Faculty/Staff - NMU Events and Announcements

Faculty/Staff

NMU employees and their spouses are using Hello Heart in a big way!  

In 2025, NMU members engaged with the Hello Heart app by

• logging 6,000 blood pressure readings
• reading 1,500 digital insights
• generating 245 clinician reports

Not only are our health plan enrollees using the app, they are achieving meaningful changes in lowering their risk of a cardiovascular event.

• 71% of our population who is enrolled with Hello Heart that had readings consistent with Stage 2 Hypertension (Average systolic reading above 140 and/or average diastolic reading above 90) reduced their blood pressure.
  • 47% of this group improved enough to move into a better blood pressure category (Stage 1, Elevated, or In Range!) 

These results are meaningful to the patients and their families as well as the health of our plan, helping to avoid cardiovascular claims that require high levels of costly medical intervention by addressing the problem early.  

Hello Heart is free to NMU employees and spouses who meet all the below criteria

1. Enrolled in NMU's medical insurance
2. Have high blood pressure or high cholesterol or are in menopause

What have you got to lose - except maybe some points off of your blood pressure!?  Sign up today.

Faculty/Staff

Retirement Plan Information

The 403(b) retirement plan performance report for the 3rd and 4th quarters of 2025 is now available for viewing.  The report includes industry updates, market commentary and review, plan investment review, and fund fact sheets for the 403(b) retirement plan (TIAA).  Please visit MyNMU, Employee Services tab, and click on Retirement Plan Information.

Faculty/Staff

April is Stress Awareness Month. This nationwide campaign is dedicated to educating people about stress, its impact on mental and physical health, and the tools available to help manage it.

Did you know that NMU provides a free and confidential support system to help you and your family members navigate any and all of the things that are adding stress to your lives?

• Relationships (work and personal)
• Legal problems
• Debt
• Grief
• Parenting
• Depression
• Anxiety
• And the list goes on

The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) provides 8 counseling sessions per calendar year per issue you experience.  

Also available completely confidentially and free are one-on-one coaches to help you 

• Manage finances
• Balance life & work
• Build resiliency
• Wellness coaching
• And more!

Engage with EAP your way - online or over the phone.  Licensed counselors are ready to answer your call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  

www.theEAP.com/Higher-Education-EAP

1-800-252-4555

Faculty/Staff

As an employee of NMU, you may be eligible for Public Student Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)!  SAVI and TIAA work together to help people navigate this space.  Interested in getting an estimate in how much PSLF might save you? Get savings estimate.  

As you may have heard, some things are changing related to student loan forgiveness and policies.

Join this live session on April 1, 2026 at 4pm EST to hear about those changes.  Advance reservations are suggested so sign up today.

The borrower experience has been broken for too long. Savi is on a mission to change that experience for the better. No borrower should struggle alone, which is why we’ve created this space for our community of borrowers, friends and family members to access trusted support and guidance around their student loan debt.

Attend this LIVE and interactive virtual webinar with student loan experts to help you:

• Understand the latest policy changes impacting federal repayment, forgiveness and relief programs
• How these policies will directly impact YOU!
• What actions you need to take in order to maximize your potential benefit under these programs
• How Savi tools and resources can assist you in achieving the best outcome possible

Faculty/Staff

TIAA is featuring three webinars in April.  Prioritize your financial wellness and sign up for one or more now. 

• What you need to know about social security | April 7 | Noon (ET) | Register now 
• Quarterly Market Update | April 15 | Noon (ET) | Register now 
• Navigating the sandwich generation: Financial strategies for the caregiving squeeze | April 22 | 11 a.m. (ET) | Register now

Faculty/Staff

Understanding Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs)  

When you make pretax contributions to your retirement account, taxes aren’t due until you withdraw your money in retirement. But what if you don’t withdraw the money? Well, the IRS makes sure you do—through required minimum distributions when you turn 73. 

In this webinar, you’ll get insights on: 

• What RMDs are and when they apply 

• Exceptions to the basic RMD rules 

• How to take your RMDs 

• How to avoid costly mistakes 

• What you can do with your money

Reserve your spot for the March 26th Webinar happening at 12pm EST here

Faculty/Staff

Talkspace Go is a FREE & CONFIDENTIAL resource available to NMU employees and their families through the Employee Assistance Program (EAP), ESI.  

Check out this month’s topics designed to improve your mental health and wellbeing! These live, online group classes are therapist-led, anonymous, and free.

There are new classes every month covering a broad range of topics related to work, family, relationships, and mental health.

Review the classes, decide which you want to take, and register in advance through the Talkspace Go app. Or sign on to the app on the date and time of the classes to join.

• Don’t yet have the app? Download it for free from the Apple App Store or Google Play
• Sign up and create an account
• Enter your organization’s code: ESIEAP
• Once registered, review the calendar and click the links for the classes that you want to take

See the full class schedule and sign up here.

Faculty/Staff

Talkspace Go is a FREE & CONFIDENTIAL resource available to NMU employees and their families through the Employee Assistance Program (EAP), ESI.  

Check out this month’s topics designed to improve your mental health and wellbeing! These live, online group classes are therapist-led, anonymous, and free.

There are new classes every month covering a broad range of topics related to work, family, relationships, and mental health.

Review the classes, decide which you want to take, and register in advance through the Talkspace Go app. Or sign on to the app on the date and time of the classes to join.

• Don’t yet have the app? Download it for free from the Apple App Store or Google Play
• Sign up and create an account
• Enter your organization’s code: ESIEAP
• Once registered, review the calendar, and click the links for the classes that you want to take

See the full class schedule and sign up here.

Additional information on the EAP and Talkspace Go can be found at https://nmu.edu/hr/mental-health-wellness-resources.

Faculty/Staff

Our EAP has sent us a holiday greeting that we’d like to share with you – it’s a brief video reminder that their services are available throughout the season, should you need them – click to watch: ESI EAP Holiday Greetings.  

They’ve also sent a holiday handout that you can share with your family members – you can find it at this link: Keep the Holidays Happy With Your EAP.

Finally, you should check out their popular 2025 Holiday Survival Toolkit,  a compilation of handy seasonal links with tips on everything from budgeting to managing difficult family situations.

Remember, your EAP is a free, confidential benefit with many helpful services available to you and your family members! You can reach them 24/7/365 at 800.252.4555 – even on holidays!

Faculty/Staff

The contribution limits for employees who participate in the voluntary 403(b) and/or 457(b) plans have increased from $23,500 to $24,500 in 2026, and the catch-up contribution limit for employees aged 50 and over who participate in these plans increased from $7,500 to $8,000.  Under a change made to the SECURE 2.0 Act, a higher catch-up contribution limit applies for employees ages 60, 61, 62, and 63 who participate in these plans.  This catch-up, called the Super Catch Up, allows a catch-up amount of as much as $11,250.

This means if you are 

• under age 50 in 2026, the maximum amount you may contribute into your voluntary retirement plan is $24,500.
• age 50 or above, the maximum amount you may contribute is $32,500 ($24,500 plus $8,000 catch-up).
• age 60-63, the maximum amount you may contribute is $35,750 ($24,500 plus $11,250). 

A significant change made under Secure 2.0 is that in 2026, all catch-up dollars being contributed by employees who earned more than $150,000 in FICA wages in 2025, will be designated as after-tax ROTH contributions.  The pre-tax incentive no longer exists for catch-ups of highly compensated individuals.  NMU’s TIAA portal has the ability to automatically designate catch-up funds to Roth for impacted individuals.  No additional action is needed on your part.

Employees interested in adjusting their retirement contribution amount should log in to their TIAA portal, where adjustments can be made at any time.  The portal can be accessed at: http://tiaa.org/nmu/.