This year’s Hoophouse Gala raised more than $80,000 to support MSU’s Student Organic Farm. The gala is an annual fundraising event during which guests enjoy a seven-course meal prepared by MSU chefs using ingredients from the Student Organic Farm and other local Michigan farms and wineries.
MSU’s undergraduate student government, ASMSU, approved a bill to allocate $300,000 to create an endowed scholarship for students, amongst many others at Thursday’s general assembly meeting. “We want to enrich student experience,” said Michael Mozina, ASMSU vice president for finance and operations. “It is through things like these scholarships that we can show that we are giving back to students in the most meaningful way possible.”
MSU officials announced Thursday the three finalists for the open International Studies and Programs, or ISP, dean position. Three finalists for the ISP dean position are DeAndra Beck, program director in the National Science Foundation’s Office of International and Integrative Activities; L. Van Crowder, senior director of education, health and community development in the Millennium Challenge Corporation, which is part of the U.S. State Department; and William Fisher, associate provost and dean of Graduate Studies and a professor of international development and social change at Clark University.
For biochemistry and molecular biology junior Chris Porzondek the art of parkour isn’t a dangerous stunt. It’s a return to his childhood.? “It’s something that we had when we were kids,” he said. “We would climb on stuff, and now I always say, ‘you did do parkour when you were little, but you kind of forgot it as you got older.’” ?
Pamela Whitten, dean of the College of Communication Arts and Sciences, recently was named one of four finalists for the senior vice president for academic affairs and provost at the University of Georgia. Whitten has been part of MSU since 1998, when she got a job as an assistant professor in what was then the Department of Telecommunication.
During his time as an MSU basketball walk-on, Anthony Ianni won two Big Ten Championships, a Big Ten Tournament Championship and went to a Final Four. He also was the first person with autism to play college basketball. After overcoming his obstacles, Ianni hopes to help other autistic children leap over theirs.
Although October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, a team of MSU researchers is acutely aware of it all year long.
To promote appreciation of animals cemented in rock and preserved in time, the MSU Museum kicked off a series of activities in honor of National Fossil Day to appeal to all ages and dinosaur enthusiasts. Wednesday marked the annual National Fossil Day celebration, which focuses on educating the public about ancient plants and animals preserved naturally through fossilization. To commemorate the occasion, MSU Museum officials began a series of fossil-themed events, set to continue at 1:30 p.m. Sunday.
DETROIT — After hearing oral arguments in DeBoer v. Snyder on Tuesday afternoon, Judge Bernard Friedman denied motions for summary judgement by both the plaintiffs and defendants, setting a trial date for Feb. 25. April DeBoer and Jayne Rowse are a gay couple suing the state for the right to marry and adopt each other’s children.
ASMSU, MSU’s undergraduate student government, is working to create another academic financial opportunity for students by constructing a new scholarship program. At the most recent committee meeting, the finance committee approved a $300,000 allocation from its Special Projects funds to create an endowed scholarship. The bill will need to pass through the general assembly at Thursday’s meeting for the allocation to occur.
A new faculty health care plan, which will be the third option available to faculty members, was explained to members of Faculty Senate on Tuesday. The new plan is a “consumer-driven” option that has a high deductible and an option for a health savings account that will roll over year to year that the university will contribute to each year, said Renee Rivard, director of benefits for MSU Human Resources.
The In Your Face Theatre Troupe is going beyond the typical measures to engage students in learning about sexual health by performing skits with topics ranging from masturbation to condom use. The Troupe performs several skits about sexual health throughout the school year at residence halls and the organization took its talents to Holmes Hall on Tuesday night.
A recent study conducted at MSU shows that certain “advergames” not only promote an inactive lifestyle for children, but also contain content that promotes unhealthy eating habits. A team of MSU researchers looked at more than 100 websites that sported the advergames, or video games that advertise a product or brand, and discovered that many of them are promoting high-sodium, high-fat and high-sugar food products.
MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon is expected to receive an honorary degree of laws in December from academic and athletic rival, the University of Michigan.
The Office of Campus Sustainability is looking to fund student projects that could promote a greener campus. The Be Spartan Green Student Project Fund offers students up to $5,000 to develop a project that would improve campus sustainability.
Members of MSU’s North American Indigenous Students Organization, or NAISO, and other supporters gathered at the rock on Farm Lane on Monday evening to protest Columbus Day, a federal holiday to celebrate the explorer’s discovery of America. A drum group performed and supporters held signs with messages such as “Columbus was lost” and “We were already here.”
A bill aimed at getting more students engaged with the undergraduate student government’s work could pass at ASMSU’s Thursday meeting. If passed, the bill would require ASMSU to start posting bills passed during committee meetings on its website one week prior to the organization’s general assembly meeting. ASMSU representative and public policy sophomore Evan Schrage introduced the bill because he felt students have not been sufficiently informed about the legislation being discussed by the organization.
After years of student organizations pushing to get a free-standing multicultural building on campus, the Union welcomed the new Mosaic Multicultural Unity Center on Friday with a ribbon tying ceremony emphasizing unity. For the past 14 years, the Multicultural Center was in the basement of the Union, making some students, such as communication senior Luis Zarco, think the space was too small and cramped to fit everyone.
One of MSU’s most recognizable structures, Beaumont Tower, was opened to the public on Saturday in honor of Homecoming and to raise money for the Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities, or RCPD. Self-guided tower tours took place for six hours before and after the homecoming football game against Indiana.
Thousands gathered on the streets of East Lansing and campus to celebrate MSU’s Homecoming parade on Friday. Many university departments and campus organizations built floats or marched in the parade.