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Northern was founded in 1899 as a place to educate future teachers. It was originally called the Northern State Teacher's College.
The NMU campus is located on the south shore of Lake Superior in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. It features nine computer labs; the Glenn T. Seaborg Center; The Berry Events Center; two on-campus radio stations; a public TV station; and the Superior Dome, an 8,000 seat stadium (the largest wooden dome in the world). Underground and raised tunnels connect many of the buildings on campus to protect students from the harsh winter conditions.
Enrollment as of 2003 was 9,016. Each incoming student is equipped with a notebook computer as a part of tuition and fees. Eighty percent of NMU's faculty hold doctorates or the highest degrees in their fields. The student-faculty ratio is 20:1. The average class size is 23, the average lab size is 16, and the average seminar size is 10. Ninety-three percent of entry-level courses are taught by career faculty.
NMU is home to the United States Olympic Education Center (USOEC). The school's sports teams are called the Wildcats. They compete in the NCAA's Division II Midwest Conference in all sports except hockey. The hockey program competes in Division I as a member of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association.