By Nicole Walton
Marquette, MI – Northern Michigan University officials are staying the course in tough economic times. In a campus forum Thursday, President Les Wong outlined how NMU will be guided in the near future. He says he won't put the proverbial car in neutral, but will use the University's momentum to move forward. Wong notes, however, he won't take unnecessary action simply for the sake of doing something, as the country's economic outlook changes nearly every day.
Wong says officials will vet school expenditures very carefully; will proceed with hiring currently underway; will scale down some of the Roadmap to 2015 initiatives but still use it as a guide; are keeping communication with the rest of campus clear to preserve the integrity of NMU programs; and are consulting with outside entities to evaluate how the school is doing. Wong notes officials are also monitoring student aid access, as many of their parents are laid off or lose their homes.