- 
Dear Huskies,
Engagement with our region has long been a cornerstone of NIU’s mission. Across campus, our Huskie faculty and staff are working together in meaningful ways to strengthen communities, expand opportunity and prepare students for life beyond NIU. The impact can be seen in faculty research and service, in hands-on experiences that connect students to purposeful careers, and in partnerships that help improve lives and bolster our region.
That spirit of collaboration and public purpose is one reason NIU continues to be recognized by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching as a Community Engaged Institution. This classification is bestowed on universities that excel at fulfilling their civic purpose by forming respectful and reciprocal community partnerships. These efforts matter and extend well outside of campus boundaries to strengthen the workforce, support innovation, preserve culture, expand access to education and improve quality of life throughout northern Illinois and beyond.
This issue of Northern Now looks at some of our well-established engagement efforts and highlights how we’re advancing new frontiers in technology that will become critical to the workforce of the future. One of the partnerships we’ve deepened in recent months is with U.S. Department of Energy’s Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab). Together we are launching a collaborative, cutting-edge quantum science program for graduate students further expanding NIU’s contributions to innovation.
I hope these stories will leave you proud and inspired, for not only the contributions of Huskies today but for all the possibilities to come.
Go Huskies!
Lisa C. Freeman, D.V.M., Ph.D.
President
Northern Illinois University