Cedar Hall

Cedar Hall is a place that students are proud to call home. The residents of Cedar are strongly
attached to their communities, and put that passion into working together to develop a prominent
and welcoming hall identity. Cedar features one academic house, where academics are
prioritized and residents are expected to maintain at least a 2.75 cumulative GPA.

Hall Events

● Cheesefest (sample lots of cheese and learn about it)
● Coastal Crash (beach games)
● Halloween Party in the lodge

Cedar Hall shared bedroom suite floor plan is pictured here. A majority of rooms in Cedar Hall are shared bedrooms.

Cedar Hall private bedroom suite is pictured here. There is a very limited number of private bedrooms in Cedar Hall.

In the shared bedroom suites, residents share their living and sleeping space, as pictured here.

In both the private and shared bedrooms suites, residents share a semi-private bathroom with their adjacent suite neighbors, or "suitemates."

Cedar Hall is the middle building located within the Woods complex.

Four students eating at The Lights dining facility

Cedar Hall is connected to Northern Lights Dining, a dining hall with a variety of options available to students.

Cedar Hall is attached to The Lodge, a common space for students to gather. The Lodge includes a small kitchen, grand fireplace, and a variety of seating options.

Cedar Hall single bedroom with private bath is pictured here. There is an extremely limited number of Single Bedrooms with Private Bathroom in Cedar Hall.

Joel Kaskinen

Hey y’all, I’m Joel Kaskinen (he, him, his)! I joined the Housing & Residence Life team in May, 2025 as Resident Director of Cedar Hall and am thrilled to be back at NMU after spending the past ten years away.

I have worked as a professional in the higher education, communications and public relations, event management, and nonprofit sectors and bring a wealth of experience and knowledge to my alma mater with the hopes of giving back to the community that poured into me as a student.

While a student at NMU, I was involved in house and hall government, serving as the Hogwarts House president and Spalding Hall vice president freshman year. The next two years, I was the Resident Adviser of Backcountry House in Meyland Hall. Additionally, I served as an Orientation Staff Assistant for two summers, worked in the Center for Student Enrichment senior year, and helped found the student organization, Marquette Ending Hunger.

I hold a bachelor’s degree in communication studies from Northern Michigan University (2016) and a master’s degree in educational administration from the University of South Dakota (2018).

Outside of work I enjoy reading, running, spending time along the shore of Lake Superior, sipping coffee on one of the many patios in town, and obsessing over soccer and hockey.

Stop by my office and say “hey!” Visitors are always welcome.

Contact :

jokaskin@nmu.edu | 906-227-3004

Office Hours: