A Year in Review 2010-2011
President’s Message It has been a tremendous year at Northland College. One year ago, I welcomed students onto campus as their new president. Since being appointed in July of 2010, Northland has successfully implemented a number of plans of improvement, rekindled many partnerships, and found new ways to invest in innovation and solutions-based efforts.
major. We also brought back our Meteorology major, further strengthening Northland’s academic portfolio and offering students a traditional liberal arts and sciences program connected to the emerging needs and challenges of the world. We engage students’ minds and hands experientially through the real world application of their classroom and laboratory learning.
We developed a Coordinator of Applied Learning position to support student internships with the goal of providing every student with at least one internship experience before he or she graduates. Internships pair classroom theory with professional and experiential immersion experiences for students. The results are refined skills development, higher job placement rates, and higher starting salaries for graduates.
Northland solidified its goals and measures of success – bringing the internal community of staff, faculty, and students together to evaluate the progress of our successes and build strategic solutions to challenges that we face in a difficult economic time for our nation.
Northland solidified its commitment to regional history and to the indigenous community through the re-deployment of the Native American Studies
And finally, at the end of our academic year, we held our institution’s 100th commencement ceremony in May 2011. The event marked our institutional timeline and provided us with a way to look back at our past and look ahead to where we are going, boldly, into the future.
The ongoing generosity of our alumni and friends in support of Northland is inspiring. We are grateful for your continued support and confidence. Our shared dedication to the education of young leaders, our commitment to the values of sustainability, and our strong voice in a wilderness of global economic and environmental challenge distinguish us as members of the Northland College community. Together, we will build a strong future for generations to come. Sincerely,
Michael A. Miller, President
President Michael A. Miller, Ph.D., & Mary Trettin, Ph.D.
Northland Job & Internship Fair
Welcome Convocation Ceremony
Student Art Exhibitions
Ashland Shoreland Restoration Project
Reed Timmer, Extreme Storm Chaser
Northland College 100th Commencement
Northland offers Access Guarantee, which allows eligible students to attend Northland for a cost the same as or lower than the largest public university in their home state.
Scholarships Northland College awards more than $5 million dollars a year in scholarships to students who might not otherwise afford the benefits of a high-quality private liberal arts and sciences education. Studies have shown that students who receive scholarships are more likely to excel in their academic and professional careers, and are more likely to give financial gifts in turn to others in the future. The Northland College Board of Trustees contributed more than $1.1 million towards the Trustee Challenge special scholarship fundraising initiative in October 2010. By the end of the academic year, 701 donors contributed $784,819 to meet this challenge. A grand total of $1,942,176 was raised to support student scholarships for the 2011-2012 academic year. Some of those funds went to create 51 new named scholarships.
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The success of the Trustee Challenge for Scholarships was a significant factor in our recruitment results. Many students wouldn’t be able to attend Northland if it weren’t for scholarships. It is rewarding to faculty and staff, as well as admissions, to be able to enroll students based on their academic talents, artistic and leadership achievements, and dreams rather than their financial wherewithal.”
- Rick J. Smith, Vice President of Enrollment Management
Learn more about the importance of giving to scholarships at www.northland.edu/scholarships
Exceptional Students Rick J. Smith started working at Northland in September, 2010 as Vice President of Enrollment Management. Under his leadership, the number of new entering freshmen and transfer students increased significantly. Between Fall 2010 and 2011 Northland experienced the largest percentage increase of any Wisconsin private college in new entering freshman and transfer students, from 171 students in 2010 to 194 in 2011. Student Loan Information
Academic Information
Northland students invest in themselves by taking loans against their future earnings. Eighty-six percent of 20102011 graduates had loans, while 74.9% of Northland’s enrolled students on aid have loans.
40.8% of new entering freshmen reported ACT scores of 25.6 or higher. A total of only 26% of all students in the United States reported an ACT score of 26 or higher.
Family Income
29.9% of new entering freshmen reported ACT scores of 29.9 or higher.
Northland students, particularly those from northern Wisconsin, have a modest family income. Avg. family income of students other than new entering freshmen. Avg. family income of students other than new entering freshmen from northern Wisconsin.
$71,018 $58,209
New entering Northland freshmen performed well academically in high school as 70% earned a 3.2 GPA or better, and 40% earned a 3.6 or better.
Nearly one-third of Northland students are from northern Wisconsin.
Many Northland students are the first generation in their family to attend college. Of all Northland students, 18.7% are first generation. 21.9% of new entering freshmen are first generation students.
Fields of Study Passionate and engaged faculty are at the core of Northland’s programs. In 2010-11 the College hired six, tenure-track faculty members to support majors in Biology, Business, Humanities, Native American Studies, Natural Resources, and Meteorology. Coming to Northland with graduate degrees from around the world, these faculty members bring expertise and interests that include Ojibwa foodways, exotic earthworms, riparian song birds, organizational systems, small-scale ocean processes, and environmental ethics. They’ve led extended field courses, worked in Hawaii, held postdoctoral positions, taught in the Ukraine, and published books. Before coming to campus, they reached out to colleagues and students at the College — making connections — and sharing their passions for learning about the world.
Intrigued by the environmental implications of plastics, Assistant Professor of Chemistry, Nick Robertson (above), Ph.D., received a summer research grant to work with two Northland students on the development of biodegradable plastics.
Building a Connected Curriculum In the fall of 2007, Northland College welcomed the first cohort of students to its newly developed Superior Connections program. Designed to immerse students in a sustained study of the Lake Superior Watershed, Superior Connections initiated a new approach to general education at the College—an approach that emphasizes multi-disciplinary integration to prepare students for understanding and acting within the complex relationships that characterize life in the twenty-first century. The first cohort of Superior Connections students paddled replicas of Voyageur canoes; netted fish; toured mines and power plants; hiked on bogs, sand dunes, and green stone; studied in classrooms, labs, and wigwams; and spent twenty-five days traveling around the Lake. In May of 2011, the College’s hundredth commencement, some members of the Superior Connections group graduated from Northland College inspired and empowered through their experiences of connectedness to make a difference in the world.
Did you know? Students may declare an Environmental Studies minor having completed their general education requirements.
Today, curricular connections continue to grow, and each new year students have the option of completing their general education requirements by enrolling in Superior Connections, Growing Connections, or Natural Connections.
Learn more about Northland’s integrated Connections Curriculum, by visiting: www.northland.edu/connections
Connected to the Community Since the inception of the Coordinator of Applied Learning position in October of 2010, Northland students have participated in 54 for-credit internships and more than 30 non-credit internships. Internship programs run the gamut from working for the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Ashland to National Geographic Society in Washington, D.C. Northland’s goal to offer internships to all students includes more than preparing graduates for the real world, Northland is also connected to the community. Whether testing water quality at area beaches for the Chequamegon Bay Area Partnership, restoring the Ashland shoreline with the Wisconsin DNR by removing invasive plants and replacing them with native species, or helping farmers harvest crops in the Growing Connections program, Northland students help meet the needs of area non-profit, business, and government agencies in a variety of capacities.
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In addition to internships, 320 Northland students provided almost 2,900 volunteer hours of service to the area in the 2010-2011 school year. Opportunities for Northland Students to Connect to the Community • Sigurd Olson Environmental Institute • Northland Volunteer Program • First Year Experience • Classroom Projects • Faculty Research Assistants • Senior Capstone Projects • Internships • Northland Volunteer Fair • Job and Internship Fair
It is our responsibility to ensure not only the thriving of the college, but the greater community,” Michele Meyer, Dean of Student Life, explains. “It’s the fabric of who we are as an institution. We weave it into everything we do.”
Northland students volunteer with the Ashland Shoreland Restoration Project.
Thank you! Every gift to Northland College—no matter what form it takes—makes a difference to our students and faculty. When you make a gift to Northland, you have great flexibility in determining how you make the gift. As a friend and supporter of Northland College, please take a look at the videos posted on our website to see the working impact of your gifts.
www. northland.edu/thank-you
Summary of Giving Alumni $1,334,387 Parents $36,564 Friends $2,062,204 Businesses, Corporations, Foundations $241,282 Private Foundations (Includes Alumni and Friends) $3,048,946 Churches and Other Organizations $51,820 Total Gifts Received $6,775,203 (Illustrated Below)
Alumni Parents Friends
Businesses, Corporations, Foundations Private Foundations (Includes Alumni and Friends) Churches and Other Organizations
Senior Staff President Michael A. Miller
Dean of Student Life Michele Meyer
Vice President of Finance & Administration Robert Jackson
Vice President of Enrollment Management Rick J. Smith
Interim Vice President of Academic Affairs & Academic Dean Alan Brew
Interim Vice President of Institutional Advancement Kristin Liphart
Board of Trustees Thomas D. Martin, Chair Lowell Noteboom, Vice Chair Christopher J. Owen, Co-Vice Chair Michael V. Masterson, Secretary Scott Bretting ’01, Co-Secretary Melanie Goble ‘01, Alumni Board President Lincoln Cruz ‘13, Student Trustee William Mokry ‘12, Student Trustee John Allen ‘77 Robert Banks, Jr. ‘76 Carol Blum, M.D. Hannibal Bolton Ellen T. Brown Debra Cervenka Don Chase ‘62 David Donovan Donald E. Fouts, Ph.D. G. Robert Kerr
Michael Myszewski Craig Ponzio ‘72 Robert B. Reichelt Thomas Rhoades III ‘65 Mary Rice Jeremy C. Shea ‘59 Bonnie Smeja ‘70 Richard Strand, M.D. James E. Williamson ‘59
View the entire Northland leadership team, including Trustee Emeriti at: www.northland.edu/administration
Office of Institutional Advancement 1411 Ellis Avenue Ashland, WI 54806-3999 northland.edu
THANK YOU! Northland College is grateful for the generous support of alumni, corporations, foundations, and friends. For a complete list of donors from fiscal year 2010-2011, go to www.northland.edu/donors