Sept. 18, 2019
The number 13, a saddle, bees, military veterans, a year of firsts and lasts, new leaders, cool students, tiny bubbles, cancer, supply chain management and Mom and Dad. Here I am again looking at a completely disconnected list of things that came across my desk this week challenging me to tie them all together in some sort of coherent fashion. All that’s missing is the kitchen sink. Well, that, and a decent idea.
Though, around here in the land of Spartans, way better than just decent ideas crop up every second. Students, faculty, staff and alumni are constantly making new discoveries and figuring out answers to puzzling problems. In this big place made up of seemingly disjointed odds and ends, the collective result is a better world for all of us.
Who would think tiny bubbles could fight cancer? Spartan Masamitsu Kanada, an assistant professor of pharmacology and toxicology thought about and put those two things together in his exciting research that shows tiny bubbles in our body could fight cancer better than chemo.
Or, who would think that honeybees and veteran mental health would have anything to do with each other? Lucky for us, Army veteran and MSU Extension agricultural entomologist Adam Ingrao figured out that the two are a perfect fit. He founded the Heroes to Hives program that teaches beekeeping to combat veterans.
The work serves to alleviate post-traumatic stress disorder and helps former servicemen and women transition to civilian life. We all benefit from the program because they’re saving and protecting the vital honeybee and other pollinators. Talk about a win-win. Check out the cool video in the MSUTODAY FEATURE: Heroes to hives, to learn more about this awesome project.
Stephen Esquith, dean of the Residential College in the Arts and Humanities, knows that most projects are filled with ups and downs and bumps along the way. But he also says RCAH, in its 13th year, is definitely ‘in the saddle.’ Read his FACULTY VOICE: In the saddle, to learn more about his thoughts on the college moving forward (and why the number 13 isn’t necessarily unlucky).
Alaina Pierson knows how lucky she is to be a Spartan and have wonderfully supportive parents. The social science senior decided she would let them know just how lucky she feels and penned a thank you to them. Read her heartfelt and emotional letter to them in the STUDENT VIEW: Dear Mom and Dad.
She’s just one of the incredible students we have here at MSU. This past week the university recognized nine more of them when they named them to the 2019 Homecoming Court. One of those students is a student in the Broad Business College, which happens to be home to the No. 1 ranked supply chain management program.
The sheer number of incredible things happening on this campus is almost exhausting to keep up with. Especially at the beginning of the school year when excitement and opportunity are buzzing everywhere you look. I’m sure the new interim provost and new chief information officer the president named this week are thrilled to be at such an incredible institution.
This place is truly made up of odds and ends. We have experts in topics from atoms to zebras and everything in between. There are students, faculty and staff from all corners of the world. We’re doctors, teachers, poets, CEOs, scientists, social workers, musicians, accountants, nurses, mathematicians, engineers…the list goes on and on. Individually, we’re pretty great. Collectively? Our impact is astounding. And there’s nothing odd about that. #SpartansWill.
Lisa Mulcrone
Editor, MSUToday
@LMulcrone
Photo by Derrick L. Turner
