The college offers some training for graduated students completing their required internship year, said Sharon Schwille, the college's Teacher Preparation Program coordinator.

But it doesn't offer classes for undergraduate students who also work in the district.

In each of the last five years, the state cut some $10 million from the Lansing School District's budget, said Kenneth Slater, liaison to the Lansing Board of Education.

And administrators fear more reductions are on their way. With Michigan's current troubled economy, the district is uncertain whether Gov. Jennifer Granholm will cut another $3.5 million from the budget.

"Our fiscal cycle has been in the air and has been for such a long time that it's really hard to pin down a long-term plan," said David Atherton, an eighth grade algebra teacher at Gardner Middle School.

Atherton has been teaching for 29 years, and said it's hard to tell what the state of the district will be like in two or three years.

The budget cuts have led to benefit losses for staff — and since July, Lansing teachers and the district board had not been able to agree on a contract.

MSU students working with teachers in the district have experienced some of this unrest.

Some teachers, aggravated by the situation, placed strike signs in their classrooms. Others passionately talked with the MSU students about how they felt they were treated unfairly by the board, according to several of the students.

And earlier this month, hundreds of teachers called in "sick" during a staff professional day.

"They see and hear from their lead teachers and read in papers about the disrespect of teachers," Swartz said, adding that more than 100 interns work in Lansing schools from MSU and other universities.

The teachers' union and the board reached a tentative agreement Feb. 7. Details on the agreement haven't been released.

The union will announce Tuesday whether members voted to approve the agreement. If the union approves it, then the board also will decide whether to ratify it.

"I am hopeful that the teachers will be satisfied with tentative agreement," Swartz said. "I'll do my best to convey what I believe and the bargaining team believes that this was the best deal we could have received based on the circumstances."

The college tries to prepare students for real-world experiences, Schwille said.

After graduation, education majors must complete a year of student teaching in the Lansing or Detroit area. For those students — not undergraduates — the college offers small group seminars that cover topics such as conflicts between teacher unions and school boards, and warns them about upcoming strikes.

"We want them to be informed about what the issues are," she said.

On the other hand, undergraduate students who work about four hours per week in school districts, including Lansing, focus mainly on learning to teach subject matters, Schwille said.

Instructors are encouraged to the discuss current relevant matters, but it's not part of the curriculum.

Some students wish it was.

"I think these issues should be talked about and are fairly prevalent," Chamberlain said. "Nobody has explained what is occurring in the schools."

Plus, she worries about completing her requirements if Lansing teachers go on strike.

"If we are not going to the school, we aren't going to get our assignments done," she said.

Others say they just don't feel prepared.

Brittiany McCree, an English senior in secondary education, said she doesn't feel prepared to handle that kind of situation.

"As a student teacher you're there to help students learn," she said. "And when the teacher doesn't want to come to work (because of a strike), it makes it a very bad situation for you as a student teacher and for the quality of the education you're able to provide for students."

Tara Thoel can be reached at thoeltar@msu.edu.