Northland College Magazine

Northland College MAGAZINE

SPRING 2017

A Highway Shall Be There pg. 5 Food Revolution pg. 12 296 Solo Miles on the Superior Hiking Trail pg. 18 Also in this issue: In Brief • Research • Athletics • And More NCMagazine-SPRING2017-FINAL.indd 1

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JOIN US FOR FALL FESTIVAL 2017 AND CELEBRATE 125 YEARS OF NORTHLAND COLLEGE SEPTEMBER 22-24

125th ANNIVERSARY LIMITED EDITION CALENDAR To commemorate Northland’s 125th anniversary, we’re creating a 12-month academic year (September-August) calendar featuring rarely seen images of Northland’s past from the archives.

Enjoy a journey through the decades, reminders of current Northland College activities during the 2017-2018 academic year, and significant dates.

This anniversary issue is a limited run, only going into production once our goal of 500 pre-ordered copies are sold.

Proceeds benefit Fall Festival activities and the Northland College archives.

Order yours today! Only $12.50.

Call 715-682-1811 or go to

northland.edu/125calendar

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CONTENTS NCMagazine-SPRING2017-FINAL.indd 3

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FROM THE PRESIDENT

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A HIGHWAY SHALL BE THERE

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Northland College Magazine SPRING 2017 Mission

Northland College integrates liberal arts studies with an environmental emphasis, enabling those it serves to address the challenges of the future.

President Dr. Michael A. Miller

President’s Cabinet

IN BRIEF

Dr. Leslie Alldritt, Dean of Faculty, Vice President of Academic Affairs Hal Haynes Dean of Students

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RESEARCH

Robert Jackson Vice President of Finance and Administration Teege Mettille Executive Director of Admissions

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FOOD REVOLUTION

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296 SOLO MILES ON THE SUPERIOR HIKING TRAIL

Mark Peterson, Executive Director, Sigurd Olson Environmental Institute Margot Carroll Zelenz Vice President of Institutional Advancement

Faculty Council President

Clayton Russell, Associate Professor of Environmental Education and Outdoor Education

Staff Council President

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ART

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ATHLETICS

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ON THE MOVE

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PARKER MATZINGER

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SYMPATHY TO THE FAMILIES OF

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SNAPSHOTS

Demeri Mullikin, Executive Director of Institutional Marketing Communications © 2017, Northland College

On the Cover The Northland College archives contain images dating back more than 125 years, many capturing significant moments in the history of the College, others simply chronicling life in northern Wisconsin.

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From the President This is a chaotic and disruptive period in this country. Daily headlines are filled with disturbing news about immigration, refugees, reports of false news, the struggles of the poor, and threats to the environment and peace.

Students, faculty, staff, and alumni are feeling uncertainty and anxiety about everything from the future of the Environmental Protection Agency and travel bans to funding for higher education and knowing what information to trust.

The core mission of higher education is the advancement of knowledge, people, and society—and the pursuit of truth. As a liberal arts college with a progressive focus on the environment and sustainability, and as a caring and compassionate campus with a strong sense of social justice, it’s not possible to pretend like this is business as usual.

I have joined other higher education leaders in signing a letter of solidarity that states our academic and ethical responsibilities to current and future generations to take aggressive climate action: to reduce our sector’s carbon pollution, to support interdisciplinary climate education, and to continue research that expands our understanding of rapidly changing Earth systems. Northland College continues its commitment to developing and deploying innovative climate solutions for this region and for the world.

I have also signed a presidents’ letter, along with more than 630 college presidents, stating the moral imperative and national necessity in upholding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program.

Assistant Professor of Sociology and Social Justice Angela Stroud has worked with a group of passionate students to form the Northland Community Action Group as a way to connect students with regional community organizers.

The group’s first event, a panel discussion on Civic Engagement: How to Make Democracy Work, filled the Alvord Theatre with an inspiring mix of college and community participants.

Now more than ever, Northland College’s

mission is deeply meaningful and necessary— and our connection to you and the larger community is essential. We remain committed to bring all voices and all perspectives together, to listen to one another, and to find productive paths together in community.

We launched the Food Systems Center in January, which will deepen ties to the region and move us closer to our local foods goals for the cafeteria. It is one piece in the larger puzzle in our move to full-spectrum sustainability— moving it from compartmentalized divisions to the core of everything we do—incorporating freshwater, wilderness, energy, food, rural development, diversity, and culture.

The coming years will require truthful information and open and honest dialogue among people with different viewpoints and priorities. I look forward to the new opportunities for action and collaboration. I hope you’ll join me on this journey.

Michael A. Miller President, Northland College

WATCH FOR 2017 NORTHLAND COLLEGE EARTH DAY NEWS.

northland.edu/earthday 4

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The Dakota people originate in the Great Lakes region and move westward as the Ojibwe begin to arrive from the east.

1659—French fur traders Pierre d'Esprit, le Sieur Radisson and Medard Chouart, le Sieur des Groseillers were the first Europeans of record to visit Chequamegon Bay and built what has been called the first European dwelling place in Wisconsin.

A High way shall be the re

Over the course of generations, the Ojibwe people undergo a great migration westward following the spiritual promise of the food that grows on water (wild rice), eventually settling in the Great Lakes region.

The North Wisconsin Academy was founded in 1892 with a declaration to provide educational opportunities to people of the north woods—including immigrants, women, and Native Americans. The Academy later became Northland College, “named not for a denomination or a man but for a region it was destined to serve” — and our commitment to that original ideal has never wavered.

This September, Northland College will proudly celebrate 125 years of educating students from all backgrounds and of serving the region for which we were named.

1848—Wisconsin achieves official statehood.

1854—The first plat of the City of Ashland is registered.

1877—Wisconsin Central Railroad connects Ashland to Chicago by rail.

1891—The founders draw up articles of incorporation and establish a “Declaration of Principles” for the North Wisconsin Academy.

July 14, 1892—A crowd gathers to watch workers lay the cornerstone of the North Wisconsin Academy (later to become Northland College).

1892—Ashland begins construction of the City Hall building that continues to be in use today.

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IN BRIEF HOT TOPICS Numbers Don’t Add Up in Wolf-Hound Debate Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Adrian Wydeven, coordinator at the Timber Wolf Alliance, argues that with ecological issues, simple answers or solutions are often inadequate or incorrect. He then explains why a high wolf population alone is not responsible for an increase in hound depredations. ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ Carrying Guns BBC World Service Angela Stroud, sociologist and author of Good Guys with Guns, is interviewed in an eighteen-minute podcast, The Why Factor, where investigators explore the shift and expansion of guns and why people say they carry them. ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ Wisconsin City at Forefront of Water Wars Toledo Blade Peter Annin, co-director of the Mary Griggs Burke Center for Freshwater Innovation and author of The Great Lakes Water Wars, continues to monitor the diversion story in Waukesha, Wisconsin, the battleground for one of North America’s fiercest water wars.

Read the full stories at:

northland.edu/news

Nearly one hundred people attended the opening of the Northland College Student Diversity Center January 23, located on the first floor of Mead Hall. Guest speaker Rev. Dr. Carla J. Bailey, senior minister at Plymouth Congregational Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and an activist, talked about the importance of getting involved in social justice work and the importance of campus spaces like the Student Diversity Center.

1900­—On January 17, a crowd of nearly one thousand gather to observe the formal release of mortgage indebtedness against the Academy.

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1900—Melmon Jacob Fenenga is appointed as second President of North Wisconsin Academy.

U.S. Forest Service and College Sign Historic Lease at Forest Lodge The Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest and Northland College signed a Historic Property Lease in January allowing Northland College to operate and manage Forest Lodge.

Forest Lodge, located eight miles east of Cable, Wisconsin, is a unique 872-acre estate that includes fifteen primary buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The estate was conveyed to the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest in 1999 through the Trust for Public Lands from the private owner Mary Griggs Burke.

Burke wanted Forest Lodge to be preserved as a unique

1904—A campus print shop is established for the joint purpose of giving students work and taking care of the schools printing.

property and to cultivate it as a premier center for environmental leadership, sustainability, and conservation education.

Through the lease, Northland College will coordinate the operations of Forest Lodge as an environmental education and conference center. Activities will include outdoor experiential programs, ecological research, local and national conferences, workshops, seminars, and special events. Northland will host programs and events, as well as coordinate use by other institutions, organizations, and public and private groups.

“We are excited by the many opportunities this partnership will create at Forest Lodge for developing arts and environmental programming as well as convening summits for decision-makers to wrestle with the important policy issues of our times,” said President Miller.

1904—The first bridge over the campus ravine is established.

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Blue Wave Owners Donate Building to Northland College Ashland native Jim Hagstrom is a molecular biologist, cofounder and owner of Mirus Bio LLC. He is an inventor with more than 150 patents, and an entrepreneur. Now, together with his wife Beth, Jim can add philanthropy to his list. Jim and Beth announced in November the donation of Blue Wave on the Bay property to Northland College, where he serves on the Board of Trustees.

“We have two goals with this donation—to help Northland and to help Ashland,” he said.

Jim hasn’t lived in Ashland since high school but his mother still resides here—and he returns

1905—Dill Hall is constructed as a residence.

1906—Trustees establish a college program under the name Northland College and continue with the leadership of President M.J. Fenenga.

often. He decided to buy the closed-down Bodin’s fish shop and retail store in 2012 as a way to help his hometown create a space to recreate and enjoy the big lake.

“Jim and Beth are an energetic, civic-minded, creative pair,” said President Miller. “Northland College is honored to carry forward their vision of a space where the public can eat, sleep, recreate, meet, and just sit and enjoy Lake Superior.”

Jim stepped down as the president of Mirus Bio LLC to focus on the Blue Wave project, a family affair. His architect son, Brian, designed the building to pay homage to the lake and the history of Ashland—from the nautical shape of the building down to incorporating Monk’s Bowling Alley lanes for tables.

Blue Wave opened in 2015

1906—With assistance from Irving C. Smith, President Fenenga develops one of the first commercial market gardens in northern Wisconsin, located on campus on the north side of the ravine.

as a multi-use building with hotel rooms, a restaurant and coffee shop, and commercial retail space leased to Solstice Outdoors, an outdoor recreation business.

For the most part, nothing will change with the transfer of ownership. The building will remain on the tax roll as a private business and Solstice Outdoors will continue to lease space.

An enhanced Blue Wave Inn & Café will move forward under the management of Michelle Rudeen, who owns and operates Freehands Farm, a farm-to-table restaurant outside of Ashland.

Beth Hagstrom shed tears as she entered the café for the first time in six weeks to finalize the deal. “I didn’t realize it would be so emotional,” she said. “I spent

nearly every day here for two years, looking at this view—I’m happy to see that it looks good.”

Beth has been fully involved in the day-to-day operation for the last two years—traveling between her home in Madison and a house in Bayfield. She handed over the reins to Rudeen October 1.

The only visible change: Rudeen added a full-service bar.

Rudeen will run Blue Wave Inn & Café, and what she is calling Freehands Lakeside. The Blue Wave Café continues to serve breakfast and lunch seven days a week. Freehands Lakeside is open for dinner Wednesday through Saturday. She will continue to operate Freehands Farm and greenhouse during the summer months.

“I’m thrilled to be here,” she said. “I’m excited to be able to continue sourcing food from so many local farmers—and showing customers what we still have in season.”

Solstice co-owner Katie Gellatly says she sees opportunities to strengthen ties with Northland College and possibly coordinate outdoor experiences. “I don’t know what it will look like exactly,” she said. “But the connection with the College is a natural one.”

The College will be developing a plan this winter for possible programming ideas.

“I want the faculty, staff, and students to have a place they’re proud of,” Jim Hagstrom said.

“I want the city to have a space they’re proud of. My hope is that this gift accomplishes both of those goals.”

1907—Woods Hall is constructed, using blocks that were produced in the student industry concrete block plant.

1907—President Fenenga decided to adopt Isaiah 35: “And a highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called the way of holiness.”

1908—The rock is placed in front of Wheeler Hall.

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IN BRIEF Northland Celebrates Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Wisconsin State Senator Janet Bewley of the 25th District, right, moderated a panel discussion on building coalitions for civil rights work at Northland College on January 16 with Milwaukee community activists Martha Love, left, LaKeshia Meyers, center, and Michelle Bryant. The panel was part of a day of readings, film, and discussions in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Research students of the Mary Griggs Burke Center for Freshwater Innovation were featured in the December 19 episode of AquaKids, which aired on eighty television networks around the world. AquaKids is an award-winning nonprofit K-12 program that educates young people about ecology, wildlife, science, and how it all relates.

336 donors $31,598 One day

#GIVINGTUESDAY A huge thank you to everyone who gave to Northland on #GivingTuesday. Our goal of 250 donors was shattered. A record was set. And congratulations to the class of 2016 on the highest participation of any class!

1913—Thomas Newton Bobb and John Brinks pause from cutting wood at “Camp Northland,” a parcel of land near Cayuga, Wisconsin, owned by President M.J. Fenenga, allowing for the capture of the iconic photo that would later become Northland’s official seal.

1914—Joseph Daniel Brownell, 1904 graduate of North Wisconsin Academy, becomes Northland’s third president.

1910 —The Wedge, the student yearbook, becomes the earliest enduring publication sponsored by students.

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1915—On April 29, fire guts most of Wheeler Hall.

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RESEARCH Local Food Is Important to Northern Wisconsin Residents The majority of households in northern Wisconsin get their food from a diversity of sources and purchase food directly from farmers, according to the most recent Northland College Public Opinion Poll.

“The results show a northern culture of supporting local farms, sharing, producing, and gathering food—and an overwhelming 89.6 percent think people should choose food produced locally whenever possible,” said Brandon Hofstedt, faculty director of the Center for Rural Communities.

The Northland College Center for Rural Communities (CRC) conducted a poll of residents in the ten northernmost Wisconsin counties between December 2016 and January 2017. Pollsters asked 444 participants questions about where and how they get their food, how much of their food comes from those sources, from where they would like to get more food, and their general attitudes and values toward food.

More than two-thirds of respondents—68.3 percent— identified feeding their families from four or more different food sources.

“In other words, we have a regional food system that has the potential for weathering economic or environmental impacts—something referred to as resilience,” Hofstedt said.

Not surprisingly, stores are the most common and the largest source of food—some 77 percent stated they get most of their food from stores.

What is interesting is where people get the rest of their food. “While a poll like this has not been done in other places,

I strongly suspect that getting food locally in these ways is a distinct north woods quality,” Hofstedt said.

Seventy-five percent of participants get food directly from farmers—on the farm, off-farm food stands, through community supported agriculture (CSA), farmer’s markets, or pick your own.

Some 65.6 percent get food by hunting, fishing, or gathering— ricing, tapping trees, gathering forest fruits, vegetables, and nuts.

Some 58.5 percent grow fruits or vegetables, or raise animals for meat or products.

And 33.4 percent get food by sharing, exchanging, or by donation.

“These activities contribute to the diversity, resilience, and culture of the north woods food system,” said Robin Kemkes, research associate at the Center for Rural Communities. “For this reason, access to land is important for maintaining food

1915­—The original bridge across the ravine is replaced by a very strong structure built of fir timbers.

security and a way of life.”

In fact, of those who hunt, fish, or gather food, 82.2 percent agree with the statement, “The state of Wisconsin should not sell public areas that are used for hunting, fishing, and gathering.”

In addition to prioritizing local food, nearly all households share healthy food values—that people have a right to know what’s in their food and that health is one of the most important factors for their household when making food choices.

The data not only indicate recognition of the importance of local foods but opportunity as well. Nearly 42 percent said they would like to get more of their food from farmers.

“The hunger for local food does not seem to be satiated,” said Matt O’Laughlin, research associate at the Center for Rural Communities.

The poll identified the reasons households don’t buy more food directly from farms—seasonal

limitations (41 percent), not knowing a farmer or where to find a farm (38.5 percent), too far away (26.7 percent), and not having time (25.4 percent).

“All of these barriers, though real, are not insurmountable,” Kemkes said. “With an already burgeoning local foods environment in northern Wisconsin, this shows there is potential for additional growth in the local food system, especially in stores where most people go for food.”

A summary of results can be viewed at northland.edu/polling. The margin of error is +/-4.6 percent at the 95 percent confidence level.

Founded in January of 2015, the CRC applies research-based solutions to social and economic challenges, partners with community members to build on local knowledge, and promotes the long-term health and vitality of rural communities in the north woods region.

1916—Sigurd F. Olson begins studying at Northland College, continuing until 1918.

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RESEARCH IN THE FIELD The Louis Berger Group provided $3,000 for Timber Wolf Alliance Coordinator Adrian Wydeven of the Sigurd Olson Environmental Institute to provide expert input on elements of the Isle Royale National Park Wolf Survey. This survey will aid the U.S. National Park Service in developing an environmental impact statement and in determining long-term management of wolves and other wildlife on Isle Royale. ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ As part of an ongoing collaboration with Central Michigan University, the U.S. Geological Survey awarded $23,458 for a coastal wetland functional assessment project. Project researchers will assist the USGS in developing an approach to prioritize wetlands for restoration efforts.

Matt Cooper, research scientist at the Burke Center, will be working with two student research assistants to measure functional indicators of wetland health. They will sample macroinvertebrate, fish, and water quality at coastal wetlands in northern Lake Huron and Lake Superior.

Their data, along with data from other Great Lakes collaborators, will help state and federal agencies determine where to invest in wetland protection and restoration. ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ In collaboration with the University of Minnesota, the U.S. National Park Service provided $17,000 to support Zebra/Quagga and Native Mussel Research efforts for the St. Croix Scenic Riverway and Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, led by Toben Lafrancois, adjunct assistant professor of natural resources and philosophy. ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ The University of Wisconsin-Extension awarded $5,000 for Matt Cooper, research scientist at the Mary Griggs Burke Center for Freshwater Innovation, to train students in digital observation technology skills and to hire them to collect data in the region. ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources awarded $8,000 for Paula Anich, associate professor of biology and natural resources, to conduct small mammal live-trapping surveys in the Northern Highlands American Legion State Forest.

Olson Receives Funding for Wildlife Surveys on Madeline Island Northland College’s research project—Wild Madeline: Assessing the Wildlife Presence and Abundance of Madeline Island—was one of thirty applications to receive grant funding from the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin through the 2016 C.D. Besadny Conservation Grant Program.

The Wild Madeline project leader and Northland College Professor Erik Olson said they received a $1,000 grant to support an effort to assess the wildlife diversity of Madeline Island.

“What we’re going to be doing is implementing a camera trap survey,” Olson said describing how they would be installing

trail cameras at certain locations within the Madeline Island Wilderness Preserve as well as the Big Bay State Park lands on Madeline Island. “We will be looking at camera trap images to determine which species are present on the island and how abundant those species are. The primary purpose of this is to collect data.”

The results of the Wild Madeline project will be compared to similar projects going on in the Apostle Islands as well as the mainland of the Bayfield Peninsula.

“It will allow us to look at how island size, island distance, and habitat of islands influence the wildlife composition and abundance,” Olson said. “We really haven’t looked to see what wildlife is out there and how abundant it is, and then we haven’t taken it a step further to compare the abundance and diversity of wildlife on those islands to that on the mainland.”

1923—Northland College holds its first homecoming.

1925—The number of college graduates (14) exceeds the number of academy graduates (11) for the first time.

1922—After being discharged from the army, Sigurd F. Olson embarks on the first of many canoe expeditions in the Quetico-Superior Wilderness. His wilderness experiences become the basis for his career as a preservationist, environmentalist, educator, and author.

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1926—On April 11, Dill Hall is destroyed by fire.

1926—Construction begins on Memorial Hall.

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NPS Awards Northland Funds for Climate Change Assessment Project

Cooper Presents at Obama White House on Coastal Wetlands Matt Cooper, research scientist at the Burke Center for Freshwater Innovation, presented his research on the Great Lakes coastal wetlands on November 17 at the White House. His research and presentation are part of the Resilient Lands and Waters Initiative. The roundtable coincided with the release of a national report by Obama’s Council on Environmental Quality.

The roundtable, report, and a website launch were the culmination of two years of work.

A Resilient Lands and Waters Initiative report and companion website highlight the efforts of seven partnerships to build resilience of national natural resources.

“These partnerships demonstrate the benefits of using existing collaborative, landscape-scale conservation approaches to address climate change and other resource management challenges,” Cooper said.

The initiative was a key part of Obama’s Interagency Council on Climate Preparedness and Resilience’s Priority Agenda for Enhancing the Climate

Resilience of America’s Natural Resources, a first of its kind, and a comprehensive commitment across the federal government to support resilience of America’s vital natural resources.

“It was important for the Great Lakes, and specifically coastal wetlands of the Great Lakes, to be part of this effort. The Great Lakes sustain the livelihoods and way of life for so many people that we need to take action now to manage the system for a changing climate,” Cooper said.

The priority agenda directed federal agencies to work with states, tribes, and other partners, to select flagship large-scale geographic regions, and identify priority areas for conservation, restoration, or other investments to build resilience in vulnerable regions, enhance carbon storage capacity, and support management needs. It also directed the agencies and their partners to identify and map an initial list of priority areas within each of the selected geographic landscapes or regions.

“Speaking at a White House event was pretty amazing.

After all of the hours we spend gathering and analyzing data, having the opportunity to explain our findings at that level was very gratifying. I don’t think I’ll ever forget it.”

It remains unclear how efforts like the Resilient Lands and Waters Initiative will move forward under the new administration.

Sarah Johnson, professor of natural resources and biology, Randy Lehr, co-director of the Mary Griggs Burke Center for Freshwater Innovation and professor of environmental science and management, Matt Cooper, research scientist at the Mary Griggs Burke Center for Freshwater Innovation, and a team of students will be working together on a National Park Service project.

The NPS provided $75,921 to fund a project to assess climate vulnerability and adaptation opportunities for Apostle Islands wetlands, which may serve as sentinel sites for the Great Lakes because they are protected through the park service and the sites are isolated on islands.

Despite their protection from many forms of anthropogenic disturbance, Apostle Islands wetlands are vulnerable to impacts associated with climate change—changing Lake Superior water levels, increased storm frequency and intensity, increasing wave energy, and higher air and water temperatures.

Currently, the ability to proactively manage these wetlands in a changing climate is limited by a lack of sufficient data on wetland hydrology, water quality, and biotic communities. This project will address that information gap through an assessment of eleven of the park’s major coastal wetlands and, where data are available, compare current to historic conditions to elucidate trends.

A significant component of the project involves returning to permanent vegetation plots installed by Jim Meeker, a professor of natural resources at Northland College from 1990 to 2011, and his students in the 1990s.

1927 —In June, J.D. Brownell and Na-be-wi-sah, a Chippewa Indian from Bad River, met in ceremony in which Northland College formally accepted the Chippewa Tribal Spirit Stone.

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PHOTO FROM: DEFIANTFIELDFARM.COM

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“While we live, our bodies are moving particles of the earth, joined inextricably both to the soil and to the bodies of other living creatures. It is hardly surprising, then, that there should be some profound resemblances between our treatment of our bodies and our treatment of the earth.”

—Wendell Berry, The Unsettling of America: Culture & Agriculture 3/2/17 2:52 PM

Three years ago, Northland College set a goal to have its cafeteria serve 80 percent local food by 2020. The College did not want to start a farm or to compete with farmers. “We wanted to work with growers to expand the regional food economy,” said President Miller.

In December, 46 percent of the food served on campus was grown or produced in the region.

Now, more than half way to reaching its goal, the College is ramping up to become a scalable model for small communities.

The College has launched the Food Systems Center, which includes food processing and composting facilities, a hoop house, a fruit and nut tree grove, perennial and demonstration gardens, and academic programming.

The first phase of the Food Systems Center—the food processing and composting building—will be completed this spring. The building, three years of startup funding, and a manager position have been funded by friends of the College, alumni, community members, and two major donors— Northland College Trustee Mary H. Rice of Bayfield and the Mary H. Rice Foundation, and Carole Larson of Osseo, Minnesota.

The building has been named the Hulings Rice Food Center, and the food processing kitchen and classroom space has been named the Don R. and Carole Larson Food Lab. The College recruited and hired entrepreneur and farmer Todd Rothe ’10 in January to manage the Hulings Rice Food Center.

“Todd’s business acumen, knowledge of local foods, and his connections on campus and in the community, will not only help Northland College become a regional food hub but will further our new model for sustainability,” said President Miller.

Rothe, who has extensive training and experience in business and sustainable agriculture, hit the ground running. “It might seem strange for me to start in January in subzero temperatures, before there’s even a building, but right now is when farmers are ordering seeds and planning their crops for spring,” said Rothe, who met with farmers and secured commitments for increased vegetable production in his first few weeks.

The processing kitchen will

allow for the College to prepare produce for the winter months and it will allow for regional producers to use the space.

“The processing capability will absolutely give the College the ability to reach its goal of 80 percent local foods,” Rothe said. “And it will help farmers think about expanding beyond Northland College, knowing they can access a commercial kitchen.”

To further efficiency, the composting unit sits next to the processing kitchen, reducing the College’s carbon footprint. “It’s a capsule of high efficiency to reduce waste and fossil fuels,” Rothe said.

The College is currently raising money to fund a faculty director position to oversee the Food Systems Center, which will be structured much like the Mary Griggs Burke Center for Freshwater Innovation and the Center for Rural Communities.

“The Food Systems Center is a direct result of the strategic plan the campus community collaborated on in 2013, laying out a vision for the future of Northland College,” Miller said.

Mitigating Climate Change with Compost Northland College currently composts 28,000 pounds of food scraps per year.

Impressive, but with a new composting unit, it’s about to get better.

The new unit has an input capacity of up to 1.1 tons of material per day—one-third food waste and two-thirds bulking agent of leaves, sawdust, and wood shavings—about 733 pounds of food waste per day, or 267,545 pounds per year.

The College does not produce this amount of waste but will incorporate the food waste from other institutions in the region, and later, possibly, the general public.

“Unlike for-profit, large, multi-county or multi-state waste management facilities, the Northland College composting services will provide surrounding community partners with a highly efficient facility and state-of-the-art equipment,” said Rothe, who is managing the composting system. “Our model starts with

reducing campus food waste and works outward towards removing waste streams across the community and region.”

The Food Systems Center, which includes composting, plans to have greater impact on long-range sustainability of our planet by concentrating on a full-spectrum of ecological conservation activities and solutions applied within a concentrated geographic radius.

By focusing on the local, the Center hopes to tackle global issues like climate change by engaging with the food chain start to finish—with regional farmers, local food processing, and composting to reduce waste, reduce methane produced in landfills, and improve the soil.

All within a one-hundred-mile radius.

By focusing on local solutions, the College can address largescale problems.

“If we can effectively implement a community-wide effort towards sustainability by removing food waste streams, this small-scale, efficient model could be replicated elsewhere with tangible results—hopefully avoiding the resistance of a problem that is too large or too complex to solve,” Rothe said.

Northland College’s expanded composting unit is efficient, cost-effective, and will decrease the most harmful greenhouse gases. The decomposition of food wastes in landfills produces methane, while carbon dioxide is the byproduct of composting.

The EPA estimates methane produces twenty times more heat capturing properties than carbon dioxide.

To complete the cycle, Northland College will return composted food waste back to campus gardens, community households, and local farmers.

Compost can build healthy, biologically active soils and thereby reduce agricultural use of petro-chemicals.

“Research finds that compost also improves water retention properties and reduces agricultural runoff and water use when used on farmlands,” Rothe said.

The current business model shows this processing facility to be fully self-sufficient within three years of start-up.

Hulings Rice Food Center Food has always interested Mary H. Rice.

At age four, she recited her own recipe for chocolate pudding, the recipe later served as the cover for a cookbook of some of her favorite dishes. From 1973-1980, Rice owned and operated Thrice, a gourmet cookery shop and cooking school on St. Paul’s Grand Avenue.

She moved to Bayfield from St. Paul in the 1980s, and made a huge impact on the region. She opened four restaurants—Maggie’s, the Clubhouse, the Egg Toss Café, and the Wild Rice. She is also an artist, philanthropist, community builder, directs the Mary H. Rice Foundation, and participates in family philanthropy through the HRK Foundation.

Rice has served on the Northland College Board of Trustees for thirty years and is a generous supporter of the College’s mission. Funds for the Center were raised by many friends of Rice and the College. In 2016, the Mary H. Rice Foundation initiated a challenge grant that matched contributions to the building, $1 for every $3 raised.

The Hulings Rice Food Center brings together Rice’s love for food, community, and her long commitment to Northland College.

“Helping Northland College in ways that help the local farmers seems very important for all of us,” Rice said. “This is especially true as it pertains to water which is very important and becoming one of the major issues of our world.”

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HULINGS RICE FOOD CENTER The new Hulings Rice Food Center, located near the Mary Van Evera Visual Arts Center, will be at the heart of Northland’s new food revolution. Drawing from the demonstration gardens, campus hoop house, orchards, and local food producers, the Center will prepare and package food for the campus cafeteria as well as other community partners like the Brick Ministries food pantry. Similarly, the compost facility will collect, process, and distribute compost, helping to return the fertility from food products back to the places they are produced.

NORTHLAND CAFETERIA

LOCAL FOOD PRODUCERS

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DON R. & CAROLE LARSON FOOD LAB

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FRUIT AND NUT TREE GROVE

HOOP HOUSE

DEMONSTRATION GARDENS

COMMUNITY PARTNERS

COMPOST FACILITY

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The Don R. and Carole Larson Food Lab Don R. Larson only attended Northland College for one year but he remained involved in campus life his entire life and beyond.

A lover of small towns and campuses from a young age, he used his own savings to attend his freshman year at Northland College from 1952-1953. His parents, however, wanted him to attend the University of Minnesota so when his savings ran out—he returned to Minnesota and attended the U of M, where he received his bachelor of arts degree in economics and a master of arts in journalism.

Don died at the age of eighty in February 2016 but his deep affection for Northland College and the surrounding community will live on.

During his freshman year, he wrote a paper on the economics of Ashland and the region. He argued that planners needed to start with what was in front them and stop looking for old industries to return to save the town.

This was a guiding principle for everything he did in his life. Don and his wife Carole, who also studied journalism at the U of M, though they met after college, founded the Crow River News and published the Osseo-Maple Grover Press and ChamplinDayton Press in the northwestern Twin Cities metro area, as well as many other publications throughout the region.

Don was an innovator in community newspaper publishing, leading the industry in electronic typesetting and computerized composition over the decades, receiving awards for journalism, education, and innovation.

Carole first toured Northland College one month after she married Don. “He wanted to show me where he had gone to college his freshman year,” she said.

In fact, touring small colleges in small towns was something the two of them would do for fun and recreation their entire lives.

“We both like small communities and seeing those communities thrive—we’d go on trips and find the smallest colleges and we’d ride

around and wonder about what draws students to the particular college,” she said.

Don served on the Northland College Board of Trustees and was given the Distinguished Alumni Award in 2001. The Larsons also started the Don R. and Carole J. Larson Endowed Scholarship.

Carole returned to Northland College last year, after Don died, to walk around campus. That’s when she learned about the Food Systems Center and walked around the construction of the food processing and composting building.

She listened to how the first step was for the campus to process more of its own food and that it would become interactive with the community.

“My gosh, this is something Don had always hoped—for the campus to connect with the community,” Larson said.

“Don was always interested in how Northland College could positively affect the community.”

Carole said she wanted to contribute to the processing kitchen, which is now named the Don R. and Carole Larson Food Lab. “He would have been involved, talking to farmers, making connections—our whole career was about interacting with community,” she said. “Don would be tickled; his spirit is tickled.”

Under Construction Northland College posted a nineteen-second video of the Food Center in progress in November and the positive reaction was overwhelming. With 494 likes, 149 shares, 18 comments, and 85,155 people reached—the public gave us the social media equivalent of a standing ovation. The building is now nearly complete and will soon become an active hub of food, compost, and student life.

To stay connected, follow Northland on social media. facebook.com/northlandedu

@northland_edu @northland_edu

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A Deeper Look at Food Incoming Northland College students can choose to dive into agriculture through Growing Connections, an intensive block of courses that takes a comprehensive look at the history, theories, and practices of sustainable agriculture. Students work closely with faculty, mentors, and regional farms in the classrooms and in the fields—and leave the year with an interdisciplinary understanding of food systems and the role that agriculture plays in human culture and ecological health.

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296 Solo Miles on the Superior Hiking Trail Jane Dahlgren had never camped alone when she decided to hike solo for 296 miles. For college credits.

While the extroverted sophomore was not familiar with solo hiking, she was no novice to adventure. A Seattle native, Dahlgren had hiked with her dad and brother on the Wonderland Trail, a ninety-threemile loop around Mt. Rainier, attended Widjiwagan YMCA camp in northern Minnesota, where for her final summer, she embarked on a five-week canoe trip to the Arctic Circle.

She heard about Northland College from a friend at Widji and visited campus her senior year of high school. “I really fell in love with the community and how friendly and welcoming the people are,” she said.

She took a gap year after high school, working at an organic farm stand on Maui then teaching winter travel and ecology to school groups in northern Minnesota.

At Northland College, Dahlgren plays soccer, is the marketing coordinator for the Northland College Student Association, and studies chemistry and biology with an eye to nursing. Last winter, she started thinking about her options for May term, a one-month semester that provides opportunities for seminars, field experiences, independent study, internships, and off-campus and studyabroad experiences.

She was thinking off-campus and independent study. She wanted to hike the Superior Hiking Trail that follows the ridgeline overlooking Lake Superior in northern Minnesota.

The south end of the trail is located just an hour from campus. Dahlgren had these goals in mind: to walk alone, reflect, write, learn the flora and fauna, and wonder.

Dahlgren met with Clayton Russell, associate professor of environmental education, outdoor education, and Native American studies, in February to create a plan. He agreed to be her advisor; she agreed to set goals and incorporate academics into the adventure.

She would hike 296 miles in twenty-one days, for an average of fourteen miles per day, journal about her experiences, and present to Russell’s classroom the following fall. In exchange, she would receive four credits.

While Russell encouraged her to train and to break in her boots, she didn’t train and she walked in her boots around campus for one day. “I would not recommend it,” she laughed.

On May first, two friends drove her to the northern most trail head just south of the Canadian border. “We were the first people to drive in for the year,” she said.

The petite nineteen-year-old loaded a fifty-pound backpack containing a hefty, hard-backed 8-1/2 x 11 journal, disposable

1930—The Craft Shop is established, allowing students to earn money to hand-pound copper craft items such as bowls, lamps, perpetual calendars, and letter openers for sale around the country.

camera, digital camera, a guide book for the Superior Hiking Trail plus gear, food, and clothing. Plus, one item her mom had requested: bear spray, for protection.

There was snow on the ground and trees had not been cleared.

The first night and for every night that followed, she fell asleep before dark, so she didn’t have to be alone in the dark.

The second day, she cried. “It was my most emotional day,” she said. “I’m not a crier but there was something about the trail, about being by myself, about the power of Lake Superior—I shed a lot of tears.”

In fact, the first three days were the hardest of her life but she never once thought about quitting.

She met another thru-hiker and his dog—first of the trip— and thought she had found a hiking partner, since they had similar itineraries. But he quit on his fourth day. “I thought if this big, hard core guy couldn’t finish it, how was I supposed to?”

1930—Students and their families initiated a food production program.

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she said.

She continued walking through mud and snow and over and around trees. She took only a photo a day on her disposable camera and no more than ten on her digital—and carved out spaces in her journal where the photos would go.

On her sixth day, she stopped in the town of Lutsen for her first food resupply. There, she called her mom. “Janey told me the first week had been really hard—both physically and emotionally,” Barb Gipple said. “When I asked her if she wanted to get off the trail, she said, ‘no’—it was not part of the equation. She was absolutely determined to continue and to complete the hike.”

Dahlgren left behind extra food, tore out pages she no longer needed from her guide book, bought more band aids, and kept moving.

Leaving Lutsen, she received good news. She crossed paths with the maintenance crew.

“That was a relief—seeing people with chainsaws,” she said.

They told her that the trail south of Lutsen was clear, so she walked, wrote, learned the names of plants and trees, and sketched. She saw her firstever porcupine. And from her excitement over a common porcupine you’d never know she had encountered muskox, wolves, and caribou earlier in her life. “The porcupine is my new favorite animal,” she said.

For her second and last resupply at Gooseberry Falls, she would be meeting her aunt, who had volunteered to drive from Minneapolis.

What she didn’t know, was that her mom had flown from Seattle to Minneapolis to surprise her.

“This was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for Janey,” Gipple said. “She put an immense amount of thought, preparation, and energy into the trip, and I wanted to share a small part of it with her.”

Dahlgren limped from blisters on her feet plus she had raw skin underneath the pack straps on her back and hips, but she “looked tough and confident— and dirty,” Gipple said.

Dahlgren spent the night in a motel with her mom and aunt.

She took a long, hot shower but turned down an offer to find a laundromat and wash her clothes. She wanted to remain in trail mode—clean clothes would mess with that, she said.

The next morning the three women returned to Gooseberry Falls and walked in the sunshine together for about a mile. “And then Janey continued alone for her last solo week of hiking,” Gipple said. “We waved until she vanished around a bend in the trail—it was tough to see her go.”

On her second-to-last day, she hiked twenty-six miles, landing in Duluth, pop. 86,000, a seaport city on Lake Superior. Duluth posed a problem, regarding camping since there is a fortymile section without camping.

Dahlgren had planned to stealth camp—waiting until it got dark to set up her tent in a park somewhere. But then she decided to call Russell and his wife Kathleen Adee, who live in Duluth and had offered their house as an option.

“I wasn’t feeling confident about an urban campout,” she said.

Russell and Adee picked up Dahlgren and took her out to dinner and she slept on their couch.

It was the first time Russell had seen her journal. “It was significant in two ways; first the size was unusual for backpacking trips and second, the detail and organization along with the heartfelt entries was dazzling,” Russell said. “Jane had poured her soul into this work— it will provide years of valuable insights.”

The final day was physically and emotionally tough. She had lost fifteen pounds, her feet were a blistered mess, she lost two toenails, and she was an extrovert who had done this all alone. She hiked the long final nineteen miles to the southern end point—Jay Cooke State Park in Minnesota.

“I walked off the trail and into the parking lot of the visitor center—I was tiny with a huge pack on, crying,” she said. “People looked at me kind of funny.”

Five months later, she stands before the students in Russell’s Northwoods Pathways course, with her four-inch thick journal.

In a fast-paced, hour-long slideshow presentation—with photos from both her digital and disposable cameras —she conveys her three biggest lessons: “weight matters, Clif bars are heaven sent, and you can always walk farther than you think,” she said.

YOUR SUPPORT MAKES THESE

1932—President Brownell is “adopted” into the Chippewa tribe, welcomed by Frank Smart, medicine chief of the Bad River Band and president of the Northland College Alumni Association. Brownell was given the name Ke-wa-din, meaning “West.”

1935 —More than 90% of the students of Northland College signed a petition to protest the proposed United States naval maneuvers to be conducted May 3 to June 10 in the north Pacific Ocean near Japan. The petition was submitted to President Roosevelt.

STUDENT EXPERIENCES

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ART Swedish Student Returns Home for Internship

Art & Activism Professor Jason Terry, who is the current holder of the A.D. & Mary Anderson Hulings Distinguished Chair in the Humanities, brought together two artists with a passion for clean water—Mary Dougherty, photographer, author, and activist; and Wang Ping, poet and professor of English at Macalester College.

“I thought this was a wonderful intersection between the humanities, art, and activism regarding the lake,” Terry said.

For a project she calls Words for Water, Dougherty asks people if they could speak for water, what would they say? Then people write their words onto a chalkboard, and she takes their photograph. In the last three years, she has collected thousands of words and images.

Dougherty first heard of Wang when she drove to Standing Rock in North Dakota to collect words for a different but high profile battle over water. Wang’s project, Kinship of Rivers, is similar in spirit to Words for Water in that she collects words and art on prayer flags as a way to build connections among communities along the Mississippi and Yangtze rivers.

1941 —Wakefield Hall opens as the new library and the “Book Brigade” transfers books from the fourth floor stacks in Wheeler Hall to the new library in Wakefield Hall.

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Graphic design student Petter Bülling (bottom right) experienced one particularly low moment during his summer internship at Artilleriet, a high-end home décor store. He was helping move things around for a photo shoot and he bumped into a really expensive pot. It shattered completely.

All in the life of a graphic design intern.

“What can you do? You sweep it up and you move onto the next thing,” he said.

The sophomore returned home last summer to his native Sweden to intern at Artilleriet, a high-end urban store located in a Victorian house, that relies on a printed catalog and e-commerce website as part of its business plan.

Bülling worked closely with each of the company’s departments, warehouse managers, graphic designers, a photographer, and web page programmers and designers.

“Artilleriet is such an unusual and unique home decor store, it was so much fun and so interesting to see how they thought about bringing in new products,” he said. “The amount of work that goes behind putting everything together is amazing, and it gave me a good perspective on what truly needs to be done in order to be successful.”

Bülling focused on helping design a new company catalog (top right, middle: an invite to a special company event). The design reflected a nostalgic tone with cream-colored paper and Victorian accents complimenting the European modern home décor and fixtures.

While it might seem an intimidating task to work around expensive products, Bülling, who plays hockey at Northland College, said he felt right at home. “We were like a big family, and every Monday we had a staff meeting over breakfast where new ideas were welcomed to be shared,” he said.

“Their philosophy was all about equality and everyone pulling the rope in the same direction.”

Bülling also worked on the redesign of the e-commerce website to include an English language version, and bring an innovative design to the project. “The most challenging part for me was to get up to speed and get used to handling lots of different small projects at the same time—it was all about multitasking,” he said.

“I learned so much working with these creative individuals, even though sometimes it was challenging. But that’s what graphic design is about, listen to your client and translate their thoughts into graphic designs.”

1941 —Training activities for World War II began for Northland students, including civilian pilot training. An unusually large proportion of Northland flyers saw service early in the war.

1942—John A. Reuling returns from educational work in Africa to become Northland’s fourth president.

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ATHLETICS

Jills Soccer Makes History Senior Maddie Wieland did not intend to play soccer when she came to Northland College. She had played her first two years at Buffalo Grove High School in a suburb north of Chicago but thought she had left soccer behind. But then she checked a box on one of her admission forms—something about hobbies—and a coach came calling.

Four years later, Wieland helped lead her team into the soccer history books at Northland College. For the first time ever, the LumberJills won the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference title, then went on to win the semi-final playoffs. The team lost in the championship round but even so, this was one for the record books.

Northland College headlined the UMAC all-conference awards in November with Wieland and five teammates as first team honorees—sophomore Gretchen HamernikWinter, junior Laura Rethmann, junior Emily Romuald, sophomore Kaiya Voldberg, and freshman Harley Kinney.

Wieland was also named the UMAC Offensive Player of the Year, while Kinney captured the Rookie of the Year. Justin Sexton was voted by his peers as the UMAC Coach of the Year after helping the LumberJills post a remarkable 7-0-1 conference record to win the title.

A humanities major, Wieland has been captain for the last three years and the 1943—The US Army and Navy require all reserves remaining in college to participate in a physical hardening program including exercises, martial arts, and other activities.

1945—Manley E. MacDonald exchanges a deanship at a Minnesota college to be the fifth president of Northland College.

undisputed heart and soul of this team.

“Maddie is an unbelievable captain and her love for the game has definitely inspired our team to push us to where we’ve gotten,” said Rethmann, co-captain for the last year.

In a game against Bethany-Lutheran, Wieland kicked in the critical winning goal in overtime to take the UMAC for the first time in women’s soccer history at the College. “I know it’s a small thing but it really felt like we had won the World Cup.” A week later, Wieland did it again— spreading her “Maddie Magic,” as it has come to be known— kicking in the winning goal in double overtime against St. Scholastica, a team Northland hasn’t beaten for at least four years.

Teammate Olivia Kovacs tells a story about Wieland from last spring at a practice in the gymnasium. “We were talking while looking at the conference banners hung on the wall, and there was no banner for women’s soccer, so she tells me, ‘Next season, we’ll have one too,’” Kovacs said. “Maddie gave the team no other option but to make Northland history this season.”

Northland College added women’s soccer to its roster in 1997. They’ve done well in the last nineteen years, but had never taken the conference title. Wieland is not surprised by the team’s success. “For us, it wasn’t a surprise,” she said. “Maybe to everyone else,” she laughed.

1945—Because of World War II, Northland College has only one graduate, Alice Chapple. Of the original forty-six students enrolled in 1941, only one stood to receive her diploma.

Thirty-four of Miss Chapple’s original classmates were serving in the armed forces, four transferred to other schools for special work, and seven were in war work or teaching.

Athletic Highlights The Northland College men’s basketball team made it to the UMAC conference playoffs for the first time in twelve years, hosting the game at home. Dan Campion was named 1st Team All Conference, Thomas Whiting received an Honorable Mention and was named to the All Defensive Team, Tyler Peterson was honored with a Sportsmanship Award, and Head Coach Scott Sorenson was named Coach of the Year. ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ Men’s Hockey Coach Seamus Gregory was voted NCHA Coach of the Year. Gregory led the LumberJacks to their first playoff appearance since 2012-13, locking in a quarterfinal match-up. This is the first NCHA Coach of the Year award for Gregory. Sophomore hockey forward Lucas DeBenedet was the first Northland College player to be named All-Conference since 2012-13. DeBenedet was a top-ten scorer in the NCHA this season, banking nine goals and thirteen assists. Kalib “Gus” Ford was named to the All Freshman Team.

1947—A “temporary” student center is created from surplus air force structures, complete with a multi-purpose gymnasium, a theater, shower rooms, and a student snack bar. It remains in use until 1963.

1948—Lewis H. Brumbaugh, from Johns Hopkins University, becomes sixth president of Northland College.

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ON THE MOVE

Northland Pilots Dogsledding Internship with Racing Kennel You never know when one thing will lead to another.

Professor Elizabeth Andre took her outdoor education winter skills course to Krystal (Hagstrom) Hudachek ’10 at Firestar Kennel in Cornucopia to learn about dogsledding. That day sparked an idea.

Hudachek noticed that Andre’s students really dug her dogs. She needed help training and caring for the dogs. The students needed and wanted to learn about animals and outdoor recreation.

Hudachek contacted Stacy Craig ’04, coordinator of applied learning at Northland College, to discuss how to involve Northland students with her racing kennel.

Craig piloted an internship in the fall and had two transfer students— sophomores John Hermus and Jasmine Poppovich—apply.

Hermus is a pre-vet student who needed contact hours with animals for his goal of going into veterinarian school. Poppovich is an outdoor education major who wanted to add dogsledding to her skill set for teaching people in the outdoors.

A third position was added and freshman Alex Fischer, also a pre-vet student, started in January.

The internship learning goals are designed to provide opportunities in both outdoor education and pre-vet.

“In the past, Northland College offered a dogsledding class, and we had students participate as teaching assistants,” Craig said. “This is the first time we’ve offered a dogsledding internship with a racing kennel.”

The internship began in the fall with the students learning the basics of dog care as well as how to run a team with a four-wheeler. They eventually transitioned into mushing from the back of a sled.

The three students each raced a team at the 22nd annual Apostle Islands Sled Dog Race, north of Bayfield, the weekend of February 4-5.

1950—The newly-built Brownell Hall is named for J.D. Brownell, Northland’s third president.

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1952—Dr. Newton Bobb retires from teaching at Northland College.

“This is the best internship ever,” Hermus said, as he readied the teams for the race by placing orange booties on Hudachek’s Alaskan huskies’ feet then harnessing and hooking them up to the sleds.

Hermus and Poppovich ran in the two-day, sixty-mile race, placing third and fifth. Fischer ran in the six-to-eight-mile rec race Saturday, placing first.

“It was an amazing experience that I will never forget,” Hermus said.

“And hopefully will do again.”

Want to see your news in the magazine?

To submit notes, please contact Jackie Moore ’05, Director of Alumni Relations Phone: 715-682-1811 Email: alumni@northland.edu Mail: Office of Alumni Relations, 1411 Ellis Avenue, Ashland, WI 54806

To submit your news go to: northland.edu/keep-in-touch

1953—Hailing from Michigan State University, Gus Turbeville becomes the youngest four-year college president in the United States, Northland’s seventh.

1954—Ashland holds a Centennial celebration on July 4, 1954.

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In Memoriam: Parker James Matzinger March, 14, 1994-January 26, 2017 The campus and community were saddened to learn that Parker Matzinger died unexpectedly of natural causes on Thursday, January 26.

Parker was a May 2016 graduate and interning with the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, living and working in Panama with two researchers using camera traps to assess how El Nino events affected mammal populations. This was Parker’s passion.

Parker graduated from Northland College with a double major in biology and natural resources. During his time at Northland, he sought out and took advantage of incredible opportunities in the areas of bioacoustics (tracking animals by sound) and camera trap photography. He spent the spring semester in 2015 doing mammal research in Costa Rica and led similar acoustic bat survey research for the National Park Service Great Lakes region in the summer and fall of 2016. He planned to continue to coordinate the acoustics bat survey research for two more years while starting graduate studies this coming fall.

Our condolences go out to his loving family and the students, alumni, and friends who knew him so well. We all feel so blessed to have had Parker in our lives. Few people live life with the love and passion that Parker had. He lived life to the fullest and died doing what he loved.

A memorial fund has been established at Northland in memory of Parker. The fund will be used to create a natural resources scholarship/internship. If you wish to make a gift to this fund go to: northland.edu/parker.

1956—Mead Hall is constructed and named in honor of George W. Mead, trustee and long time supporter of the College.

1956—The first of nine books, Sigurd F. Olson’s The Singing Wilderness, is published.

1957—North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools officially accredits Northland’s program.

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,

SYMPATHY TO THE FAMILIES OF:

Alumni Association Board of Directors:

Barbara (Graunke) Kabel ’51; Rhinelander, WI; 07.13.15 Edgewood J. Smith ’93; Hancock, MI; 07.15.15 John “Dick” R. Cooper, Sr; Prescott, AZ; 08.04.16

Richard Ackley ’71 Laurel (Johnnie) Fisher ’72 Gail Fridlund ’15 MaryJo Gingras ’00 Stu Goldman ’69 Mark Gross ’83 Blake Gross ’96 Richard Harguindeguy ’78 Bev Harris ’72 Tam Hofman ’80 Sarah Johnson ’02 Max Metz ’10 Peter Millett ’69 Travis Moore ’11 Jaime Moquin ’98 Craig Mullenbrock ’77 Sam Polonetzky ’70 Jim Quinn ’73 Kaeleen Ringberg ’12 Stuart Schmidt ’17 Patti Skoraczewski ’74 Leanne Wilkie Shamszad ’04 Kelly Zacharda ’05

Larry J. Kasper ’62; Ashland, WI; 10.09.16 Joseph L. Fujko ’61; Slidell, LA; 10.12.16 Jon D. Sollie ’69; Ashland, WI; 10.15.16 Sally R. Langhammer ’65; Bayfield, WI; 10.27.16 Tony J. Nania ’51; Indiana, PA; 10.27.16 Stanley B. BeBeau ’73; Ashland, WI; 10.28.16 Michael S. Smith ’72; Wadsworth, IL; 10.30.16 Richard A. Beyer ’73; Washburn, WI; 11.07.16 James E. Hershberger ’65; Valley Cottage, NY; 11.11.16 Alfred W. Hurlbutt ’64; Rhinelander, WI; 11.15.16 Norris N. Oxley ’52; Woodruff, WI; 11.28.16 Paul O. Rekstad ’58; Palm Coast, FL; 12.02.16 Jean (Asplund) Long ’42; Altamonte Springs, FL; 12.04.16 Sherry (Wearing) Hebbe ’66; Palmyra, WI; 12.12.16 Madeline (Lindquist) Lindberg ’48; Ashland, WI; 12.24.16 Nancy R. Nemacheck ’96; Ironwood, MI; 12.26.16 Jack S. Caskey ’67; Phelps, WI; 01.01.17 Mary Fennessey; Herbster, WI; 01.05.17 Frank J. Myott ’68; Washburn, WI; 01.07.17 Roberta (Baraga) Sundberg ’62; Ashland, WI; 01.20.17 Parker J. Matzinger ’16; Ashland, WI; 01.26.17 Leo G. Schmidt ’63; Glidden, WI; 01.31.17

For additional alumni stories and events, go to: northland.edu/alumni-news

1960—The west addition of Mead Hall is completed.

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1962—Richard P. Bailey is named eighth president of Northland College and directs expansion of the campus.

1964—The Alvord Theatre and Baldwin Student Center (above right) are completed.

1965—The Kendrigan Gymnasium (above left), named for J.T. Kendrigan, is completed.

1964—McMillan Hall is built as a women’s residence.

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High School Summer Programs Our high school programs are focused on individual experiences. Most sessions are limited to sixteen participants. This philosophy mirrors the class sizes of Northland College, ensuring participants have the opportunity to ask questions, receive individual attention, and get a unique experience in the north woods.

Go North!

Register now for Summer 2017 programs.

northland.edu/summer 1969—Following an intensive review of the academic offerings, Northland instituted a new academic calendar, which followed a fourteen-week fall term, a fourteen-week winter term, and a five-week spring term.

1966—Dr. T. Newton Bobb is honored at the opening of the new science building, Bobb Science Hall. The President’s Home, located at the edge of campus, and Fenenga Hall, named after Northland’s second president, M.J. Fenenga, are completed.

1967—Students, under the guidance of a professional supervisor, build the current bridge between the Sigurd Olson Environmental Institute and Wheeler Hall. All materials were donated by family, alumni, and trustees.

1968—Robert V. Cramer is appointed ninth president of Northland College.

1969—The swimming pool and Dexter Library are constructed.

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Annual Fund Scholarships ••

Support a student who would be unable to attend Northland otherwise

••

Help Northland meet the need of the growing number of low-income students with higher levels of need than ever before

••

Know that these students provide solutions for current social, environmental, and economic issues

••

Invest in the future

••

Create a better tomorrow

OT S

Make a gift to Northland Scholarships today and:

98% of Northland students receive financial aid.

43% are from low-income families.

21% are the first generation in their family to attend a fouryear college.

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1971—Dr. Harriet Harmon Dexter is appointed as acting president.

With this decision, Dexter becomes the first woman to hold the post in the College’s seventy-eight-year history.

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Clockwise from top left: The 2017 SnoFest logo designed by student Petter Bülling (see page 20 for more about Bülling).

Women’s Hockey Coach Kelly Rider takes a photo of the inaugural women’s hockey team on the ice of Lake Superior.

Adjunct faculty member and alumnus Justin Brewster ’07 (in red) demonstrates the use of a “hot tent” during an outdoor education course on winter travel skills.

The Northland College Native American Museum reopened February 3 with new and expanded exhibits designed by senior Kendra Hoffmann.

Circle: President Miller received a surprise visit from Rudolph the RedNosed Reindeer (as played by senior Alec Malenfant).

Despite unseasonably warm temperatures, the annual Book Across the Bay ski race was still held on February 17, but participants were encouraged to walk rather than ski.

Outdoor Orientation Coordinator Lucas Will crosses a snow-covered Northland campus on his fat bike.

Visit Coordinator Chase Matzinger and Admissions Counselor Kevin Haas ‘15 have some fun at the Fall Visit Day.

1971—Malcom McLean, tenth president, marks the first years of his presidency with the establishment of Northland College’s environmental studies program.

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1971—The Boar’s Head opens on campus in January, allowing students to buy both snacks and beer.

Watch for a continuation of this timeline in the Summer 2017 issue of the Northland College magazine as we focus on Northland’s environmental mission.

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