Monday, January 12, 2026

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MSU

Summit discusses global food safety

Heather Fisher returned from Tokyo last month with authentic green tea, blueberry bubble gum and a dedication to work on international food issues. Fisher, an MSU dietetic intern, attended the International Students Summit on Food, Agriculture and the Environment in the New Century at the Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, a sister school of MSU. “Many of the issues they deal with (in Japan) we are also concerned with in the United States and at Michigan State University,” Fisher said. Genetically modified foods and animal diseases such as mad cow and foot-and-mouth were international concerns discussed at the conference. Students from countries such as Korea, China and the Netherlands attended the summit, which recognized the 110th anniversary of the Tokyo university. Upon closing the conference, Fisher said the students adopted the Tokyo Declaration and began work on an e-mail network. “The deceleration says we as students and future professionals in our field will work together to solve some of these issues,” she said.

MICHIGAN

Trees to remember 9-11 victims

Families of Pentagon and New York rescue personnel might find delight from branches of green on Christmas night.Michigan Christmas tree farmers are donating 750 trees to Pentagon military rescue personnel and to surviving family members of New York firefighters, police and rescue personnel killed in the Sept.

NEWS

Bands travel plans in limbo

The MSU football team will be marching its way to California for a bowl, but the Spartan Marching Band may not be following.Band members met Monday night to discuss whether they will be sent to the Silicon Valley Football Classic in San Jose, Calif., when the Spartans take on the Fresno State Bulldogs on Dec.

MSU

IAH adds new classes, Web site to address terrorism issues

Following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, new classes and an MSU Web site have been popular among faculty and students.Some classes being offered next semester, which are sponsored by the Center for Integrative Studies in Arts and Humanities, involve issues brought up since the attacks.IAH 211B, Area Studies and Multicultural Civilizations: Asia Focus on India, Pakistan and Bangladesh is the only new IAH course being offered.

MSU

GEO strike at Illinois highlights U dispute

A recent strike by graduate assistants at the University of Illinois has brought more attention to MSU’s Graduate Employees Union, which is in the process of bargaining for its first contract. The Graduate Employees Organization at the Urbana-Champaign campus of Illinois voted early last week to have a two-day strike as a protest against union constraints. Todd Mireles, organizer of MSU’s union, said a similar strike at the university is unlikely but not out of the question.

MICHIGAN

$6.3M to improve city transportation

Congress passed legislation Friday that would hand over about $6.3 million to improve Lansing transportation.The bill gives the city $3.33 million for reconstruction of the Pennsylvania Avenue Bridge, $750,000 for the Intelligent Transportation System and $2.25 million for Capital Area Transportation Authority.If the bill passes the Senate and is signed into law by President Bush, CATA’s portion of the money will be used to buy new buses, update equipment and fix fare boxes onboard.“We are very pleased,” said Brad Funkhouser, director of service development for CATA.

MICHIGAN

Democrats seek new leader

State House Democrats will elect a new leader today.With Minority Leader Kwame Kilpatrick, D-Detroit, packing his bags for his new job as mayor of Detroit, the Democrats will fill the void of his departure.State Rep.

FOOTBALL

Team, fans prepare for bowl game

The semester is almost over, and the grade is already in for the MSU football team’s 6-5 regular season performance. “Even in games that we weren’t successful in, our guys showed a competitive will,” head coach Bobby Williams said.

COMMENTARY

Liaisons ineffective building relations

While there are many times the media can be blamed for its inaccuracies, it isn’t appropriate to place the blame on The State News for the current lack of a stronger relationship between the student population and the Board of Trustees. Despite the fact we have current board liaisons, it has become apparent this isn’t the most effective mechanism for students to depend on when they have issues.

COMMENTARY

Vamanos a Havana

Beginning next summer, MSU’s Office of Study Abroad will send students and faculty to a country where most Americans haven’t been - Cuba. After acquiring a two-year license a few weeks ago, the university will be able to send participants to Cuba’s capital, Havana, and take part in “Caribbean Regional Development: The Cuban Experience.” Students and faculty traveling to Cuba will be able to experience many unique aspects of the country such as traveling throughout the island and seeing historic landmarks firsthand. In addition to benefiting members of the MSU community, landing Cuba in the study abroad program also opens relations between Cuba and the United States. Cuba has had a long and often rocky relationship between our government with its communist dictatorship, led by Fidel Castro.

FEATURES

Lansing Civic Players present Nuncracker this weekend

The “Nuncrackers: The Nunsense Christmas Musical,” presented by The Lansing Civic Players over the weekend, left half the audience standing, a nod to the positive energy the musical created. Held at Lansing Catholic Central High School, 501 Marshall St., the show received an energetic response when the show ended Sunday night. The light religious comedy was based on the Little Sisters of Hoboken giving their first Christmas TV special.

NEWS

National indie-rock act plays Union Ballroom

Howie Day was tired. He left Rhode Island Sunday night at 11:30, drove until 8 a.m. where he stopped in DuBois, Pa., for a four-hour nap before finishing the drive to East Lansing. Despite the sleep deprivation and a late night behind the wheel, Day rocked a sold-out crowd of more than 450 at the Union Ballroom on Monday night.

SPORTS

Young Spartan squad surprises coaches, wins 2 close games

With fewer than 12 seconds left and a one-point differential between the two opposing teams, sophomore forward Julie Pagel stepped to the free-throw line. It’s a setup Pagel is familiar with, after seeing it in the last two MSU women’s basketball games. In the first instance, Wednesday against Detroit, her two free throws gave MSU the 62-61 win. In the second, Sunday against Marquette, she didn’t win the game for the Spartans, missing both shots, but Pagel’s free throws set up a situation that ultimately gave the team a cushion point in its 65-63 win. “I wish I could have made them but, then again, that miss led to (junior center Jennifer Callier’s) O-board so I can’t take anything away,” she said.