“I have such fond memories, and I love to get back whenever I can and see the beautiful campus,” Sena says. “I think only later in life do you realize how fortunate you were to be at such an amazing place to get your education. It's really cool.” Sena describes her career path from leaving MSU in 1985 to where she is today leading Suzanne Sena CreativeWorks, LLC, the parent company to all her creative endeavors. “It’s been an unusual career path, which I think in itself is a lesson. I think when...
May 10, 2021•21 min•Season 2Ep. 28
“It has been a very active year for us,” Beekman tells White. “With the challenges of the pandemic we've been facing, it really is quite extraordinary. Our team has done a really special job. I would be remiss to not acknowledge the work of our athletic trainers as the sort of frontline workers in athletics. They have administered literally thousands and thousands of COVID tests, and they've provided athletic training support to over 700 athletes whose schedules were really compressed. With the ...
Apr 29, 2021•20 min•Season 2Ep. 27
Edwards talks about the plethora of services available to student-athletes through SASS at the Clara Bell Smith Student Athlete Academic Center. And he discusses the recent academic gala , which annually celebrates the academic achievements of Spartan student-athletes. Gove (men’s track and field and cross country) and Szabo (women’s tennis) talk about balancing academics and athletics and about what they want to do with their degrees. Szabo is a supply chain major; Gove is a horticulture major....
Apr 29, 2021•27 min•Season 2Ep. 26
The Relationship Violence and Sexual Misconduct (RVSM) strategic plan builds on the work of the RVSM Expert Advisory Workgroup, which has been a major driver of RVSM efforts on campus and was tasked with creating a values-driven operational plan with recommended initiatives, timelines and metrics. The Workgroup — co-chaired by Dr. Rebecca Campbell, professor of psychology and Lt. Andrea Munford, coordinator of the Center for Trauma-Informed Investigative Excellence at the MSU Police Department —...
Apr 27, 2021•28 min•Season 2Ep. 25
Before exploring Carnahan ’s work, Weinfeld, Ballard, and Grossmann talk about the impact of the Derek Chauvin conviction and the likelihood that it increases the chances for federal legislation. They say some more modest reform legislation could pass in some states, but that federal action is unlikely. They talk about how important video was to the George Floyd case and what, if any, impact Chauvin’s conviction will have on the economy and income inequality. On the economy of Michigan and the c...
Apr 23, 2021•32 min•Season 2Ep. 24
At the time of her installation, Malawi was going through turbulent times. The country was in the midst of a deep economic crisis and had undergone a process of serious democratic erosion. To make matters worse, the government had fallen out with the international donor community. Nevertheless, expectations were high on the new president. As only the second-ever female president on the African continent, she drew attention from around the world as a trailblazer for female empowerment. However, t...
Apr 21, 2021•46 min•Season 2Ep. 23
James Clift is the deputy director of the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy. And before that, he served as policy director for the Michigan Environmental Council. Saulius Mikalonis is a widely respected environmental attorney in the Bloomfield Hills office of Plunkett Cooney. “The impact and insignificance of Earth Day is that it started the ball rolling,” Mikalonis tells host Kirk Heinze. “Shortly thereafter, the EPA was created, and the Clean Water Act and Clean Air A...
Apr 20, 2021•36 min•Season 2Ep. 22
“ Dough 's mission is to drive consumer purchase power towards women-owned businesses,” Kangas says. “Our co-founders Vanessa and Anna created Dough out of their own experiences, grappling with the unique challenges that many women face in building successful companies and raising capital to grow their businesses. Before COVID, only something like 2.7 percent of investment dollars went to women-owned businesses. And since then, that number has actually shrunk to 1 percent. Meanwhile, only someth...
Apr 13, 2021•16 min•Season 2Ep. 21
“Our center is a student-centered campus resource that works to celebrate, affirm, and empower LGBTQA+ members of the Michigan State University community,” says Beal. “We are the hub of LGBTQA+ life on campus, a home away from home. We also provide trainings, workshops, consultation services, and educational programs for all of campus. “But at the end of the day, our whole job is making sure that LGBTQA+ students know that they are whole and perfect and complete exactly as they are and that we c...
Apr 05, 2021•34 min•Season 2Ep. 20
“We’re fortunate to have a season this year, and we’re thankful for the Big Ten conference and MSU supporting us,” says Orlando. “We get to play an unbelievable schedule. The Big Ten conference is one of the best conferences in the country. It’s exciting to have that many quality matches. “We're off to a good start. It's been a great improvement; the guys have really come a long way. We weren't able to compete in the fall. But we took the challenge, and we were just so excited to be able to be b...
Apr 01, 2021•26 min•Season 2Ep. 19
Bruno and Memije talk about how they became interested in tennis. Memije says the “individual aspect” of the game drew her to tennis while Bruno says the “team-oriented” nature of college tennis attracted her to the sport. “It’s interesting that way,” says Beekman, “It’s an individual sport and yet there's a team, and so in some ways, the best of both worlds.” Bruno describes her coaching and recruiting philosophies and the relationships she builds with her players. And Memije talks about why MS...
Apr 01, 2021•18 min•Season 2Ep. 18
Dr. Field is a nationally recognized gynecologic oncologist. He brings more than 15 years of oncology experience to Mid-Michigan. Dr. Field specializes in minimally invasive surgery, open debulking of ovarian cancer, chemotherapy, and hormone therapy treatments for women with gynecologic cancers, including ovarian and endometrial cancer. Since 2012, he has served as principal investigator for Gynecologic Oncology Group, NRG Oncology Clinical Trials, which is responsible for improving and expandi...
Mar 25, 2021•12 min•Season 2Ep. 17
LCC President Steve Robinson , MSU Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education and Dean of Undergraduate Studies Mark Largent , and MSU junior Sarah Day, who came to MSU from LCC, join Russ White to discuss Envision Green on this edtion of the MSU Today podcast. The partnership, called Envision Green, provides a seamless transition from LCC to MSU by embedding MSU advisors within LCC to guide students through their educational journey — a transition more than 5,500 LCC students have made over ...
Mar 24, 2021•19 min•Season 2Ep. 16
“I actually started as a newspaper reporter,” says Meagher . “I worked at The State News the second semester of my senior year, which was a great experience that kind of allowed me to take the next step after I graduated. I had a couple of internships, including one at the Oakland Press in Pontiac and then became a reporter out in Santa Barbara, California, first for a daily that is no longer in existence and then an alternative weekly there. I was a reporter for about six or seven years and had...
Mar 15, 2021•22 min•Season 2Ep. 15
When it comes to vaccine acceptance, Dr. Furr-Holden thinks we may have done ourselves a disservice with the term Operation Warp Speed. “What a lot of people heard was corner cutting or skipping steps or quick and dirty,” says Furr-Holden. “There was a very rigorous process in place. There were no steps that were skipped, but I can understand why people may feel that way.” She says myths and misinformation around the vaccines are a problem, so she encourages us to seek out more than one sole sou...
Mar 11, 2021•19 min•Season 2Ep. 14
Dear Faculty, Staff and Students, Like many of you, I am eager to get back to working and learning together on campus later this year. While we continue to prioritize the health and safety of our community, we also realize the need to plan for summer and fall on and off MSU’s campus. Making decisions now about the future of our university is not an easy task, as the pandemic has shown us. However, with vaccinations continuing to progress, we are optimistic that we can begin to safely transition ...
Mar 05, 2021•8 min•Season 2Ep. 13
The 1918 influenza pandemic provides a cautionary tale for what the future may hold for COVID-19, says Chandra. After a decade studying a flu virus that killed approximately 15,000 Michigan residents, Chandra , a professor in MSU’s James Madison College , saw his research come to life as he watched the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. “It was so surreal,” said Chandra, who has a courtesy appointment in epidemiology and biostatistics. “All of a sudden, I was living my research.” Chandra’s researc...
Mar 03, 2021•18 min•Season 2Ep. 12
“The osteopathic profession is really booming right now,” Amalfitano tells Beekman. “It's the fastest growing of the health professions. One in five graduates of a medical school right now is graduating from a DO medical school. One of those is ours . And then one in four medical students entering medical school this year in the United States is entering an osteopathic medical school. “And that primarily stems from our history and philosophical tenants of how we view individuals and our longstan...
Feb 24, 2021•28 min•Season 2Ep. 11
MSU’s College of Human Medicine was a pioneer in the area of community-based medical schools. Third and fourth-year students do their clinical training in hospitals around the state. “That philosophy that the best place for people to learn to be a physician is with the people they will eventually be taking care of stays with us,” Sousa tells Beekman. “And our dedication to those communities is a part of what makes us different and special. We were leaders in that. Almost every medical school now...
Feb 24, 2021•25 min•Season 2Ep. 10
“The university has a special place in my heart,” Smith tells White. “I never thought, Russ, back in my days in college, that I'd be on the other side, I used to call it. When you're an athlete and young, you're always running away from the media, but I definitely enjoy it.” Smith's advice for the students he encounters at events like the Spartan Sports Journalism Classic involves passion and hard work. And he says he learns from the students and fellow alumni too. “Network with all our terrific...
Feb 18, 2021•8 min•Season 2Ep. 9
“It’s has been a great privilege for me to serve as the director of MSU Extension and the highlight of my professional career,” Dwyer says. “It's not very often you get to wake up every single day knowing that the organization you're a part of is impacting tens of thousands of people that day. And that's what it's like being the director of MSU Extension—working with over 600 people who are immensely talented, who are located across the state and who are doing great work every day. Whatever has ...
Feb 18, 2021•37 min•Season 2Ep. 8
“I had the really fortunate opportunity to go to undergrad during what is now considered Web 1.0, Russ,” says Schram . It was the time when we all took our AOL dial-up internet experience and brought it to broadband. And actually, that's one of the reasons I chose to live at Holden Hall in South Campus. At that time, it was, I think, the first or second residence hall on campus to get wired ethernet, high-speed internet. And by high speed, I think it was at one or two megabytes at the time, but ...
Feb 04, 2021•32 min•Season 2Ep. 7
“It's an awesome feeling,” says Lynch. “I arrived at MSU in the late 80s. I was a criminal justice major. I'm a product of the School of Criminal Justice . Actually, I started as a police officer at Meridian Township Police Department. That evolved through the police cadet internship program. I had the privilege of working at Meridian Township Police Department as a cadet first to get an idea of what it's like to be a police officer then actually began my career as a police officer prior to comp...
Feb 02, 2021•12 min•Season 2Ep. 6
“As athletic trainers, we arrive here in the morning before the athletes usually go to work out, go to lift weights, go to other workouts, practices, or whatever,” Nogle tells Beekman. “We help get them ready for that. We might stretch somebody. We might tape somebody, put a splint or brace on, whatever they need before they go work out to do their lifting, their conditioning or practice. There are administrative tasks, too, like giving an injury report to a coach. “Then treatments start and con...
Jan 27, 2021•17 min•Season 2Ep. 5
Tucker recalls the challenges of being hired on February 12, 2020 and then shutting down the program a few weeks later due to the pandemic. “I was just in the final stages of assembling the staff and had just put the strength coach in place and got everyone under contract,” Tucker tells Beekman. “We were actually going to start spring ball the following Tuesday. I was going to make a trip down to Indianapolis for the Big Ten basketball tournament, and I got word that they weren't going to have f...
Jan 27, 2021•32 min•Season 2Ep. 4
Henry Ford Health System and Michigan State University, two of the state’s leading education, research and health care institutions, are partnering to make Michigan a national leader in providing access to exceptional health care for all residents, scientific discovery and education for providers, patients and families. In a landmark partnership that will last for at least 30 years, both institutions are committed to aligning efforts across key departments and programs to achieve critical health...
Jan 25, 2021•47 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Texting is the most alarming distraction. Sending or reading a text takes your eyes off the road for five seconds. At 55 miles per hour, that's like driving the length of an entire football field with your eyes closed. You cannot drive safely unless the task of driving has your full attention. Any non-driving activity you engage in is a potential distraction and increases your risk of crashing. Using a cell phone while driving creates enormous potential for deaths and injuries on U.S. roads. In ...
Jan 24, 2021•34 min•Season 2Ep. 2
This month’s guest is Dr. Jakana Thomas , an Associate Professor in MSU's Department of Political Science whose research focuses on political violence, how violence influences conflict resolution, and the determinants of a successful peace process - items that are no doubt on the minds of many Americans today. “The drop in the economy in Michigan and everywhere else was dramatic in April of 2020. Really, by many measures, April 2020 was the worst month in American economic history,” says Ballard...
Jan 24, 2021•33 min•Season 2Ep. 1
Today, we're joined by Dawn Kepler , coordinator for the MSU Collegiate Recovery Community , and Chris Anthony vice president of US Consumer Goods at Salesforce. We're discussing recovery, sobriety, and the de-stigmatization of both on college campuses and in the corporate world. Dawn's passion for helping others struggling with substance use stems from her journey with recovery, 18 years in the making. With a BS in psychology and work in the substance use disorder prevention and recovery fields...
Dec 29, 2020•38 min•Season 1Ep. 93
“I made kind of a circuitous route back to the university, Bill,” Hendrick says. “I did my bachelor's and PhD degrees here and left in 1992. I did a post-doctoral fellowship in Alaska, and then I went to Georgia for 16 years. That's where I spent most of my active faculty career then migrated back a little bit north to The Ohio State University for about seven and a half years. I came back here in the summer of 2016 as dean. “It's an interesting and exciting time for our college, and we do a lot...
Dec 29, 2020•32 min•Season 1Ep. 92
