News and Events

Please check back regularly.  New and event items will be posted as they become available.

Fall 2009

• Job advertisement (Assistant Professor);
• Student advising party (Winter 2010);
• Student advising notes (Winter 2010);
• Winter 2010 course offering (GC 470);
• GTU will hold its first meeting October 7th at 6pm in the GIS/RS Lab. Dr. Legg will be organizing the event, pizza will be served and we will elect GTU officers. Event attendance by invitation and membership only. Please see Jana with your completed GTU membership package if you are interested in attending and running for an officer position. 
  
• Dr. Anderton Dr. Legg and select students team up to model prehistoric sites in the yellow dog plains watershed;
  
• The GIS/RS lab goes --- full docking station ---. Twenty laptop docking stations were installed in the lab. Students now have access to wide screen monitors, extended desktops (virtual and actual), keyboards and mice provided within the GIS/Lab. GIS software available from the HelpDesk.  Docking stations are USB and are with Macintosh and PC computers (Sept 09);
  
• Christopher Hutte (Computer Information Systems  '09) joins the department as our Senior Lab Administrator (GIS/RS Lab). We are excited to have Chris join our team and look forward to exciting changes in the daily operation the NMU GIS/RS lab;
  
• The department works on preparing exciting changes to our future curriculum;
  
• Classes resume for the fall semester 2009.
  

Winter 2009

• Environmental Summer Internship (paid): the Yellow Dog Watershed Preserve is currently seeking applications for an Environmental/Outreach Intern for the summer of 2009. Start June 1 End August 31. Send resume by May 9, 2009 to the Yellow Dog Watershed Preserve, P.O. Box 5 Big Bay, MI 49808, or by email emily@yellowdogwatershed.org. Contact Emily 906-345-9223 for additional information and questions.
  
• GC Course availability: (Link);
  
• Dr. Legg and 4th year GIS major Tia Bowe attended the Annual Association of American Geographers, Las Vegas Nevada. Their conference presentation was recently published in ArcUser. The presentation received positive comments and we garnered interest from a variety of group: View the article online:  (Link);
  
• The department head search was given permission to go to the next step, candidate selection is currently 'in progress';
  
• Student advising party (Winter, 2009);
  
• Student advising notes (Winter, 2009);
  
• Job advertisement (Information specialist);
  
• The NMU GIS Lab has undergone a major technical upgrade for 2009. All 24 lab workstations have a new image featuring ArcGIS 9.3 and ERDAS Imagine 9.3. February 2009, the lab enterprise server was replaced with a dual quad core 64-bit PowerEdge 1900, by Dell. The latest GIS and Remote Sensing software is also available to have installed on student laptops. Please go to the NMU helpdesk for further information;
  
• Professor Anderton, Professor Regis and Dr. Legg prepare questions and examinations for the upcoming Science Olympiad (http://soinc.org/) hosted by NMU (Feb. 14, 2009);
  
• The 'Peak Oil' film series schedule is available 'Click here'. The film series is offered in the Peter White Library on selected Wednesdays at 7pm;
  
• Classes resume for the Winter 2009 semester;
  
• Dept. accepting applications for Dept. Head position. Contact the chair of the search committee, Steve DeGoosh (sdegoosh@nmu.edu) for further information.
  

Fall 2008

• Graduating senior dinner at the Casa Calabria, Tuesday December 2nd (6pm); Make sure to RSVP Jana Nicholls (janprice@nmu.edu) if you are a graduating senior that plans to attend this event;
  
• Steve DeGoosh will be offering a public film series during the winter at the Peter White Library. The series theme is 'Peak Oil' and the intention is to link this topic with the parallel crises of global climate change and economic collapse. The film series intends to raise public awareness about these issues and promote a community-wide "Transition Town Planning" effort come spring. Monitor the Peter White library web site for the film series screen dates;
  
• Dr. Legg is registered for the 2009 AAG (http://www.aag.org/) in Las Vegas. Provisionally the paper he plans to present is entitled "Housing patterns in small town America: an exploration of spatial analysis methods (case study involving Marquette Michigan)". Two students contributing to this paper, may also attend the conference;
  
• Terrance Seethoff, -dean of arts and sciences- visits the department of geography, November 17^th;
  
• Dr. John Anderton led a successful field trip showcasing the coastal geomorphology of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Eight students attended and they had good weather;
  
• Diamonds Around the world Presentation on Exploration and Mining activities around the world. This is a free event with Door Prizes worth $2000 (see brochure). Wednesday, December 3rd at 6-9pm, Jamrich Hall (102);
  
• The Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dr. Susan J. Koch visits the department November 24^th (2pm);
  
• The NMU Rock and Mineral Club plan to hold several geology based presentations throughout the semester. Some of these presentations will involve exciting door prizes, including diamond necklaces worth several hundred dollars a piece... open invitation contact Ms. Claire Kitzman (ckitzman@nmu.edu) for further details;
  
• Department holds their 'Vision Quest' October 24^th. The vision quest will involve an off-campus retreat to plan the future direction of geography and environmental science at NMU;
  
• Dr. Fritz Nelson (distinguished alumni) will visit the department October 6^th for a short visit on his way up to the Huron Mountain Club to continue his climate based research;
  
• Biogeography overnight field-trip to the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore completed successfully on September 26-27^th;
  
• The Department welcomes Amanda Dornbos, our newest appointed student worker for the 08-09 academic year;
  
• The Fall semester begins at a rapid pace;
  
• The Department welcomes Gerald Buyea our 2008-09 assistant to the GIS lab;
  
• Dr. Legg welcomes Jacok C. Keck, our department Freshman Fellow. Jacob will be provide assistance on several research projects throughout the 08-09 academic year.
  

Summer 2008

• Dr. Legg sends a reminder to those students interested in the presenting at the regional AAG meeting, St. Catherine's Ontario/Niagara Falls, to contact him for further information about their conference registration.
  
• NMU Geography welcomes our newest faculty member, Dr. Linah Ababneh.
  
• Prof. John B. Anderton appointed interim Head of the Department of Geography 2008-09.
  
• Prof. Michael Broadway appointed interim Honors Program Director for 2008-09.
  
• Dr. Ron Sundell Elected president of the NMU AAUP. This appointment enables funding for additional teaching faculty within the Department and the Environmental Science Program.
  

Winter 2008

• Wanted, volunteers to help with the wildcat-willie weekend, 9:45-11 AM in the GIS lab (west science, 3613). Please e-mail Dr. Legg or Dr. Anderton for further details. We will provide volunteers a complimentary breakfast/brunch Sweetwater café afterwards;
  
• Graduate program opportunities (MA, MS, PhD) at the Dept. of Geosciences, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Michigan. Also read up on the six week hydrofield camp they  conduct every summer (.pdf color brochure);
  
• 2008 International Model Your Campus competition by Google; (contest details);
  
• Students- we need your ideas, from the practical to the fantastical, to help create a more sustainable NMU:
  • And... you could win an Apple iPod touch, a $500 value!
  • Contest details:
  • www.nmu.edu/BigGreenIdea
    
• Internship opportunity for the summer at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, Summer 2008 (June-4^th to  August-6^th. (Further Details);
  
• Mark Clute for students with an interest in public sector GIS. (Application form; Scholarship Award Protocol; Scholarship Booklet).
  

Fall 2007

• Announcement of graduate assistantships to prospective graduate students, Dept. of Geography, University of Michigan (further details);
  
• The Department of Geography hosts a gratulatory dinner for 2007 majors graduating with a major in geography, good times had by all who attended the event @ Casa Calabria!
  
• Announcement of internship opportunities for students with GIS knowledge (further details);
  
• Advising notes to students (further details);
  
• The Geography Department announces the Fall Semester advising party Tuesday October 30, 6 pm (further details);
  
• The NMU Rock and Mineral Club is sponsoring a photography contest to celebrate Earth Science Week, 2007. The photography theme for this year is: Discovering the Upper Peninsula's natural treasures: Further details can be found at the link following: http://esker.nmu.edu/photocontest.htm;
  
• Saturday, Oct. 6^th, Grand Isle Geoarchaeological Field Trip, led by Professor, J. Anderton (Last weekend to visit Grand Island for the year!). Only 33 spots available. Additional details in the geography office. (Cost $10, lunch, and appropriate clothing not included);
  
• Potential Departmental Trip to India announced: GC295: Special Topics in Geography India's Golden Triangle: There will be a meeting in room 3710 NSF on Wednesday, September 26 @7.00pm. (additional information here);
  
• Presentation by Dr. Fritz Nelson entitled 'Frozen Ground in the Changing Northern Environment', October, 3^rd, 7pm, Mead Auditorium;
  
• The GIS lab committee welcomes Jesus D. Roman as the lab technician for 2007-08.
  

Spring/Summer 2007

• NMU Professors Robert Legg and Neil Cumberlidge present report on Uganda venture;
  
• Bruce Wilson GIS/RS presentation;
  
• April 2007, professors John Anderton, Robert Legg and Robert Regis prepared a geoarchaeological poster presentation on prehistoric settlement within Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Their poster was presented at the 2007 AAG meeting San Francisco, April 17-21.
  
• April 2007, GIS lab technician Emily English had her undergraduate research poster "Upper Peninsula Forest Composition Change" selected for 1st place at the 2007 NMU Celebration of Student Research and Creative Works.