The State - A Podcast from The State News + Impact 89FM

Black Student Alliance to host annual Black MSU pageant: After a two-year hiatus, The Black Student Alliance will be hosting their annual Black MSU pageant. The event will take place in person on March 26 at 6:30 p.m. at a venue that is yet to be announced. COVID testing and social distancing will be strongly enforced for all contestants and everyone that will be in attendance. The pageant will include an introductory speech, talent performance, and a question and answer round from each of the contestants. BSA says the goal of the pageant is to showcase the talents of the campus community and for contestants to have an opportunity to share their experiences and achievements.

Balancing the life of an essential worker and college student: As a certified nursing assistant in the stroke unit at McLaren hospital, Casi Hudak frequently struggles to find enough time to get a full night's sleep on any given day. After completing her duties as a CNA, she is often faced with little free time before returning to her school work. The human biology senior is one of many MSU students that have found themselves on the front lines during the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite many students retreating to their permanent residence to complete their schooling via zoom, there are still some that have continued working in-person. Students have continued to work in all facets of the essential market as essential workers, including healthcare, retail, hospitality services, and on-campus to help keep the Spartan community functioning. 

Script writer: Kelly Winters

The State is produced by The State News and Impact 89FM.

Cornel West discussed Black culture, civil rights leaders for MSU lecture series: Cornel West was a featured speaker at MSU's 21st annual William G. Anderson lecture series for Black History Month. West is a public philosophy professor at Harvard University in addition to being a Professor  AMAIRTIUS Emeritus at Princeton University. As the author of 20 books surrounding the topics of the intersections of race, gender, class, and religion in American society he has made several appearances on CNN, C-Span, and Democracy Now.

MSU plans to build Multicultural Center, 3 different location options: Michigan State University recently revealed that they will be building a new Multicultural Center on campus. Those involved with this project have the goal of providing a space for students with diverse backgrounds to use the space for events, meeting locations, a place to study, or for self-reflection. Michigan State University began plans for this project in late 2019 after many students voiced their interest and a need for a multicultural structure to be present on campus. MSU is currently looking into what is feasible for this project.

MSU alumni in Texas rely on community to combat harsh winter weather: MSU alumna Maribel Cisneros found herself facing the brunt of the intense Texas weather after she woke up in the middle of the night to find that her power had been out. At this moment she had no idea that she would be facing days of freezing temperature with no electricity. After graduating from MSU in 2000 with a business supply chain management degree, she moved from her home state, Michigan, to Texas because she preferred warmer weather. After faxing the recent extreme weather conditions, Cisneros states her disappointment in the government because she said members were blaming each other for the issues instead of trying to solve them. "They didn't prepare us; Texas is not prepared." Cisneros said

Script writer: Kelly Winters

The State is produced by The State News and Impact 89FM.

FORMER U.S. OLYMPICS GYMNASTICS COACH JOHN GEDDERT COMMITS SUICIDE AFTER 24 CHARGES WERE FOUND AGAINST HIM: John Geddert, the former U.S. Olympic women's gymnastics coach was charged Thursday morning with 24 counts of sexual assault accusations. Hours later, he was found dead inside of his home due to suicide. Geddert was going to be charged on 20 counts of human trafficking, force labor, and multiple charges of first and second degree sexual assault. He was also facing charges for racketeering and lying to a police officer. These accounts are tied to the investigation that involves now convicted sex offender Larry Nassar. Geddert has been under investigation for three years following the Nassar scandal. Geddert was known to have insight on the crimes Nassar was committing and never came forward. Victims came forth and said he was well aware of the situations they were being put in. In a tweet by the Michigan State Police, at 3:24 p.m., Geddert's body was found on I-96 in Clinton County at a rest area.

MSU BOARD OF TRUSTEES WILL NOT RELEASE THE 6,000 DOCUMENTS TO FINISH INVESTIGATION BY AG DANA NESSEL: MSU Board of Trustees are under fire with Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel after 6,000 documents have not been released regarding the Larry Nassar case. For the investigation to be completed, MSU Trustees need to waive permission for review. Nessel expressed in a letter to MSU Trustees "urging them to focus on what is truly important-providing answers to the people of Michigan and to the survivors of Nassar's crimes to help them." In a letter to Chairperson Dianne Byrum, Nessel said that the Trustees who have decided to take matters into their own hands need to let her investigation team handle it for the greater good of the whole. She also says that MSU Trustees would not know where to place the documents into the puzzle of the larger investigation. It's been three years and the Trustees have yet to give permission over the documents. Nessel says that if the documents are not given over she will eventually have to close the investigation as a whole. That is not something she wants to do but she is giving them time until March 26, 2021. Chairperson Byrum said in a statement that the letter was received and talks of it will be discussed in the weeks to come.

MICHIGAN TUITION INCENTIVE PROGRAM EXPANDS QUALIFICATIONS FOR MORE STUDENTS TO BE ABLE TO APPLY: In lighter news, there may be 100,000 students who qualify for the Michigan's Tuition Incentive Program who are not enrolled in a university. The program provides financial assistance to students who have finished high school and are currently college students eligible for Medicaid. Requirements for the program changed once COVID-19 hit the world. Changing the requirements helped students who may want to take some time off or take fewer classes without losing the aid they may have already. Now students have the opportunity to use TIP for six to 10 years. For now, legislators canceled out the option to fill out a separate application for TIP if the student did their FAFSA and was approved. High schools students are the majority that may qualify.

Script writer: Chandra Fleming

The State is produced by The State News and Impact 89FM.

MSU ENTERS NEXT PHYSICAL DISTANCE PHASE MSU: MSU is expected to enter the next phase of the COVID-19 physical distancing practices. Students will now be able to go to IM buildings in pairs to do activities. They will be able to play table tennis, pickle-ball and badminton. In Butterfield hall, bike rooms and main lounges reopened, but floor studying rooms are still closed. And if you're still wondering if you can bring your friends onto campus, the answer is still no. Visitors are not allowed in campus residential halls nor on campus apartments. Group dinners are not permitted, but you can study with a large group while maintaining 6 feet and wearing a mask.

EAST LANSING ORGANIZATION PROVIDES EXTA RESOURCES TO EL RESIDENTS: In need of some extra living assistance? Food Cupboard at M.A.C Ave has been operating for almost 40 years and has been a helpful add on for the East Lansing community. In one year, they help 2,000 individuals with one bag of groceries. That includes personal hygiene items, produce and a Meijer gift card. Donations come from members of St. John Catholic Church and the Meijer foundation called Simply Give. There is one more place that provides donations and that is the Greater Lansing Food Bank. To be a volunteer, there is a sign up on the Food Cupboard website. To be assisted as a student all you need is your MSU student ID.

Script writer: Chandra Fleming

The State is produced by The State News and Impact 89FM.

MICHIGAN SMALL BUSINESSES RECEIVE FUNDING: Good news small businesses! Michigan Small Business Survival Grant Program gave $52.5 million to 6,000 small businesses in Michigan. This grant helped 50,000 jobs come back, one being East Lansing Hot Yoga. Patty Sutherland, restaurant owner paid rent and payroll with the money. 50 counties in Michigan received the funding.

6 MSU AND MID-MICHIGAN WOMEN HONORED WITH 2021 INSPIRATION AWARD: Six women were awarded at the MSU Center for Gender in Global Context (GenCen) for the 2021 Inspirational Award on Feb. 3rd. The award ceremony is to celebrate women as a part of the Mid Michigan communities, students and MSU employees who participated in social inclusiveness and gender equity.

MSU ALUMNA BRINGING BACK THE MSU BLACK BOOK: In need of some resources? MSU alumna Triniti Watson is bringing back MSU Black Book. A resource guide that provides information for the MSU black community. The idea stemmed from Victor Hugo Green's book, "Green Book" which was created in the 30s through 60s to provide black people with a guide of services that were available for them. "What the Black Book is, is a resource guide book for Black MSU students," Watson said. "Within this book, you'll find a wide range of resources that are all Black-centered. ... Essentially, the function of the book is to allow folks to visualize the community that exists at State, and then to also start to build connections across those resources."

Script writer: Chandra Fleming

The State is produced by The State News and Impact 89FM.

Investigation on Ingham County inmate who escaped last year: As of Wednesday, an internal investigation has been completed on how Michael McKerchie escaped from Ingham County Jail. He was caught on Nov. 21, 2020, after escaping on Nov. 13, 2020. He escaped through a window after dismantling a mattress and using the padding to look like a sleeping body. McKerchie was charged for reckless driving causing serious impairment, and failure to stop at the scene of an accident then for restricting and obstructing arrest after Unlawfully Driving Away an Automobile. McKerchie awaits trial.

Winter storms interrupt covid-19 vaccine shipments: The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention informed them that this week's winter storms have interrupted the COVID-19 vaccine shipments.Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, chief medical executive and chief deputy for health said  "Unfortunately, distribution of the vaccine in this circumstance is simply out of our control. Vaccine providers across the state are working hard to get 70% of Michiganders age 16 and older vaccinated with the safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine as quickly as possible." Officials say shipments from the distribution center will start back up when the weather permits.

Michigan-Michigan State rivalry, competitiveness remains in spite of empty arena: Michigan and Michigan State women's basketball rivalry always brings out the best in both teams reaching nearly 100 total matchups. The Wolverines prevailed in Ann Arbor but the atmosphere of this game was unlike any other with COVID-19 changing the way an ordinary rivalry game looks. "You always feel the rivalry, but it definitely did not feel like normal," Michigan State Head Coach Suzy Merchant said.

MSU volleyball falls short to rival Michigan: Spartans faced off against their in-state rival, the Michigan Wolverines, with the start of a busy week for MSU volleyball. After the postponement of the majority of the season, Michigan kicked off the season with two losses to Purdue for only their third matchup of the season against Michigan State.

Script Writer: Kelly Winters 

The State is produced by The State News and Impact 89FM.