The Southeast Michigan Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) came in at 62.6 in April, dipping slightly from 66.1 in March. Index values above 50 generally suggest an expanding economy, and the higher above 50, the faster the growth. The latest numbers mean the local economy grew at a slower rate in April than in March. "Every one of the eight individual indexes and three-month averages is at or above 50, and many are above 60," said Timothy Butler, associate professor of supply chain management at Wayne State's business school. "This tells us that the economy continues a healthy expansion." The complete report for April is available for download at www.ism-sem.org/uploaded_pics/pdf-20120430124010.pdf.

Wayne State University graduate Charlie Cavell is profiled in a column highlighting his passion for giving back. Cavell prevailed over a tough upbringing to earn a college degree, start a successful nonprofit, be a school board member and thrive on helping others less fortunate. In September 2010, he started "The Pay it Forward Initiative," an internship program that plugs unemployed Detroiters into jobs at local companies for four months while receiving a $2,400 stipend. They see a counselor once a week and attend job training classes and financial workshops. So far, Pay it Forward has found long-term employment for about 24 interns. William Voltz, WSU professor of Business Law and Ethics and director of the school's entrepreneurship program said of Charlie: "His success is largely a function of his boundless energy, tremendous enthusiasm and his fundamental good heart."

Detroit Free Press, 5/2 More hospitals in Michigan look to care for patients through music By Patricia Anstett A feature story examining the therapeutic benefits of music, mentions the Detroit Medical Orchestra, a 2-year-old symphony made up of doctors, students and nurses from the Wayne State University School of Medicine and several metro Detroit hospitals. While the music has healing power for patients, it also helps Dr. Michael Cher, chief of urology at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Institute, unwind the night before surgery when he plays the clarinet in rehearsals. "It relaxes me ... before a heavy day in the operating room," he said.

Dispose of your electronic waste during the Wayne State University e-waste collection from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, May 4 in Parking Lot 11 on Cass Avenue between Antoinette and York. The Office of Environmental Health and Safety has teamed with Apple Inc. for the electronic collection. The event is open to WSU and its surrounding community. Most electronic items that do not include oil or Freon will be accepted.

Lansing reporter Tim Skubick reported that Michigan's Legislature will be looking at higher education funding this week. He pointed out that under the plan some say there is a bias on the western side of the state. Under the proposal, Grand Valley State University would receive a 7 percent increase while Michigan's research universities - Wayne State, Michigan State and the University of Michigan - are targeted for less than 2 percent. Skubick added that there's a large composition of west Michigan Republicans who will favor this funding plan.

The Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute's 30th Annual Dinner held last weekend raised nearly $1.7 million to benefit Karmanos' cancer care, making this the most successful Annual Dinner in Karmanos' history. Proceeds will support a new Intensive Care Unit at the Karmanos Cancer Center, scheduled to open by Oct. 1, 2012. Through the commitment of 1,000 staff, including nearly 300 physicians and researchers on faculty at the Wayne State University School of Medicine, and supported by thousands of volunteer and financial donors, Karmanos strives to prevent, detect and eradicate all forms of cancer. Its long-term partnership with the WSU School of Medicine enhances the collaboration of critical research and academics related to cancer care.

An increased reliance on prescription painkillers and the resulting addiction has now shown up in the most vulnerable patients - America's newborns, according to a report released today. Addicted babies - many suffering from respiratory problems, low-birth weight and seizures - have nearly tripled in less than a decade. Meanwhile, the number of mothers using opiates has increased five-fold, according to the same study. Dr. Carl Christensen, who runs the Eleanor Hutzel Recovery Center, said he sees it all the time: Doctors who too easily prescribe painkillers, and patients who demand them. The clinic treats more than 100 addicted moms-to-be a year, said Christensen, who is also an associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Wayne State University.

The Renaissance Venture Capital Fund (RCVF), the venture capital fund-of-funds formed by Business Leaders for Michigan, Monday announced formation of a second fund with initial capital of $60 million, growing the RCVF to over $100 million. The investments to date by RCVF have led to venture capital firm investments of 15 times that amount into Michigan companies and the creation of over 200 jobs. Renaissance II includes a diverse group of investors such as DTE Energy, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, Meijer Inc. and La-Z-Boy, as well as Wayne State University and three Michigan foundations: the Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the McGregor Fund.

Wayne State University's nascent Zipcar fleet is growing fast, doubling in size since launching last fall. The fleet started with two cars and has added two more thanks to rising demand for the car-sharing service. Zipcars are available to university students, staff and residents of the greater downtown Detroit area. "Car sharing is a great alternative for our students," says Katie Baker, senior project manager for economic development at Wayne State University. "We have students combine their trips with Zipcars, going on one big trip to the grocery store and it costs a few dollars."

Congressman Gary Peters and advocates gathered on Tuesday at Wayne State University's Oakland Center in Farmington Hills for a press conference to urge support for legislation that will prevent Stafford loan rates from doubling. The interest rate on the government-backed loans is set to double July 1, to 6.8 percent.

Wayne State University invites you to take your spring cleaning to the next level by disposing of your electronic waste during an e-waste collection, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, May 4, in Parking Lot 11 (on Cass Ave. between Antoinette and York). The Office of Environmental Health and Safety has teamed with Apple Inc. for the electronic collection. The event is open to WSU and its surrounding community.

One of Detroit's most significant works by famed architect Minoru Yamasaki will be restored thanks to a $1.8-million project beginning next month. The work will restore the pools of water and surrounding sculpture garden at the McGregor Memorial Conference Center at Wayne State University. The jewel-like McGregor Center has long been considered by many to be among the finest buildings designed by Yamasaki, the Detroit-based architect best known for designing the World Trade Center towers in New York City. The McGregor Center was built in 1958. The pools remained filled with water until the early '80s, when leaks and other functional problems led Wayne State to drain them. The pools have remained empty ever since. The effort to restore them began in 2009, when art and engineering enthusiasts at WSU began to explore ways to do the work. That led to engineering studies and lobbying, and WSU trustees approved the project at a March 21 meeting. Ruhtab Sahota, a staffer for WSU's office of design and construction services, said contractors will begin work around the first week of May. Restoring the pools involves spraying on a polyurea coating to make the structure watertight, as well as planting new trees and making improvements to the walkways around the site. The restoration of the pools at McGregor should be finished by late summer. Yamasaki also designed Wayne State's DeRoy Auditorium. Photos of the project site are included.

More than 3,000 supporters participated in the March for Babies fundraiser for the March of Dimes, held on Sunday at Wayne State University. Dr. Valeri Parisi, School of Medicine dean, commented during the Fox 2 and WWJ interviews.

Wayne State's women's softball team won the GLIAC tournament championship Sunday after defeating Ferris State, 3-2, in Findlay, Ohio. The champs of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference earned an automatic bid into the NCAA tournament and will learn their seed during today's selection show. On Sunday, Lauren Histed gave WSU (34-20) a 2-0 lead in the second inning with a single to right. Stephanie Foreman scored on a Ferris fielding error in the third to produce the title-clinching run.

Three members of the 2011 Wayne State University national finalist football team have started their professional careers by signing free agent contracts yesterday. Troy Burrell signed with the Detroit Lions, while Jeremy Jones inked a deal with the Chicago Bears. Joe Long earned a contract from the St. Louis Rams. Wide receiver Troy Burrell (Detroit Lions) had a reception in 47 of 49 career games played and concluded his career with a 38-game reception streak.

A Macomb County mother and daughter will get to experience something that rarely occurs when they both graduate from Wayne State University this spring. During commencements in May, 39-year-old Sherry Kahari and her 21-year-old daughter Darcia Miller, both of Macomb Township, will receive their degrees in the field of social work. Kahari, who aspires to go into the medical social work field, will get her master's degree, while Miller, whose thinking of school social work, will receive her bachelor's degree. A photo of the mother/daughter duo is included.

Wayne State University and its College of Engineering celebrated the generosity of Ford Motor Co. as the college unveiled the naming of the Ford Motor Company Student Activity Center. Ford Motor Co. gave $3 million to Wayne State University's Wayne First campaign with $1.8 million of the gift supporting the College of Engineering and its Marvin I. Danto Engineering Development Center. "Ford Motor Company supports Wayne State and the College of Engineering in many ways," said College of Engineering Dean Farshad Fotouhi. "Our students, faculty and alumni benefit greatly from its generosity, and for that we are truly grateful. It is an honor to name this room in recognition of Ford Motor Company's support and commitment to tomorrow's engineers and to Wayne State."

WHAT'S NEXT?: Technology to restore vision through the use of a component of green algae - developed by a Wayne State University professor and scientific director of the Ligon Research Center of Vision at the Kresge Eye Institute - has attracted additional funding for therapy development. The Foundation Fighting Blindness announced a $250,000 grant from its affiliate, National Neurovision Research Institute, to RetroSense Therapeutics LLC, a Michigan-based company. RetroSense signed a license agreement in 2011 for the novel gene-therapy approaches developed at Wayne State University by Zhuo-Hua Pan, professor of ophthalmology and anatomy and cell biology in the School of Medicine.

Detroit Free Press Editorial Page Editor Stephen Henderson calls Michigan's track record of funding higher education a "shameful disinvestment" over the past decade. "The public allocation for our 15 colleges and universities has declined steadily, and tuition costs have risen just as steadily to make up the difference. So now, to get an education, all but the richest kids in Michigan essentially have to sign up for indentured servitude. After graduation, they'll have debts that will follow them for years and can't even be escaped in bankruptcy," Henderson wrote. Business Leaders for Michigan (BLM) have outlined how shortsighted it has been for the state to pull back on investing in higher education. "It's hurting our economy, starving it of the 1.3 million college graduates Michigan will need to fill work force demand by 2025. It's putting us behind other states such as Texas, California and North Carolina, which spend an average of $2,000 more than Michigan does per student." Also, according to BLM's numbers, Michigan's colleges and universities spend less per student on administrative costs than their peer institutions around the country, and they have embraced important cost-cutting reforms. Henderson adds that major reforms will be necessary to reverse the trend.

University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman opines about the significance of research funding in spurring innovation in the state, and in particular, the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIP), a half-billion-dollar nuclear research facility funded by the federal government and awarded to Michigan State University. She writes: "Michigan's universities have a long history of providing research leadership for the nation and offering extraordinary educational opportunities for our students. Reflecting this, the University of Michigan, Wayne State University and MSU work together as the University Research Corridor, collaborating and raising the profile of Michigan as a center of innovation." She added that MSU's proposal for the FRIB had the full support of Wayne State and U-M, and that the facility is being built in East Lansing is a major coup for our state.