WEB EXTRA: Word on the street

What are you planning on doing for St. Patrick's Day? "I'm most likely going to start the day at Crunchy's and bar hop through East Lansing.

WEB EXTRA: E.L. residents discuss future of city parks, recreation programs

Gathered around tables in groups of five, armed with markers and paper, East Lansing residents discussed, brainstormed and even fantasized. More than 50 community members attended the interactive community forum Wednesday night at Hannah Community Center, 819 Abbott Road, to discuss the future of parks and recreation programs in East Lansing.

Ribbon-cutting today for new MSU center

A grand opening ceremony and tour of MSU's new Learning and Assessment Center will begin at 3 p.m.

WEB EXTRA: Meeting to address dorm renovation schedule

An informational session about the renovation of Snyder and Phillips halls will be held at 4:30 p.m.

Incoming students lack basic skills

College officials across the country have some stern advice for high school students preparing to enter the world of higher education — take college prep classes. A survey released by The Chronicle of Higher Education last week reveals that significantly more university professors think incoming freshmen are unprepared for college level course work than their high school teachers. According to the report, 84 percent of college instructors surveyed said incoming students did not have the study skills needed to be successful in college upon entrance.

Free show could be reward for volunteers

Students who volunteer time for community projects could soon turn their hours into free tickets for a concert. Student government officials discovered The 10,000 Hours Show, a concert celebrating students who volunteer at least 10 hours per year, and are working to bring the project to East Lansing. ASMSU officials attended a conference in Iowa, which is where the show originated in 2002.

Election results declared official; Whitmer wins

Tuesday's election results — in which Rep. Gretchen Whitmer defeated Vince Green to win the 23rd District state Senate seat — became official Wednesday. The board of canvassers met Wednesday and approved the results, in which Whitmer received 80 percent of votes, said Ingham County Clerk Mike Bryanton. According to the county clerk's office, 17,981 ballots were cast across the county out of 184,621 registered voters, for a turnout of slightly less than 10 percent, about 3 percent higher than last month's primary. Turnout in East Lansing slightly exceeded the county's at about 10.1 percent. The city has 26,855 registered voters and 2,722 ballots were cast. On campus 153 ballots were cast — an improvement from the 35 cast in the primary.

Jewish Studies to gain new prof

A Columbia University senior associate is joining the Jewish Studies Program next fall as the program's first Michael and Elaine Serling and Friends Israel Studies Chair. Yael Aronoff will serve as an assistant professor in James Madison College when she begins her appointment Aug.

Patch treats depression

Patients now have more options to treat major depression after federal officials approved the first antidepressant skin patch. The Food and Drug Administration approved the once-a-day skin patch — expected to be available to consumers in April — that delivers Emsam, a monoamine oxidase inhibitor, through the skin and into the bloodstream at a constant rate. Greta DeWolf, National Alliance on Mental Illness of Michigan vice president, said the patch offers another option for patients who are resistant to other antidepressants.

Groups report on faculty issues, will vote in April

Five task forces charged with improving faculty input in university decisions updated members of Faculty Council on their progress Tuesday, in preparation for the council's final vote on some of the recommendations next month. The committees, called the Faculty Voice Task Forces, started looking this semester at five issues — restructuring the Academic Governance system, reviewing administrators, reviewing academic programs, defining the role of fixed-term faculty and improving communication within the system. The task forces were formed after the Faculty Voice report was released last year, which was written after some faculty members felt left out of important university decisions.

Mayors adjust to new roles

Virg Bernero is the first to admit he's not one to mince words. Speaking to a group of public relations professionals in late February, he called Republicans "nonsensical" and then confessed that running a city has made him more Republican. He drew laughs apologizing for a clash he had with Lansing's City Council, blaming his temper on his Italian heritage. "Do I have a temper?

Bursting its banks

Students returning from spring break this week were welcomed back with warm temperatures and muddy, flooded sidewalks.

Student's U.S. court date adjourned to April 18

MSU student Brandon Yuille's March 7 court appearance on charges of computer hacking and copyright infringement was adjourned to April 18, according to the U.S.

Police briefs 03/15/06

Granholm signs waste dumping legislation

Michigan residents, environmentalists and lawmakers said they're tired of waiting for the federal government to stop international trash invasion. "Michigan cannot sit back and wait on Congress," Gov.

Senate OKs pay increase

The Senate passed a bill last week which would incrementally increase Michigan's minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.40 per hour by July 2008. Senate Bill 318 was passed March 9 by a unanimous vote.

WEB EXTRA: LCC president declines labor department position

Paula Cunningham, who left her post as president of Lansing Community College last month, said she will not pursue a position as the director of Michigan's Department of Labor and Economic Growth.

Graduate examination to change in length, cost

In October 2007, the Educational Testing Service will launch the new Graduate Record Examinations to better prepare the 500,000 students around the world who take the test annually for graduate school. Students preparing for the exam, commonly known as the GRE, can expect it to be longer and more expensive and include updated content involving critical analysis, real-life scenarios and data interpretation. Changes to the GRE, which is mandatory for entry into several graduate studies programs, were expected to go into effect in October but were pushed back to accommodate an adjustment to a new Internet-based English as a foreign language test. For many, the change simply means students will have more time to take the old version — something some experts say is an advantage. The content of the three standard GRE sections — verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning and analytical writing — will be revised to better focus on skills necessary for success in graduate school, said Dawn Piacentino, associate director in client relations of the higher education division for the Educational Testing Service. "We are looking forward (to the changes), and the board of graduate deans from around the country are as well," Piacentino said.

Police briefs 03/14/06

RHA responds to students' e-mail queries

Got a question? Residence Halls Association officials believe they have the answer. The Residence Halls Association, or RHA, has created an e-mail system called Helpdesk for students to send in questions, comments and concerns about living at MSU. Kathryn Cross, a premedical and business freshman, is the RHA official who answers all of the e-mails and said she has received about 75 e-mails since the system was created at the beginning of the semester.