MSU Professor David Hawkins received the Fellow Award in Teaching and the Animal Industry Service Award by the American Society of Animal Science — the highest honor in animal science.
The Evening College, a program provided by MSU's Alumni Association, is offering 25 new classes, three of which will teach participants about art. New courses also include an international speaker series, the history of the cello, tai chi, the French Revolution, cooking and more.
MSU's favorite tough guy met a rare defeat this summer. Sparty, the MSU mascot, was denied induction in the Mascot Hall of Fame's inaugural collegiate election this year. The Sparty Mascot Program, a section of the MSU Student Alumni Foundation, or SAF, was responsible for nominating Sparty.
The American Dairy Science Association honored MSU alumnus Kevin Harvatine with the 2006 Alltech, Inc., Graduate Student Paper Publication Award. Harvatine received the award for his article "The Effects of Fatty Acid Supplements on Milk Yield and Energy Balance of Lactating Dairy Cows," which was published in the Journal of Dairy Science. Harvatine is currently studying milk-fat depression in dairy cattle at a molecular level as a doctoral student at Cornell University.
As students rush around purchasing back-to-school items, a free online market, which allows students to exchange everything from textbooks to cars, is vying for students' shopping attention. Chegg.com, a national college classified online market, opened to MSU students about two weeks ago. "We created the Web site because, at the time, we felt we were being screwed by textbook companies," said Chegg.com co-founder Osman Rashid. Rashid, along with Aayush Phumbhra, created Chegg.com in 2003 at Iowa State University.
When Steven Alexander, president of National City Bank of central Michigan, handed over a check to the College Assistance Migrant Program, or CAMP, he knew he was helping to fulfill the dreams of more than 70 MSU students. CAMP is a program that assists migrant farm worker students during their first year of college.
It isn't often that a top Billboard artist chooses to perform for free at a college campus after midnight, but rap artist Chingy did just that Friday night.
Correction: "Two men in competition to join MSU administration" should read "Two people in competition to join MSU administration." Former MSU football head coach George Perles and East Lansing resident Faylene Owen will vie for the chance to weigh in on university issues after being nominated to run for the MSU Board of Trustees on Sunday. Perles and Owen were chosen at the Democratic state convention in Detroit and will face Republican incumbents Dee Cook and David Porteous, and Libertarian candidates David Raaflaub and J.P.
Standing in long lines and paying higher prices at book stores is a thing of the past for students who choose to buy their books online. More companies are allowing students to purchase books online at discounted prices, some even for free. According to the National Association of College Stores, on average, students paid anywhere from $801 to $904 for books and supplies during the '05-'06 school year. Sites such as SwapSimple.com, iChapters.com and allMSU.com help students purchase or trade books at a lower cost than going to a local bookstore.
In coming months MSU researchers could know how fast emerald ash borer populations move, how fast their populations grow and even when the beetles first arrived in the United States. Nathan Siegert, a visiting research associate in forest entomology, began sampling tree rings in 2004 over an area of 5,800 square miles in southeast Michigan with the goal of mapping the ash borer's spread.
MSU dorms will institute a new policy this fall, requiring any guest of a dorm resident who arrives after midnight to leave an identification card with the night receptionist. "As soon as school starts, the policy will be implemented, and the staff will be well informed," said Angela Brown, director of University Housing.
Photo essay by Kate Compton | The State News Dogs from all over Michigan followed their owners to the State 4-H Dog Show to compete for titles in agility, obedience and showmanship on Saturday. The dog show took place at the Pavilion for Agriculture and Livestock Education and was open to 4-H members ages 9-19 with up to two of their dogs. The agility classes were the first to begin at 8 a.m.
Many of the orange construction signs littering campus will disappear this week, an absence welcomed by travelers both on and off the road.
After finishing a grueling 765-hours of course work in one year, the first class graduated from MSU's accelerated nursing program. In its trial year, the College of Nursing's accelerated second degree program had 44 nurses finish and held the graduation ceremony Friday. The program is offered to students who already have one degree in nursing.
Abandoned bicycles cluttering campus during the year have been moved out and will go on sale today.
Meningitis vaccine recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC, have led to a low supply of Menactra, the most efficient vaccine for the disease. "There is technically a shortage of the vaccine," said Donna Cary, spokeswoman for Sanofi Pasteur, the company that makes the drug.
There could be new uses for contaminated land, as MSU researchers try to develop ways to grow biofuel-producing plants on polluted sites. The researchers teamed up with DaimlerChrysler AG in hopes of finding ways to increase the yield of plants — such as soybeans, switchgrass and sunflowers — that are used in the production of biofuels.
Paul Brown's summer made it apparent that his passion for stopping the effects of HIV/AIDS will be lifelong. Brown, a 2006 MSU graduate, helped conduct a case study dealing with HIV/AIDS orphans in South Africa this summer.
An increase in state funding for higher education was partially caused by students voicing their opinions to Michigan legislators, students and legislators said. ASMSU sought to expand funding for MSU by 2 percent, and the state surpassed the request, giving the university a 3 percent increase in July. ASMSU is MSU's undergraduate student government. Julielyn Gibbons, vice chairperson for external affairs for the Student Assembly, said the funding increase is proof of the organization's work during its Advocacy Week in March.
Middle school students might perform better in classes if they engage in physical activity during the day, according to MSU research. The researchers found that grades were 10 percent higher for students who were taking physical education classes, said Jim Pivarnik, a professor of kinesiology, epidemiology and physical medicine and rehabilitation, who helped conduct the study. The researchers used a western Michigan middle school where some students took physical education during the first semester and the rest of the students took it during second semester, said Dawn Coe, an assistant professor of movement science at Grand Valley State University, who was also involved in the study. "We did physical fitness tests, such as an aerobic test, muscular strength, endurance and flexibility, and we also looked at their grades for both semesters and a standardized test," she said. Some said middle school physical education programs are important, but the reason to have them shouldn't be because it supports academics alone. "There are many benefits to be derived from a well-orchestrated middle school physical education program that extend far beyond boosting academic performance in other content areas," said Robert Benham, an assistant professor of kinesiology.