NIU Today

The National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements (SARA) has welcomed NIU as an institutional participant. Leaders of the initiative are confident that SARA will boost administrative efficiency and lower the costs of obtaining authorization to provide postsecondary distance education in states that join. These benefits will result in increased access as institutions such as...

NIU alum Sam Watt will be in China using innovative, NIU-developed techniques to teach STEM – science, technology, engineering and math – to sixth- and seventh-graders in Beijing this school year. Watt’s classes will be based around lab activities specially developed by STEM Outreach, part of NIU’s P-20 Center in the Division of Outreach, Engagement,...

NIU’s Broadband Development Group (BDG) has moved from the Division of Outreach, Engagement and Regional Development to the Division of Information Technology (DoIT). Since 2007, the BDG and DoIT have worked closely to develop broadband networks for community anchor institutions like libraries, schools, public safety agencies, community colleges, and municipal governments throughout northern Illinois. The...

NIU faculty, staff, students and community members are invited to nominate NIU professors with outstanding records of community engagement for the 2015 Presidential Engagement Professorships. Nominations will be accepted now through Friday, Oct. 3. Established in 2010, the Presidential Engagement Professorships recognize faculty members who exemplify the following criteria: Commitment to fostering reciprocal partnerships in...

NIU President Doug Baker’s call for stronger connections between the university and its host community has generated dozens of ideas from enthusiastic supporters of both town and gown. In just 12 months, the number of active “communiversity” projects has more than doubled, with many more ideas waiting in the wings. Rather than limiting new initiatives,...

The divisions of Academic Affairs, and Outreach, Engagement and Regional Development are combining resources to coordinate the university’s online course and program development, as well as to support student success in online-delivered programming. Meryl Sussman, recently appointed Assistant Vice President for Outreach Adult and Non-Credit Programming, will establish a new office which will draw on...

Just weeks after receiving formal designation as an “Innovation and Economic Prosperity University,” NIU has received one of the nation’s top awards for regional economic development. The Association for Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) on Tuesday announced NIU as the winner of APLU’s inaugural “Place” award for “excelling in community, social, and cultural development work.”...

Northern Illinois University is among the inaugural 16 institutions nationwide designated as an “Innovation and Economic Prosperity University” by the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities (APLU). The designation, announced last week, acknowledges universities working with public and private sector partners in their states and regions to support economic development through innovation and entrepreneurship, technology...

NIU faculty, staff, students and community members are invited to nominate NIU professors with outstanding records of community engagement for the 2014 Presidential Engagement Professorships. Nominations will be accepted now through the end of September. Established in 2010, the Presidential Engagement Professorships recognize faculty members who exemplify the following criteria: Commitment to fostering reciprocal partnerships...

“This makes sense. All universities should do this!” Following those words from a member of the Illinois Board of Higher Education, the IBHE unanimously granted permanent status to NIU’s Center for P-20 Engagement in June. The Illinois Board of Higher Education’s staff grants temporary approval for new centers and institutes and then conducts a rigorous...

Anne Kaplan, vice president of Outreach, Engagement, and Information Technologies at NIU, was presented with the Richard Peterson Award during a honors luncheon hosted by Econ Illinois. The Peterson Award was established in 2000 by the Econ Illinois Executive Committee in memory of Richard S. Peterson, former chair of of the Econ Illinois Board of...

Staci Hoste has been named director and general manager of Northern Public Radio, the five-station network owned and operated by NIU. Hoste served as interim director after the February 2012 death of her predecessor, the late Tim Emmons. When it became clear that Emmons would not survive his cancer, he worked closely with Hoste to craft...