MSU Today with Russ White

MSU alumnus Devon Akmon is the director of the MSU Museum. 

Topics include the MSU Museum becoming a vital “third space” for students, being a catalyst for interdisciplinary teaching, learning, and research, and serving as a creative “collaboratory” for campus.

Conversation Highlights:

(0:25) – Devon describes the “whirlwind rethinking of our strategic direction and solidifying of our position on campus” since he arrived in 2021.

(0:57) – What challenges and opportunities did Covid present to museums? “The largest challenge is competing for time and attention.”

(1:50) – What is your strategic plan revealing about your future? “How do we bring the research and the innovation and the exciting things here on campus to life?”

(2:47) – How is the strategic plan manifesting itself now?

(3:38) – What do you mean when you say you want to make the museum a third place?

(4:33) – What are some ways you’re taking the museum to the community?

(5:40) – What will the Forest Akers Trust gift allow you to do?

(7:15) – How is the strategic plan informing the museum’s vision and mission?

(8:15) – What are your strategic priorities?

(9:11) – And your shared values?

(9:36) – What do you mean by “creative collaboratory for campus?”

(10:27) – What are your thoughts on MSU’s Arts Initiative?

(11:25) – Where does your passion for museums and the arts come from?

(12:18) – Upcoming projects include working with Julian Chambliss on the origins and “global imprint” of Detroit techno, Brian Winn and his team at the GEL Lab, and even an artist in residency program with FRIB.

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Jonathan Smith, who has led Oregon State to new heights during his tenure over the past six seasons, has been named Michigan State University’s 26th head football coach.

Smith was introduced at a press conference on campus on November 28.

Press Conference Highlights:

(0:00) – Spartans Athletic Director Alan Haller’s opening comments

(5:31) – Coach Smith’s opening comments

(13:52) – Are you going to study the history of Spartan Football and is that important?

(14:30) – How hard was it to leave your alma mater and what attracted you to MSU?

(15:08) – How will you go about assembling your staff?

(16:20) – What is your perspective on the importance of mental health for your players?

(17:08) – What did you learn from your Oregon State experience you will carry over to MSU?

(18:15) – What catch phrases do you use that your players will get used to hearing?

(19:01) – How will you address the roster?

(20:18) – Will you consult with Mark Dantonio?

(21:06) – Did the dissolution of the Pac 12 influence your decision to come to MSU?

(22:19) – What did you learn from watching some of MSU’s games this season?

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 Kari Kammel is the director of MSU’s Center for Anti-Counterfeiting and Product Protection (A-CAPP) in the College of Social Science and an adjunct professor in Michigan State University’s College of Law. She is an expert on legal issues relating to trademark counterfeiting, e-commerce, social media liability for trademark counterfeiting and intellectual property legal issues.

Saleem Alhabash is a professor in the Department of Advertising and Public Relations at MSU’s College of Communication Arts and Sciences. He is an expert on the persuasive impacts of digital and social media across many contexts, such as online safety and anti-counterfeiting. Alhabash is the associate director of research for MSU’s A-CAPP. 

Conversation Highlights:

(1:06) – “So, I did a little research and applied for a job they had open there and discovered there’s this whole world of people and organizations out there that essentially are faking legitimate products and then selling them for profit.”

(2:28) – “As the world of ecommerce has mushroomed into our daily lives, there has been increasing understanding that this phenomenon is really hard to contain.”

(4:23) – The history and mission of MSU’s Center for Anti-Counterfeiting and Product Protection. 

(8:57) – Frame the issue. How pervasive is the problem?

(11:48) – How do the social media play into this?

(18:05) – It’s particularly “scary” when you’re talking about counterfeit medicine and food and “anything you put in or on your body.” There can also be health issues with counterfeit apparel. Kari describes third party sellers and their role.

(22:05) – What’s the psychology behind a person knowingly buying counterfeit products?

(24:53) – Is almost anything counterfeit bad? The clothing is often produced in conditions where workers are treated horribly. Think about where your money is going. It’s going to places like that and even to organized crime.

(27:43) – What are the INFORM Consumers Act and SHOP SAFE Act and how are they designed to help?

(31:26) – What are some tips for being more aware of counterfeit products when shopping online and avoiding them all together? Be especially wary of online pharmacies. Overall, “be vigilant, critical, and skeptical of the information that you look at.” Know where you’re buying from.

(39:20) – More tips for shopping safely online. Don’t buy anything through social media without doing more research. 

(43:11) – Key takeaways. “Be aware of what you’re buying and what the impact of that is. If you do buy something and realize it’s counterfeit, please report it. If you can report it, that helps take down the listing so that other people aren’t also going through that experience in buying it, too. It helps the brands you like protect themselves, too. It’s just about awareness.”

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One of Michigan State University’s most dominant teams is not in the Athletic Department. It’s our perennial national powerhouse debate team.

Director of Debate Carly Watson, Coach Will Repko, and team members Joanna Gusis and Miaomiao Zi discuss how a debate competition works. They talk about the skills that make one a good debater and about why MSU is such a debate power. How and when did this happen? They talk about how debate skills serve students throughout their lives. And they reinforce some facts about debate and dispel some myths.

Conversation Highlights:

(1:08) – “The way that a structured college debate works is that you’re given a topic in advance. But one of the neat and healthy things is you don’t know what side of the issue that you’ll be on. Often, it’s determined by the flip of a coin, literally.”

(3:55) – How does a debate tournament play out? “Usually, the debates are decided by a combination of whose research is more advanced on a question of public policy or who is more persuasive in diagnosing the strengths and weaknesses of the opponents' arguments.”

(4:52) – What are the skills that make someone a good debater?

(8:44) – When and how did MSU become a national debate powerhouse?

(10:20) – For the students, is the debate team a primary reason you chose to come to MSU?

(11:49) – How do debate skills serve a person throughout their life?

(13:31) – “There’s this misnomer about debate and debate people that we like to argue or that we can’t agree on anything. One of the biggest things that debate teaches as a practice is being able to hear and understand and appreciate what the other side is saying. Debate is very good at teaching people to listen and to consider a perspective other than their own.”

(15:39) – Are there facts about debate you’d like to reinforce and myths you’d like to dispel? “Debates are nothing like the presidential debates we’re used to where people are talking over each other. That’s the impression many of us have when we think of debates.”

(21:27) – Final thoughts from the panel – “Starting public speaking at a young age did wonders for my confidence. I can’t describe how often I encounter someone who is a very successful lawyer who says that their entry point was an incredibly humble beginning in a middle school debate class.”

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We’re exploring the topic of artificial intelligence on this episode of MSU Today. We are we now? And what’s on the horizon?

The panel featured Bill Hart-Davidson, associate dean of graduate studies in the College of Arts and Letters at Michigan State University and senior researcher at WIDE, and Anjana Susarla, Omura-Saxena Professor of Responsible AI in Michigan State University’s Broad College of Business.

Conversation Highlights:

(0:33) – What is artificial intelligence?

(3:07) – What’s good about AI and what concerns you?

(6:04) – What is AI’s impact on higher education?

(11:36) – Could AI lead to a “dumber” society?

(14:19) – When is AI a threat and when is it a new job skill people should acquire? What labor disruption is AI causing?

(16:38) – Is this the first time AI is threatening white collar jobs?

(18:34) – Talk about the new guidelines on AI issued recently by the White House.

(23:57) – What are some facts about AI you’d like to reinforce and what are some myths you’d like to dispel?

(26:40) – What has changed in the year since ChatGPT came out? What concerns you moving forward?

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Bert Cregg is a professor of Horticulture and Forestry in Michigan State University’s College of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

Cregg talks about the Christmas tree industry’s place in Michigan’s economy and says there are plenty of trees available for those who want them this season. He talks about the latest MSU research on Christmas trees and says that climate change is likely already impacting the industry. And he shares his tips for selecting, caring for, and properly disposing of a real tree.

Conversation Highlights:

(0:34) – “Michigan is a major producer of Christmas trees. We rank number three in the country. Oregon and North Carolina are ahead of us, but Michigan’s claim to fame is that our growers grow a lot more types of trees than those other states.”

(1:40) – “You might hear some things in the media about a Christmas tree shortage. Most consumers who are looking for a tree will find one.”

(3:31) – “People may not realize that it actually takes about eight to ten years to grow a Christmas tree.”

(5:53) – Climate change “has a lot of potential impact and probably already is (having impact). A lot of the impacts of climate change are going to be around the shoulders of the growing season.”

(7:12) – Cregg describes the three pillars of sustainability: environmental, economic, and social sustainability.   

(9:00) – Cregg’s tips for selecting and caring for your tree, including his pull and tap tests to use when selecting the tree. His says the key is to get the freshest tree you can right from the start.

(11:29) – “People don’t appreciate how much water a tree can take up. Your tree is dead, but it doesn’t know it yet.”

(15:08) – Cregg’s tips for properly and sustainably disposing of your tree after the holidays. “Whatever you do, don’t cut it up and put it in the trash so that it ends up in a landfill.”

(16:23) – All about the Michigan Christmas Tree Association site, “which is a good place to find a real tree near you.”

(17:58) – “It’s a great family tradition…we certainly don’t think about artificial flowers for Valentine’s Day, so why do we think about artificial trees?”

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Three Spartans talk about holiday food trends, the history and evolution of eating, the importance of knowing where our food comes from, the problem of food waste, food safety tips, and sustainable food systems.

Sheril Kirshenbaum hosts PBS’s Serving Up Science, Kurt Kwiatkowski is corporate executive chef for Gordon Food Services, and Helen Veit is an associate professor in MSU’s Department of History.

Conversation Highlights:

(1:05) – “One thing I always tell my students is that the way we eat today is very strange. Most people in history ate extremely differently than we do.”

(2:33) – “I feel that food brings people together.”

(3:38) - “The idea is to cultivate a culture where more of us understand where our food comes from and how it impacts our world.”

(4:00) – “Americans used to eat together a lot more than we do today.”

(5:07) – “Cooking is something uniquely human. It’s hard to point to anything else more uniquely human than cooking.”

(6:56) – “I still believe that sides are where it’s at.”

(8:55) – “What we see over and over is that half of Americans say they rarely or never think about where their food comes from or how it impacts their environment or their health.”

(10:35) – “People often say we’re not going to have enough food. There’s more and more people. But it has a lot to do with how we use resources and what we do on a per capita basis.”

(11:30) – “We are throwing away between one third and one half of the food we produce.”

(13:41) – “It’s even possible to waste food by eating it when you don’t need it.”

(15:37) – “Wash your hands. Wash your hands. Wash your hands.”

(16:48) – “When you’re going to put stuff away, make sure you’re putting it away the right way.”

(21:29) – “The buzzword for a long time was farm to table. But what the chefs are trying to do is use local ingredients.”

(22:55) – “Local is good. But local doesn’t always necessarily mean more sustainable.”

(25:56) – Sheril defines and describes “food diplomacy.”

(29:12) – “You’re looking at the idea of taking comfort food and giving it a little bit of a twist or a zap. I like the term “swicy.”

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Michigan State University alumnus and donor Mat Ishbia is the CEO and chairman of United Wholesale Mortgage, majority owner of the NBA’s Phoenix Suns and WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury, and a member of the Spartans 2000 national champion basketball team.

Ishbia talks about what attracted him to MSU coming out of high school and about how his time at MSU impacted him. He talks about his special relationship with Tom Izzo and shares his thoughts on the changing landscape of college athletics. He shares his motivation for giving back generously to MSU and talks about UWM’s history and its evolving mission of positively impacting people’s lives.

Conversation Highlights:

(1:08) – MSU “has been a huge part of my success.”

(1:36) – “Coach Izzo is just a great guy all around. Besides being an amazing basketball coach, he’s a great person and leader and a caring individual.”

(2:25) – “The national championship was a big one that everyone will talk about, but that was more of an ending to a journey. Some of my favorite memories are just sitting around the locker room with the guys.”

(3:50) – “College athletics are changing like everything in your life changes. You have to evolve with the changes.”

(4:44) – “When someone helps you, whether it’s a university or a person, and you have a way to thank them and give back, you do.”

(5:40) – “I love basketball and I love business. And the NBA and WNBA ownership is really the merging of all the things I love together in one thing.”

 (6:43) – “At UWM we’re the largest mortgage company in America. We’ve built it together with great people for over 20 years…I like being able to contribute and make an impact on people’s lives in a positive way…we’ve never laid anyone off in 35 years. My father believed in doing right by people.”

 (9:18) – “I think the best thing for students is to find people who will help you. You don’t have to do it alone.”

(10:05) – “My biggest goals are to continue to help the brokers succeed. We’ve done great here at UWM. And we know that if the brokers succeed, it helps consumers. If consumers are helped, we feel really great about what we do every day.”

(10:59) – “Impact is the word. How do I impact as many people in the most positive way. No one’s going to remember how much money you had. No one’s going to remember how many mortgages you closed. People will remember how you impacted them.”

(11:41) – “Spartan Nation we’re strong. We stay together in the good times and bad times. Stay strong together and stay positive.”

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Matt Grossmann and Arnold Weinfeld from Michigan State University’s Institute for Public Policy and Social Research (IPPSR) discuss the latest in Michigan and national politics, policy, and the economy on the State of the State podcast, a monthly round up of policy and research for the state of Michigan.

Peter Berg joins the conversation to talk about the UAW strike and its implications moving forward. Berg is a professor of employment relations and director of the School of Human Resources and Labor Relations at MSU.

Conversation Highlights:

(1:12) – “We don’t have a real working majority in the House of Representatives.”

(3:11) – “They have a very small majority. And anytime you have a small majority, you have a few members who can make a difference. And now that we’ve proven that a few members can take down the speaker, that incentivizes everyone else who has an agenda to step forward and disrupt the process.”

(7:57) – “A lot has already been done. This will be right up there with the most changes from the right to the left of any state legislative session of the last 50 years.”

(10:54) – “The vast majority of the folks who are here now, when given the theoretical opportunity to the leave for California or Texas or Chicago, want to stay in Michigan.”

(13:05) – “It is certainly true that young people are more liberal on social issues, but if you ask someone if this is going to make them stay in the state, it’s easy to say yes, this policy makes a difference to me. If you look at the 50-state data and try to associate any set of policy changes with actual migration from state to state, you find zilch, no relation whatsoever between policy of any kind and which way people are moving.”

(16:42) – “We’re closer to the end than the beginning, but it’s really hard to predict how long this will go on.”

(18:07) – “This targeted strike across the three companies was a new approach. I think it’s been effective.”

(20:09) – “The UAW is trying to raise the floor. And they’re trying to extend their reach within the future EV industry world.”

(21:17) – “The UAW needs to transition from this heavy adversarial approach to now that we’re in this, how are we going to work together to achieve those efficiencies so that we all survive? Because the threat is that EV employment is going to be less than internal combustion employment. And that means fewer UAW members. So, great we won all these big increases, but the long term may see membership decline if they don’t come together and work together after this agreement to find a way to make the industry successful for everyone.”

(24:24) – “We’re seeing a lot of labor activism. We’re seeing more strike action because workers right now are in a position of power and they’re exercising that.”

(27:31) – “The view of unions as fighting for social justice and civil rights is the view of a lot of young people…there is a sense that the public is seeing unions differently, and whether that leads to change in some way or more interest in voting for a union and for density numbers to really move, we’d need a change in labor law.”

Listen to “MSU Today with Russ White” on the radio and through Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you listen.    

Hall of Fame Michigan State University Spartans Men’s Basketball Coach Tom Izzo previews the 2023/24 season.

In his opening comments, Izzo says he’s “excited to be back,” and he says he loves his team. He says he’s proud of his blue-collar program, too.

Conversation Highlights:

(3:37) – “We’re a week away from Midnight Madness. It’s important that we reengage after a lot of what we’ve been through the last couple years.”

(4:55) – “We also have two exhibition games.  

(6:26) – “I have seen our team in the Top 5 and Top 10. People have asked me if I like that. And I always say no; I love it. We’re looking forward to living up to expectations.”

(7:48) – Izzo on his seniors

(9:07) – Izzo on his juniors

(10:05) – Izzo on his sophomores

(11:18) – Izzo on his freshmen

(14:18) – More on Coen Carr and the pros and cons of summer basketball. “It gives our players a chance to learn how to act in front of people. They’re really good kids. I’m blessed with what I have right now.”

(16:24) – On the Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan, the importance of high school coaches, and the state of college basketball. “It’s the Jud Heathcote rule, 27 years later, that the most important human beings on the planet are high school coaches. I really do believe that.”

(18:48) – More on Jeremy Fears and Tom’s thoughts on competition making the team better. “Mateen was my best freshman leader. There have only been a couple guys – Mateen and Tum Tum – who have ‘it.’ Jeremy Fears has ‘it.’”

(21:14) – As he looks around college basketball, his thoughts on reduced opportunities for freshmen because of the portal. “I’m going to do what I do. And sooner or later it’s probably going to get me. I’m going to have fun in the meantime, and I’m going to enjoy the fight to keep my program based on relationships and not transactions. At Michigan State, there are a couple things that aren’t going to change until the day I walk off this stage. We’re going to stay a blue-collar place. The second thing is relationships matter to me.”

(25:58) – On the depth at the guard position. “I’ve done some things for players they better appreciate. I could have gone into the portal, too. They could have gone; I could have gone. I trusted and believed in them. I think they trusted and believed in me. What a great marriage and a great opportunity.”

(29:25) – More on Carson Cooper. “Right now, I have as good a staff as I’ve had.”

(31:32) – On how he will balance talented upperclassmen with a stellar freshmen class. “I have to sell winning and personal success. That is a challenge. Winning brings personal success. Personal success doesn’t always bring winning.”

(34:26) – More on Jaden Akins. “Jaden can be one of the best two-way players, not just in the league, but in the whole country.”

(36:24) – On what role he’ll play in finding MSU’s next football coach. “I’m a sounding board. That doesn’t mean I’m in on the decision making. Whatever Alan needs me to do, I’m suiting up and I’m there for him.”

(39:25) – Do you feel any more weight than you normally would to give your fan base, alumni, students, and faculty something with this basketball team? “Yes. I’m not excited that I have to feel that way, but I’m proud that I get the opportunity to represent the 650,000 living alumni and a lot of good friends of mine and a lot of people who have done a lot of good for this place. I feel it’s a privilege to have the opportunity to help bring us closer together.” 

(43:31) – On the prospects of winning a second national championship. “Do I say it’s Final Four of National Championship or bust? I say that’s the goal. I’m realistic enough to know there are a lot of factors.”

(47:36) – You seem to be speaking with more bravado this season…? “We and I have earned what we’ve got. We’ve been through a lot of tough times both on and off the court. We’re still standing. Let’s take advantage of that and stay focused the best we can. I hope that I can bring this place that I love so much what we deserve and make people feel good and smile.”

(50:52) – Where do you see the need for the most improvement? “The biggest thing right now is that we have to become a better rebounding team. I’m most excited that I have a group of guys together that have had options to leave and who have stayed. I want to try to win another championship someday. But I also want to keep this the great place I know it is. If that’s pressure and the weight of the world, that’s what I signed up for, and, more importantly, that’s what I get to do.”

Listen to “MSU Today with Russ White” on the radio and through Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you listen.