For the week of December 6, 2004
From the 6th floor
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Not
much snow left in the Marquette area, at least. Rain, drizzle and mild temperatures
the past couple days did a fairly decent job of melting much of the white
on the ground. The forecast through the week calls for temperatures in the upper 30s with a chance of snow near the end of the week. Otherwise, relatively mild. No big systems in the near future. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate next week, also, for anyone making the trip to Marquette for commencement and those students traveling home after finals. |
The future of NMU's oldest buildings discussed at forum
 Lee Hall is seen in the foreground, Carey Hall in the background. |
Construction
continues on campus even though the snow has started to fly. The new art and design addition is nearly complete and progress continues on the new DeVos Art Museum . With the new art and design addition nearly complete, serious attention has turned to the future of the two oldest campus buildings: Carey and Lee Halls. Carey, built in 1948, may be turned into condominiums designed for a retiree population. "The thought of creating a teaching and learning environment that suits all ages of the population is appealing," said President Les Wong. "We have made an effort to receive community input on the Carey proposal. There is a lot of condo construction taking place in Marquette, but we think we can complement that without stealing others' thunder. Adult learners have a legitimate place on campus and this would open up other opportunities." Mike Roy, Vice President for Finance and Administration, said Lee Hall may become a campus welcome center, restored to preserve and showcase such noteworthy features as its terrazzo flooring and ballroom. It might eventually house the NMU Foundation, alumni relations, a heritage center funded by a private $1 million gift presented during the past campaign by an NMU alumnus, Northern Center for Lifelong Learning, continuing education and the center for gerontological studies. While some university resources will be required for the project, Roy said the goal is to fund most of it through private sources by creating a vision for the building and securing investors. |
Two housing plans presented at forum
An artist rendering of
renovated Magers Hall. |
The next major renovation on campus – converting Magers Hall from faculty offices back to student housing – was the first of several pending facilities projects discussed at the Dec. 1 university forum. Art Gischia, Director of Purchasing, said bids are due Dec. 9 and construction is scheduled to begin in March. The estimated $6.1 million renovation is on the "fast track," with completion expected in just three months. The self-imposed schedule with Magers will serve as a trial for future residence hall renovation projects in the hope that on-campus housing will not be impacted during the academic year. "That is a very aggressive approach to a project of this magnitude, but we wanted to finish it over the summer so that we wouldn't have to take a building off line for a whole year," Gischia said. "In order to have better control of the scheduling, we've approached the bidding process differently. Instead of having an architect draw up one complete bid package, this time we have three individual bids – for general contractor, mechanical and electrical – held by the university. It will take two or three shifts to accomplish this, but if it works, we may consider it again for future residence hall renovation." Magers will also serve as a real-life learning experience for construction management students, who will work on the schedule and follow the process through the initial construction phase. Carl Holm, Director of Housing and Residence Life said architectural changes in the building will include a roofline that is pitched rather than flat; and three-story entryways on the corners featuring sunroom sitting areas on the second and third floors. "We really wanted to change the long, dark corridors and open them up to bring in more natural light and allow students to take advantage of that light," Holm said. |
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The NMU Board of Trustees recently authorized a bond issue to fund new student apartments (sketched above) at an estimated cost of $13.3 million. The complex will feature a mix of efficiency, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and four-bedroom units. |
Excellence in Teaching awards announced
 Ventre  Niebauer |
Ray
Ventre (English) and Wally Niebauer (CAPS) are the recipients of the 2005
Excellence in Teaching Awards at NMU. They will be recognized at the Celebration
of Scholarship Ceremony from 4-5 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 9, in the Peter White
Lounge of the University Center. Each will receive a plaque and a $1,000
check.
All faculty are encouraged
to attend the celebration, which will also honor the following 2005 TLC
Faculty Award recipients, all from the School of Education: Kathleen Heikkila,
Mitchell Klett, Laura Reissner, and N. Suzanne Standerford.
The Excellence in Teaching Award is sponsored by the Teaching Learning Advisory Committee (TLAC) and the office of the provost and vice president for academic affairs.
Nominees must demonstrate
a sustained record of high achievement in teaching evidenced by, but not
restricted to: positive peer observation; high student qualitative and
quantitative evaluation; a thorough knowledge of subject matter taught;
clarity, organization, and consistency in subject presentation and assessment;
enthusiasm for teaching and learning; creation of a safe and open learning
environment; and experimentation with teaching and learning paradigms.
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Wildcat Sports update
Don't forget.....
NMU Alumni Association
Minneapolis area Alumni Reception
Wednesday, December 22
Ridder Arena
Minneapolis, MN
Immediately following (approx. 7:30) the 5:00 NMU vs. Harvard hockey game at
Mariucci Arena.
You do not need a game ticket to attend the party!
Meet NMU President Les Wong, his wife, Phyllis, and NMU head hockey coach Walt Kyle.
Thanks for stopping by.....
...future
Wildcat Delaney Marchiol.
One of the advantages of being editor of this newsletter, I can include any
photos I want. Which is why you are looking at my niece who came to visit the
6th floor last week.
But honestly, I take pictures of everyone who visits, so it's not like it's nepotism. Plus, Delaney comes from a long line of alumni; both her parents, Steve '92 and Kristin '94, both her grandpas, all her aunts and all her uncles. So, if that's not good enough to get your photo included in "What's New, NMU?" I don't know what is.
From the Email bag
"Thank you so much
for the weekly newsletters! My husband, Greg, and myself both graduated from
NMU (me in '76 and he in '81.) We usually are able to return to Marquette at
least once a year, since we were both born there and still have family in the
area. We now live in Muskegon (for the past fifteen years) and enjoy living
very close to Lake Michigan. When we first moved to lower Michigan for a job
promotion for my husband, for two years we lived in the middle of "the
mitten" and I sure suffered from Great Lakes Deprivation! Our middle son
went to NMU last year so we were able to go to a couple football and hockey
games and cheer on the Wildcats! I sure appreciate the updates and hope to be
able to go to the hockey game in Ann Arbor this year since our daughter is in
college there. I am hoping for more snow here, since I am an avid cross country
skier. I will look forward to further updates from the newsletter. Feels like
home whenever I read them."
Carol '76 and Greg '81 Schwemin
North Muskegon, MI
latebloomermsw@hotmail.com
"Thanks for the
Wildcats sports update you put in the last newsletter. As a former NMU basketball
player I enjoy keeping up with the teams and how they are playing. Keep up the
good work, great way to keep us informed."
Caren (Loper) Thorp '81
Vassar, MI
nmucats@hotmail.com
As always, feedback/suggestions/questions can be directed to yours truly.
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