Kerri Schuiling
Dr. Kerri Schuiling became interim president at Northern Michigan University on Oct. 1, 2021. The NMU alumna previously served as the university's provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. She is Northern’s 16th president.
To recognized the extended timeline for the current presidential search into the Fall 2022 semester, the NMU Board of Trustees removed the “interim” portion of her title at is April 2022 meeting. President Schuiling has indicated that she is not a candidate for the permanent position. Dr. Schuiling was appointed provost and vice president in 2014. In that capacity, she was lead developer of the Forensic Research Outdoor Station (FROST), the NMU Center for Rural Health, and SISU: The Innovation Institute. She also supported the creation of medicinal plant chemistry baccalaureate program launched in 2017, and played a crucial role in the partnership between NMU and Shimadzu Scientific Instruments, Inc., which resulted in a donation of $850,000 in instrumentation for a new lab for the program in 2019. Earlier roles included dean of NMU's College of Health Sciences and Professional Studies, dean of Oakland University's School of Nursing and associate dean and director of NMU's School of Nursing.
Dr. Schuiling is a 1973 NMU graduate. She also holds a master's degree from Wayne State University and a doctorate from the University of Michigan. She is certified as both a women's health nurse practitioner and nurse-midwife. She was the third nurse practitioner to practice in western Michigan and was the first credentialed nurse-midwife at Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids. Being a pioneer is clearly a role she knows well.
“I look forward to continuing the ongoing positive collaboration, working with my colleagues on the administration, faculty and staff in continuing to move the university forward to achieve its mission and goals,” President Schuiling said upon her interim presidential appointment. She and her Tennessee-based colleague Francie Likis—both nurse practitioners and midwives—received an American Journal of Nursing (AJN) Book of the Year Award in 2022 for their co-edited text, Gynecologic Health Care: With an Introduction to Prenatal and Postpartum Care. The book received second place in the adult primary care category. It was first published by Jones & Bartlett
Learning in 2006 and is now in its fourth edition. It previously won two Book of the Year awards from the American College of Nurse Midwives and has been billed as “the gold standard in evidence-based care.” Dr. Schuiling was inducted as a fellow in the American College of Nurse-Midwives in 2003 and inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing in 2011, which is one of nursing’s most prestigious honors. She has received several other awards during her career, including recognition as one of 35 “Notable Women in Education” featured in the September 2019 issue of Crain’s Detroit Business magazine and as a 2013 Esteemed Women of Michigan by the Burnstein Community Health Clinic for her dedication and action to support women’s health. She was previously honored by NMU with a Distinguished Faculty Award and was one of the inaugural recipients of NMU’s Excellence in
Professional Development Award. In addition to presenting more than 60 times at various professional venues, she has published more than 40 peer reviewed articles and book chapters. She has serve on the editorial board of Journal of Nursing Research and the Journal Women’s Healthcare: A Clinical Journal for NPs and is the founding co-editor of the International Journal of Childbirth, which is the official journal of the International Confederation of Midwives. She has also been the chair of the Research Standing Committee of the International Confederation of Midwives.
When not on campus, she enjoys spending time with her grandchildren and family pets, and she is an avid downhill skier.
