NORTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY
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Academic Affairs Newsletter
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Hello Colleagues.
With this spring semester now in its final weeks, it’s a time around campus that we celebrate the efforts and accomplishments of faculty, staff and students at NIU.
This week and next week, we will have the honor of presenting the 2026 faculty and staff awards. I hope to see you during these events, where we recognize our colleagues for their outstanding efforts and achievements. Join us at 3 p.m. Thursday, April 16 for the faculty awards ceremony and 3 p.m. Thursday, April 23 for the staff awards ceremony – both will be held in the Altgeld Auditorium.
Also, I am pleased to share that NIU has achieved the honor of Military Friendly® School (Silver designation) for large public schools for 2026-27. NIU is home to nearly 700 military affiliated students including veterans, active military, spouses, child dependents, National Guard and Reservists. A sincere thanks to Jorie O’Brien and our team in Military, Veterans, and Off-Campus Student Services for the hard work to support our service members and their families.
And let’s not forget the accomplishments of our students. Recently, we were proud to announce our latest Barry M. Goldwater scholarship recipient, Lydia Delk, a biological sciences major with a minor in environmental studies. Lydia plans to pursue a Ph.D. in biology with a focus on ecology. She has built an impressive record of undergraduate research and serves as a content tutor in the Huskie Academic Success Center. Congratulations, Lydia!
I also want to share a brief reminder to please consider volunteering for one of our upcoming commencement ceremonies. You may do so by visiting the commencement volunteer website and filling out the volunteer form by Monday, April 20. It will be an exciting weekend, as we graduate a new class of Huskies from NIU.
Thank you for all you do here at NIU. Let’s finish the semester strong together.
Sincerely,
Laurie Elish-Piper, Ph.D.
Executive Vice President and Provost
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NIU has long endeavored to provide inclusive and equitable learning opportunities for all students. This universal design framework has fostered student success by developing and implementing learning experiences that attend to diverse needs and strengths of students. Our need to continue these efforts is heightened with the upcoming activation of the Title II Final Rule requiring all university digital content to meet accessibility standards as written in the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1. The rule applies to all web content, including our learning management system, BlackBoard.
While it is easy to view this as simply a compliance issue, it is truly about providing our students with positive and inclusive learning experiences by removing barriers and having equitable access to content on websites, web applications and other digital spaces.
Faculty and staff are all content creators and need to work toward digital accessibility. Many units in academic affairs have developed and shared resources to support our efforts of creating a culture around universal design, and we continue to develop robust supports. NIU offers numerous resources to assist digital content creators. Please review this news site post for more information on these resources and opportunities to provide feedback.
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Sabbatical applications move to Interfolio
The process for submitting and reviewing sabbatical applications is now incorporated into the Interfolio system. The content of sabbatical applications remains as in the past, although the process is streamlined, building on NIU’s use of Interfolio for promotion and tenure application and review.
Questions related to sabbatical eligibility that were in a cover sheet are now located in a Qualtrics survey. Faculty considering applying for sabbatical should complete this survey to initiate the process of creating an application in Interfolio.
Please visit the sabbatical portion of the Interfolio website to learn more.
Stand out and save time
Your scholarship deserves full recognition—from books and articles to art works and dance performances to patents and datasets. NIU has joined the ORCID US Community to make that easier.
ORCID is a global, not-for-profit organization that provides a free and trusted digital identifier that ensures your work is always correctly attributed to you. Your ORCID iD is your professional fingerprint in the global research community.
Visit the getting started page on the NIU website for support or guidance on how to build and maintain your ORCID iD.
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Plan to attend CURE
NIU’s Conference on Undergraduate Research and Engagement (CURE) takes place Tuesday, April 28, in the Holmes Student Center. With more than 300 students presenting across numerous disciplines, CURE highlights the depth and impact of undergraduate research, creativity and engaged learning. Please plan to attend to support student scholarship and engage in meaningful conversations about their projects and experiences.
The Engagement Showcase highlights leadership, service learning and community engagement, entrepreneurship, internships and civic engagement. Sessions are scheduled for 11-noon, 1-2 p.m. and 2-3 p.m. in the Gallery Lounge. Research and Artistry presentations will be held at the Duke Ellington Ballroom from 10 a.m.-noon and 1-4 p.m.
New course evaluation platform will launch this summer
All courses offered for NIU credit are evaluated as per the Student Evaluation of Instruction policy. Beginning with the summer 2026 term, NIU will move online course evaluations from Explorance Blue to Anthology Evaluate.
Faculty should download past course evaluation reports by using the faculty dashboard in Explorance Blue; access will be available until Tuesday, June 30. Please contact blueevaluations@niu.edu for questions about Explorance Blue.
Career Services spring highlights and summer resources
NIU Career Services’ End-of-year Career Fair Wednesday, April 22 at Holmes Student Center offers new features this year. In addition to connecting with employers about career opportunities and internships, we are introducing “Meet Your Future Professional Network”, an opportunity for students to connect with professional student organizations, build leadership skills and expand their peer connections. Help us spread the word and promote the fair to your student networks.
Faculty and staff are also encouraged to post on-campus student jobs through Huskies Get Hired. Check out the instructions for campus employers to post your positions for hiring NIU student staff and manage your on-campus employment postings. Career Services is available to help you get started with this campus-wide initiative.
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Apply for an AI Curricular Innovation Grant by April 15
Do you have an idea how to integrate AI in your course? Apply for an AI Curricular Innovation Grant. All full-time NIU faculty are eligible to apply, including tenured/tenure-track, instructional and clinical faculty.
The internal grant program provides summer pay and additional resources for faculty to redesign courses to incorporate AI in ways that strengthen student learning, engagement and workforce readiness. Priority will be given to high-enrollment undergraduate courses, particularly those that students need to take within a major or that are required to complete general studies requirements.
Quality Essentials for NIU online courses
With guidance from the Online Learning Advisory Council and recipients of the Excellence in Online Teaching Award, an internal course review process has been established based on the Quality Essentials standards. Using this process, faculty are able to conduct a detailed self-review of their own courses, then submit that review for additional review and feedback by a Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning (CITL) staff member. Courses that meet all the Quality Essentials are recognized as NIU quality essentials online courses.
Online Learning Tool Review
The Online Learning Tool Review, launched last fall, is complete. Final decisions reflect feedback from faculty, university leadership and Faculty Senate.
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- Respondus will be renewed.
- VoiceThread will be renewed for one year with a significant reduction in users; to ensure effective use of its interactive capabilities and avoid charges from overuse, faculty will be required to request access.
- Yellowdig will be renewed for three years with a slight reduction in users. Access will not be restricted, but faculty are encouraged to adopt Yellowdig only for student-directed, ongoing learning communities.
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These changes are expected to reduce total annual spending by more than $54,000. CITL will contact affected faculty directly, and additional details are available on the Online Learning Tool Review webpage.
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Summer Writing Retreat
You asked and we heard you! The Office of Research Development (ORD) is pleased to announce a faculty Summer Writing Retreat to be held August 10-14.
The program will provide faculty time and space away from typical day-to-day work and personal responsibilities to focus on core writing projects that will advance their research, scholarship and creative activities. This includes a full week of focused writing and gatherings with co-participants and provides lodging, meals, summer salary and dependent care funds if needed.
Visit the ORD InfoReady portal by Monday, May 4 to learn more and apply. Click the Summer Writing Retreat link to access the application portal and complete program guidelines. Contact ord@niu.edu with questions.
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Healthcare Escape Room brings interprofessional learning to life
In partnership with the Northeast Illinois Area Health Education Center (AHEC), more than 100 College of Health and Human Sciences (CHHS) students and faculty engaged in an interprofessional workshop featuring a Healthcare Escape Room experience at Holmes Student Center ballroom on March 5.
Working in teams, participants solved a complex patient case by identifying the roles of diverse healthcare professionals, strengthening communication, teamwork, and clinical reasoning while reinforcing the value of collaborative, patient-centered care. This high-impact initiative is part of the college’s ongoing commitment to expanding interprofessional education (IPE) and reaching a broad group of students early in their academic programs.
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Disability Resource Center
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Mental health and accommodations
As the semester draws to a close, many students—including those with disabilities and mental health conditions—are managing heightened stress, fatigue and anxiety. Faculty play a key role in supporting students during this demanding period. Clear communication, timely implementation of approved accommodations and proactive attention to access barriers can help reduce unnecessary stress and support student success.
Please continue to encourage students to connect with Counseling and Consultation Services or the Huskie Academic Success Center. Your commitment to access and responsiveness will support student persistence and successful completion of the semester.
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- You are invited to attend Huskie Trek Talks: Ideas in Motion Saturday, April 18, in the Black Box Theatre in the Stevens Building on NIU’s DeKalb campus. Register to attend this free event online or in person. Huskie Trek Talks brings campus innovators together with community members to witness the research and discovery happening at NIU and spark discussions that lead to impactful partnerships and idea advancements.
- A federal system update on Sunday, April 26 will prevent NIU from loading new FAFSA records until a software fix is in place, which means financial aid offers for students who miss the priority deadline may not be available until July. Students planning to enroll in 2026-27 must complete a FAFSA to receive a financial aid offer, and are encouraged to submit by Saturday, April 25 at studentaid.gov. Students can contact the Financial Aid and Scholarship Office at finaid@niu.edu, call 815-753-1395 or stop by Swen Parson Hall 245, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. with questions.
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Thank you to Antoinette Jones for your assistance with a project featuring the Office of Educator Licensure and Preparation.
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Do you have comments, ideas for future newsletter topics or shout-outs about your colleagues to share? We would love to hear from you. Please complete this form to submit your feedback. Thank you!
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This message has been approved for distribution by the appropriate NIU party and is distributed by the Division of Enrollment Management, Marketing and Communications. NIU Mass Email Policy.
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Northern Illinois University's vision is to be an engine for innovation to advance social mobility; promote personal, professional and intellectual growth; and transform the world through research, artistry, teaching and outreach. Learn more about NIU’s vision, mission and values.
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