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A Michigan college student is being credited with helping save a newborn's life after giving the infant CPR on the side of a road in Macomb Township, according to the Macomb County Sheriff's Office.

Ryan Cornelissen, 21, a Macomb Community College student studying criminal justice, was driving near Garfield and 22 Mile roads on March 16 when a man ran into the roadway and waved him down, authorities said. The man's wife had gone into labor while the couple drove to the hospital and delivered their baby, a girl born about two months premature, in the front seat of the family's car.

Cornelissen called 911 and was connected to dispatcher Steven Kukuk, who talked him through infant CPR over the phone, authorities said. Kukuk first had him rub the newborn's back to try to stimulate her breathing, then instructed him to give two rescue breaths when the baby still was not responding.

"The baby is whimpering," Cornelissen told the dispatcher a few minutes later, according to the recorded call. "She's breathing." Officials said the rescue took about six minutes.

Macomb Township firefighters took over when they arrived, and the mother and infant were taken to Henry Ford Macomb Hospital. The baby, whose name has not been released, was expected to remain hospitalized for about a month because of her premature birth, and both she and her mother were reported to be doing well.

The Sheriff's Office said Cornelissen, who has said he hopes to become a police officer, would be honored in May for his actions. Sheriff Anthony Wickersham called Cornelissen's composure during the call "positively remarkable" and credited Kukuk's training for the outcome.

The family, whose identities have not been made public, later asked Cornelissen to stay in touch and remain part of the child's life, according to news accounts of the rescue.