December 2021 WMU News

Dan Bartholomae, who was Oregon State University’s executive deputy athletic director and chief operating officer, is set to take the reins of Bronco Athletics effective Jan. 1

Music isn't just background noise or a hobby for Jacob Wolfe; it's a passion. At Western Michigan University he found a path to turn that passion into a career—one he'll be starting while he completes his final semester after scoring a gig as a junior sound designer for Yessian Music, a global recording and composing studio in Detroit.

During the fall semester, a team from Western's College of Engineering and Applied Sciences participated in the American Institute of Chemical Engineers' JEOPARDY! competition, participating in the competition during the organization's national conference.

The Grand Rapids Southeast Promise Neighborhood Project, funded at roughly $6 million a year, will address a pipeline of 14 evidence-based solutions for student success, including school readiness, literacy and math success, transitions to middle and high school, post-secondary preparation, and a variety of student and family health and security targets.

Acting at its Sept. 17 meeting, Western's Board of Trustees approved a recommendation to honor Kenneth V. Miller, president and CEO of Millennium Group and principal partner at Havirco, with an honorary Doctor of Laws degree.

Students in Dr. Denise Keele's environmental policy course had the opportunity to present policy memos to and receive feedback from nearly a dozen state legislators and their aides.

The test will take place beginning at about 1 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 22, unless the WMU Alert system has been activated within the previous 24 hours. If it has been activated, the test will be postponed and instead take place at about 1 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 23.

Spring semester begins at 8 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 10, 2022.

The annual assessment of President Edward Montgomery is on the agenda when WMU Board of Trustees meet Thursday, Dec. 16, in formal session at 11 a.m. in rooms 157-159 of the Bernhard Center.

On Thursday, Dec. 16, at 10 a.m., the city of Kalamazoo lifted the precautionary boil water advisory that previously impacted the Bernhard Center, Seibert Administration Building and Henry Hall. 

Graduates will participate in one of three programs beginning at 9 a.m. Eastern Standard Time  at Miller Auditorium.

Luis Jaime has been dreaming of a career in aviation since he was a kid. Now as he prepares to graduate from Western Michigan University with a degree in aviation technical operations and a job waiting in the wings, he's seeing that dream come full circle.

Sometimes the path to a college degree is a winding one. Sarah Bular changed her major three times, but her persistence paid off and put her on the path to a fulfilling career in a field she loves. She will graduate with a degree in manufacturing engineering technology and a full-time job at Daimler Trucks North America.

Jamilah Anthony is already working on a master's degree as she prepares to graduate with her bachelor's in accountancy on Saturday, Dec. 18. And, thanks to hard work and multiple successful internships, she has a full-time job waiting for her in her field.

Baraah Qawasmeh, a Western Michigan University graduate student, has been awarded a $3,000 scholarship from the Michigan section of the Institute of Transportation Engineering. 

The first initiatives made possible by the historic Empowering Futures Gift—a $550 million contribution to the WMU Foundation over 10 years—will provide not only tuition-free education but also low-cost housing, a new innovative Living Learning Community, internship stipends to foster career development and graduation scholarships for 1,350 incoming and current Broncos during the first year alone.

Research underway by Western Michigan University's renowned Center of Excellence for Structural Durability will play an integral role in the future of infrastructure. Led by Dr. Upul Attanayake, several students are working with the Michigan Department of Transportation on a project to rebuild the Second Avenue bridge over Interstate 94 in Detroit—the first project of its kind in the world.

KALAMAZOO, Mich.—Committed to making learning accessible and affordable, Western Michigan University’s College of Education and Human Development (CEHD) announced a new academic initiative,

Senior Andrew McCabe, recipient of the Paper Foundation's Outstanding Senior Student award, is approaching graduation but has no intention to stop learning. “Just because I haven’t learned it yet doesn’t mean don’t want to or won’t seek it out in the future,” he says.

A partnership between Western and Gun Lake Tribe is breaking down stigmas and increasing training and awareness about suicide among Native American youth. The We Walk Together grant is a three-year initiative funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

On Dec. 2, the WMU Department of Physical Therapy received notification that its Doctor of Physical Therapy program has been accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education. This notification comes four-and-a-half years after the program was initiated at WMU and just three weeks before the first cohort of Doctor of Physical Therapy students will graduate. Graduating from an accredited program is necessary for individuals to obtain a license to practice as a physical therapist.

Taylor Gaines, whose family experienced stretches of homelessness growing up, is excited to put what she's learned at Western into practice. She has dreams of becoming a physical therapist and opening a clinic to help patients who can't otherwise afford care. "I just care a lot about people, how I can better the community. Seeing the stuff that I've been through just made me want to do better for other people," she says.