The former and current managing partners of CPA and business advisory firm Plante Moran have released "Succession Transition: A Roadmap for Seamless Transitions," a book that offers an inside view of strategies to cultivate staff members into leadership positions. The book includes a foreword from Wayne State University President and former Ford Motor Co. CFO Allan Gilmour.

Wayne State University faculty are collaborating on a federally funded effort to minimize health disparities nationwide by increasing the number of local high school girls, particularly those of color, who enter college prepared to study health-related science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Leading that effort is Sally K. Roberts, assistant professor of mathematics education in Wayne State\'s College of Education, who recently received a $1.7 million, five-year grant from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities of the National Institutes of Health. She is planning a three-pronged approach that aims to increase the interest of metropolitan Detroit area girls in health-related STEM disciplines. Roberts, faculty adviser for WSU\'s Gaining Options-Girls Investigate Real Life (GO-GIRL) program, has developed an intervention that will draw seventh-grade participants from that initiative. Organizers say GO-GIRL, originally funded through a grant from the National Science Foundation, has enriched the academic experiences of more than 600 adolescent girls since the first class completed the program in 2002.

An article highlighting Mohammed Arsiwala, an internist on the board of the Michigan State Medical Society who has been mentoring high school students for more than 10 years, notes that the doctor has a chance to expand his health care mentoring program sixfold through the Michigan Area Health Education Center intended to encourage underprivileged K-12 students to go into medicine. In 2010, Wayne State University received a two-year, $900,000 grant from the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration to develop the first of two training centers in Detroit and central Michigan. Three other regional centers will be developed to cover the state\'s 82 counties.

The University of Liberia (UL) Thursday received a donation of several text books from Wayne State University valued over $50,000. According to Irvin D. Reid, president emeritus at Wayne State University, the books were donated by students, faculty and staff at the university. He said a team of researchers from Wayne State are currently in Liberia for the purpose of studying African democracy.

Wayne State University\'s Law School will hold a grand opening Wednesday for the new Damon J. Keith Center for Civil Rights. Its namesake, Judge Keith, serves on the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals and is a graduate of the law school. \"By developing programs and opportunities that promote his vision of equality and justice under the law for all people, the Keith Center will advance learning at Wayne Law, encourage community engagement, and promote civil rights in one of the most culturally rich and diverse cities in the United States,\" the school said in a news release. Professor Peter Hammer, director of the Keith Center, said the facility will be a major contributor to civil rights education and will have programs of scholarly legal study, community outreach, public interest law and lectures by prominent civil rights leaders. \"Judge Keith is truly an icon in the historic march toward equality and justice for all in this country,\" Hammer said. \"We are fortunate to have his wisdom and experience to guide us.\" National and local dignitaries will attend the 10 a.m. grand opening. RSVP information is provided.

Jocelyn Benson, associate director of the Damon Keith Center for Civil Rights at Wayne State University's School of Law, comments in a feature story about Anita Hill, professor and senior adviser to the provost at Brandeis University, who 20 years ago, testified that then- Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas sexually harrassed her. She has just released a new book titled "Reimagining Equality: Stories of Gender, Race, and Finding Home." "Her standing up was a powerful step forward in improving the way sexual harassment was discussed and dealt with in the workplace,\" said Benson.

A new nonprofit wants to transform Detroit\'s logistics assets into an inland port linked by rail to the deepwater facility in Halifax, Nova Scotia, to take advantage of the newest generation of massive cargo ships. Organizers of the Great Lakes Global Freight Gateway say Halifax is one of just two ports on the East Coast -- the other is Newport, Va. -- that can handle the \"Ultra Post-Panamax\" container ships that will ply the seas by 2014. The group believes it can convince logistics providers, maritime operators and manufacturers that it\'s cheaper and faster to ship goods to the Midwest through the Detroit-Halifax link. \"In the end, they all want the lowest price,\" said Michael Belzer, an economics professor at Wayne State University and CEO of Great Lakes Global Freight Gateway. \"Detroit has never sold itself as an inland port before. It has all the assets.\"

ýFormer Vice President Al Gore brought his message on the \"climate crisis\" Thursday to a crowd of more than 500 at Wayne State University. Gore drew parallels between the regional fight to restore the health of the Great Lakes to the global efforts to deal with climate change. Gore\'s appearance at the university coincides with the events of Great Lakes Week - a four-day gathering in Detroit of environmental groups from around the region. The week\'s events include meetings of the International Joint Commission and the Great Lakes Commission.

Former Vice President Al Gore linked climate change to a rash of environmental catastrophes Thursday, from floods in Pakistan to drought in Texas and rampant algae blooms sucking oxygen from Lake Erie. The fallout from a warming planet is being felt around the world, Gore said in a speech at Wayne State University during the annual meeting of the International Joint Commission. Things will get worse unless people reject a campaign of denial orchestrated by the fossil fuel industry and make significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, he said.

Six toxic areas in Michigan, including the St. Clair River, will get special attention from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for funding to finish long-term cleanups there in the next two years. The six are among nine areas that will get funding, Lisa Jackson, administrator of the agency, said yesterday at Wayne State University. Jackson\'s appearance at Wayne State coincides with the events of Great Lakes Week - a gathering in Detroit of environmental groups from around the region. The week\'s events include meetings of the International Joint Commission and the Great Lakes Commission.

Former Vice President Al Gore's appearance at Wayne State University's Community Arts Auditorium today was noted. Gore will be speaking at 1:15 p.m. as part of the Great Lakes Week conference.

A Michigan company developing a treatment to help restore vision in patients with retinal degeneration hopes to have its lead candidate in clinical trials in 2012. RetroSense Therapeutics is targeting patients with blindness from retinal pigmentosa and advanced dry age-related macular degeneration for its new therapy derived from genes in blue-green algae. RetroSense's approach was pioneered Dr. Zhuo-Hua Pan at Wayne State University and Dr. Alex Dizhoor at Salus University, and was spun off into RetroSense in 2009. So far, the technology has shown improved light sensitivity in tests on small animals.

Linda Beale, a Wayne State University law professor who blogs about tax policy, commented in an article examining the push for a repatriation tax holiday -- a huge, temporary reduction in the tax rate on money brought back to the U.S. from offshore tax havens. \"This is one of those things where if you\'re on the side supporting a repatriation tax holiday, that means that you\'re supporting a corporatist agenda that redistributes money upward to the rich,\" she said. \"There\'s no two ways about it.\"

Students from sixteen universities spanning the U.S. gathered in Detroit in late September to explore issues pertaining to buying advanced technology components for electric vehicles. The General Motors/Wayne State University Supply Chain Case Competition challenged students with sourcing components for the Chevrolet Volt, an extended-range electric vehicle that is being rolled out for national sale this year. Timothy Butler, associate professor of supply chain management at WSU's School of Business Administration who helped plan the event, said it was "one of the most fantastic projects I've worked on since I've been at Wayne State." John Taylor, associate professor and director of supply chain programs at WSU's business school, said he is grateful for the supporters that made it possible for Wayne State to "show young, talented supply chain professionals the many positive opportunities that Detroit and the automotive industry have to offer.

A feature story spotlights En Garde Detroit, a fencing club that is staffed by coaches from Wayne State University and the University of Detroit Mercy fencing teams. The free program is completely mobile moving around the city and into schools to teach the sport.

The story of how Whole Foods decided to open a store in Detroit started years ago. Like any other economic development, the right pieces had to fit together at the right time, those involved in the deal said during a panel discussion hosted by the International Council of Shopping Centers at Wayne State University on Tuesday. Whole Foods plans to open in spring 2013.

There are several college football teams in the state that are playing outstanding football. But one that has gone mostly overlooked is the Wayne State University Warriors. Playing out of NCAA Division II, the Warriors are having one of their best seasons in school history, and helping lead the way is Port Huron\'s own Troy Burrell. The redshirt senior wide receiver has been at his best throughout the season, while displaying the same big-play potential he showed at Port Huron High School. The No. 6 ranked Warriors return to action Saturday at Ashland University.

TechTown, the Wayne State University-affiliated business incubator, announced today that it has formed a relationship with the Export-Import Bank of the United States that will allow local entrepreneurs to access services and funding sources to boost their exports. "We are focusing on job creation," TechTown general manager Leslie Smith said in a press release. "This program will help our client companies open new markets and obtain the financial support they need to leverage those market opportunities."

A $12-million Detroit project aimed at shaping the future of medicine - the Innovation Institute at Henry Ford Hospital - officially opened its doors Wednesday. The Institute, located on the campus of Henry Ford Hospital, is a partnership that includes Henry Ford Medical Group, the College for Creative Studies, the Smart Sensors and Integrated Microsystems program at Wayne State University and The Henry Ford.

In a column about Detroit's rebound, Daniel Howes writes: "Wayne State University and the College for Creative Studies are reinvesting in Midtown, bolstering a critical mass of smarts, young people and spending power that is attracting talent and driving demand for downtown housing and new retail investment." He adds, "Remember this feeling, Detroit - it\'s what happens when things get done the right way."