Social media informs students

During the crisis situation on Wednesday, Feb. 2, after Northern received a shooter threat, news stations in the area and Northern’s communication’s department used social media techniques to inform students about what was happening.

“We recognized that most young adults get their information from the internet and a lot of them congregate on social media like Facebook,” said Kristi Evans, news director for communications and marketing at Northern. “If you want to reach students with important information, you need to go to where they are on the internet, where they’re a captive audience.”

According to Evans, the updates on Northern’s official Facebook page were used for a variety of reasons.

“We tried to keep them informed the best we could and they seemed to appreciate the official word coming down that ‘this is what’s happening,’ ‘here’s how we can help,’ and ‘here’s what’s not happening.’”

Other organizations that used social networking included TV6 who experienced heavy website traffic that shut down their site, so they funneled students to their social networking sites for regular updates.

— Lucy Hough

Concert to include classics

The Marquette community is invited to attend the Symphony Orchestra concert, “L’Amour  Symphonique,” comprised of musicians from Michigan and Wisconsin.

The concert will include Bizet’s “Carmen Suite No. 1” and Rachmaninoff’s “Symphony No. 2.”

“Each of these composers are from the classical romantic time period, making them perfect Valentine’s Day selections,” said Lea Dziesinski, business manager for the Marquette Symphony Orchestra.

Hannah Linz, winner of the Concerto Competition for Strings, will also join the symphony and present Tchaikovsky’s “Violin Concerto.”

Tickets for the event can be purchased at the Forest Roberts Theatre, the Superior Dome, the Vista Theatre Thrift Store, or by visiting www.nmu.edu/tickets. Tickets will also be available at the door. Ticket prices range from $9-$27. Special student rates are available for NMU students.

The concert will be held on  Saturday, Feb. 12, in the Kaufman Auditorium at 7:30 p.m.

— Nikki Mitchell

Presentation discusses economy

Northern Michigan University will present “Michigan’s New Normal: Our State’s Economic, Revenue and Budget Situation” at 4 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 17 in Reynolds Recital Hall. It is free and open to the public.

Jeffrey Guilfoyle, president of Citizens Research Council of Michigan, will speak about the state’s economy. He has worked as director of the Office of Revenue and Tax Analysis in the Michigan Department of Treasury. Guilfoyle advised the state treasurer on economic and revenue matters and was responsible for the administration’s economic and revenue forecast. His areas of expertise include school finance reform, intergovernmental fiscal relations and Michigan’s tax structure.

This forum is hosted by the NMU political science and public administration department and the office of the president. For more information, call 227-2019.

— NMU News Bureau