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Each week, The State News will bring you a glimpse of some of the public events MSU President Lou Anna K.

Police briefs 01/23/06

Parking law enforcement, residents engaged in game of 'cat, mouse'

East Lansing Parking and Code Enforcement and I like to play this game. See, first I park in the most normal way I can think of or assure my friends that parking in such a fashion is OK.

ASMSU aims to teach students about tuition, state funding

Students should have a stronger voice in the debate over higher education funding, and a new campaign could help them be heard, student government officials say. In November 2005, ASMSU, MSU's undergraduate student government, introduced four initiatives to encourage increased communication between tuition-payers and legislators. "We want an immediate and lasting impact on students," said Julielyn Gibbons, director of legislative affairs for ASMSU's Student Assembly.

Nun performs 1-woman act

Sister Nancy Murray made her way through the crowd in St. John's Student Parish Friday night, greeting the audience with a heavy Italian accent, embodying her alter ego — St.

Small price to pay

Anytime a faction of the university announces a proposal to raise student taxes our frugality kicks into autopilot.

Board adjusts auditing policies

For the first time, MSU's external auditors will be able to reapply to retain their positions after their six-year renewable contracts expire. Plante & Moran, an external auditing firm based in the Midwest with an office in East Lansing, was selected as the auditor for the next fiscal year on Jan.

Can team survive with Ager's woes?

MSU head coach Tom Izzo was pleased with his team's performance in the Spartans' 85-55 domination of Iowa on Saturday. The win marked the Spartans' fourth against a ranked team in seven tries this season, a feat that was hard to come by in previous years. On top of that, the defense is coming around.

MSU urges minorities to explore sciences

Declining enrollment in engineering programs prompted MSU and three other Michigan universities to push for more minorities in technical fields.

Revised MCRI to appear on Nov. ballot

Lansing — Michigan voters will decide in November whether they want affirmative action to play a role in how educational and employment institutions admit or hire individuals. The Board of State Canvassers voted unanimously Friday for a revised version of the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative, or MCRI, to appear on the ballot after a longwinded and emotionally-charged process of public hearings and testimonies. If passed in the November election, the initiative would make it unconstitutional to take race, gender, skin color, ethnicity or national origin into account for public contracting, employment and education. The board said they certified the revised version of the initiative to include the phrase "to ban affirmative action programs," because the original did not exemplify the intentions adequately.

Proof's show rowdy, alcohol-fueled

The snow outside couldn't stop The Temple Club from transforming into a hip-hop hotbed Friday night. Booming beats, bouncing butts and booze were the catalyst for Detroit rapper Proof's rowdy headlining performance at the club, 500 E.

WEB EXTRA: Spartans dominate Iowa in 85-55 victory

For one Saturday, Tom Izzo's world was perfect. Not only did the MSU head coach welcome back one of the program's all-time greats, Steve Smith, but his team recorded 26 assists on 30 baskets and the defense held a dangerous No.

Trannon becoming Spartans' X-factor

Blood dripped from his upper lip and onto his jersey after a celebratory head butt from teammate Shannon Brown after a big dunk and a foul. Looking to extend MSU's lead in double overtime, senior forward Matt Trannon stepped to the free-throw line. Despite the blood, despite the thousands of white towels spinning around behind the basket, despite his relative lack of experience from the charity stripe, Trannon swished it. It was a crucial moment of the game — one that the Spartans would go on to win. Trannon set career-highs in points, 14, and rebounds, 11, in the game. "He's a tough, athletic guy who can check, and he's learning to have the toughness of a basketball player instead of a football guy," MSU head coach Tom Izzo said.

WEB EXTRA: Student government deliberates over funding

A bill to allocate about $5,800 for an advocacy week to educate students about how their tuition dollars are used caused a heated debate among student government officials Thursday night. "We're here to represent, wisely, student tax dollars," said Julielyn Gibbons, director of legislative affairs for ASMSU.

Izzo receives verbals from guards, is another one coming?

After landing a top 20 2006 recruiting class, MSU men's basketball coach Tom Izzo already secured commitments from two of the top guards in the 2007 class. Kalin Lucas, of Orchard Lake St.

Reflecting reactions

It's not easy to follow up a season as brilliant as the MSU women's basketball team's run to the national championship game in 2005. Key players have graduated and inexperienced players are still learning the ropes, but the expectations have been set.

The Boss attempts win

After a heart-racing end to an otherwise boring MSU vs. Ohio State game last weekend — Tomahawk and The Boss are back to predicting. Tomahawk is still edging The Boss out with his winning prognoses, 5-2 to 2-5.

'24' addictive, best show on TV

I'm not an avid television watcher — in fact as a general rule I hate TV shows. But like all rules, there is an exception, and that exception is "24." It doesn't matter how much schedule rearrangement is necessary; I will not miss that show. I started watching "24" last year during its fourth season.

WEB EXTRA: RHA president insists tax increase needed to continue services

The Residence Halls Association needs an increase in its annual student tax to absorb the mounting costs of operation, RHA officials said Wednesday. RHA President Kevin Newman said during his State of the Organization address that all of the students' tax dollars have been well spent, but more money might be needed. "The costs of doing business are constantly rising, and RHA's desire to provide the best possible services to our residents will not ever decrease," Newman said during his address.

High-five for ASMSU

Oh, ASMSU. You've captivated us with your latest bill. MSU's undergraduate student government has passed a bill in support of two extra days off during fall semester — a fall break.