Dear College of Arts & Letters Students, Staff, and Faculty, As we navigate a very challenging period of uncertainty, I write to provide an update from the College regarding the Spring 2021 semester. This message supplements the communications that were sent last week to the MSU community from President Stanley about the Spring 2021 semester and from Provost Woodruff regarding…
Spanish alumna Eileen Thompson began her journey at MSU with the goal of being a veterinarian while studying a second language to expand her possibilities. She now works as the Emergency Preparedness Coordinator for the Toledo-Lucas County Health Department, fighting against the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. “My main role in the response is to act as a liaison or conduit between…
MSU College of Arts & Letters alumna Zekiye Salman is helping her community in the fight against COVID-19 as a member of the Ingham County COVID-19 Response Task Force, a position for which her MSU education helped prepare and lay the groundwork for. Salman, who graduated from MSU in 2013 with dual bachelor’s degrees in Religious Studies and History, is…
While the pandemic has been a trial by fire for most, Social Studies and Science teacher and MSU Spanish alumna Hannah Kahn smoothly adapted to the new norm of remote learning this past spring, even though it was only her first year teaching. Prior experience with online learning helped Kahn tremendously. Because of platforms such as Summit Learning, she was…
In uncertain times, what we value most helps to guide us. Our top priority remains the health and safety of all members of the College of Arts & Letters. For two years, faculty and staff also have been working hard to establish a Culture of Care in the College. Multiple initiatives focus on implementing inclusive practices across all aspects of…
From the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the safety of our community and the success of our students have been our top priorities. Yesterday’s communication from MSU President Stanley asking undergraduate students to continue their MSU education remotely has re-emphasized our commitment to these priorities. The recent spread of the virus over the last few days at other universities, coupled with our own outbreak in East Lansing this past June, make it clear we need to minimize the number of people on campus to protect the health of our community.
Michigan State University researchers have been awarded a $3.75 million grant from the National Institutes of Health for research focused on decreasing cardiovascular disease risk morbidity and mortality for minority and low-income populations with diabetes mellitus. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of diabetes-related morbidity and mortality. The researchers have found that better patient engagement and communication between patients and physicians may…
COVID-19 has had a major impact on people around the world, but how is the pandemic changing our language and the way we communicate? That is the question being studied by a team of researchers at Michigan State University, led by Associate Professor Suzanne Wagner and Assistant Professor Betsy Sneller. The MI COVID Diaries project, run by MSU’s Sociolinguistics Lab, has been…
For the past several months, MSU’s Apparel and Textile Design (ATD) faculty, alumni, and students have used their skills and contributed their time in the fight against COVID-19 by constructing masks and teaching others how to make their own through an online video. These students, faculty, and alumni were encouraged by a social media campaign that shared information about ways…
Lorelei Blackburn wants her students to do more than simply read, complete assignments, and take tests. Each semester, the Assistant Professor of Writing, Rhetoric, and American Cultures personalizes the learning experience for her students by pairing classwork with community-based projects. Last fall, a chance encounter led Blackburn to the perfect student opportunity as well as for MSU researchers involved in an ongoing mental…