come back to NMC. I’m definitely happy to be here.”
This is NMC’s second year as part of the MCAN coaching network. Walsh’s position is funded through AmeriCorps. In its first year, the program exceeded all its goals, notably the number of students who persisted in their educational journey or completed it.
“Partnering with the state to receive some of the funding for this position has allowed us to have our first full-time coaches on campus. They work as an integral part of our coaching team,” said Sally Smarsty, NMC’s Student Success Coordinator.
“We have valued NMC’s investment in the partnership and were excited to award a second coaching position at NMC,” said Trisha Caldwell, AmeriCorps program director for MCAN. “NMC has created a welcoming environment where coaches have felt welcomed and valued at the college; ultimately, providing opportunity for strong collaborative efforts to support students as they navigate their college journey.
Coaches help students develop a support network, an academic plan, a financial plan, and time management skills. They are a newer part of the support service network NMC offers to all students, in addition to instructors, advisors and tutors.
As living proof transferring can be done, Walsh plans to encourage students to aim high while they’re at it. Seeking to diversify their student bodies, some historically elite colleges are now offering generous financial aid to students from community college or first generation backgrounds, Walsh said. The University of Michigan’s Go Blue Guarantee, for instance, offers free tuition to students whose families earn $65,000 or less. Harvard’s income threshold is $75,000 and Princeton’s is $100,000.
As a veteran Walsh also aims to work with fellow coach Bob Hammond to reinvigorate services to veterans, as well as NMC’s chapter of Student Veterans of America.
Walsh’s own academic journey isn’t done, either. While serving as a coach he plans to take both the LSAT and GRE exams as he considers law school or graduate school.
See the world and earn academic credits at the same time! Bring a lunch and join us for a conversation on Thursday, October 6, 12:15–1 p.m. in Rm. 106/107 of the Timothy J. Nelson Innovation Center to learn about our study abroad experiences in Iceland, Guatemala, Spain & Portugal, and Morocco next summer.
At this meeting you will:
For more information, contact Jim Bensley at jbensley@nmc.edu, Marina Call at mcall@nmc.edu or call the International Services and Service Learning office at (231)995-2527.
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.
The following college events, stories and mentions have appeared in the media recently. Please send information about your NMC-related interview or appearance to publicrelations@nmc.edu.
How Do You Get Millennials To Move To Traverse City?
Ticker, September 25
Kudos to the GLCI team for keeping the Detroit Red Wings fueled throughout their training camp. The Performance Dietitian for the team was so impressed with the service that GLCI provided that she personally reached out to President Nick Nissley to share her appreciation.
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Join us for a free community discussion related to adolescent mental health in Northern Michigan presented by GVSU Traverse City and NMC. Panelists from across the community will share information and local resources related to this important topic to care for our youth in Northern Michigan.
Date:
Monday, October 17, 2022, 7:30–9:30 a.m.
Location:
The Hagerty Center at Northwestern Michigan College
715 East Front Street
Traverse City, MI 49686
Agenda:
7:30–8 a.m.: Registration and Continental Breakfast
8–9:30 a.m.: Program
This event is free and open to the public. Register to save your seat!
The Health Forum of Northern Michigan is offered in the fall and spring of each year. It is a collaboration between the GVSU Traverse City Regional Center and Northwestern Michigan College. It is supported by a planning committee of community leaders in the Grand Traverse area. The event is sponsored by Blue Cross Blue Shield of West Michigan.
Northwestern Michigan College’s International Affairs Forum continues Thursday, October 20 at 6:30 p.m. in the Milliken Auditorium at the Dennos Museum Center. The event starts with a reception at 5:30 p.m. with wine & light appetizers.
IAF will host an immigration Debate with David Aguilar, former acting commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and Theresa Cardinal Brown, managing director of immigration and cross-border policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center. The debate will center on immigration reform with a focus on solutions.
Good morning NMC community,
I hope you are finding your rhythm this semester and feeling optimistic from the energy and engagement offered by our students and colleagues. It’s easy to feel upbeat when we see more friendly faces in the Hawk Owl Café, but there are also some important points of pride taking place behind the scenes. That’s what I want to lift up for us to celebrate today with our new strategic plan, NMC Next.
Last year, we all created this plan together to focus our efforts on the most important work here at the College and to prepare for a successful future. Now, more than half way through our first year, I want to share some great successes that you and your colleagues are accomplishing.
Strategy 1: Future-Focused Education
We are ahead of schedule and making great progress to increase our number of online/hybrid courses thanks to the guidance of Mark DeLonge and Ryan Bernstein. Their smart approach to training has resulted in more faculty becoming peer reviewers and is building excitement for others to participate.
Strategy 2: Student Engagement and Success
Thank you everyone who helped with Welcome Week activities! Not only is this a fun way to support our students, it also supports Strategy 2, objective 1. Not only are we forging an important sense of belonging, but we’re also tracking attendance so we can measure the impact on student success.
Strategy 3: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
We have a passionate and dedicated team advancing this important work and have met some major milestones already. NMC’s first Special Assistant to the President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Dr. Marcus Bennett, started in his role in July. Also this summer, the NMC DEI Core and Employee teams merged to become the NMC DEIB Advisory Council and completed DEIB training through Grand Valley State University.
Strategy 4: Community Partnerships and Engagement
Thanks to Elizabeth Sonnabend, Laura Matchett and Ed Bailey for helping the college advance our skilled trades goals. They’ve been busy developing workforce and professional development training across all industry sectors in response to employer needs. With the assistance of MiWorks!, they have secured funding to allow participants to attend these training sessions, sometimes for free, providing the skills necessary to upscale the community’s workforce.
Strategy 5 – Institutional Distinction and Sustainability
Chef Les Eckert, the entire GLCI team, and many others across the college have completed the incredibly hard work of reimagining the institute. This effort touched nearly every aspect of the program and resulted in new content, shorter courses, and a renewed optimism for the future success of GLCI.
We also have to give a shout out to the ORPE team of Joy Goodchild and Shelly Grant for developing dashboards that allow us to easily track all of the data related to the objectives. Transparency and accountability are central to the success of our strategic plan.
These are only a few examples of the great work that’s happening all across our College. I am proud of all of you for staying focused and continuing to make progress. It’s important that we remain committed to seeing this work through to completion and just as important to celebrate our success along the way!
Vice-President of Strategic Initiatives Jason Slade, in true engineer fashion, is making sure everything is running smoothly and on schedule. It is a lot to keep track of, but he does a great job of making sure the information is accessible. Attached you will find his fall report on the status of our entire strategic plan. I encourage you to read it and congratulate your teams and colleagues on all your hard work. While we have more work to do, we already have so much to be proud of!
Nick
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Nick Nissley, Ed.D. | President | Northwestern Michigan College | 231.995.1010
The NMC Board of Trustees will hold its regular monthly meeting Monday, Sept. 26 at 5:30 p.m. in the Hagerty Center on NMC’s Great Lakes Campus. More information is available here.
For more information, please contact the President’s office at (231) 995-1010.
I want to share an update on how we are driving innovation at NMC, and how you can get involved. As many of you know, we have been very fortunate to rely on the NMC Foundation for the support of Innovation Grants to improve teaching and learning at the college. But the landscape of higher education is changing, and disruptive innovation has become more critical to ensure NMC’s long-term success. We are fortunate to have dedicated faculty and staff who have always been willing to take risks and embrace new ideas. We are also experiencing a growing entrepreneurial ecosystem in Traverse City as more start-ups, incubators and collaborative spaces take root in our region.
With all of this in mind and in partnership with the Foundation, we are moving forward with a more disruptive and exciting innovation framework at the college. The Office of Possibilities (or OOPs) will allow students, faculty and staff to explore and develop the next “big idea.” Unlike the previous innovation process, it will involve mentoring to challenge and flesh out the idea, connecting back to the entrepreneurial community and focusing on a growth-driven mindset to expand innovation at NMC. We know there will be failures, and that is okay (and why we are called OOPs), and this development will provide the resources and space needed to push, experiment and disrupt how we will meet the needs of NMC and our community.
So how do you get involved? That’s easy!
After mentoring and development, projects that are ready for review will be part of an active pitch. High potential, disruptive ideas will hopefully get funded. The first pitch event is Friday, Oct. 21 from 1–3 p.m. in IC 104/105.
We look forward to hearing your ideas and appreciate the support of the NMC Foundation as we drive innovation and challenge the norm at NMC.
Best regards,
Jason Slade
Vice-President for Strategic Initiatives
Learn more about Davenport University and their partnership with NMC while enjoying free food, music and games. Representatives will discuss the programs that DU offers in areas such as Business, Technology, Health Professions, and Urban Education.
When: Wednesday September 28, 2022, 1–3 p.m.
Where: Timothy J. Nelson Innovation Center
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The NMC Board of Trustees Fellows Nominating Committee will meet at noon on Wednesday, September 21, in the President’s Conference Room of the Tanis Building on NMC’s main campus, 1701 E. Front St., Traverse City.
The official meeting notice is available here. For more information, please contact the President’s office at (231) 995-1010.