NMU English Department

09/16/2026

Congratulations to Jon Billman, NMU English fiction and non-fiction creative writing professor, on receiving the City of Marquette Arts and Culture Writer Award! ⭐️

We are thrilled to announce the recipients of the 2026 City of Marquette Annual Art Awards!
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Arts Advocate: Michael Bradford (Marquette Fringe, Marquette City Band, 4th of July Committee & Downtown Marquette)

Arts Business: Niik Creative Co.

Arts Volunteer: John French (Lake Superior Art Association & Marquette Symphony Orchestra )

Arts Organization: Superiorland Woodturners

Arts Educator: Eric Marta (Marquette Area Public Schools Orchestra)

Youth: Nora Grout (Marquette Senior High School Dance & Northern Sky Dance and Fitness )

Performing Artist: Teal Lake Singers

Visual Artist: Steve Hughes (School of Art and Design at Northern Michigan University)

Writer: Jon Billman NMU English Department & Passages North

Arts Innovation: Emerson Graves (AdornedSmithingCo )

Special Recognition: Peg Hirvonen Bandshell Fundraising Committee (Marquette City Band )

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Mark your calendars for Sunday, November 8th to help us celebrate these amazing contributors to our community!

The City of Marquette - Government presents the Annual Art Awards as a way to recognize and celebrate those in our city who dedicate their time, talents, and energies to supporting a vibrant local Arts and Culture community.

This year's Art Awards ceremony is made possible by Innovate Marquette SmartZone & Ore Dock Brewing Co.

For more information about the Art Awards visit: https://www.mqtcompass.com/annual-art-awards/

09/14/2026

Dr. Ben Wetherbee has recently published an article, “Toward Logological Skepticism: Kenneth Burke, Edward Said, and the Question of Atheism,” in the Journal for the History of Rhetoric. Congratulations, Dr. Wetherbee!

Journal for the History of Rhetoric | 29 | 1 | March 2026

09/08/2026

Class of 27 MFA graduate student Izzy Nameth Beck's poem, "sentry + decay," has recently been nominated for Best of the Net by Montreal-based journal Crab Apple Literary. A Best of the Net nomination is an honorable achievement— congratulations, Izzy!

Izzy Nameth Beck is an MFA student at Northern Michigan University. She is a Norton Writers Prize recipient and her other work can be found in the Long River Review and Discretionary Love. She loves her cat and Lake Superior.

08/21/2026

Congratulations to Dr. Ben Wetherbee on his recent conference presentations! Conferences are not only essential for staying up-to-date in one's field, they also offer essential opportunities for mentorship and collaboration. At the 2025 Midwest Modern Language Association Conference, Dr. Wetherbee presented his paper, “Hoping against Sentiment: James Baldwin, Edward Said, and Rhetorical Impiety” alongside three NMU graduate students. Their panel was titled "Rhetoric and Hope." In February, Dr. Wetherbee also co-directed a workshop at the Midwest Winter Workshop, a regional conference for graduate students in rhetorical studies, hosted in Bloomington, IN.

Dr. Wetherbee's Recent Conference Presentations:

“Who We Aren’t: Constitutive Alienation in the Time of COVID-19.” Co-presenter with Matthew Dowell. Rhetoric Society of America, May 2026, Portland, OR.

“Hoping against Sentiment: James Baldwin, Edward Said, and Rhetorical Impiety.” Midwest Modern Language Association, Nov. 2025, Milwaukee, WI.

“Pathos, Propriety, and Man’s Best Friend: (Re)Introducing Rhetorical Appeals in First-Year Composition.” Michigan Writing Centers Association Ideas Exchange, Oct. 2025, Marquette, MI.

08/20/2026

Congratulations to Dr. Kia Richmond on two recent publications:

Richmond, K.J., and Olan, E.L. (2026). Digital media/social platforms and mental illness in young adult literature. In V. Malo-Juvera & C. Hill’s (Eds.) Oxford Handbook of Young Adult Literature. Oxford University Press.

Olan, E.L., & Richmond, K.J. (2026). Examining young adult literature through a Rogerian perspective: Self-actualization in I am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter. In Identity, Criticality, and Advocacy in Young Adult Literature: Training Teachers to Empower Students in the ELA Classroom. Routledge.

08/20/2026

Congratulations to Dr. Kel Sassi! On July 1, 2026, Dr. Sassi, Professor of English, became the President Elect of the Michigan Council of Teachers of English (MCTE).

She is facilitating the MCTE fall conference on October 16, 2026 in Lansing, Michigan. The theme of the conference is Writing/Righting Our Place: Grounding our Teaching Practices Where We Live. The keynote speakers are Rob and Amanda Montgomery, authors of A Place to Write. Lunch speaker is Dr. Kristin Arola. The registration link is here: https://mymcte.org/event/mcte-fall-conference-2026/

Early registration ends September 18th.

07/16/2026

An Excellent English Alum! Go, Amber!⭐️

NMU alumna Amber Kinonen is one of three faculty members to receive Bay College's 2026 Outstanding Educator Award for excellence in teaching, student support and service to the campus community. She joined the college in 2008 as a transitional reading instructor and now teaches a variety of English....

04/22/2026

Congratulations to our faculty members Professor Lynne Johnson and Dr. Kel Sassi on their NMU 2026 Excellence in Teaching Awards! We're so fortunate to have these two amazing instructors in our department! 🤩

Pictured: Prof. Lynne Johnson (Part Time Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award Recipient), Dr. Rob Winn - Dean of College of Arts and Sciences, and Dr. Kel Sassi (Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award Recipient)

04/14/2026

Congratulations to senior English Secondary Education major and Writing minor, Kailey Buettner! Her poster on The Winter's Tale at the Stratford Festival, a live theater trip several English students take each summer, is on display at the National Conference for Undergraduate Research! ⭐️