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MSU

ASMSU restores equipment after Labor Day weekend break-in

ASMSU has recovered most of the stolen equipment swiped during a Labor Day weekend burglary. Among the items recovered from the break-in of the university’s undergraduate student government offices were two computer monitors, three RAM chips, a computer tower, a hard drive and a video card.

MSU

Allocations offer boosts to groups

This past week, campus organizations allocated $3,190.57 to various student groups, including: The Residence Halls Association allocated $500 to the RHA special events fund to help pay for the Sponsorship Network, a conference about raising money for corporate sponsors for student groups. The event took place Oct.

MSU

Peacefest calls on Pentagon to alter spending

They arrived at 10:15 a.m. Wednesday to display pie graphs, set up tables brimming with free pamphlets and bread rolls, and to inflate giant plastic puppets - some 15 feet tall.The Bread Not Stones Peacefest, sponsored by Pax Christi USA, was at the rock on Farm Lane calling for a redistribution of 15 percent of the Pentagon’s budget - which is currently allotted to the military - to be used for human needs such as health care, education and Head Start programs.“We are the people who will redirect military spending - and we are on the march,” said the Rev.

MSU

ASMSU calls off Homecoming concert

Rapper Lil’ Kim will not be making the trip to MSU this Homecoming weekend.The Oct. 15 show featuring the risqué song stylist has been cancelled because it took ASMSU, the event’s sponsor and university’s undergraduate student government, too long to seek insurance coverage to ensure safety of those attending.“We couldn’t get insurance from anybody,” said Kendall Sykes, ASMSU Student Assembly chairperson.The student government allocated $50,000 on Sept.

MSU

Educational research institute set to open

After nearly a year in the making, Michigan’s first non-partisan educational research institute will open its doors at MSU. University officials will hold a grand opening ceremony for the Education Policy Center on Thursday.

MSU

Enrollment numbers released

A university report released Tuesday shows MSU enrollment at 43,336. The final enrollment tally is only slightly lower than the preliminary data released by university officials late last month.

MSU

Students to vote on tax raise

The Council of Graduate Students will hold a formal vote on their referendum that would increase the tax it charges graduate students.If passed by the graduate student body in the spring, the tax would increase one dollar per semester, from $6.75 to $7.25.The recommendation was passed by the graduate student department representatives and the executive board, the members of COGS that hold voting seats in the council and represent each academic department in the university.

MSU

Students patrol lots, keeping cars safe

Vehicles properly parked overnight in an on-campus lot are still susceptible to break-ins, stolen property and damage to windshields, outside mirrors or doors.What students may not know is that there is something they can do about it, thanks to the MSU police department’s secret weapon - the Lot Watch program.The 10-year-old program, made up of 25 to 30 student volunteers, monitors campus parking lots during nighttime hours to catch criminals in action.“We’re student volunteers who serve as the eyes and ears for the police department and work to combat the crimes that students most often face in the lots,” said criminal justice senior Nick Eisenlohr.

MSU

Online evaluations get a second chance

Representatives from ASMSU’s Academic Assembly dodged a procedural bullet to keep alive the possibility of putting SIRS - Student Instructional Ratings System - evaluation forms online.At the Executive Committee of Academic Council meeting Tuesday, an item was placed on the agenda denoting a meeting of the Academic Senate, a group composed entirely of faculty members that supersedes Academic Council, to possibly vote on the SIRS proposal.“(The vote for SIRS) wouldn’t have had student input and that is not good,” said Steve Lovelace, undergraduate diversity division and ECAC representative for academic assembly.The group did not go in session, however, because Lovelace’s motion to cancel an Academic Senate meeting was approved.

MSU

Flu vaccine will be late coming to U

The arrival of flu season means students can use all the help they can get to stay healthy - but that help may be delayed.Vaccinations are usually distributed in late October, but people may have to wait until as late as December to receive a dose because shipments of the vaccine have been held up.

MSU

Peacefest comes to campus

Government spending will be the topic of discussion at the Bread Not Stones Peacefest at the rock on Farm Lane on Wednesday. The event, slated to take place from noon to 3 p.m., will include a 30-minute presentation titled “U Slice the Budget Pie.” It will deal with the extremes of government spending and will include giant inflatable puppets and the “Moneymobile,” which is painted with readings urging the government to invest money in kids. The bus tour is part of Bread Not Stones: A National Catholic Campaign to Redirect Military Spending sponsored by Pax Christi USA.

MSU

U professor recognized nationally

After nearly 30 years at MSU, psychology Professor Bertram Karon is being rewarded.The International Center for the Study of Psychiatry and Psychology presented Karon with its 2000 Award for Contributions to the Ethical Human Sciences and Services last week at a three-day conference in New York.Throughout his career, Karon has been a proponent of psychoanalysis - a method of investigating a patient’s emotional psyche through free association and dream analysis - in place of excessive medication, shock treatment and other methods of treating patients.“There are problems with psychoanalysis - even Freud knew that - but I’ve found it helpful as a theory and as a treatment,” he said.He’s especially noted for his stance against using drugs to treat mental patients.Karon did his undergraduate studies at Harvard University and performed his graduate studies at Princeton University.

MSU

Aussie to speak to U

James Cowan has traveled the world, spending time in the wilds of Borneo, Aboriginal communities in Australia and tribes in North Africa.Now the Australian native will be saying “G’ day” to MSU.The Residential Option in Arts and Letters, a two-year program for freshmen and sophomores from different disciplines in humanities, will be hosting Cowan on Wednesday for a lecture in the Union Gold Room.“He’s imbued with a combination of European and Aboriginal perspectives,” said Arthur Versluis, acting director of the humanities program and associate professor of American Thought and Language.Versluis said Cowan’s speech will focus on the relationship between creativity and spirituality.First published in 1964, Cowan’s work has been translated into dozens of languages.

MSU

Homecoming promises fun

For more than six months, plans for Homecoming 2000 have been built and tweaked to help captivate students, community and alumni.Now, MSU is ready to celebrate.The theme “Champions 2000” reflects the success of the last year and the hope for more in the future, particularly during the Homecoming football game Saturday against the University of Wisconsin Badgers.Keith Williams, executive director of the MSU Alumni Association and a co-chairman of the Homecoming committee, said the week is always fun-filled.“We have raised Homecoming to a new level where it’s very popular,” he said.

MSU

Ghandi inspires student volunteers

Dozens of MSU students took to the streets Saturday, taking part in volunteerism events to commemorate the National Ghandi Day of Service.The Coalition of Indian Undergraduate Students and Into the Streets sponsored the activities, which sent student volunteers to 15 different sites throughout East Lansing and Lansing.The event, which is named for the late Indian leader Mahatma Ghandi, is seen as a way to share his charitable ideas among people, said Amit Agarwal, social chairman for the coalition.“This is a day to show appreciation for the important ideals of Ghandi,” the political economy sophomore said.

MSU

U expands online courses and programs

In an attempt to branch out and expand online learning programs, MSU recently introduced its newly established Global Initiative.The program, an extension of the university’s already existing Virtual University and University Outreach programs, will target off-campus working adults and other college students who want to obtain multidisciplinary certificates or receive degrees via the Internet.“We’re taking all the intellectual capital - faculty knowledge, research capabilities - and blending them with MSU’s interest in technology,” said Bruce Magid, director of the initiative.

MSU

Team to tackle concerns with trust strategy

A new group of MSU law enforcement officers, administrators, students and community members hopes to establish a trustworthy relationship between police and minorities.The new Strategy Team for Police-Minority Trust, which was set up by the MSU Department of Police and Public Safety, will aim at developing methods to improve communication between police and minority students.MSU police Chief Bruce Benson said the strategy team was created to confront the recent concerns that have surfaced between the police department and minority students.“I see some issues on campus this year with trust issues between police and minorities and that deserves some extra attention,” he said.