Wednesday 4/9/14

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Baseball team falls to Central Michigan

MSU Birding Club looks for Timberdoodle Club members combed the woods in an attempt to spot mating ritual

Freshman pitcher Walter Borkovich Danyelle Morrow/ The State News

statenews.com | 4/9/14 | @thesnews

Julia Nagy/The State News

Yoga at the Rock

city+campus, Pg. 3

sports, Pg. 6

Michigan State University’s independent voice

International relations senior Anagha Bharadwaj

features, pG. 5

a d m i n i s t r at i o n

Officials debate 4 percent pay increases for merited faculty By Olivia Dimmer odimmer@statenews.com THE STATE NEWS nn

MSU faculty could see a higher pay raise than they have in the past, as the University Committee on Faculty Affairs recommended a 4 percent faculty merit pool increase in the 2014-15 academic year at the Steering Committee meeting Tuesday. Currently, MSU ranks 11 out of 12 in average faculty pay among Big Ten institutions. Officials are hoping the increase will at least maintain that rank or bump MSU up in the rankings slightly. “We think 4 percent is a little more t han what we’ve had in the past, but we think it ’s ap p r o priate for catch-up to improve facult y morale and our standing in the Big Ten,” William committee c h a i r W i l - Donoliam Dono - hue, hue said. Chair of In 2013, the University Committee committee recommend- on Faculty ed a 3 per- Affairs cent increase in the merit pool, along with a 1.25 increase in the market adjustment pool. The proposed increase on the table would be the largest faculty have seen in at least five years. After the committee considered the erosion of university-funded health benefits and the long-term impacts of the Affordable Care Act, it decided to up the recommendation 4 percent. The recommended increase in the market adjustment pool is 1.25 percent.

photos by Allison Brooks/ The State News

Members of Sigma Kappa, Sigma Nu, and Beta Theta Pi perform together during Bar Night at Breslin Center on Tuesday.

Taking the stage

Greek community danced the night away to raise money for Relay for Life By Emily Jenks ejenks@statenews.com THE STATE NEWS nn

M

embers of the greek community broke out their best dance moves Tuesday night to compete in MTV Night at Breslin Center as a part of MSU’s Greek Week. MTV Night, also known as Bar Night, is an intense, technique-based dance competition that has become an integral part of Greek Week. It typically is the first of two dance competitions included in the week, followed by Wednesday night’s Songfest.

The philanthropy-based celebration brings sororities and fraternities together annually to raise money for a charity of their choice. This year’s proceeds will benefit Relay For Life. MSU football coach Mark Dantonio made a surprise guest appearance to fill the place of a judge who dropped out last minute. Although Lacey Holsworth, an eightyear-old cancer patient and a close friend of the MSU basketball senior forward

Adreian Payne, was expected to judge the competition on Wednesday, her current condition kept her from attending, advertising junior Elizabeth O’Malley said. “We would love to have her as a judge for Songfest, but we’ve heard that she wasn’t doing too well, so we didn’t want to put that extra stress on her,” O’Malley said. Months before Greek Week even begins, the names of one sorority and two fraternities are pulled out of a hat

Education senior Danielle Crossley, left, and marketing freshman Jennifer Madden prepare for their performance in MTV Night at Breslin Center on Tuesday. Crossley and Madden competed for their sorority Kappa Alpha Theta.

by Greek Week coordinators. Fourteen teams of three are created, and each raises money for a charity and achieves points throughout the week. The team with the most points gets bragging rights for the rest of the year. This year’s theme focused on the concept of good versus evil. Some performanc-

Dance club prepares for recital Marketing junior Kelly Munzenberger dances during a MSU Dance Club practice Tuesday at IM Sports-Circle. She has danced with the group for three years. — Julia Nagy, SN See the story on page 3

es included in the program were based on Space Jam, James Bond and Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story. Zeta Tau Alpha, Fiji and Phi Delta Theta ended up taking the win at Tuesday’s event. Most of the female dancers for MTV Night have been dancing for 10 to 15

“We think 4 percent is a little more than what we’ve had in the past.”

MSU currently ranks 10 out of 12 in average faculty pay among Big Ten university institutions

years, primary education junior Lindsay Parker said. She said team members begin intensely practicing weeks in advance. “We started practicing in January, and we practice three to four times a week, and we

Per MSU Salar y Adjustment Guidelines, the increases would not raise base faculty salaries, but would give faculty the opportunity for higher pay based on their performance. Donohue cited state funding increases as a reason for the pay hike and noted the

See GREEK on page 2 u

See SALARY on page 2 u

gove rn m e nt

east lansing city budget to fund road repairs By Derek Gartee dgartee@statenews.com THE STATE NEWS nn

The East Lansing City Council convened for its first of several budget work sessions for fiscal year 2015 Tuesday, focusing on an overview of the the budget as a whole and ending with general questions from council members. In his opening remarks, East Lansing City Manager George Lahanas told council members the city was finally in a financial position where reserves collect-

“Our focus over the past 10 years has been to control costs and build funds ... now is the time to spend some of those reserves.” George Lahanas, East Lansing City Manager

ed in times of trouble could be used on city services. “Our focus over the past 10 years has been to control costs and build funds...now is the time to spend some of those reserves,” Lahanas said. According to many city officials and council members, the outlook of East Lansing’s next fiscal year is currently optimis-

tic, as several financial concerns that have stressed the city for years have gradually improved. However, issues such as property taxes, revenue sharing from the state and additional transportation needs after a rough winter continue See COUNCIL on page 2 u


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