Michigan State’s Independent Voice
WOMEN IN
LEADERSHIP Women students, faculty and alumna lead the way for future Spartans and celebrate their successes throughout the month of March. PAGE 6-7
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CAM P US
How effective are wellness days?
Low resident numbers Fall semester vs. bring financial hit to spring semester: COVID cases and MSU housing response
MSU students agree that wellness days were ineffective PAGE 4
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EDITORIAL: WHEN SUPPLY ALLOWS, VACCINATE STUDENTS FOR FREE By State News Editorial Board feedback@statenews.com Next fall, Michigan State students may feel like they’re in a closer-to-normal environment, with 75% of undergraduate classes slated to happen in person. Assuming they don’t pull another bait and switch. For Michigan State — or any other large university — to reopen, two conditions about the trajectory of the pandemic must be met: 1. Vaccine rollout and distribution occurs as scheduled, or faster 2. Each vaccine in tandem curbs the spread of coronavirus variants effectively enough to maintain sustainable hospital capacity In short, get the vaccine when you can. MSU’s COVID-19 website notes that all students are expected to be eligible for vaccination in the summer. Those with pre-existing conditions
are slated for late spring. The state of Michigan has a detailed eligibility list. So does Ingham County. MSU’s Health Care Pharmacy is not administering vaccines now, but it’s fair to assume they will in the future, along with Olin Health Center and neighborhood clinics. Whether MSU’s flu shot requirement this spring is foreshadowing similar requirements for the fall or not, the university should distribute vaccines to students, free of charge. This action has precedent. Thousands of students received free meningitis vaccines in 1999. Of course, COVID-19 is far more widespread than meningitis was at the time, but that makes it all the more crucial to offer free vaccines. Some undergraduate students have parents with insurance that can absorb the cost. Those without insurance likely can’t pay the annual $1943 for the university health care plan
— but that’s a separate topic. Students age 26 and older could be out of luck with insurance in the case that their time under a parent’s insurance expires. In any case, the coronavirus vaccine — whether it’s Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson or from somewhere else — shouldn’t be an added expense. While administering the vaccine free of charge could potentially be costly, allowing students who were unable to get vaccinated to arrive on campus could cost far more. And in the event that vaccine documentation is required prior to arriving on campus, MSU must consider its role in the socioeconomic and racial inequity present in vaccine rollout. People of color — especially Black Americans — are not getting vaccinated at a rate proportional to their population. If vaccine documentation is required, and vaccine equity does not drastically improve, those inequities would likely
worsen. Vaccine distribution is playing out differently in each county and state. MSU has students from many different counties, states and even countries. To account for this, the university needs its own vaccine distribution system. Still, many students may be able to acquire the vaccine through their own local clinics meaning that MSU, with its five neighborhood health clinics, should be able to offer vaccines to students not already vaccinated. It doesn’t make logistical sense to require the vaccine upon arrival. Instead, MSU needs its own vaccine distribution system to ensure that every student, staff and faculty member has access to vaccination once they’re here. Instead of depending on various local pharmacies to get students vaccinated, MSU must play a role to ensure vaccine equity to ensure a safe fall semester.
Illustrated by Maddie Monroe
The State News Editorial Board is composed of Editor-in-Chief Evan Jones, Managing Editor SaMya Overall, Campus Desk Editor Karly Graham, City Desk Editor Sophia Kalakailo, Culture Desk Editor Kaishi Chhabra, Sports Editor Joe Dandron, Copy Chief Mark Ostermeyer, Audience Engagement Editor Julian Stainback, Multimedia Manager Tessa Osborne, Photo Editor Alyte Katilius, Diversity and Inclusion Coordinator Inna Mirzoyan and Staff Rep. Wendy Guzman.
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Vol. 111 | No. 14
TUESDAY, MARCH 9, 2021 EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Evan Jones
PHOTO EDITOR Alyte Katilius
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The State News is published by the students of Michigan State University every other Tuesday during the academic year. News is updated seven days a week at statenews.com.
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MSU students agree that wellness days were ineffective By Dina Kaur dkaur@statnews.com Michigan State University offered students a two-day wellness break on March 2-3. Though the university canceled classes for those days, students found the two wellness days were not an effective break. On an Instagram poll that The State News conducted asking students whether they were actually getting a break during their wellness days, 141 students answered no and only 29 students answered yes. Data science freshman Carter Brown felt like he fully couldn’t relax all the way during his wellness days because he knew he would have school the next day and assignments due. Brown occupied himself by sleeping in until noon, exercising and going for a nice walk outside; however, he couldn’t get his mind off school. Graduate student Ryan Duda spent the days doing homework, the same things he’d usually be doing. Duda said he didn’t really get a break because he was still responsible for all of the work that he had for the rest of the week. Duda teaches an introduction to arts management course in which he tries to be mindful of what his students are going through and offers them space every single class to tell him their needs or how their learning situation is being impacted. “Seeing the impact on my students I feel so bad because I want to do more to help them, and I try to cut at least all of my work on that week, but
“I’ve just been trying to take things as they’re coming to me. So, not having a spring break sucks, but at least I’m lucky enough to get these wellness days.” Dylan Catalano Social relations and policy senior I’m only one person and I know they’re taking three, four classes at the same time,” Duda said. He said the university gives all these opportunities for mental health and wellness, but they don’t stop the reasons students need to take advantage of those opportunities in the first place. The system doesn’t change. International relations and journalism freshman Lily Guiney thought the wellness days didn’t feel like much of a break but rather as a time to catch up on school work. Also, on social media, Guiney saw that many students still traveled this week, even though the university’s goal in canceling spring break was to prevent that. Brown believes that the wellness days made traveling harder or discouraged it, but if people had plans to go places then they would go
anyway. It didn’t stop the people who were going to go out and party. Psychology sophomore Tamara Siblani felt that her wellness days were more stressful and anxiety inducing, so she studied and reviewed for exams scheduled later that week. “I think it would have been more efficient to give the students time to really focus on their well-being rather than just give them two short days,” Siblani said. However, some students enjoyed the wellness days. Social relations and policy senior Dylan Catalano said that besides applying for jobs and writing cover letters, he was able to relax a little. “I would say most of the time I was fortunate enough to actually spend it relaxing, taking a break from school and work, but I know that I’m probably in the minority of students who were able to do so,” Catalano said. Being in his senior year, Catalano would have loved to have had a traditional spring break, but at the same time he understood the decision when the administration canceled the weeklong break. “I’ve been trying not to look at this past year and think about all the things that aren’t happening because I think that’s what makes me more upset about my senior year,” Catalano said. “So, I’ve just been trying to take things as they’re coming to me. So, not having a spring break sucks, but at least I’m lucky enough to get these wellness days.” All of these students also agreed that they would’ve preferred a full week off or more of a normal spring break and that there should be more opportunities to take better care of
A photo of a desk setup during wellness days. Courtesy of Tamara Siblani
ourselves mentally rather than just two days off, since the pandemic affects everyone in unique ways. “I think that would have been a much more beneficial way to actually press pause on the workflow and the stress levels and everything,” Guiney said.
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Low resident numbers bring financial hit to MSU housing By Wendy Guzman wguzman@statnews.com Michigan State University’s Residential and Hospitality Services has taken one of the largest financial burdens at the university due to COVID-19. “With a COVID-19 outbreak, we’ve had a lot of uncertainty about what’s going on,” MSU vice president for finance Mark Haas said at the Feb. 16 Faculty Senate meeting. “So far, we’ve run several hundred different budget and economic scenarios that we’ve analyzed since March of last year.” The university was expecting the general fund to take a bigger financial hit, but after looking at other departments, it was found to be more of a bright spot. “Things have changed quite dramatically,” Haas said. “Athletics had a huge drop in their revenues, and they’ve cut their expenditures not quite as much as the revenues fell. The Clinical Center is just about the same position as they were back in June. Residential housing is wildly different. ... So, huge drop in revenues there and they’ve made adjustments accordingly.” This summer, the university said they were estimating $300 million in lost revenue for the 2021 fiscal year due to the pandemic. The total revenue for the first half of the 2021 fiscal year is $228 million lower than the first half of the fiscal year 2020. Total spending has been cut
by $139 million, according to a presentation that Hass and Vice President for Planning and Budgets David Byelich gave. Housing and athletics had most of the revenue losses. Residential and Hospitality Services has had an 80% decrease in revenue this year, according to RHS communications director Kat Cooper. “There is just no way to make up this kind of loss,” Cooper said. “We’re our product, besides delivering an outstanding ... experience to students. It’s like a movie seat, and there’s only one opportunity to sell that seat and once that time has passed, there’s no going back and recouping it.” According to the presentation, units may exceed or understand their budgets in any given year by using funds not spent in past years. “I don’t know that the division overall is making a lot more money because we really have a system built on the capacity that we normally have,” Cooper said. “And so, it costs a lot of money to run additional homes. So, while it’s good because it means we’re keeping people employed and providing jobs and housing students who need housing, it’s not necessarily a big moneymaker for RHS.” In typical years, MSU houses approximately 16,000 students on campus every year. The university is currently housing nearly 4,000. “We’re a nonprofit, so ... we pay our bills, and we’ll pay our
Approximate number of students living on campus 16,000
14,000 12,000
10,000 8,000
6,000
people and any money left over is reinvested into the facilities themselves,” Cooper said. “If we want to improve the experience, we’ve got to make the money to take that. And of course, we’re always looking to improve the experience.” RHS also runs the Kellogg Center, the Breslin Center concessions, golf courses, the MSU Union, the Tennis Center, the alumni chapel and is financially affected by the absence of summer conferences last summer as well. According to Live On, MSU’s current room and board rate is $5,236 per semester. Students were placed in their own traditional residence hall double room while still paying the double room rate. Students living on campus were still required to purchase an unlimited dining plan. “RHS is self-sustaining and self-funded,” Cooper said. “So, we don’t get any money from people’s tuition or from the government. Whatever money that we use to update our facilities, to pay our people, to buy food, all of those things, is money that we earn through room and board revenue.” Room and board rates were set by the MSU Board of Trustees in May 2019 and reapproved at the same rate in May 2020. With the changes to the academic calendar, RHS adjusted residence hall room and board rates to offer a slight decrease from fall semester 2020. MSU recently announced a second year live-on campus requirement beginning for incoming fall 2021 freshmen. The additional room and board revenue that will come from this requirement will be about 6%, Cooper said. With this year’s 80% revenue decrease, it would take over a decade to make up for the losses. According to a March 5 email from MSU President Samuel L. Stanley Jr., MSU will be able to award around $15 million in student financial aid grants under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act signed into law December 2020, and the university will be sharing information in the
4,000
A quad style dorm room in Akers Hall photographed on Feb. 25, 2020. State News File Photo
coming weeks. In the 2022 fiscal year, the university hopes to stable enrollment, discontinue wage concessions, discontinue benefit concessions and invest in priority programming.
“It’s a big problem, but we had to do the right thing to protect people and to help keep coronavirus at bay as much as we can,” Cooper said. “And so, even though this has had a devastating
impact on finances, what’s important is that Spartans are safe, and we’re really looking forward to everyone getting the vaccine and returning to some semblance of normal.”
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WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP PAVE THE WAY F By Melanie Soverinsky melanie.soverinsky@statenews.com “Recognize where we come from and where we still have to go and then (recognize) that we have to be inclusive in the movement of women’s rights ... and make sure that we hold each other up as women,” Black Student Alliance President Sharron Reed-Davis said. March is Women’s History Month, and people are reminded to reflect upon the accomplishments of the previous generations while focusing on improving for generations to come. Women have many accomplishments to be proud of this year. Vice President Kamala Harris became the first woman and woman of color to serve as vice president when she was sworn in Jan. 20. There are 119 women serving in the House of Representatives, making up 27.4% of the total representatives. There are also 24 women in the Senate, out of 100 available seats. Locally, women in the MSU and East Lansing area have made major strides for their rights over the past year while continuing to fight against sexual misconduct and gender inequality on campus.
WOMEN ISSUES ON CAMPUS
Photo couresy of Rema Vassar
than women before here as a newer rabbi in her field. “I will say there is still the concern, as there is with a lot of careers, that people expect me to get married and have children, and there’s the concern that it will impact my career,” Turow said. “I also find that there’s the challenge of being represented, since historically women weren’t rabbis; we’re still kind of a minority, even though in the general population women are a majority. Related to this is the challenge of having my voice be heard and my interests represented, in rabbinic spaces.”
Michigan State University has a diverse student body and faculty where women who identify as a minority race, ethnicity or religion, for example, face challenges that other women do not. “When you put the issue of gender together with other things like race, ethnicity, nationality, the languages you speak and your position in society, etc., then the exclusion BOARD OF TRUSTEES’ CHECKERED HISTORY becomes more prevalent,” Professor of Hispanic studies The MSU Board of Trustees currently is made up of six Rocío Quispe-Agnoli said. “That is one of the things that I women and two men. have more promise with when it comes to any work I do ... is “We are really fortunate to have a majority-female Board, the fact that I want to be valued by what I actually offer inde- one that includes two women of color, and is led by a female pendent from my gender, skin color, social affiliations, etc.” chair,” Trustee Renee Knake said. “We are also fortunate to Women who encounter have a President committed these challenges also include to women’s equality and a various leaders in student orProvost who has devoted her ganizations on campus. career to the advancement of “There was definitely a shift girls and women, in addition in leadership,” former Cultuto being an inspiring leader ras de las Razas Unidas Presherself.” ident Tammi Cervantes said. While the Board of Trustees “When I would give (an) is majority women, members opinion, they were always communicated that they still shut down immediately. I face many challenges due to knew how everything worked their gender. for years, and I would advise “In my past, I was an electsomething it was shut down ed official in the state legisbecause one guy would say lature for 16 years,” Board no and then the rest of the Chair Dianne Byrum said. “I guys would say no.” was the representative and These challenges extend the state senator for camto religious settings, like the pus, but also when I was in MSU Hillel Jewish Student legislature, I was the first Center. However, over the woman to ever lead a cauyears, the problems have decus. ... What I saw (with) the creased for some. dynamics and the differencRabbi Jenna Stein Turow, es between male and female who works as the senior Jewrepresentatives was really in Rocío Quispe-Agnoli a legislative context ... and it ish educator at MSU Hillel, Professor of Hispanic studies said she faces less difficulties
“When you put the issue of gender together with other things like race, ethnicity, nationality, the languages you speak and your position in society, etc., then the exclusion becomes more prevalent.”
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“Whatever sector you look at -- politics, the corporate world, academics, medicine, the sciences and beyond -- women do not hold positions of leadership and power in numbers equal to men.” Renee Knake MSU Board of Trustee
S POT L I G H T
FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS is still real difficult for women leaders.” These challenges go beyond the Michigan State community. “Whatever sector you look at — politics, the corporate world, academics, medicine, the sciences and beyond — women do not hold positions of leadership and power in numbers equal to men,” Knake said. “In my own field, law, women have entered Photo couresy of Dianne Byrum legal education in numbers relatively equal to men for many years and yet they have not equally ascended to the judiciary, the general counsel’s office, the dean’s suite or similar leadership roles in the legal profession. Women are still paid less than men, and we know that women experience sexual harassment and discrimination in numbers greater than men.” Despite the women majority on the board, many gender-specific issues persist at Michigan State, including issues
with sexual assault and the campus climate. In 2018, ex-MSU and USA gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar was sentenced to 175 years in prison after decades of sexual abuse. Today, discoveries continue on who knew of Nassar’s abuse and to what extent. Additionally, the Board of Trustees refuse to release over 10,000 pages of documents from the internal investigation, claiming attorney-client privilege. These documents could help provide closure for survivors and allow them to move forward. Many of the changes to Michigan State’s sexual misconduct policies have been brought about due to the hard work of survivors, students and faculty after Nassar’s conviction, not the board’s willingness to be more transparent. Other prominent issues with gender inequality centers around the pay gap. According to a report by the Center for American Progress, an independent nonpartisan policy institute, white women make 79 cents for every dollar a white man makes. Black women only make 62 cents. Hispanic and Latino women make 54 cents, Indigenous women make 57 cents and Asian women make 90 cents. Although the gap has decreased over the years, it is still displayed in a majority of work environments. “I would say that being a woman, the only challenge I have ever really had professionally is around pay,” Trustee Rema Vassar said. “I have gotten paid less than male counterparts several times consistently.”
LOOKING TO THE FUTURE OF WOMEN
Overall, there’s admiration toward women role models who have inspired students to lead in their own roles. Reed-Davis said that she looks up to Assistant Dean for Student Success Initiatives Genyne Royal because she wants to
“I would say that being a
woman, the only challenge I have ever really had professionally is around pay. I have gotten paid less than male counterparts several times consistently.”
“I will say there is still the concern, as there is with a lot of careers, that people expect me to get married and have children, and there’s the concern that it will impact my career.” Jenna Stein Turow Rabbi and senior Jewish Educator at MSU Hillel be like her in the next five to 10 years. Faculty also look up to women role models. For example, Knake said she looks up to Deborah Rhode, the second female law professor granted tenure at Stanford Law School. “Early in my career as an academic, which began at Michigan State, she came to campus to give a faculty talk about her latest book, The Beauty Bias,” Knake said. “From that moment on, she became a tremendous mentor, including hosting me when I spent a semester at Stanford Law School on my sabbatical and writing to support my tenure and promotions. In recent years, she also became a treasured friend. She passed away in January of this year, but her wisdom and quick wit still sticks in my head.” Though there are problems within MSU’s culture that still need to be fixed, the university works to uplift women’s voices. “Michigan State is doing a good job of highlighting women faculty and picking really strong women in our roles across the campus,” Vassar said. “I see every day in the news briefings that women are being showcased and highlighted, so I would really want MSU to continue to hire, promote but then also advertise the great work of the women who are Spartans.” There are various events happening on campus throughout the month to celebrate empowered women leaders both at MSU and across the nation, including a live and virtual film festival (LunaFest), numerous virtual speakers, Women’s Council Pro-Choice Rally and more.
Rema Vassar MSU Board of Trustee Illustrated by Maddie Monroe
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MSU student podcast provides a space for queer black students By Janelle James jjames@statenews.com Social relations and policy junior Crystal Bernard and co-host Sariah Janise met in January 2020 to discuss the lack of space for people who share Black, queer identities over a cup of tea. Inspired to provide that space, the pair started their podcast, Women of Color Organizing (WoCo). When WoCo aired, there were about 30 listeners but has grown to nearly 700. “We wanted to find other women of color organizers and essentially, hopefully, create not only dialogue ... but also a community in which we can have a safe space, a landing space, for some of those different identities,” Bernard said. “I believe it’s important to be inclusive because I know that without inclusivity we don’t have a lot.” On the podcast, Bernard, who identifies as queer, and Janise talk about a variety of issues including Black queer feminism, police violence, socialization and white supremacy. After an in-depth discussion, Bernard and Janise envision solutions. Along with WoCo podcast, Bernard served
as a diversity equity and inclusion steering committee member for ASMSU. Previously, she was the diversity and inclusion programming coordinator. “We have this very special segment where we devote our time to talk about ‘If I had control,’ right? Or, ‘If I could envision what the bestcase scenario would be for this incident, what would that look like?’” Bernard said. “That to me is always my favorite segment or topic and it’s always the most powerful because I don’t think Black women get enough time to envision themselves as liberated.” Bernard also draws inspiration from “Queer WOC,” another podcast created by queer women of color that “unites, ignites, and excites the QWOC community.” “As cliche as it sounds I enjoy most just chatting with a friend.” Bernard said. “We approach topics very differently. We have different experiences which is great because we have different perspectives and the conversation is more full in that way.” The two co-hosts explore different ways they can fulfill their needs as friends and as creators. Their friendship has grown due to the fact that they are able to grow and work towards the
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Crystal Bernard, a student at MSU. Photo courtesy of Marcus Lyon
same goal with their podcast. Throughout her journey, Bernard has also faced adversity. She said she had to unlearn a lot of social norms and stereotypes reinforced by the media. “I think, to put it simply, diversity, to me, means having various identities — whether that be sex, gender, race, class — in a space and not only should they be in the space but they should also have equity, meaning they should have equal opportunity and access and also specialized needs according to different identities,” Bernard said. According to the Williams Institute at the University of California Los Angeles, 4% of Michigan’s population identify as LBGT+.
Nationwide, 12% of the total Black population identify as queer and 26% of those people are diagnosed with depression. Bernard said that she is inspired by the women in the ‘40s and ‘50s who share her same identity. “We did not end up in the positions that we are in by happenstance,” Bernard said. “In fact, it was paid for by the very intentional imaginations and actions of our ancestors. So, if it weren’t for them I could very likely still be in bondage. I could very likely still have a different reality. And yet they had a commitment to something bigger and us. So I want to have a commitment to that seventh or that next generation.”
OPI N I ON
COLUMN
My personal mental health journey during the pandemic By Jared Ramsey jramsey@statenews.com I was sitting at my desk at work in the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (BMB) building planning my weekends in Paris and Rome for my upcoming study abroad over the summer when Michigan State sent the email informing students and staff that they were shutting down campus due to the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID was still a distant worry and I still held out hope — a very naive hope in retrospect — that it wouldn’t impact me or MSU. When the email hit my inbox, I sat at my desk in disbelief. I watched students begin to scramble around the first floor of the building trying to figure out whether they should keep studying for their physics exam or leave as they were instructed. I sat and stared at the email for 10 minutes while the building descended into chaos around me. I knew it was inevitable, but the weight of the situation did
“Now more than ever, people need support from people in their personal lives as we all struggle with the challenges of the pandemic.” not hit my shoulders until I saw the worry on the faces of students in the BMB building as we all reacted to MSU’s email simultaneously. Even in my most negative thoughts from that day, I still could not predict the severity of the pandemic as we know it today and how my life has changed in the past year. The pandemic has left an indelible mark on society, claiming the lives of over half a million Americans, and millions worldwide, despite what some state governments and some of my fellow students may believe.
I am thankful that I have been lucky enough not to have experienced loss from the pandemic like so many others. My family was lucky enough to be able to work from home and avoid the disease, and did not lose their jobs like millions of others during the pandemic. To say that COVID did not affect me would be wrong though. My life flipped upside down, both personally and professionally, during the last year, and the pandemic has been the fuel for those changes. I lost my job, lost my home away from home and my study abroad trip within an hour of Michigan State shutting down. I was relegated back to my bedroom in my parent’s house in Mason, Michigan, with hours of nothing to do but dream of being able to leave once again, reliving the lonely nights of my high school years. The days in my childhood bedroom in late March and April were some of the lowest moments in my life. I reached a breaking point in early June while on a walk with my dog. I couldn’t suppress my fear and anxiety anymore, so
I sat and wept for almost an hour in the closed jungle gym in Rayner Park in Mason as my dog chased a butterfly in the background. That feeling in the park is something that I will never forget. I knew I needed help escaping my personal torture chamber. That day, I went home and wrote for hours about what I was feeling. Unloading my personal feelings in some way helped me cope, leading to me starting a blog as well as talking to my friends about what I was going through. We started playing video games together nightly, bonding through the virtual world as we were trapped in the confinements of our parents’ homes or our apartments in East Lansing. I started to talk to my family more, focused on expressing my feelings in my blog and picked up more hobbies to fill my free time like becoming a chess addict and reading a book a day. I am not
going to wrap this story up by saying that my mental health journey is over and that videogames, books and chess saved me. That would do my ongoing journey a disservice. I am still that person in Rayner Park crying about my future as much as I am the person that looks forward to a chess game alone in my room when that used to be my biggest fear. But that is fine. I have learned to deal with those thoughts and expectations in a healthier way and have been able to
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channel that stress into healthy outlets. I recognize that I was extremely fortunate to have the friends and family that I have because I would not be writing this article without them. During the pandemic, 41% of adults have reported feelings of anxiety or depression, up from 11% in January 2019, according to a report from kff.org. Now more than ever, people need support from people in their personal lives as we all struggle with the challenges of the pandemic. Check in on those who you love. Listen to them. You could be the beacon of hope that they need in their personal struggle, just like my friends and family were for me.
Read more of this column on statenews.com
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Fall semester vs. APPLY TO BE THE FUTURE spring semester: EDITOR-IN-CHIEF COVID-19 cases FALL 2021-SPRING 2022 and response By Jasmine Hall jasmine.hall@statenews.com Since COVID-19 was declared a pandemic last March, the Ingham County Health Department has recorded more than 16,000 cases of coronavirus. While a number of factors contribute to various spikes and outbreaks in the county, the Michigan State University community has proven to be a prominent contributor. Ingham County is made up of 12 towns and cities,
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including Lansing and East Lansing. Around 3,400 of total Ingham County cases are students or faculty of the university. This does not include positive cases from individuals tested outside of Ingham County or selfreported positive cases. Before students returned to classes at MSU on Sept. 2, 2020, the entire county had only recorded around 2,400 cases in total. That makes up the first third of the pandemic timeline. But once the student
population returned to East Lansing, whether to live on or off campus, Ingham County’s cases spiked, increasing 72% in the first month of classes alone. MSU’s recorded cases spiked as well. Within the first two weeks — between Aug. 31, 2020, and Sept. 14, 2020 — there were 1,314 new cases of COVID-19 associated with the university, around 90% of the cases Ingham County experienced in that first month.
MSU'S COVID-19 CASE TIMELINE Michigan State University records all coronavirus cases associated with the university, as reported to them by the Ingham County Health Department. These cases do not reflect individuals tested outside of Ingham County or self-reported cases. 1,250
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By Dec. 12, 2020, Ingham County reported around 11,000 cases of coronavirus. The other two-thirds of the pandemic have produced 84% of the 16,500 recorded COVID-19 cases in Ingham County, and a 541% increase since the early cases in September. Ingham County Medical Director Adenike Shoyinka said that the significant jump is directly correlated to students returning to campus and confirmed that specifically large outbreaks were linked to the university. “MSU hasn’t been the only outbreak, but they are the most significant,” Shoyinka said. In total, 30% of the recorded cases in Ingham County were those between the ages of 20 and 29, while the second highest percentage of COVID-19 cases, at 16%, fell into the age demographic of ages 10 to 19. Shoyinka said that although there may be some younger children contributing to those cases, the most likely answer to such a high percentage
within the age demographic is the older side — those who are between the ages of 17 and 19. While the age demographic of 20 to 29 is already high, young adults may be contributing to between 30% and 46% of the cases in Ingham County, according to Shoyinka and reports from Ingham County.
WEEKLY COVID-19 CASE COUNT TRENDS DECREASE IN THE SPRING SEMESTER Even with on-campus housing occupancy increased to 3,800 students compared to 2,500 in the fall semester, Dan Olsen, deputy spokesperson for MSU, said that in comparison to past years, there are still far less students on campus. In a typical semester, there are usually 15,000 students living in university housing. There is not a known number for how many students are living in housing off-campus in the area. Classes on campus, such as labs or those that need an
active learning space, have been drastically cut back. Olsen reported that there are now only around 400 classes happening in MSU buildings on campus, compared to the usual 22,000. The university also pushed
returning to their homes on COVID-19 cases, according to Olsen. Instead of classes beginning officially on Jan. 11, they began on Jan. 19. In-person classes were also pushed back a week to Jan. 25.
“When those cases are identified earlier in the infection, people are isolated quicker. Therefore, there isn’t as much opportunity to spread the infection before they become symptomatic.” Adenike Shoyinka Ingham County Medical Director class meetings back a week after a request from the state of Michigan to see the impact of students and many others
In order to take part in classes or live on campus, students must participate in the Spartan Spit Test program and adhere to the MSU Community Compact. The requirements in the compact include wearing an appropriate face covering, physical distancing, committing to proper hygiene and health practices, and selfmonitoring. Since July 27, 2020, there have been around 16,408 weekly clinical tests provided. The average weekly positive percentage rate for the tests is currently 9.50%. In the first two weeks of spring semester classes, the positivity rate was between 13% and 16%, according
to MSU clinical testing data. This is higher than the current Ingham County positive test rate at 5%, as reported by The COVID Act Now API. Since classes began this spring, there hasn’t been as high of a spike in cases. Ingham County still experienced a jump in nearly 2,500 cases within the first month, with 759 of those associated with MSU students and faculty. The weekly trend of the number of cases also decreased. In the first week of fall semester classes there were 640 positive COVID-19 cases associated with the university but this semester there were only around 122 cases within the first week. The week of Jan. 25 and Feb. 1 still reached 122 and 223 cases per those seven days, but Shoyinka said there should continue to be a downward trend throughout the semester due to more concise and preemptive testing partnered with MSU and the vaccine. Any student at Michigan State can join the Spartan Spit Test program and get results within one to two days of their saliva sample drop-off. “When those cases are identified earlier in the infection, people are isolated quicker,” Shoyinka said. “Therefore, there isn’t as much opportunity to spread the infection before they become significantly symptomatic.” Since December, more than 7% of Ingham County’s population has been vaccinated fully and almost 13% have the first dose, according to local COVID-19 data. That helps to keep the
community transmission lower, Shoyinka said. Shoyinka also said that although the vaccine is given to those with priority right now, like health care workers, long-term care residents and staff, or frontline workers, there are MSU students who fall into that category who are being vaccinated. This helps to mitigate risk within the MSU community, which was not an option in the fall semester. Knowing that high coronavirus case numbers have been associated with the university, Shoyinka still said it’s hard to quantify whether or not students should have come back to East Lansing for the university. She said she isn’t just worried about the people getting sick with an infection in the context of the pandemic. There are negative impacts on quality of education, community, mental health and more through the isolation the pandemic has created. There are also those who are safer and in better hands within the confounds of the university. “Some people, school is their home,” Shoyinka said. Shoyinka said it is about making sure that there are measures in place to create a safe return for Ingham County and those who live in it. There are eight weeks left in the semester and Ingham County has continued to see a rise in cases, but the MSU administration and Ingham County Health Department are working to control the spread. “It’s up to all of us,” Olsen said.
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