Preparing to run for political office

Three MSU students are running for positions in organizations that connect college Democrats and Republicans statewide. MSU Democrats' Emily Mixter and MSU College Republicans Steve Japinga and Jeff Wiggins are running for spots with the Michigan Federation of College Democrats, or MFCD, and the Michigan Federation of College Republicans, or MFCR, respectively. Their jobs would be to create a broad network of communication between college groups across the state.

E.L. festival celebrates 5th year

By Isaac DeVille For The State News Amanda Shuler is proud of her Irish heritage. So proud, in fact, that she was one of about 60 participants in an Irish folk-singing workshop Saturday at Hannah Community Center.

Life-changing experience

Visiting beautiful Sydney, Australia, or lovely London could do more for students than provide pictures for a photo album. A Study Abroad Fair, put on by the MSU Office of Study Abroad on Thursday, allowed students to view more than 100 exhibits and decide which location was best for a semester or summer of eventful off-campus learning. Last school year, 2,787 students went abroad through MSU programs, office spokeswoman, Cheryl Benner said.

E.L. festival to sing away winter blues

Sally Potter bursts out into song, even when she's on the phone. Tonight, Potter and other folk singers hope to share their singing passion with participants in the Mid-Winter Singing Festival. The fifth-annual festival will start tonight at Hannah Community Center, 819 Abbott Road.

Police briefs 02/02/07

Scam targets MSU community

Members of the MSU community were the target of another phishing scam Wednesday. Students, staff and faculty members with MSU e-mail accounts might have received a fraudulent message that appeared to be from the MSU Federal Credit Union.

Civilians learn skills

Tucked into the corner of Lansing Community College's West Campus, a mix of MSU students and area residents felt the heat. They grappled with the question of when to use force, handled various ammunition and were even sent to shoot at dangerous assailants. The police weapon tutorial was part of the East Lansing Police Department's annual Citizen's Police Academy, where average Joes are invited to take part in a free, 11-week training session. The Academy gives participants an insider's view of how the ELPD operates, said Capt.

Catholic charity joins with fast-food chain to benefit children

St. Vincent's Catholic Charities has partnered with the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption to find permanent families for foster care children. The foundation is a part of the Wendy's Wonderful Kids program that helps to raise funds in Wendy's restaurants to find permanent homes for children.

Detroit's Archer to speak on campus

Former Detroit Mayor and Michigan Supreme Court Justice Dennis Archer speaks today on "Civil Rights and the Law." The lecture, sponsored by the MSU College of Osteopathic Medicine, is the first of four to be presented at 5 p.m.

Saving Mother Earth one day at a time

It's only ironic that MSU's ecological group, ECO, is holding its Week of Action to raise awareness of global warming during the coldest week of the year. ECO members braved the biting wind at the rock on Farm Lane Wednesday to inform MSU students about the effects of global warming. Students painted the rock with the phrase, "start global cooling" as a part of Rising to the Challenge: A Week of Action.

Police briefs 02/01/07

Impact goes high definition

Before becoming the general manager of 88.9 WDBM 18 years ago, Gary Reid was a professional musician.

Security breach affects students

Shopped at a T.J. Maxx or Marshalls last year? How about A.J. Wright or HomeGoods? You might have got more than you bargained for. The credit and debit card information of some customers was stolen in mid-December in a nationwide security breach.

City of Lansing to invest in renewable energy sources

The Lansing Board of Water & Light has adopted a plan that could power more homes with green energy. "We need to jump into the renewable energy field," said Mark Nixon, communications director for the board.

Cartoon creator relates to grad students in comic strip

Illegibly graded research papers, thousands of assigned pages to read, Web surfing instead of working and evil professors.

Beaner's sales grow by nearly 53 percent

Beaner's Gourmet Coffee sales increased by 53 percent in 2006. Entrepreneur magazine ranked the company 289 out of the top 500 franchise concepts in the U.S. The store opened new branches in Georgia, Florida and Illinois and plans to cross the 100-store mark by the end of 2007 by opening stores in Lansing, Grand Rapids and Detroit. "Overall, it shows that our brand is doing very well," said Kori Lawlor, marketing manager for the franchise.

Proposal calls to inform parents

A group of Michigan legislators wants to make sure parents are fully aware of a new vaccine that could protect their teenage daughters from cervical cancer. The proposed law wouldn't force parents to get their children immunized — it would require them to understand the correlation between the genital human papillomavirus, or HPV, and cervical cancer.

Police briefs 01/31/07

Grant to increase service

Over the next three years, MSU will extend programs to increase students' social and civic engagement within the community. Administrators plan to add service-learning and internship courses, study abroad programs and a class on civic responsibility designed to bring together students from different departments. This became possible because MSU was chosen along with 17 other universities to participate in Core Commitments Leadership Consortium — a grant from the Association of American Colleges and Universities, or AAC&U.

Parking garages upgrade system

In the next few months, drivers coming to East Lansing's downtown parking facilities are going to be greeted with an electronic computer rather than a parking attendant. More than $1 million worth of computerized parking equipment has been ordered to replace the city's existing technology by July. The new equipment will offer drivers the option of paying with credit cards and city-issued debit cards, along with more options for short-term permits. "It's just the way the industry's going," East Lansing Parking Administrator Dan O'Connor said.