The search for the new director of International Programs continues after months of interviews.

The search committee reviewed between 50 to 60 applicants and narrowed down the search to three finalists.

“We had a good pool of applicants from which to draw our finalist, people with lots of experience,” said Michael Broadway, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and chairman of the search committee.

In the past two weeks, the search committee has brought the three finalists to campus, where they presented information about themselves and their plans to the NMU community.

Faculty and students were welcome to see them speak as well as put in some of their feedback on each candidate.

“It was important that the candidates come to campus while the faculty was still here,” Broadway said.

Although the applicants were all qualified for the position, the search committee is looking for someone to encourage students at NMU to participate in study abroad programs both short-term and long-term and also create opportunities for “inbound” students: students coming from abroad to NMU to study for a semester or longer.

“I think great progress has been made in encouraging and promoting NMU students to participate in study abroad, whether it’s short-term or long-term,” Broadway said. “The biggest part of the puzzle that’s missing is getting more foreign students here.”

After all the interviews and presentations are over, the search committee will have a meeting toward the end of this week.

In the meeting, the committee will review the interviews that took place on campus along with the feedback from staff and students.

They will then make a recommendation to the provost who in turn will decide who gets the director position.

“The provost is a key person in making the final decision,” Broadway said.

Jonathan GoldbergBelle, Paul Hofmann and Carol Mandzik are the three finalists that the board will review later this week.

GoldbergBelle is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and also the director of the office of International Programs at the University of Illinois-Springfield.

Hofmann is a graduate of Bowling Green State University and currently the director of International Programs.

Mandzik is a graduate of Husson College and currently the director of International Education at State University of New York-Oneonta.

For more information on the candidates, visit www.nmu.edu/academicaffairs.