“I have already started my nursing career by becoming a Nursing Assistant last month for Munson Medical Center. I know it’s exactly where I am supposed to be and I am taking my education in the right direction. Thank you for helping this 27-year-old mother of one fulfill her dreams.” —Recipient of the William and Sherry Fisher Nursing Scholarship.
Issue: Spring 2019
MICHIGAN COLLEGE
nmc.edu/foundation
NORTHWESTERN
FOUNDATION MATTERS
Gift Will Expand Nursing and Business Scholarships Estate Gift From Bill and Sherry Fisher Will Increase Opportunity for Students This fall, Bill and Sherry Fisher made an estate gift commitment to expand scholarships for nursing and business students at NMC. Like you, Bill and Sherry believe in education and want to make it possible for more people to go to college. When realized, this generous planned gift will increase funding for the William and Sherry Fisher Nursing Scholarship and the Robert and Edna Fisher Business Scholarship, both established by the couple in 2014. Bill attended NMC in the early ’60s, practiced as a psychiatric nurse for many years, and eventually earned a Ph.D. in Health Services Administration. His experiences at NMC and in the nursing
field inspired the couple’s nursing scholarship. Bill named the business scholarship for his parents, Bob and Edna, who owned Fisher’s Food Market and Beverage Store—a popular grocery store built in 1947 on 8th Street in Traverse City. For the past five years, the Fishers’ scholarship support has allowed nursing students to become the compassionate, skilled professionals we know and trust. And, it’s enabled business students to become the entrepreneurs who create value in our communities. Thanks to their additional estate gift, Bill and Sherry Fisher will continue making an impact for generations to come.
Support NMC Scholarships at the 39th Annual Scholarship Open! Join us on August 1, 2019 for Northern Michigan’s premier golf tournament. Enjoy a round of golf on the Grand Traverse Resort’s award-winning courses. Proceeds support merit-based scholarships at NMC. Call (231) 995-1021 or visit nmc.edu/golf to register today!
Michael and Rhonda Estes were the first in their families to receive college degrees. Now they are sharing the gift of education with others by creating an endowed scholarship that supports the children and grandchildren of veterans.
You Make NMC Top-Notch for Veterans
Michael and Rhonda Estes Create New Scholarship Your support helps make NMC a great place for military veterans to achieve their educational goals. The college has a long legacy of serving those who have served the country. Your gifts continue to make that tradition possible.
CALL (231) 995-1021 or VISIT NMC.EDU/GOLF
REGISTER TODAY!
Thanks to support from donors like you, NMC has a veterans’ lounge, where students can go to feel safe and find camaraderie. There is a crisis fund for veterans in need, and scholarships specifically for veteran students and their family members. Your support makes a difference for these students and has helped NMC to be ranked one of the nation’s top two community colleges for its service to veterans! Recently, NMC Trustee Michael Estes and his wife, Rhonda, created a scholarship for students who have a parent or grandparent who is a veteran. “We know the value of what education can do to improve people’s lives and wanted to pass that along to others,” shared Michael, noting that NMC serves a vital function in our community. The couple has supported the college since 1987 when they moved to Traverse City. “What NMC offers is that additional step beyond high school that gives people the opportunity to succeed,” says Michael.
Your Gifts to the Dennos Ensure a Strong Future Upon Retirement, Gene Jenneman is Confident in the Museum’s Future
Thanks to you, the Dennos Museum Center is one of the region’s most vibrant cultural centers. Pictured: Gene Jenneman (right) at a special celebration hosted by Diana (left) and Richard Milock in recognition of Gene’s legacy and upcoming retirement from his position as Executive Director of the Dennos Museum Center.
Thanks to you, our dedicated Dennos Museum Center donors, and strong college leadership, the museum’s beloved Executive Director, Gene Jenneman, is confident that the Dennos will continue to thrive well into the future as he makes retirement plans following this academic year. Your support of the Dennos Museum Center makes it possible for the museum to integrate with the college’s academic programs and provide free access to all NMC students. Gene has served NMC and our community for more than thirty years as the leader of one of the region’s most vibrant cultural centers. In a recent letter to the museum’s membership, Gene shared, “It has been an incredible opportunity and honor to be invited by NMC to help design, construct, and operate this amazing facility both in its original phase and now in its expanded glory.” We hope you’ll visit the Dennos Museum Center soon to enjoy all that your support makes possible. Visit the Calendar of Events at dennosmuseum.org for a list of upcoming events.
However, a sculpture by Clement Meadmore located on the south side of the Dennos Museum Center.
Your Annual Fund Support Turned Into $1.2 Million for Students
Supported by You, Innovation Grant Award Leads to Big Savings on Textbooks Innovation Grants provide seed money for the forward-thinking projects at NMC that are in the first, or “discovery,” phase of development. And, they’re made possible by your Annual Fund support. In 2014, the NMC Foundation awarded a $5,000 Innovation Grant to the Open Educational Resources (OER) Pilot Program. OER are freely available, openly licensed learning materials that anyone can access through the internet. Fast forward to today, and NMC faculty are using OER and other creative textbook choices to lower the cost of education for all students. By choosing free and low-cost textbooks for their courses, these efforts have saved NMC students an estimated $1,257,200 since 2015 while maintaining the same high-caliber learning opportunities!
“I just feel if we didn’t have to buy textbooks we would all be able to afford more of what we need being college kids. Such as transportation, food, and other required things.” —NMC Student
TIMELINE
How You’ve Helped Students Save $1.2 Million Through Open Educational Resources (OER)
AWARD 2014
Thanks to your Annual Fund support, the NMC Foundation awards a $5,000 Innovation Grant to the OER Pilot Program.
EXPANSION 2016
OER program expands, with 39 faculty members offering freely available learning materials to students. Total student savings since inception: $809,600.
2015 PILOT
10 NMC faculty members pilot the OER program, providing students with free and low-cost textbook options in courses ranging from social work to math.
THROUGH
2018
2019 MILESTONE
Savings for students passes the $1 million mark ($1,257,200) and OER continues to grow throughout NMC’s 80+ programs.