Contant Named Academic Dean

Cheryl Contant began serving as dean of the faculty and vice president of academic affairs at Northland College on July 1. She had most recently been working in System Academic Administration at the University of Minnesota.

Contant comes to Northland with experience at both public and private liberal arts colleges and larger universities. She has developed new academic programs and enhanced partnerships between communities and educational institutions, among other academic initiatives. In addition, she has authored or co-authored more than thirty academic publications, the most recent of which appeared in The American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

"I am thrilled to be Northland's new dean of faculty," says Contant, "and to be working with the outstanding faculty, staff, and students at Northland. The opportunity for me to link liberal arts education to my passion for and academic background in environmental protection is just a dream come true for me. Also, to be a member of an exceptional faculty and leadership team is both humbling and very exciting."

Northland College President Michael A. Miller says the College is benefitting from Contant's broad range of experience in education.

"Cheryl's twenty-five years of teaching and scholarship in environmental sciences and planning, complete with twelve years of administrative experience, make her a worthy and welcome addition to the Northland community," says Miller. "Cheryl is helping us to continue advancing the remarkable work we've been doing."

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Northland, Local Builders Construct New Compost Shed

Northland College recently finished construction of a new compost building on campus. The facility will be a focal piece of the College's commitment to sustainable operations by reducing waste on campus and using compost to grow food consumed in the campus cafeteria. Northland hired Marengo-based Chisel Craft Timber Frame Company and Ashland-based businesses Mike Brown Irrigation Services, Ted Kramolis Contracting, and Trudeau Construction to complete the facility this summer.

"The building will also operate more efficiently than our current compost shed on campus, as well as provide options for compost uses on and off campus," said Tom Hmielewski, director of facilities at Northland College.
The current composting equipment at Northland will be moved into the new facility on campus, which will be used primarily to compost food waste from the campus cafeteria.

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McNerney, Hudson join SOEI staff

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Northland joins local economic steering committee

A mix of public, private, non-profit, and tribal community members in the Ashland area came together to form a steering committee to enhance economic development in the region. The committee is striving to identify goals and provide clarity between groups driving economic development in the greater Ashland area. The group, which held its first organizational meeting in July, aims to form and implement a comprehensive plan by November 2012 that guides actions toward that end.

"The group has organized four community work sessions to set the vision and define actions to enhance economic development in the Ashland area," said Mike Masterson, president of the Ashland Area Development Corporation. "We are identifying where we want to be in the future and committing to developing strategic actions that target focus areas the community views as important. Economic development efforts are more successful when they are partnered with community development."

The economic development steering committee includes members of the business, education, health care, government, and tribal entities in the region. Representatives of the Ashland Area Development Corporation, Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Chippewa, City of Ashland, Ashland County, Ashland School District, Northland College, and other organizations comprise the committee tasked with steering the region's economic growth. Michael A. Miller, president of Northland College, chairs the committee.

"The group acknowledges areas of duplication or confusion in meeting regional economic development objectives," said Miller. "We want to generate a two-page document that gives us a common ground to work from in coordinating efforts to promote a more healthy, vibrant community."

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101st Commencement

More than eighty graduates took part in Northland College's 101st Commencement Ceremony on Saturday, May 26. Award-winning author and environmental journalist Peter Annin delivered the 2012 commencement address and was awarded an honorary doctorate for his work to protect the waters of the Great Lakes. The student address was given by graduating senior Clara Smoniewski of Lake Mills, Wisconsin.

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Golf Classic raises more than $70K

On Thursday, July 12, more than 120 golfers gathered at the Apostle Highlands Golf Course near Bayfield, Wisconsin, for the 2012 Northland College Scholarship Golf Classic. The annual event raises funds to support scholarships for students from northern Wisconsin to attend Northland College. Participants contributed more than $70,000 in support of local students.

The 2012 Scholarship Golf Classic, an 18-hole best-ball scramble, featured several challenge competitions, including longest drive, hole-in-one, and longest putt challenges. Participants also had the chance to out-drive Bill Wilson, athletic director and LumberJills Basketball coach. After the golf tournament, participants gathered for a reception at Wild Rice in Bayfield, Wisconsin, which included several other games, a raffle, and a silent auction.

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WRNC engages more students

The Northland College radio station, 97.7 WRNC-LPFM, drew in fifteen to twenty student and community volunteers during 2011-2012. With the help of students and volunteers, the station has renewed efforts to grow local and student programming. During the last year, WRNC offered live broadcasts of several public hearings on the iron mining debate from Wisconsin Eye and a Northland College mining forum in January 2012. WRNC also trained two news interns in the last year, one of whom garnered awards from the Wisconsin Broadcaster's Association and the Intercollegiate Broadcasting System.

In addition, The station has cultivated an informal news-sharing partnership with 91.3 KUWS-FM, a Wisconsin Public Radio (WPR) affiliate in Superior. WRNC also worked with WPR to organize a recording of the Ashland Folk Festival for the program "Simply Folk." In addition, WRNC contributed news reports on Native American issues to National Native News and 88.9 WOJB-FM in Hayward. All of this could not have happened without the support of community members and Northland students.

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Residence Hall Revitalization

When President Michael A. Miller arrived on campus, he challenged everyone to increase campus vibrancy and work collaboratively. This led to several changes in Residential Life, including a six-semester residency requirement, a drastic overhaul of meal plans, and a large-scale residence hall renovation project.

The plans for the project took shape through open forums, meetings with the Northland College Student Association and residence staff, and an online survey. Meal plan changes that challenge students to cook more meals for themselves merited updates to the residence hall kitchens. The staff from offices across campus worked through the planning and implementation of the project to ensure the sustainability of resources-both natural and fiscal.

Much of the work on the revitalization project was completed by local businesses and workers from Ashland; Mason, Wisconsin; Duluth, Minnesota; and Ironwood, Michigan.

Individual projects included remodeled kitchens with more food preparation areas, new flooring and paint in many of the buildings, new wellness rooms for group fitness classes, improved wireless connectivity, and new table games in the common spaces.

Sustainability was also a key consideration in many of the projects. Many of the improvements used recycled or refurbished materials and all of the paint used during the project was a safe, no-VOC, latex paint.

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Native Alumni Installation

Northland College is currently working to recognize Native American alumni with a photo installation on campus. The project is a mosaic of images including portraits of alumni and photos of other culturally significant items, like this image of sweetgrass. The project, an ongoing effort, will be on display starting in early 2013 and will grow as more images are added to the collection.

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Shrode Named Vice President of Institutional Advancement

Scott Shrode has been named the vice president for institutional advancement at Northland. Shrode most recently served as vice president of institutional advancement and church relations at Lenoir-Rhyne University in Hickory, North Carolina.

"It is my pleasure to announce that Scott Shrode has agreed to join us as the vice president for institutional advancement. It is exciting to see this important next step for our community taking shape," said Michael A. Miller, president of Northland College. "Scott has led successful capital campaigns and brings to Northland extensive experience in estate law practice, administrative experience and a thorough background in planned and major gifts strategies and vehicles."

Shrode holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Evansville, and a law degree from Northwestern University.

"I was so impressed with Northland College and their advancement team," said Shrode. "If you present Northland College in its true light to individuals-what the mission is, what the vision is-most of the time I would predict that you wouldn't even have to ask for support. People will say, ‘How may I help you?'"

Shrode will lead efforts to identify fundraising priorities, focus on coordinating support and enhancing relationships with alumni and friends.

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NAICC Develops New Programs

The staff of the Native American and Indigenous Culture Center (NAICC) at Northland College has been working hard to create partnerships and community programs that encourage and support Native American students and families.

"We've held several events in the last year to research and facilitate cultural exchanges while upholding traditions, ceremonies, languages, and arts of Native American culture in the region," says Katrina Werchouski '07, coordinator for multicultural programs at Northland College and NAICC Fellow.

One example of that-Northland College partnered with the Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center in Ashland during March to host Anishinaabe water walker Josephine Mandamin. Mandamin shared her experience coordinating the 2011 Mother Earth Water Walk, which sought to raise awareness of the need to protect freshwater. The NAICC staff also brought in notable international peacekeeper Chief Arvol Looking Horse to speak at Northland. Chief Looking Horse offered thoughts on the need for peace, cultural identity, and environmental protection. In addition, several film screenings on cultural issues and a youth day camp have promoted education of native and non-native issues.

In March, Northland College also appointed alumnus James Pete '79 as the new director of the Native American and Indigenous Culture Center. Pete, who has served as an adjunct faculty member at local colleges and universities, oversees the operations of the NAICC. He looks at how the College can enhance its cultural foundation to help support Native American and other indigenous students, and tribal communities.

The Native American and Indigenous Culture Center was established at Northland College in September 2011 with generous support from the Otto Bremer, Brown Family, H.R.K., and Steve J. Miller foundations.

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