Trevor Case of Chatham recently received the Northern Michigan University Board of Trustees’ Outstanding Nontraditional Student Award. He graduated from NMU in December with a bachelor’s degree in entrepreneurship with minors in anthropology and alternative energies. He also was the student speaker at the mid-year ceremony.

Case came to NMU from Munising in the fall of 1998 and stayed for two semesters before joining the U.S. Army.  He was trained as a combat engineer and performed duty missions throughout Central and South America. He is most proud of his work in Nicaragua, where the Army built schools and health clinics in underdeveloped areas.

After his discharge, Case moved back to the Upper Peninsula, bought a small farm in the woods in Chatham and enrolled at Northern again in 2010. He participated in the Anthropology Club and attended an anthropology summer seminar on Beaver Island. He also served on the Student and Student/Faculty Conduct Boards. 

Case is very involved in his community of Chatham. He manages the local ski hill, volunteers at the paper recycling center in Alger County and coached the Chatham Little League Team to the division championship last summer. Case has filed paperwork to run for his local township board. He started a snowmobile guide service this winter and expanded his sustainable farm. He is transitioning to an all-organic operation and will be the only certified organic farm in the central U.P. and the only organic pork producer within 300 miles.

The Board of Trustees presents four awards annually to recognize students for their significant contributions to the quality of life at NMU through involvement in extra-curricular activities or through work in a university department. A committee composed of members of the faculty, administration and student body reviews the submissions to select one recipient for each award.