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MSU

Decision on med school move nears

Bob Darrow
November 1, 2005

MSU and Grand Rapids community leaders are inching closer to a decision about the future of the university's College of Human Medicine. Stakeholders in a proposed expansion of the college are scheduled to meet today in Grand Rapids to continue discussions about the project, and the group's final report could be in the works. During the summer, specialized work groups looked into the feasibility of different aspects of the project. The work groups were coordinated by Van Andel Institute Chief Administrative Officer Steve Heacock, who was charged with facilitating discussions among the stakeholders. Heacock said he has spent the last month and a half talking with the chairpersons of those work groups and drafting a report of recommendations.

MSU

Dorms furnish Halloween fun

Melissa Domsic
November 1, 2005

Dressed up as a pirate, Kristin Dombrowski painted a sparkly moon and stars on the face of 11-year-old Morgan Newport, who was a half-angel and half-devil for Halloween. "(The children) are so happy when they come through, I just keep coming back," said Dombrowski, a telecommunication, information studies and media and studio art junior, who has participated in on-campus Halloween events for the past few years. MSU students organized trick-or-treating in Rather Hall on Monday evening as a way to provide safe, fun activities for local residents. Morgan's mom, East Lansing resident Jennifer Newport, said she has brought her children to trick-or-treat at residence halls for more than 12 years. The event is one way to improve relations between students and permanent East Lansing residents, Newport said. "It brings the community together," she said. The event was organized by the Rather Hall government, said Dan Blenman, Rather Hall government president and premedical freshman. "On Halloween, (students) could be going out and making destructive decisions, or they could stay in and have just as much or even more fun," Blenman said. Students love to interact with the community, Dombrowski said. "It shows that the students do care," she said.

MSU

Campus landmark loses in egg toss

She's viewed the same scene four times in the last four years. But this was by the far the worst. Patricia Johannes had only one word to describe a slimy attack on Beaumont Tower on Sunday morning — horrifying. "It was just a horrible, shocking scene to walk up and see the eggs all over the tower and the doors — yolks everywhere," said Johannes, an on-call Agricultural Economics employee.

MSU

New animal clinic could provide answers for curing human cancer

Bob Darrow
October 31, 2005

In the coming weeks, Barbara Kitchell will have to transform MSU's new Animal Cancer Care Clinic from a bright and airy 42,000-square-foot facility into a functioning, cutting-edge treatment center. But Kitchell, a professor of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, has undertaken lion-sized projects before. In December 2003, a keeper at Lansing's Potter Park Zoo noticed that Samburu, a male lion, was eating but still losing weight.

MSU

Provost must determine where to allocate funds

Laura Collins
October 31, 2005

Provost Kim Wilcox has a tough job on his hands. He and a group of university vice provosts have to figure out how to dish out $9.7 million to 118 proposals from MSU's colleges as part of enhancing academic quality. The money was set aside by the MSU Board of Trustees for Wilcox to decide which academic programs, new or old, should receive the funding. Wilcox said there was more than $74 million worth of requests made. The provost-led committee has already met for almost five hours in the last two weeks and has finished discussing a portion of the proposals, and members hope to finish the task today. "There's an awful lot of very difficult decisions," he said.

MSU

Costume-clad dogs, owners race for charity

Melanie Thomas
October 31, 2005

They came in costume, ready to race. Dogs dressed as flower pots, hot dogs and royalty lined up on the field next to the College of Veterinary Medicine on Sunday, as part of a costume contest prior to the fourth annual Canine Cruise 5K Run/Walk. The event, held to benefit MSU's Sponsor-A-Dog program, featured the pets' owners racing with their dogs.

MSU

Walkers raise $1,300 for earthquake relief

Steve Highfield
October 31, 2005

Before the MSU football team ran onto the field Saturday, students and supporters walked outside Spartan Stadium to raise awareness and money for earthquake victims in Pakistan and India. The group of about 50 walkers marched through campus with signs and donation boxes for the South Asia Earthquake Relief Fund, which helps assist the areas that were struck by a 7.6-magnitude earthquake on Oct.

MSU

College becomes coed

Valley Forge Military Academy and College in Wayne, Pa., will open its doors to women for the first time in fall 2006, becoming the last all-male military academy to do so. Many in the MSU community say the move is evidence of the increasing roles women are being offered in society. History Professor Lisa Fine said women have proven to be capable of military service, and their acceptance at Valley Forge reflects this. "In the aftermath of the Gulf War and the most recent Iraq war, women have performed well and provided crucial contributions," Fine said.

MSU

Faculty hierarchy questioned

Laura Collins
October 28, 2005

As the acting chair of the Department of Family Practice, Linda French works in the clinic three to four days a week and spends other time teaching or in administrative meetings leading the department. But when French, a fixed-term faculty member in the College of Human Medicine, came to MSU six years ago, she tried to become involved in university decisions but could only participate in committees that dealt with naming buildings, not any council in the Academic Governance system. "To me, it didn't seem to be things of importance," French said.

MSU

Donors give $4M for salaries, scholarships

MSU College of Law President Clifton Haley and his wife Carolyn are committed to donating $4 million to the law college to fund full scholarships for students and to establish two endowed chairs. Haley, a 1961 graduate of the college, formerly known as the Detroit College of Law, has served as president of the law college since 2001. "I felt it was necessary to give back and show leadership," Haley said.

MSU

Action-minded students gather

Students at several Michigan colleges participated in National Take Affirmative Action Day on Thursday to raise awareness about affirmative action issues. At MSU, several students dressed in black, showing solidarity with affirmative action supporters, and handed out information at six locations on campus.

MSU

Global, area studies major to be added in fall

Laura Collins
October 27, 2005

As of next fall, students will have the opportunity to explore and study regional cultures and current issues weighing heavily on the globe as part of a new major offered at MSU. Global and area studies, a new undergraduate degree, was approved at Tuesday's Academic Council meeting as part of a report from the University Committee on Curriculum. James Madison College offers a major in international relations, and the interdisciplinary studies in social science major provides an international focus.

MSU

Survey: Female executives earn less than males

Top female executives in Michigan consistently earn less than their male counterparts — an average of 49 cents to the dollar — even though female representation on top companies' boards of directors has risen slightly since 2003. A study released Monday by the MSU Institute for Public Policy and Social Research shows women's hold on the top 100 largest publicly held corporations in the state is slipping. The Women's Leadership Index was the second study conducted by the group concerning women in top business positions, said Nat Ehrlich, a survey specialist. "It was started in 2003 to look at how women are doing in leadership roles," he said.

MSU

International jobs focus of fair

Melissa Domsic
October 27, 2005

More than 500 people visited the Union on Wednesday to find out how they can intern with the U.S. Department of State, volunteer at a local refugee center and set up sport and recreational programs in economically disadvantaged areas of the world. There were about 40 other programs included at the annual MSU International Opportunities Fair. The fair began two years ago after members of MSU's Office of Study Abroad organized it with the help of faculty at the University of Michigan, said Cindy Chalou, assistant director of the Office of Study Abroad. "By doing that collaborative effort, we've been able to draw in people from as far away as the (United Kingdom)," Chalou said. Last year's event featured more exhibitors because it included graduate schools with an international focus, but Chalou said this year's is more directed toward undergraduates. Yvonne Wood and Andrew Hewitt said they went to the fair to find something to do in their time between graduating from MSU and starting graduate school. "You don't have to rush into a cubicle job," said Hewitt, an international relations senior.

MSU

Day explores travel methods

Jennifer Toland
October 27, 2005

The third national Campus Sustainability Day was celebrated at MSU on Wednesday with a variety of events, including an information fair and a transportation study. Volunteers for the transportation study either drove a car, walked or rode a bicycle starting from five different locations on campus, said Terry Link, director of the Office of Campus Sustainability. The study was conducted to test how long it takes walkers, drivers and bikers to travel. At least one walker, one bike rider and one driver left from such campus buildings as the Clinical Center, the Nisbet Building, the Communication Arts and Sciences Building and the Student Services Building, before arriving at the Administration Building. "We operate under different concepts of getting from Point A to Point B on this campus in terms of time," Link said. Although the official results of the study won't be available until later in the week, Link said different modes of transportation proved faster depending on the starting point. But, he said, people might be surprised with how little the differences between the three modes turned out to be.

MSU

Council approves 18 changes to majors

Laura Collins
October 26, 2005

As of fall 2006, the university will offer a bachelor's degree in Global and Area Studies, a new major in the College of Social Science. The news of this major was part of the University Committee on Curriculum's short report presented and approved at Tuesday's Academic Council meeting. James Madison College Professor Michael Schechter presented the short report at the meeting. Retailing is another new major at MSU, which will be a doctorate program and become effective in spring 2006.