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statenews.com | 5/29/14 | @thesnews
remembrance
maya angelou inspired msu community By Derek Gartee dgartee@statenews.com THE STATE NEWS nn
Civ il rights activ ist, accomplished poet, w riter and scholar Maya Angelou was found dead in her home May 28 at the age of 86. A ngelou was k now n for her moving autobiography, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” as well as countless other books and poems. Angelou has had a number of ties to MSU throughout her life. In 1990, Angelou spoke with MSU Dean John Eadie and Poetry Professor Diane Wakoski for a lecture series created by the university. In the talk at the Wharton Center, she opened with one of her poems. The focus of her speech was love. “I mean real love, I mean that condition of the human spirit so profound, it encourages us to develop courage and to use t hat Angelou/MCT cou r age to build bridges and then to trust those bridges to cross to reach another human being,” Angelou said. A ngelou went on to speak about the importance of A f r ic a n A mer ic a n s i n poetry. Angelou devoted her life to enriching the black community. She was deeply involved in the civil rights movement, working with activists such as Martin Luther King Jr. A ngelou’s admirers remained in the Auditorium a f ter t he lec t u re to a sk questions about the author’s works. Angelou returned to MSU in 2005 as a commencement speaker for spring graduation. Before her speech, MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon awa rded A ngelou w it h a honorar y doctorate for humanities. In her speech to graduates, Angelou provided lyric and verse for guidance. “When it looked like the sun wasn’t going to shine anymore ... God put a rainbow in the clouds to the class,” she sang. A nge lou g ave hop e to graduates, assuring them they could amount to greatness. “Congratulations to you graduates ... Congratulations to your family, your professors, See ANGELOU on page 2 u
photos by Danyelle Morrow/The State News
ABOVE: From left, Charlotte, Mich., resident Caroline Durham, anthropology and geography senior Ian Harrison, East Lansing resident and alumna Bethany Slon, and anthropology junior Josh Schnell look for artifacts during a shovel survey Wednesday at Munn Field. Students dug holes every few meters to search for objects, which will then be taken to a lab. BELOW: Graduate student and campus archaeologist Kate Frederick sifts through dirt in an archaeological screen during a shovel survey Wednesday at Munn Field.
DIGGING up the past Campus Archaeology Program explores MSU By Meagan Beck mbeck@statenews.com THE STATE NEWS nn
W
hile construction workers are digging to renovate existing buildings on campus, the MSU Campus Archaeology Program is digging to discover the campus’ past. In the summer the program, known as CAP, works alongside construction workers to see what can be uncovered.On the first day of field work, CAP made their first discovery near Agriculture Hall.
C A P ’s a d v i s e r Ly n n e Goldstein said field workers found part of a building’s foundation and animal bones, wh ic h helped t he g roup determine that they’d stumbled upon part of the old Veterinary Lab. And from there, the next step was to see what role the structure — built in 1866 — played in MSU’s history. A delicate process Prior to fieldwork, the group’s campus archeologist and anthropology graduate student Kate Frederick said C A P beg ins in t he MSU Archives, where they are given
any papers which might have mentioned the area they are about to visit. Once out in t he f ield, Frederick said the group conducts “shovel tests,” which help members of CAP sample what is in the area. A shovel test is a 60 cm hole plotted at every five meters. While one person digs, another screens through the soil to make sure no small artifacts are overlooked. If something substantial is found, CAP participants handle with care. Anthropology and geography senior Ian Harrison said he found an old ceramic
water pipe while working by Agriculture Hall, and knew it needed a gentle touch. “Finding that ceramic pipe, whatever it was used for, was really cool because we had to do all the traditional archaeological br ushing,” Harrison said. ”(We had to be) extra careful because it was so brittle that it would break at the slightest touch.” Whenever the group finds something worth researching, such as a part of a structure, Frederick said it’s catalogued and then further investigated. Group members also post blogs on the program’s website to inform the public about their
findings and the background behind them. The history of tailgating It’s no secret Munn Field is a popular tailgating destination. So when CAP members find beer bottle caps, it’s not all that surprising. But one of the days the group was out working in the field, nails, glass shards and what looked like small bones appeared in the sifter. Frederick said the group then found out the area used to be home to temporar y housing and barns for some See CAP on page 2 u
more inside Legislature raises minimum wage
Minty fest
The popular one?
A custom cut
St.Johns, Mich., But petitioners who wanted to celebrates seetradition, a raise to $10.10 are not summer fun at enthused Mint Festival
MSU sees record number of applications for next year
Mert’s Specialty Meats serves local community
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campus+city, pG. 5
Danyelle Morrow/The State News
CAMPUS+CITY, PAGE 3
Jackson, Mich., resident Al Steele cuts sausage links May 15 at Mert’s Specialty Meats, 1870 W. Grand River Ave., in Okemos. Steele, a meat cutter for 20 years, has been at the store for nine months.