Governor Signs Higher Education Budget

State funding for Michigan's public universities will be reduced by 2.8 percent from last year after Gov. Jennifer Granholm signed the higher education appropriations bill earlier this week. For NMU, the reduction equates to $1.3 million. The 2010-11 budget passed recently by the NMU Board of Trustees was developed around a 3.1 percent projected decrease in state funding, so no major adjustments to the current fiscal year's budget will be required at this time.

Jamrich and U.P. Requests Pulled from Senate Capital Outlay Bill

The Michigan Senate Joint Capital Outlay Committee recently passed a bill to support campus construction and renovation projects. The state provides 75 percent of the required cost, not through taxpayer general-fund money, but through funds from the sale of Michigan bonds.

While all of the state's universities and colleges had projects in the bill, the understanding was that Northern and others that hadn't received funding in recent years were supposed to move to the top of the list (NMU's last capital outlay project was in 2000). There were high hopes of renovating Jamrich Hall, which opened in 1969 and has not been updated since, but the project was unexpectedly yanked from consideration in the Senate version of the bill. Full Story

New AQIP Action Projects Announced

NMU has announced two new action projects involving the academic review process and internships/work experiences that will kick off Oct. 15 as part of Academic Quality Improvement Program (AQIP) institutional accreditation. The university will also complete the second phase of a continuing project to develop a knowledge management system, or KMS. Sandra Poindexter (Business) said the academic review process is part of the university’s strategic Road Map to 2015 and expected by accreditors, who mentioned it in reaffirming NMU’s accreditation last March and in written appraisals. Full Story

Progress Report on Recently Expired AQIP Projects

As NMU embarks on new AQIP action projects, three from the past year expired Oct. 14. They include efforts to evaluate the effectiveness of the laptop goal in terms of both student learning and student recruitment, and developing a knowledge management system (KMS) infrastructure to support the Road Map to 2015 strategic plan. Full Story

Gift Supports Pediatric Care Simulation Room

A new pediatric care simulation room at Northern Michigan University will enhance training for nursing students and mark another step toward the broader goal of establishing a regional Smart Hospital®.

Cathi and John Drake contributed the bulk of funding for the room. They are pictured with their daughters (from left) Karen and Lisa. The room includes a diagnostic center, pediatric crash cart, bed and “new-generation” mannequin representing a 5-year-old child. This high-tech environment enhances patient safety by allowing students to hone their skills and build confidence before they enter a clinical setting, reducing the risk of error. Full Story

Dead Tree Removal Planned

Plant operations employees will begin removing dead pine and poplar trees from campus as part of routine grounds maintenance. The work will occur over the next few weekends, when traffic is lighter. Jim Thams (Engineering and Planning) said about 20 trees, some large and some small, are impacted. They have been marked and are located throughout campus: along Tracy Avenue and near Cohodas Hall, the Center Street Apartments, the Learning Resources Center and Gries Hall. The Board of Light and Power has agreed to remove any trees near power lines.