Wayne State in the news

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Wayne State beats Hillsdale for 9th straight win

In baseball, host Wayne State University beat Hillsdale, 13-5. It was the ninth straight win for the Warriors (25-9, 13-5 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference). Eric Cunningham hit a two-run double as part of an eight-run third inning for WSU. In men's tennis, host Wayne State blanked Malone, 9-0. Clement Charriere and Melvin Joseph won singles matches for the Warriors (9-7, 8-2 GLIAC). In women's tennis, Wayne State beat host West Liberty, 8-1, in the regular-season finale. The Warriors (23-4) won all six singles matches and set a single-season school victory record. The NCAA Division II tournament selection takes place April 22.

Examiner review notes "Guys and Dolls" at the Bonstelle Theatre is a sure bet

The Bonstelle Theatre production of "Guys and Dolls" opened over the weekend and runs through April 19, 2014, and it's a sure bet for a swell night on the town. Director Michael J. Barnes makes sure everyone in his young company has a chance to prove what they're capable of - and the results are most impressive. Additionally, this show affords a perfect swan song for the Bonstelle Theatre Company's 2014 graduating class.
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Passed-over med school grad learns life lesson, gets 2nd chance

This story follows Wayne State University School of Medicine student Nick Frame and his "Match Day" journey over the last year. At Detroit's MGM Grand Hotel & Casino, with about 269 other graduates of Wayne State School of Medicine, Frame found out he had matched with Mercy Health St. Mary's Hospital in Grand Rapids as a first-year medical resident in family medicine. Despite studies that show the U.S. will face a shortage of about 130,000 doctors by 2025, the U.S. has an artificial cap on the number of doctors accepted into hospital residency training programs. While medical students are awarded medical degrees or osteopathic degrees, the M.D. or D.O. monikers, when they graduate, they can only be licensed by state medical boards as professional physicians after completing a residency program. To become a practicing physician, more than 40,000 medical school graduates each year compete for nearly 30,000 first and second-year residency slots. This year, 29,671 graduates matched into one of 9,600 accredited residency programs, including 16,400 graduates of U.S. schools and 9,287 graduates of international schools, according to the National Residency Matching Program.
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GM puts 2 engineers on paid leave in recall case

General Motors has suspended two engineers in the first disciplinary action stemming from its mishandled recall of more than 2 million small cars for a deadly ignition switch problem. But the company also said a second ignition part in the cars must be fixed, boosting first-quarter recall costs above $1 billion. The suspensions, with pay, come from GM's own investigation into the recall. CEO Mary Barra promised Congress last week that she'd take action when appropriate, as lawmakers alleged that at least one company engineer tried to cover up the switch problem. "They have to be careful at this point not to over-react, despite all the pressure that's being put on them certainly by Congress, public pressure," said Peter Henning, a law professor at Wayne State University and a former federal prosecutor. "I've got to believe they have a HR (human resources) binder that would sink a battleship. Step one is usually paid leave," he said.

WSU students seek new study on Detroit I-94 expansion

Some law students at Detroit's Wayne State University are urging the state to conduct a new environmental review of a long-planned expansion of Interstate 94 near the school. The school's Transnational Environmental Law Clinic says it's working with other groups concerned about the proposal. Plans call for adding lanes and service drives to I-94. State transportation officials say major work would start no sooner than 2018. An environmental impact statement was completed a decade ago. Students say much has changed and the previous review didn't appropriately study public transportation and community health effects.
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WSU golf shoots for another bid into the NCAA tournament

Over the last 10 years, Wayne State's men's golf program has qualified for the NCAA Division II tournament nine times, including each of the last seven seasons. In 2009 and 2010, the Warriors made it as far as the finals of the NCAA tournament, which is the furthest the program has ever gone. "We're very proud of the last 10, 12 years," head coach Mike Horn said. "We put ourselves in the top three or four teams in the GLIAC (Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) every year - a very competitive league and a very competitive region, so we have to be on top of our game every year when we tee it up."

Demystifying driving's dilemma zone

The area around traffic lights where the driver must decide whether to proceed through a yellow light or stop the vehicle is called a dilemma zone. The yellow light is supposed to warn you when the green light is about to change to red, but that just amplifies the dilemma. A group of scientists used simulators to test what they call intelligent advanced warning systems to see how drivers would react. They concluded that drivers who saw advanced warning rarely tried to run the light; most "exhibited greater anticipatory slowing well before the intersection." Tim Gates, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Wayne State University in Detroit, who was not involved in this research, said longer yellows would reduce the number of vehicles going through the intersection and have no impact on speed. "Implementation will never be widespread," Gates said of the extra warnings. "Some places have limited sight distances, high-speed approaches, and steep grades."

President Wilson ushers in era of diversity and excellence

Dr. M. Roy Wilson officially became the 12th president of Wayne State University April 4 at a ceremony hosted by the university's Board of Governors and attended by faculty as well as regional leaders, educators and heads of colleges in the metro area and from across the country. The event formally marked the beginning of what Wilson calls an era of "opportunity and access" for the university and the community. In his presidential address, Wilson struck a chord with the audience in the packed Community Arts Auditorium when he went back to his childhood days, almost choking as he described the challenges of his childhood and what his parents went through. "I do not take for granted the breadth of experiences I've had throughout my life," Wilson said. "I feel truly fortunate to have experienced the challenges of the urban core culture, to have been immersed in diversity at both the local and global level, to have experienced the thrill of discovery of new knowledge and educational excellence where the highest of achievements for the public good was an expectation." Casting Wayne State as a place of light, Wilson warned that the university should not fall prey to what he calls "the fallacy of false choices," as he sought to define what it must become now. "We must reject as false the choice between being a university of opportunity and access or a nationally prominent research university," Wilson said. "We must reject as false the choice between offering a broad liberal arts education or a more skilled-oriented education that is responsive to the specific workforce needs of the state."

British Ambassador to the U.S. at Wayne State University today

Sir Peter Westmacott, the British Ambassador to the United States, talked with WDET's David Cassleman about the case for implementing the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership currently being negotiated between the European Union and the United States. Westmacott speaks at noon today at Wayne State University's Spencer M. Partrich Auditorium. The title of his talk is "The Transatlantic Alliance: Security through Prosperity."

Spinal Cord shock helps paraplegic move legs

Dustin Shillcox was told he could never move or walk again. With the flick of a switch, that all changed. The switch turned an electric stimulator, which had been implanted into his spine. And even after two years of being paralyzed from the chest down, he noticed almost immediately that he could voluntarily move his right leg, toes and ankle. In addition to Shillcox and the case that inspired him, two other young men with complete paralysis have undergone the same procedure. All have gained voluntary movement in their legs, according to a new study published in the journal Brain Tuesday. Neurological experts not involved with the research were similarly impressed. Dr. Hazem Eltahawy, assistant professor of neurosurgery at Wayne State University, said the finding "invites optimism that this is not a complete injury that has no prognosis for recovery." "If this is true and reproducible, I think that would be the first time to demonstrate you can achieve some voluntary control across an injured spinal cord," he said.

Wayne State students boosting literacy

In recognition of April as National Volunteer Month, TV 20 is highlighting volunteers who are making a big difference in people's lives by giving back to their community. Reporter Jorge Avellan visited with Wayne State University student Sean Shepard as he was tutoring a Detroit Public Schools (DPS) student. WSU students are volunteering as tutors at about a dozen DPS locations offering one-on-one instruction. District officials say the program is helping the literacy effort. "We have noticed a major difference with our Wayne State tutors helping our students," says Sherrell Hobbs, Golightly Education Center principal. "Not only have they helped to increase our literacy rate with our students, we see our students have so much enthusiasm here at the school. It is unbelievable."
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University researchers comment about writing-skills transfer in Chronicle of Higher Ed. teaching feature

One psychologist described it as education's holy grail. Another called it "the very measure of learning itself." They were talking about the transfer of learning. Such transfer occurs in its most cognitively valuable forms when students draw on something they learned in one context, ideally by generalizing its core principles, and apply it appropriately to a situation that is far different from the original. For example, a student in a military-¬history course might learn about a general who attacked by dividing his army into many small groups so they could safely move through terrain infested with land mines. In a biology course that student might learn how a doctor treats a tumor by using many low doses of radiation to damage the tumor while preserving the tissue. The underlying strategy was the same. While it is a longstanding goal, transfer of learning has gained renewed appeal as critics press institutions to prove the worth of a college education. At a recent conference, a team of researchers from George Washington, Oakland, Seton Hall, and Wayne State universities described how some approaches to teaching writing in general-education courses can help produce gains in students' ability to transfer their knowledge. The researchers found encouraging signs of writing-skills transfer after the first year of college. The track rec¬ord after two years, though, was less hopeful. Still, the idea of transferrable knowledge continues to draw many faculty members' interest - and skepticism.

M. Roy Wilson officially installed as president of Wayne State

More than a year ago, the Wayne State University Board of Governors approached M. Roy Wilson about becoming the next president. It wasn't the first time Wilson had thought about Wayne State. "I had had conversations with a colleague and told them that if ever I was to lead a university, it would be one like Wayne State," Wilson said Friday. As he was formally installed as WSU's 12th president, Wilson talked about how his academic path mirrors Wayne State's role as a higher education institution. He said Wayne State must be both an institution of access and high-level research. "My own experiences (show) that different paths need not be oppositional," Wilson said, adding he is launching a new strategic planning process and will hire a Detroit firm to help the university plan for its future. "Wayne State University is a place of light. So let that light shine, for that young boy in east Detroit ... or the girl in a Midwestern town ... the young men and women from other countries who come here ... let it shine in pride of who we were and what we do. It is our time, our responsibility. Let's make sure the yet unwritten chapters of the history of Wayne State University are the best ones yet." He reviewed the history of the university but said he's looking forward to what's still to come. "There's a future Wayne State that will be different in so many ways than the present day. Now it is our time to move Wayne State forward."
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Barra's review, from those who've been on hot seat

As General Motors Co. CEO Mary Barra faced congressional panels last week, she may well have felt like it was a firing squad. The members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee's oversight panel grilled her, demanding answers about why it took the automaker more than a decade to recall 2.6 million vehicles over a faulty ignition switch that has been linked to 13 deaths. "I think she's been amazing. It's been a textbook performance," said Matt Seeger, dean of Wayne State University's College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts who teaches crisis communication. "She has managed to humanize this and be responsive. She's been extremely calm and thoughtful. She hasn't gotten angry - even though the questions in some cases have been politically motivated."
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Ernie Harwell Field at Wayne State $200K away from initial construction

Announced on June 6 of last year, Wayne State University has plans to rebuild and rename its baseball field after legendary Detroit Tigers broadcasting legend Ernie Harwell. Split into two parts, the first phase includes a new baseball stadium that seats about 500 people at an estimated cost of $500,000 dollars, all looking to be raised by donations. With the plans to break ground this spring, the raised total sits around $300,000, according to Wayne State University director of athletics Rob Fournier. "My hope is that, if we can finish up the phase one fundraising by July 1, that would give us time to get a majority of the building started before the winter of 2014-15." At the time of the announcement last June, Wayne State had already raised $209,000 internally for the first phase of the project.

Small budget, thin skin roadblocking agency, former NHTSA head says

Is NHTSA tough enough? Not according to Joan Claybrook, a one-time Ralph Nader protégé who headed the U.S. vehicle safety agency from 1977 until 1981 and now works as a consumer advocate in her position as president-emeritus of watchdog group Public Citizen. In Detroit to talk to Wayne State University Law School students this week, Claybrook, labeled the Dragon Lady 30 years ago by auto-industry insiders forced to square off against her over safety issues, says the ongoing General Motors ignition-switch recall scandal has put the spotlight on NHTSA's own defects: mainly lack of leadership, funding and legislative teeth. "You have to act like a cop on the beat," she says of the role of NHTSA administrator, but without naming names says those at the top of the safety agency too often have been unwilling to wield the billy club. "Look, people are going to hate you," Claybrook says. "GM hates me. I was nicknamed the Dragon Lady. That's OK, I didn't mind."