Monday 1/23/17

State News The

FALLING

ON THE ICE MSU men’s hockey in trouble, faces second-straight losing season

University of Michigan forward Alex Kile (23) attempts to pull out his hockey stick after scoring on junior goaltender Ed Minney (45) during the second period of the game against U-M on Jan. 21 at Munn Ice Arena. The Spartans tied the Wolverines 2-2 but ultimately lost in a shootout. PHOTO: SUNDEEP DHANJAL

N E WS

S P OT L I G H T

NEWS

WOMEN’S MARCH IN LANSING

“It’s been pockets of time where we weren’t consistent in different areas.

We were even inconsistent in our lack of consistency.”

TEACHER SHORTAGE

8,000 marchers took to the Capital the day after Trump’s inauguration PAGE 2 M ON DAY, JA N UA RY 2 3 , 2 017

Tom Anastos, Head MSU men’s hockey coach PAGE 4 AND 5

@THESNEWS

Michigan is facing a teaching shortage, citing lack of qualified applicants for teaching jobs

STAT ENEWS .COM

PAGE 8

News

Rachel Fradette Campus editor campus@statenews.com

Nearly 8,000 gather in the heart of Lansing for Women’s March

Protesters march through the intersection of Allegan Street and Washington Square during the Women’s March on Lansing on Jan. 21 near the Capitol in Lansing. Nearly 8,000 people organized at the Capitol steps and listened to various public figures give speeches. PHOTO: JON FAMUREWA

A protester raises her sign during the Women’s March on Lansing on Jan. 21 near the Capitol building in Lansing. Activists gathered and expressed their opinions through peaceful demonstration. PHOTO: JON FAMUREWA

A protester holds up his sign as he marches down W. Ottawa Street during the Women’s March on Lansing on Jan. 21 near the Capitol building in Lansing. PHOTO: Protesters march down N. Walnut Street during the Women’s March on Lansing on Jan. 21 near the Capitol building in Lansing. The March on Lansing was a sister event to the Women’s March on Washington. PHOTO: JON FAMUREWA 2

THE STATE N EWS

MONDAY, JANUARY 2 3, 2 01 7

JON FAMUREWA

Contents

Cameron Macko Managing editor cmacko@statenews.com

ONLINE

Column: Basketball team is soft

Women’s March in Lansing

Nassar still has medical license

Lack of energy and mental awareness has hindered MSU’s performance this season

See a breakdown video of the day’s events and speakers

Despite being fired, Dr. Larry Nassar still maintains licenses to practice medicine

BY T H E N U M B E R S

36 Number of hours the annual hack-a-thon at MSU went on for See page 11

“I was so disappointed in our effort defensively in the first half (against Indiana), but I was so impressed with Indiana on the other side of it.”

Tom Izzo, MSU men’s basketball head coach

PAGE 9

Police K-9s retire, sent off in court ceremony

BY RILEY MURDOCK RMURDOCK@STATENEWS.COM

A packed 54B District courtroom looked on as three members of the East Lansing Police Department — Diesel, Tia and Max — were officially retired on Jan. 18, ending their years of service to the department that included calls to track down suspects and missing persons.

The members, long snouted and on four legs, stood at attention next to their handlers scanning the crowd in front of them. After years on the K-9 Unit, the three dogs will retire to civilian life, becoming the property of their handlers and living out their days as house pets.

K-9 Tia served with K-9 Unit leader Lt. Chad Connelly for nine years. K-9s Diesel and Max served for seven years with handlers Sgt. Erich Vedder and Officer Adam Park, respectively.

ELPD Chief Jeff Murphy and Connelly honored the dogs and their handlers in a retirement ceremony celebrating their history with the department and telling a story of each

dogs’ exploits.

Officer Park and Max worked together beginning March of 2009. Murphy said one year on the opening day of deer season, every handler besides Park was off to go hunting when he and Max were called in to track two suspects.

“Max went two for two on these tracks during this November afternoon, finding one subject hiding under a deck and chasing another subject into a river,” Murphy said. “Of course, being November the suspect that was in the river quickly found out that was a poor choice, especially when there was a dog standing on the river bank. He was taken into custody and went to jail wet and cold.”

Max’s huge brown eyes might disarm a dog lover, but Park said he can be very protective and defensive of his handler and his car.

“I grew up with dogs, I’m by no means leery around dogs, but I’ve always been a little leery around Max,” Murphy said. “He’s just got the look.”

READ MORE AT STATENEWS.COM.

Junior Lindsey Lemke swings as she competes in the bar event during the second annual Tumbles and Takedowns on Jan. 20 at Jenison Field House. Tumbles and Takedowns is an event in which the MSU gymnastics and MSU wrestling team simultaneously compete at Jenison Field House. The Spartan gymnasts were defeated by the Golden Gophers, 193-193.875. PHOTO: NIC ANTAYA

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Spotlight

Win against Michigan one bright spot in men’s hockey losing season

BY COLTON WOOD CWOOD@STATENEWS.COM

The 2016-17 season for the MSU hockey team has been anything but consistent.

Currently holding a record of 5-15-2, head coach Tom Anastos and the Spartans are on pace to record their second-straight losing season.

LOSING SKID After a win over Ferris State, an upset victory and draw against then-No. 5 North Dakota and an exhibition win over the USA National Team Development Program earlier in the season, the Spartans looked as if they had generated much-needed momentum heading into conference play.

That soon proved to be far from the truth.

Instead of feeding off their slew of wins, MSU found themselves on a nine-game losing skid and unable to find a way to win a conference game as they held a record of 0-6.

“Obviously, nine in a row is tough,” freshman forward Sam Saliba said. “It’s been a long two months not winning. Obviously, no one likes it in there and I think the biggest thing is we’re just sticking together.”

Similar to Saliba, junior goaltender Ed Minney said the losing stretch was tough and frustrating to deal with.

“It’s been really tough,” he said. “It started off when it was a couple games, and it just kind of kept going and going and going and guys were getting really frustrated.”

ISSUES THUS FAR As the MSU hockey team is close to finishing their second-straight losing season, questions have arose as to what the issue is with this year’s team.

“I think the guys have been working hard and everything, but we need to just focus on staying in our structure when things go wrong.”

Zach Osburn, Sophomore defenseman “It’s a rollercoaster,” senior forward Joe Cox said. “I mean, every season is a roller coaster. Maybe we’ve been on a little bit more of a lull this season, but you’re going to see these kinds of things every year. There’s going to be weeks when you’re playing really good, and then the next week you might play really bad. It’s just a rollercoaster every season.

We’ve been on a pretty big lull the past couple weekends, but I think we’re starting to pick up our play and I think things will get better.”

Sophomore defenseman Zach Osburn said the issues this season lie in a problem with consistency.

“I would say the issues are just consistency,” Osburn said. “I think the guys have been working hard and everything, but we need to just focus on staying in our structure when things go wrong.”

Minney said he understands that the team experienced a dismal season, but said there’s still time for improvement.

“It’s been a tough year for us,” he said.

“We’ve kind of moved on. The past is the past, 4

THE STATE N E WS

Senior defenseman Rhett Holland (11) attempts to gain control of the puck as he is defended by U-M forward Adam Winborg (18) during the second period in the game against U-M on Jan. 21 at Munn Ice Arena. The Spartans were defeated by Wolverines in a shootout, 2-3. PHOTO: SUNDEEP DHANJAL

and I think moving forward, our game’s looking really good. The best time to get hot is the end of the season, so I think that will go well for us, and as long as we keep playing like we are and keep getting better every day I think that will go well.”

Anastos — similar to Osburn — said he believes the issues thus far are rooted in a problem with consistency.

“The most troubling part of this season has been consistency,” Anastos said. “It’s been pockets of time where we weren’t consistent in different areas. We were even inconsistent in our lack of consistency, if that makes any sense.”

BREAKTHROUGH AT YOST On Jan. 20, the Wolverines hosted the Spartans in their second matchup of the season.

The Spartans fell in the opening December contest in overtime, 5-4.

This time, however, MSU managed to outperform the Wolverines on the road in what could be considered their most complete game of the season and shutout their heated rival, 3-0.

“We needed a win,” Anastos said after the game. “I don’t care who it was. We needed a win. We needed a confidence boost.”

Senior forward Chris Knudson, who played in his first game of the season, recorded his first goal in the Spartans’ first conference win of the season.

“It was surreal, especially against Michigan in Yost,” Knudson said. “(It’s) such a fun place to play and such a good place to be. (It’s) just a rivalry and everything, so it really was special to have your first (goal versus U-M), espeMONDAY, JANUARY 2 3, 2 01 7

U-M forward Alex Kile (23) attempts to gain control of the puck as he is defended by junior defense Carson Gatt (18) during the second period of the game against U-M on Jan. 21 at Munn Ice Arena.

The Spartans were defeated by Wolverines in a shootout, 2-3. PHOTO: SUNDEEP DHANJAL

Spotlight cially being in my senior year.”

Minney, coming off a game in which he logged a career-high 46 saves against Penn State, was a vital piece of the Spartans’ win.

The Wolverines had numerous scoring chances throughout the night, but the 6-foot-5 netminder made crucial saves to prevent U-M from generating momentum, logging 24 saves in the shutout.

“It was pretty exciting, especially in the kind of environment that Yost (Ice Arena) is,” Minney said. “(It’s a) tough place to play, a lot of people yelling at me the whole game, so that’s always interesting, but it was really fun.”

Despite the win on the road, the Spartans couldn’t finish off the weekend sweep as MSU lost in a shootout to the Wolverines the next night. The game was officially marked a draw.

MINNEY STRONG IN NET Minney spent his first two seasons at MSU on the bench backing up former MSU goaltender Jake Hildebrand, who now plays for the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League.

“It’s been really tough. It started off when it was a couple games, and it just kind of kept going and going and going and guys were getting really frustrated.”

Ed Minney, Junior goaltender Prior to the beginning of this season, Minney was named the starter in goal, and he hasn’t disappointed.

Minney recorded a career-high 40 saves in MSU’s 4-2 loss to Minnesota on Dec. 9.

That record was soon broken in a weekend sweep by then-No. 4 Penn State last week as Minney recorded 41 saves in the first game of the series.

He then proceeded to accumulate 46 saves in the second game of the sweep.

“I think that I’m kind of starting to settle in there, and it feels really good,” Minney said of his performance as of late. “I’m seeing the puck well and stopping the majority of things that I’m seeing.

“Everyone once in awhile, they get a couple (of their) points that are getting deflected,

Cameron Macko Managing editor cmacko@statenews.com

I’m getting bumped or something in front of the net, and they get fluky goals. But besides that, I feel really good, and all the guys in front of me are doing a great job blocking shots and boxing guys out, so that makes my job pretty easy.”

His strong performance continued when he recorded his first career shutout as a starter in Friday’s 3-0 win over U-M. Even though the Spartans are more than halfway done with the season, Minney said he still believes he’s learning as the season progresses.

“Being my first season really playing the majority of the minutes, it’s been awhile since I’ve done that,” he said. “At this level, it’s a tough place to learn. You get thrown in the fire, but it’s been good so far.”

Minney said he is still using things this season that he learned from Hildebrand during his time playing as his backup.

“I think more just his demeanor and how he went about every day, and the extra stuff that he did after practice every day and just how he kind of had an upbeat mentality even if we were losing games and everything,” he said. “I think that he kind of passed that on and I took that and tried to use it for myself.”

COX IN HIS SENIOR SEASON Senior forward Joe Cox is concluding his Spartan career after this season. The 6-foot forward produced his best offensive season last season alongside a career-high with 11 goals.

He finished his junior season with a careerbest seven-game point streak.

The senior captain from Chelsea, Mich. had a career-best five multi-point games in his junior season, and registered four goals and six assists so far in his senior campaign.

Despite the losing season and in what considered a down season, Cox said it hasn’t put a dampen on the season for him.

“I don’t think it that way,” Cox said. “I can’t think that way. I’m the captain of this season. I have to keep an upbeat positive attitude. The beauty about the Big Ten is that you win three games and you’re in the tournament, so we’ve got to keep striving to get better, we’ve got to keep playing hard. And I think the guys on this team — we’ve got a good group and are up for it.”

The Spartans have a bye week next weekend, but will now look to win their second and third conference wins of the season when they host the Wisconsin Badgers Feb. 3 and 4.

Senior forward Joe Cox (21) and sophomore forward Mason Appleton (27) wait for the puck drop during the first period of the game against the University of Michigan on Jan. 21 at Munn Ice Arena.

The Spartans were defeated by Wolverines in a shootout, 2-3. PHOTO: SUNDEEP DHANJAL

Senior defense Rhett Holland (11) attempts to score as he is defended against Michigan forward Cooper Marody (20) during the first period of the game against U-M on Jan. 21 at Munn Ice Arena.

The Spartans were defeated by Wolverines in a shootout, 2-3. PHOTO: SUNDEEP DHANJAL MONDAY, JANUARY 2 3, 201 7

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Senior guard Eron Harris has scored 17.3 percent of MSU’s 1,443 total points this season.

FINAL SCORE

Senior guard Eron Harris (14).

James Blackmon Jr. (1).

82

PHOTO: CHLOE GRIGSBY

Blackmon Jr. scored 33 points, tying a career high against MSU.

NEXT OPPONENT: PURDUE

What to know Purdue currently holds the record for the most free throws attempted, 46, and made, 33, in the Breslin Center.

THE STATE N EWS

PHOTO COURTESY OF RACHEL MEERT, IU ATHLETICS

75

Harris scored 21 points against Indiana.

6

Indiana’s James Blackmon Jr. has scored 20.7 percent of Indiana’s 1,683 total points this season.

MSU

JANUARY 24 @ BRESLIN CENTER, 7 P.M.

Freshman Nick Ward is averaging 13.9 points per game and 6.7 rebounds per game in Big Ten play this season.

FULL SEASON STATS OVERALL RECORD: 12-8, BIG TEN: 4-3

SCORING OFFENSE SCORING DEFENSE

72.2 PPG 67.8 PPG

SCORING MARGIN

+4.4 PPG

FIELD GOAL PCT. MSU is 5363 all time against Purdue, 31-25 at home.

MSU is 8-2 against Purdue in the last 10 meetings.

MONDAY, JANUARY 2 3, 2 01 7

47%

3-POINT FIELD GOAL PCT.

37.4%

3-POINT FG PCT. DEFENSE

34.8%

FREE THROW PCT.

63.9%

REBOUND MARGIN

+3.6

News

Rachel Fradette Campus editor campus@statenews.com

MSU lab discovers new chemical, finds it slows spread of skin cancer

BY MILA MURRAY MMURRAY@STATENEWS.COM

A chemical compound that dramatically reduces the spread of the most fatal form of skin cancer cells has been discovered in a small lab led by professor and chair of the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology Richard Neubig at MSU. “This is not a drug yet,” Neubig said.

“We still have a number of years of development before we could ever test it on people, unfortunately. We would like to be able to do things right away, but it takes a long time to get FDA approval.”

Neubig said the research lab was able to identify a single pathway in melanoma cells where the cancer spreads rapidly. When this particular compound was used, the pathway was blocked, therefore shutting down cancer migration. So far, MSU researchers have been the first to target this pathway by experimenting with human melanoma cells on mice.

Among the researchers in the lab was research associate and postdoctoral student Kate Appleton.

“This (study) opens up a number of opportunities and projects for undergraduates, graduates and postdocs such as me,” Appleton said. “From this study, many projects have branched off, we have a lot more questions and issues we would like to address with regard to melanoma and how this compound potentially benefits the treatment of melanoma.”

Neubig said the project began five

years ago when he was still at University of Michigan, but once Appleton was hired two years ago, just a year after Neubig came to MSU, the project picked up speed. Appleton’s assistant was nutritional sciences sophomore Riya Malhotra, who was a freshman at the time of the research.

“Riya came in and within a few months she was successfully doing technical assistance for this study,” Appleton said. “I think the study is very important to Michigan State University and absolutely for the department and the opportunity for undergraduate students such as Riya to come in and not only learn basic research techniques, but to also be a part of cutting edge research is fantastic.”

After working in Neubig’s lab, Malhotra was one of only four students who received a summer undergraduate research fund for the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, or ASPET, program.

Her summer project revolved around looking at the potential role of the skin cancer research finding in ocular melanoma, eye cancer. Appleton said she believes this is an example of how this study will impact similar research and new projects.

“I felt so grateful for this opportunity, to get it at the beginning of my college years,” Malhotra said. “I do realize it’s really important research, and based on what I’ve seen in the lab and what we’ve conducted it looks like it’s very promising research, too.”

Still, there is more research to come.

Project director for the MSU Gran Fon-

Research associate and postdoctoral fellow Kate Appleton tests effectiveness of a new chemical compund on Jan. 19 at the Life Sciences building. PHOTO: JON FAMUREWA

do cycling fundraiser event Lou Candiotti said every year, participation increases and funding will go towards skin cancer research.

“One of the things that we’re very interested in now is the role of this pathway and the survival of the can-

cer cells,” Neubig said. “Our earlier study was related to the metastasis and spread, but we’re also very interested in the ability of this pathway to work with other cancer drugs to actually kill the cancer cells. We’ve got a very exciting work on that coming along.”

Marchers in Lansing voice concerns of President Donald Trump’s administration

BY MARIE WEIDMAYER AND BRIGID KENNEDY FEEDBACK@STATENEWS.COM

In solidarity with the Women’s March on Washington, roughly 8,000 people attended the March on Lansing on Saturday afternoon.

“Mr. President, I am the new face of America.

In fact, I am America. I am America, land of the brave and home of the free, built on sacrifices of slaves and indigenous people.”

Farha Abbasi, Assistant professor

“I just asked a question in (a Facebook group) if anybody had heard anything about anything that was happening in Michigan and, you know, did we want to do something?” march organizer Meg McElhone said. “The next thing I knew, I was in charge of it.”

The March on Lansing was organized for people who couldn’t go to the Women’s March on Washington because of cost, problems with transportation or other obstacles so their voices could be heard, McElhone said.

“I want people to come to this march because I want them to know that they will be OK, that there are people out there right now who are just as scared, just as worried,” McElhone said. “I want our voices to be heard and I want them to be strong together.”

Graduate student Laura Shishkovsky said she is worried about the future of the environment.

“As a scientist, I’m mad about the denial of climate change,” Shishkovsky said. “It makes zero sense.”

Flint residents Afroze Hai and Mariam

Qureshi attended the march together. The women said the water issues in Flint were one of their main concerns.

“Flint, Michigan children have to deal with this through their lives,” Hai said. “We are here to stand up for them.”

Qureshi said she believes attending the march was a way to make her voice heard.

“We believe that we’re pretty much fighting for our rights. We believe that no matter what happens, it’s our duty to stand up against injustice,” Qureshi said.

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Gretchen Whitmer, former chair of the Michigan Democratic Party Black Caucus Lavonia Perryman, former Michigan state representative Lisa Brown and others spoke to the crowd from the Capitol steps.

“We cannot give up hope,” Whitmer said.

“Our (former) President Barack Obama taught us that.”

Toward the end of the march, a group of protesters split off and marched through the

MONDAY, JANUARY 2 3, 201 7

streets of Lansing. The majority of the marchers remained on the Capitol lawn and listened to the remaining speakers.

The speakers had strong words for newly inaugurated President Donald Trump.

“Mr. President, I am the new face of America.

In fact, I am America,” assistant professor Farha Abbasi said in a speech on the steps of the Capitol. “I am America, land of the brave and home of the free, built on sacrifices of slaves and indigenous people. You do not silence my voices and take away my choices.”

S TAT E N E W S . C O M

For more march coverage and a video, go to statenews.com

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Crossword

L.A. Times Daily Puzzle Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Lewis

News

Stephen Olschanski City editor city@statenews.com

Teacher applicants not meeting state expectations 65

65

percentage of students with education majors that meet act benchmarks 42

43

1 Baja vacation spot 5 Tree’s sticky output 8 Neck mark from necking 14 Razor name 15 Suffix with pay 16 Taking the place (of) 17 Silly sort 19 Polish port where Solidarity was founded 20 Music producer Brian 21 Dueling sword 22 “Hannah and __ Sisters”: Woody Allen film 23 Formal pronouncements 25 Zeros 30 Pay with plastic 32 __ of: done with 33 Not at home 34 The Judds, e.g.

35 Migration formation 36 Move in the wind 37 Anniversary celebration at the Met, say 42 Numbered musical piece 43 Grunting female 44 Slowing, on a music score: Abbr.

45 Little point to pick 46 Sick __ dog 47 Spitball need 50 Disputed Mideast territory 53 R&B singer Baker

55 “That’s all __ wrote” 56 Fermented honey drink 58 The USA’s 50 59 Nissan model 62 Infantile vocalizations, and a hint to the starts of 17-, 25-, 37and 50-Across 64 Series of related emails 65 Luau instrument 66 Curved molding 67 Fort Bragg mil. branch 68 Boston hrs.

69 Dandelion, e.g.

DOWN

1 Confined, as a bird 2 Not accented, as syllables 3 Ornamental pin 4 Doofus 5 Ivory in the tub 6 State without proof 7 Prefix with -lithic 8 Bogart film set in a California range 9 Truly 10 Irish county bordering Limerick 11 Next of __ 12 Wide shoe widths 13 Guffaw 18 Face adversity well 24 Cries of triumph 26 Layered cookie

27 Bridal attire 28 Avocado dip, for short 29 Eyelid sore 31 Dates one person exclusively 35 Ex-GIs’ gp.

36 Lustrous fabric 37 Bell hit with a padded mallet 38 Samoan capital 39 Skating leap 40 Have a good laugh 41 Address for a noblewoman 46 Traditional Hindu retreat 47 Delivers a lecture 48 Facial expression 49 Postwar British prime minister 51 Autumn blossom 52 Suffuse (with) 54 Queried 57 Help with a heist 59 Actor Erwin 60 “Come again?” sounds 61 FDR agency 63 Illegal parker’s risk

Get the solutions at statenews.com/puzzles Level: 1

2

3

4

Complete the grid so each row, column and 3-by-3 box (in bold borders) contains every digit, 1 to 9. For strategies on how to solve Sudoku, visit www. sudoku.org.uk SOLUTION TO MONDAY’S PUZZLE

Get the solutions at statenews.com/ puzzles

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THE STATE N E WS

MONDAY, JANUARY 2 3, 2 01 7

english

reading

BY LAURA BOHANNON LBOHANNON@STATENEWS.COM

School superintendents around Michigan are reportedly less than impressed with applicants for teaching jobs recently, and it’s contributing to a teacher shortage in some subject areas across the state.

Michigan Education Association, MEA, President Steven Cook said, “a lot of the urbans have shortages that are, somewhat general in nature, but when jobs become open, it’s a ‘many are called few are chosen’ type of thing.”

While superintendents across the state have received numerous applications, Cook said, the applicants have not been “the kind of folks they’re looking for.”

MSU assistant professor and expert in education policy Sarah Reckhow said a key point in understanding the shortage is that it isn’t necessarily only a lack of people willing to pursue a career as an educator, but a lack of teachers in certain subject areas and a lack of impressive candidates for jobs.

“If you’re well-trained in the sciences, or in engineering, or something of that nature, you might have other job options,” Reckhow said.

Susan Dalebout, assistant dean for student affairs in MSU’s College of Education, said MSU secondary education majors earn their degree in the subject area they’d like to teach, which requires both an aptitude for and an interest in that subject area.

“For somebody who has a teaching major in chemistry, they actually earn their degree in chemistry and then also complete their teacher certification requirements in the Teacher Preparation Program,” Dalebout said.

Monetary reasons might also be play a factor in the decline, as those with experience in the field have warned their students that becoming a teacher might not be the best use of their skills in terms of earning income.

Special education-learning disabilities freshman Allison Murphy said her teachers have told her because teachers don’t make the most money she should pursue something in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, or STEM, fields.

“I’m just sitting there like, I cant believe I’m hearing a teacher saying that, so I’m sure other kids have heard

nation SOURCE: ACT DATA 2015

36

34 ACROSS

michigan

33

math

31

science

that kind of thing,” Murphy said.

Going into a STEM field, however, might be problematic for aspiring teachers, as ACT research also indicates students who are interested in education tested below the national average in STEM. According to the report, “not only are fewer students interested in becoming educators, but those who are interested have lower-than-average achievement levels in three of the four subject areas measured by the ACT.” The shortage, however, doesn’t seem easily summarized, as a variety of factors including money, interest in the field, test scores and motivation have dwindled.

“I’m just sitting there like, I cant believe I’m hearing a teacher saying that, so I’m sure other kids have heard that kind of thing.”

Allison Murphy, Special education-learning disabilities freshman According to ACT research, the number of young people who are interested in pursuing a career as an educator is declining.

Only 4 percent of ACT-tested graduates in Michigan plan to become educators, according to the report.

“It’s not a good time to be a teacher, it hasn’t been for a while,” Cook said. “As a result of that, what we’ve seen is teacher preparatory programs at universities — they’re down 50 percent. Nobody wants to be a teacher anymore, and I can’t blame them.”

While there are other options available for potential teachers, teaching offers a kind of reward that other alternatives might not, Dalebout said.

“The profession has to be attractive,” Cook said. “If you’re the best and the brightest … and you’re smart, do you go somewhere where you can make starting at $85,000 a year, or do you go into teaching where you start at $40,000 a year and get your teeth kicked in on benefits and class size and everything else? You really have to feel the urge to be a teacher … and God bless them.”

Sports

Souichi Terada Sports editor sports@statenews.com

Defensive issues renewed while MSU is ‘bullied’ at Assembly Hall

BY CASEY HARRISON CHARRISON@STATENEWS.COM

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Head coach Tom Izzo was frank and visibly distressed after Saturday’s loss to Indiana.

The Spartans (12-8, 4-3 Big Ten) came close against the Hoosiers (14-6, 4-3 Big Ten), but were ultimately outshot and out-rebounded for another road loss in conference play. MSU trailed by as much as 20 points in the early parts of the second half, with the help of a 33-point performance from junior guard James Blackmon Jr., tying a career-high.

“I was so disappointed in our effort defensively in the first half, but I was so impressed with Indiana on the other side of it,” Izzo said in his opening remarks following the 82-75 loss to Indiana.

“They just dribble-drawn us, bullied us, posted us, they did a good job. Boys against men.”

“In the second half I stepped up the challenge.

I still had some lapses and things like that, still a lot of stuff I had to fix.”

Cassius Winston, Freshman guard After what had the hints of a blowout loss in the early stages, MSU was unable to stop the tandem of Blackmon and junior guard Robert Johnson, who combined for 50 of Indiana’s 82 points. None of MSU’s guards had an answer for the Hoosier guard or wing. In the first half alone, the Hoosiers gained their first six shots from 3-point range and hit seven triples prior to halftime.

Izzo said during the week he was looking for more production from his shooting guards and expecting the upperclassmen to step up. Fifthyear senior Eron Harris was the only wing to do so, finishing with a team-high 21 points on 7-for12 shooting with two rebounds and two assists.

“That’s part of the problem we have,” Izzo said.

“We all know Eron (Harris) played well, but other than that our upperclassmen didn’t play as well. … When we guarded better, they didn’t get all those threes. When we guarded, we got some breakouts, we put some shots up.”

Freshmen guards Josh Langford and Cassius Winston were held to five points each. Sophomore Matt McQuaid had three turnovers in the first half and senior Alvin Ellis III finished with one field goal on two shots. Winston, however, was able to fuel the late second half comeback for MSU with quick passing plays, screens and assists.

“In the second half I stepped up to the challenge,” Winston said. “I still had some lapses and things like that, still a lot of stuff I had to fix. The beginning of the game I have to be ready. I’m not the best defender. It hurts this team a lot of times, so I have to be ready. I’ve got to stay solid. I might not be the best defender but I have to stay solid.

Hold my yard, keep my man in front of me and things like that. I’m doing a disservice to this team right now and I have to fix that.”

Even though Harris carried the Spartans to a near-comeback with his work in the front court, Harris couldn’t put a hold on Blackmon.

“As a competitor, I’m just so mad right now,” Harris said after the game. “If I could take it back, he wouldn’t have made some of the buckets that he got and in the beginning of the game, some guys wouldn’t have had some of the buckets they got.

They won that game because of how they started in the game.”

Harris took the loss personally but had advice for the team moving forward, getting the team mentally tough to play a whole game without any problems, as the team continues the Big Ten season.

“Just get more cerebral,” Harris said. “We got to be ready to almost die for this because I think that’s the point we don’t want to get to … this game was like a wake-up call for us. We’ve got people on this team that want to win. I don’t think we’re going to falter, we’re not going to go down.

We’re not going to go down like this, we’re going to fight because that’s what we do.”

Defending shots from behind the arc was a point of concern for the Spartans for the second-straight game. MSU will end the two-game road trip winless after allowing 21-for-47 3-point attempts in contrast to the 25 triples given up in the prior five games to kick off conference play.

After the loss, MSU has dropped two straight and fallen into the thick of the Big Ten standings. MSU will host No. 21 Purdue on Tuesday, in dire need of finding new life before the quick turnaround. Despite now being 1-3 in conference games away from the Breslin, MSU is 3-0 at home and will to continue to look for its consistency against the Boilermakers.

“You have to be able to play both ends,” Izzo said to end his presser. “Sometimes you get two and you’re giving up three and it doesn’t work.”

Freshman guard and forward Miles Bridges (22) blocks an attempt at the basket by sophomore guard Zach McRoberts (15) during the first half of the men’s basketball game against Indiana on Jan. 21 at Assembly Hall. The Spartans were defeated the Hoosiers, 75-82. PHOTO: CHLOE GRIGSBY

Freshman forward Nick Ward (44) reaches for possession of the ball during the second half of the men’s basketball game against Indiana on Jan. 21 at Assembly Hall. PHOTO: CHLOE GRIGSBY

Senior guard Eron Harris (14) drives toward the basket during the second half of the men’s basketball game against Indiana on Jan. 21 at Assembly Hall. PHOTO: CHLOE GRIGSBY MONDAY, JANUARY 2 3, 201 7

T H E STATE N E WS

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Sports

Souichi Terada Sports editor sports@statenews.com

COLUMN: MSU football facing an identity crisis heading into spring

BY SOUICHI TERADA STERADA@STATENEWS.COM

Jump back to one year ago today.

The MSU football team wa s just a few week s removed from an appearance in the second edition Sports Editor of the College Football PlaySouichi Terada off. Consequently, the vibes surrounding the Spartans were completely different compared to say, the ones now. But that’s what happens when a team goes from Big Ten champions to a mess of a 3-9 team.

Sure, the blowout against the Alabama Crimson Tide was a rough one. However, routs of that magnitude happen even to the blue bloods of college football — evidenced by Ohio State University’s 31-0 loss to Clemson just a few weeks ago.

The point is, though, the Spartans were still competitive, especially on the national stage.

After three straight years of being a top program in college football — laying claim to a Rose Bowl and Cotton Bowl Classic — a golden age of Spartan football shined upon East Lansing.

Yes, there were bumps and bruises along the way, but the Spartans were finally relevant again. Momentum graced the Spartans’ sides, with no clear end in sight.

Around the nation, the consensus was similar — the Spartans were a powerhouse program supplanted at the top for the long haul.

Keep in mind, after 2015, the team was gutted largely of its All-Big Ten talent as the winningest class in MSU history departed. Those Spartans left a legacy of fame and fortune a once-tortured fan base could only dream of.

Despite the upheaval on the roster, though, MSU earned the benefit of the doubt, debuting the AP poll as No. 12 in the nation.

Through the years, the Spartans largely played the “chip on the shoulder” and disrespect card often, the ranking represented the type of respect and admiration head coach Mark Dantonio and his program garnered during the dominant three-year stretch.

Then the season started and it all came crashing down. Falling to then-No. 11 Wisconsin, 30-6, was just the start of the nightmarish season.

The low point of the grueling marathon came when the once-mighty Spartans fell to the lowly Illinois Fighting Illini, 31-27. The game was a microcosm of the season — dominate for early stretches of the game, only to inexplicably disappoint down the stretch.

The reigning Big Ten champions’ campaign would progressively find ways to shatter the hearts of the Spartan The deadline to request faithful. an ASMSU tax refund is As the lossMONDAY, JAN. 23, 2017 at 4:30 PM es kept piling on, t he fan suppor t was a bleak Stop by our office or contact comparison us at info@asmsu.msu.edu to it s once proud self. By or 517-355-8266 for more info. the time the *Student ID required sea son wa s over, the student section was bare and naked, beat 10

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Head coach Mark Dantonio and the Spartans wait to run out of the tunnel during the game against the University of Michigan on Oct. 29, 2016 at Spartan Stadium. The Spartans were defeated by the Wolverines, 32-23. PHOTO: NIC ANTAYA

writers taking pictures of rows upon rows of empty bleachers.

Soon, National Signing Day will be upon us as MSU looks to sign recruits to bolster its roster. After that, spring football will be in full swing, eventually culminating in the annual Green and White game in April.

College football, like many things in life, works within a cycle. The offseason hits, then spring ball, conditioning, training camp and finally, the season is ready to kick off. A progression of steps to get to the final product, only to start all over again.

Just one year after a dominant season, the Spartans are at a crossroads. Put bluntly, MSU is at ends with an identity crisis, a natural reaction after a soul-searching 2016.

Dantonio has brought the program to enormous heights at MSU, much of which hasn’t been seen in a half century. How he and his staff respond to the adversity, though, is what will define the rest of his time as head coach.

The Spartans could prove that 2016 was just a down season, one mired by injuries and missed opportunities. In other words, it was a blemish on an otherwise spectacular MSU career for Dantonio.

On the other end of the spectrum, though, the 3-9 season could trigger the beginning of the end of the Spartan golden age.

If 2017 proves to be as disastrous as 2016 was, even Dantonio’s seat will heat up. While it’s arguably not the ideal course of action to dismiss the head coach after just two down seasons, fan outcry might reach a boiling point for Athletic Director Mark Hollis.

This upcoming spring season and accompanying practices will set the tone as players jostle for positions within the depth chart.

Last year, the intra-squad scrimmage was a fun event for fans and athletes alike, another opportunity to tailgate as the weather around Michigan picked up. This time around, though, the vibe will unforgivably chastise the crowd, MONDAY, JANUARY 2 3, 2 01 7

The Spartan football team celebrates their win after the game against Rutgers on Nov. 12, 2016 at Spartan Stadium. The Spartans defeated the Scarlet Knights, 49-0. PHOTO: NIC ANTAYA

a sense of questioning in the air about the future of the Spartans and their aspirations.

Before the season kicked off, Curtis Blackwell tweeted a cheeky photo to a phrase coined by former legendary University of Michigan head coach Bo Schembechler. “Those who have stayed are already champions,” the image blared with an accompanying three Big Ten championship banners.

Yes, poking fun at your arch nemesis whom you beat seven out of the last eight times — at the time — might rile the fans up for the start of the season. But now the circumstances are dire, and the Spartans must sift through a myriad of their own issues first before ever doing that again.

In a handful of weeks, football will be back

in full swing, at least for the spring portion. If the Spartans want any chance to make noise on the national level, improving every day by 3 percent will be an important step, as Dantonio stresses to his team.

With the emergence of Penn State University as a national powerhouse, the Big Ten East division will continue being one of the best divisions in college football, as the Nittany Lions accompany the Buckeyes and Wolverines as MSU’s direct rivals.

Luckily for the Spartans, strong adversaries in the past was a consistent obstacle they surpassed to reach their goals. If they want to get back to the greener pastures, though, they will have to take it step by step, which starts in the spring.

Features

McKenna Ross Features editor features@statenews.com

Third annual SpartaHack brings 500 students to code, build projects

BY SAMANTHA LEWAKOWSKI SLEWAKOWSKI@STATENEWS.COM

Computer science sophomore Jeff Valentic and computer science freshman Jerod Depifanio spent their weekend creating a demo of a virtual reality game.

The program allows up to 50 people to create their own map to play in.

The main goal of the game is to get an entire room of people to play together, as opposed to the standard three or four person limit, Depifanio said.

“I like to create things,” Valentic said. “When I get to code, I’m building something from the bottom up and I know what exactly it’s going to do.”

They did it in 36 hours while at SpartaHack, a hackathon held at Wells Hall.

Upwards of 500 people used SpartaHack to do similar projects. The third annual student-run SpartaHack took place Jan. 20 to 22 and welcomed people of all hacking levels to use their technology to create a project of their choice.

The “36-hour programming marathon” encourages students of all coding levels to create something in a creative environment, according to the event’s website.

“Collegiate hackathons really blew up like five years ago. Big, prestigious schools started doing these huge, multi-hundred person hackathons, so other universities wanted to elevate the profile of their engineering programs.”

Lauren Bretz, Executive co-director of SpartaHack

Though the event is at MSU, it is open to the pub-

lic, from high schoolers to recent college graduates.

At 2016’s event, 47 percent of participants were MSU students and 69.9 percent were first-time hackers.

According to the website, SpartaHack provided meals, snacks, rest areas and gifts for free so hackers could focus on their projects.

The thrill of making products yourself was a common theme at SpartaHack. While much of the hacking took place individually on laptop computers, MSU graduate student Mengying Sun and doctoral student Deliang Yang worked as a pair to problem-solve their cat’s obesity.

“Sometimes it bothers us if we feed too much food to her,” Sun said. “We don’t want to have a cat with obesity.”

The product uses the Amazon device Alexa to automatically pour cat food into a dish. The pair coded the program that permits Alexa to understand the command.

Although the actual device was constructed by hand with wood and a hot glue gun, Yang built the prototype in a 3-D computer program before the hackathon.

Executive co-director and MSU graduate student Lauren Bretz said she was eager for the third hackathon at MSU. She said the events became popular at other universities which led MSU to join the trend.

“Collegiate hackathons really blew up like five years ago,” Bretz said. “Big, prestigious schools started doing these huge, multi-hundred person hackathons, so other universities wanted to elevate the profile of their engineering programs.”

SpartaHack also included workshops throughout the weekend. The biggest one came from Jay Freeman, the creator of the original jailbreak for iPhones.

“He comes every year and gives a five-hour workshop to hackers from midnight to 5 a.m.” Bretz said.

Besides learning to code, internships and networking are a large component of SpartaHack, Bretz said.

Sponsors of the event included IBM, Google, Ford and Quicken Loans.

Learning a new skill, such as coding, is an incredibly useful skill to possess in a technology-dependent world, Bretz said.

Computer science sophomore Ayaka Okamoto works on her 3-D map of the MSU campus during the third annual hackathon on Jan. 21 at Wells Hall. Spartan hackers worked together to create their own projects. PHOTO: JON FAMUREWA

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Computer science freshman Jerod Depifanio tests the virtual reality video game he made with computer science sophomore Jeff Valentic during the third annual hackathon on Jan. 22 at Wells Hall. Spartan hackers worked together to create their own projects. PHOTO: JON FAMUREWA

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TH E STATE N E WS

11

Features

McKenna Ross Features editor features@statenews.com

Recent graduate uses scholarship fund to inspire, pay it forward

BY IMANI FARMER IFARMER@STATENEWS.COM

For Sherronia Dorsey-Walker, a Detroit native and Pershing High School graduate, her acceptance and journey to MSU was taken upon herself.

With her strong will to attend college and without help from her parents or anyone else, Dorsey-Walker took it upon herself to apply to different scholarships and raise money to attend university.

She applied to more than 60 scholarships and received a total of 16, the largest from MSU basketball great and fellow Detroit Pershing High School graduate, Steve Smith, through the Steve Smith Scholarship for Academic Achievement.

Dorsey-Walker received a total of $54,000 for her college education as the recipient of Smith’s scholarship gift.

The scholarship is awarded to a Pershing High School senior focused on leadership and community service.

“I was the one who was accepted because I was very involved at Pershing High School. I was not only involved at Pershing, but in the community, too,” she said. “I was the well-rounded student that had everything that he (Steve Smith) was looking for in the scholarship recipient.”

Dorsey-Walker was selected to be part of the giving campaign at MSU, offically called the Empower Extraordinary Campaign.

With her involvement, she helped raise millions of dollars for scholarship for students to have an opportunity to study research or to help pursue other educational goals.

The campaign went on to tremendously help Dorsey-Walker, and she ended up drawing the attention of one professor who quickly decided to help put a scholarship in Dorsey-Walker’s own name.

Garth Motschenbacher, director of employer relations in the College of Engineering, saw Walker wanted to start her own scholarship and raise money.

Motschenbacher decided to help her create a fund. He donated the initial $500 toward her campaign and Dorsey-Walker raised $520 on her own for a total of $1,020 dollars for 2016-17 academic year.

This was the beginning of what became known as Sherronia’s Successful Scholarship Fund.

“The goal was basically to give back to a student who actually deserved a scholarship,” Dorsey-Walker said.

“Even though it’s a small scholarship, I still wanted to be able to help someone else like someone did help me,” she said.

READ MORE AT STATENEWS.COM.

MSU alumna Sherronia Dorsey-Walker poses for a portrait outside of Spartan Stadium. Dorsey-Walker was a recipient of the Steve Smith Scholarship, which inspired her to and start her own scholarship in her own name. PHOTO COURTESY OF DORSEY-WALKER

Professor ranks states by romantic presence

BY JONATHAN LEBLANC JLEBLANC@STATENEWS.COM

The beaches of Hawaii are considered one of the most romantic vacation spots within the U.S. Inhabitants of New York City are known for not being ready for a relationship. People of the West coast are known for being laid back and not caring as much.

Or so the stereotypes go. But, according to a recent study by MSU professor Bill Chopik, which ranked the states based on how romantic its inhabitants are, the most romantic states are some you might least expect: Mississippi, Utah and Wisconsin. Michigan did not fair well, ranking 33rd in the study.

The way Chopik ranked the states was by looking at two factors: Attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance.

The states ranked poorly on attachment avoidance had a lower percentage of married households on average, smaller household size, high percentage of individuals living alone, fewer volunteers and fewer hours volunteered on average, while the states ranked poorly on attachment anxiety had a high amount of married households.

Chopik said the attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance were also related to where the states were spatially.

“Anxious states were in the Northeast and the really avoidant ones were in the mountain regions (and) sparsely populated areas,” Chopik said.

Chopik said there was also a strong relation to neurosis traits and people living in insecure states and as a result, fewer average people who were married.

The idea for this study was first thought of when he and his co-author, Matt Motyl, noticed people like to talk about places in terms of characteristics of certain places in the U.S., Chopik said.

“We kind of wondered, where do these kind of things come from (and) is there any sort of truths to these sort of phrases of what people say about these places,” Chopik said. “We thought maybe we could survey people actually living in these places and see if there’s any sort of truth to this.”

To collect the data, Chopik had people go to a website that had personality questionnaires focused on happiness and well-being, Chopik said.

“I think in all 125,000 people, they wanted to learn more about themselves,” Chopik said. “They would get feedback about how they approach relationships, and are you more interested in the average person or avoid intimacy moreso than the

average person.”

Chopik said the most interesting part in the study for him was to see how places around the U.S. coincide with the stereotypes that we have about certain places.

“When I think of New York, I think of a Woody Allen type, who’s always sort of nervous about relationships,” Chopik said.

Mechanical engineering sophomore Sarah Daugherty also expected similar results. She said she was surprised with New York’s poor ranking and thought it would be in the top 10.

“There’s so many people and it’s so big, you would think people just get together all the time,” Daugherty said.

Journalism junior Xavier Thompson said he was surprised by Michigan’s ranking and thought Michigan would be in the top 20.

“I feel like in Michigan (and) in the midwest, a lot of people get married younger and so maybe they don’t have the same stress to try and be romantic,” Thompson said.

States most friendly to lovers in red and darker colors, least friendly in yellow and lighter colors

SOURCE: MSU PROFESSOR BILL CHOPIK 12

THE STATE N E WS

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