Alumnus to build sculpture
East Lansing's first 100 years will be immortalized in welded steel this year, after being sculpted by the hands of John Neering, a 1951 MSU alumnus and resident of Grand Rapids. The three-part sculpture will depict abstract people joined together as one in a circular build and will stand 7 feet tall at its highest point. The East Lansing City Council approved the design at it's meeting Tuesday, though one member expressed concern about it.
Event celebrates Black History Month
Commemorate Black History Month through a presentation filled with poems, historical readings, art and music The event is Feb.
True love of chemistry, not money, motivates engineers
While they both came to MSU to further their careers, Ilsoon Lee and Troy Hendricks said the university gave them so much more — their families. Lee, a native of South Korea, came to MSU in 2002 and met his future wife while working in the same lab group. "Most foreign students, they are staying in the lab until evening," Lee said.
Mich. sales tax may extend to services
Decreasing Michigan's sales tax to about 5 percent and implementing a new tax on services is the latest idea being tossed around to solve the state's economic woes. The proposed tax would apply to professional, personal, repair, installation and business services.
Center to hold speech on El Salvador
Brandt Peterson, an assistant professor in the anthropology department, will speak on Profiling the Indians: Regulation, Recognition and Rights in Neoliberal El Salvador. The presentation starts at 3 p.m.
Travelers plan for spring break
With snow piling up outside and spring break six weeks away, travel agencies and students are preparing for the busy weeks ahead. The few months after winter break are when many students flock to local travel agencies to book spring break vacations, said Jenna Corey, a sales representative at Student Breaks in the Student Book Store, 421 E.
Dog leash law to be considered
Dog owners might have to keep their canine friends on a tighter leash if the East Lansing City Council moves ahead with a new animal control ordinance. Dogs are required to be leashed in public parks.
For the love of the game
Many students believe their athletic careers came to an end when the final buzzer sounded in their high school gymnasium. And while the number of student athletes who participate in NCAA Division I athletics is lower than the number who compete at the high school level, there are options available to the average college student. There is a cost to be paid, however, both in time commitment and financially, in order to stay active in the sport you love. Premedical and kinesiology junior Jessica Berg understands the dilemma in wanting to play a nonvarsity sport. "I've always played hockey, and it's always been a part of my life, and I've always wanted to continue with it.
Foundation starts $1 million challenge
The Kresge Foundation approved a $1 million grant to the Citizens Research Council of Michigan for operating and program support, as well as endowment.
Acting dean named to science college
The College of Natural Science now has an acting dean to fill the shoes of George Leroi, who is retiring after leading the college for more than 12 years. During its Friday meeting, the MSU Board of Trustees named Estelle McGroarty to the position.
Professor appointed to state board
MSU Professor James W. Lloyd has been appointed second vice president of the Michigan Veterinary Medical Association Board of Directors.
Colleges require cough vaccination for students
It's not a pleasant sight. When infants are infected with pertussis, they can cough so much they make a whooping sound as they gasp for air. MSU officials want to keep students from contracting the illness commonly known as whooping cough by requiring immunizations for those training to work in health-care settings. The vaccination will be required for all students in the College of Human Medicine, the College of Osteopathic Medicine, the College of Nursing and students in the Medical Technology Program. "Health care professionals have a much higher likelihood of being exposed to infectious diseases," University Physician Beth Alexander said.
Unemployment rate may keep rising
Michigan's unemployment rate jumped in December, and analysts predict the rate will continue to rise.
LCC trustees face lawsuit over meeting
For months, tensions have mounted on the Lansing Community College Board of Trustees — tensions that may have driven the board into an illegal closed session. The internal drama has led some trustees to publicly criticize board leadership and decision-making, even causing one trustee to resign from her position as vice chairwoman. And on Tuesday, a former trustee filed a lawsuit against the board for allegedly violating the state's Open Meetings Act, which requires all publicly elected bodies to conduct meetings open to the public. "It's a great concern to me when the public's business is not conducted in public, and it should be a concern to every taxpayer," said Todd Heywood, who served on the LCC board from 2001-03. Heywood charges in court documents that the board held a meeting in September at which a majority of members were present without adequate public notice. He also alleges that board Chairman Chris Laverty illegally moved the board into closed sessions. The State News was unable to reach Laverty for comment. If found in violation of the act, the board could be fined and ordered not to violate the act again with an injunction, said Herschel Fink, a First Amendment and media lawyer. An injunction would take another legal step in preventing the government body from meeting in secret by formally ordering it not to violate the act again or risk additional penalties such as jail time. "If the government is able to act behind closed doors, there are no checks and balances," Fink said.
Mock fire raises awareness
The room was typical. A dirty mattress and an old wooden desk were crammed into a space smaller than a prison cell, and stains on a tattered La-Z-Boy chair made the site eerily similar to a standard dorm room or rental home. As East Lansing firefighters dropped a burning flare into a trash can filled with old newspapers, a vivid message was delivered. "If your smoke detector goes off because of a fire, you have 90 seconds to get out of the room," said Gerald Rodabaugh, East Lansing's fire inspector.
Beaner's trainees use faux facility
Tucked away on the third floor of a Fifth Third Bank in East Lansing is a training center for Beaner's Gourmet Coffee employees. It's there that they learn to work the cash register, make well-known drinks and deal with the hassles of being a barista.
Spectacular Sparty
He's got an oversized head and bulging muscles. He swaggers around in a dashing green Greek costume, dropping into one-handed pushups without a second thought and busting out wacky dance routines. Oh, and he wins national collegiate mascot championships. Sparty regained the title of the Universal Cheer Association's No.
E.L. heroes rewarded
One person pulled an elderly man from a burning vehicle, another saved his girlfriend from the clutches of an attacker and another fought off a violent rapist. These former or current MSU students were honored alongside police officers Thursday night at the Hannah Community Center, 819 Abbott Road, during the East Lansing Police Department's annual awards ceremony. Josh Burda, a physiology senior, was honored for pulling a man in his 70s from a car that exploded no more than 10 seconds after saving him, he said. "I was just driving and saw there was a guy pulled over, an old man, and I swear that there was a little bit of smoke inside the car.