Student government officials are working on a plan that could lower textbook costs by refunding students a portion of their total purchase for the school year. A bill recommending Gov.
By Amy Oprean For The State News Lansing — Mayor Virg Bernero is asking the public for help with next year's budget. As part of a four-stop tour of Lansing, Bernero met with residents at Letts Community Center, 1220 W.
Yvonne Wood traveled to her mother's native Colombia when she was about 5 years old. But it's not her own memories that stayed with her through the years — it was the stories her mother told her about her own childhood. Wood, an environmental studies and applications senior wants to travel back to Latin America by serving in the Peace Corps. "My life is completely different than any of my (Colombian) relatives," she said.
ASMSU officials are investigating a plagiarism-prevention Web site used by MSU's Lyman Briggs School to determine if the site is academically ethical. ASMSU is MSU's undergraduate student government. Turnitin.com, a prewriting tool designed to catch plagiarism errors in papers, is used by some instructors in the Lyman Briggs School. Robert Murphy, ASMSU's Academic Assembly chairperson, said he learned of the Web site at a conference he attended in December. "It was brought to my attention by Saginaw Valley State University," he said.
Gov. Jennifer Granholm's proposed budget for the next fiscal year will emphasize education, families and growing Michigan's economy, among other points. The proposed budget will be released today at noon by Mary Lannoye, director for the Office of the State Budget. "The budget the governor will present will continue to live within our means," said Greg Bird, spokesman for the budget office.
A proposed building move has the Urban and Regional Planning Program concerned about the fate of its in-house library, which harbors more than 35,000 planning reports from around the globe. The Office of Planning and Budgets is discussing a plan to move the four units of the MSU School of Planning, Design and Construction into the Human Ecology Building, said Eric Strauss, director of the school's Urban and Regional Planning Program.
MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon will deliver her second Founders' Day speech at 3 p.m. today in the Pasant Theatre of the Wharton Center.
Find out more about the legal rights and responsibilities of the city's landlords and get tips on understanding city ordinances better at the "East Lansing Landlords and the Law" session Monday. The East Lansing Community Relations Coalition and the MSU College of Law Rental Housing Clinic will host the informational meeting at 6:30 p.m.
More than 430 people reported getting sick after eating at Carrabba's Italian Grill, 6540 W.
The Michigan Civil Rights Commission will hear from the public about actions of the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative at 6 p.m.
Crinkled foreheads and questioning looks adorned the faces of students in MSU's Italian Club as a Scopa tournament developed. A corner of the Multicultural Center in the Union overflowed with chatter as students sought information from others on how to accurately play the Italian card game. "So, can I pick it up?" "Yeah, it's a Scopa, I think." Club president Achille DiNello said the group focuses more on social activities than cultural ones, but he's trying to change that.
Name: Professor Norman Sauer and Assistant Professor Todd Fenton Department: Forensic anthropology Type of research: Identifying human remains Date of research: Sauer has been researching forensic anthropology for about 30 years, and Fenton began when he joined the department in 1998. Basics of the project: "We aid in the investigation of deaths," Fenton said.
Work on the East Village Master Plan appears to be drawing to a close, but some East Lansing residents say they still don't have enough information about the project. The East Lansing Planning Commission is likely to take a final vote on the plan tonight. Several community members have asked why specific studies of the environment, traffic or housing markets in the area were not conducted as part of the planning process. The Michigan Municipal Planning Act requires commissions to "make careful and comprehensive surveys and studies of present conditions and future growth" when developing master plans. "I think that's something they've failed to accomplish," said Ryan McBride, an agriculture and natural resources and communication senior who lives in FarmHouse fraternity, located on the edge of the East Village at 151 Bogue St. But city officials maintain that doing studies ahead of time isn't necessary or desirable. "What you see in the plan is just a general statement of a vision, not what will happen," said Jim van Ravensway, the city's director of planning and community development. The East Village plan, most recently revised in December, calls to restructure the Cedar Village area into a new community with buildings up to eight stories high, expand access to the Red Cedar River and significantly increase the area's population by constructing higher-density housing. The 35-acre area — between Bogue Street and Hagadorn Road south of Grand River Avenue — is adjacent to MSU's campus and home to more than 1,800 people, primarily student renters. Andrea Brown, executive director of the Michigan Planning Association, said the planning act doesn't require specific studies, but they could be helpful in attracting developers and reassuring residents. Conducting studies of the East Village would have costs of more than $100,000, said Tim Dempsey, East Lansing's community development administrator. But the city did spend $55,000 on a conceptual plan and drawings.
Local governments could lose the right to decide what type of seeds are grown in their counties if a Michigan Senate proposal passes. Senate Bill 777, introduced in November 2005, would remove a local government's power to decide whether farmers can grow genetically modified seeds or organic seeds. Genetically modified seeds are technologically manipulated to become resistant to herbicides or have more nutrients, said Sen.
Before participating in the age-old cleansing ritual known as the mikvah, Jewish women must rid themselves of everything except for what they were born with — no makeup, no nail polish, no contact lenses. They are even encouraged to clip their fingernails. A new mikvah, a ceremonial bathing area for women of the Jewish faith to use once a month in order to reach spiritual purity, was dedicated in East Lansing on Jan.
Police continue to investigate a car and pedestrian crash that killed MSU student Dannielle Brandt Friday night. Brandt was on her way home from walking a show cow at the Pavilion for Agriculture and Livestock Education at about 10:20 p.m.
Employees of a Lansing Township bar escaped what police call a hostage situation after an unknown man broke into the back window of the closed bar and chased them around the building early Sunday morning. "The (employees) were finishing up when they heard a crash in the back and observed a man running toward them," Lansing Township police Lt.
The Residence Halls Association, or RHA, is seeking public comment about its proposed tax increase at its Wednesday meeting. RHA officials are asking that students voice their opinions on whether the tax increase should be approved at 7:15 p.m.