Wayne State University Board of Governors member Paul E. Massaron penned this rebuttal to the Detroit News' Feb. 5 editorial titled, "Wayne State owes students $5.3 million.\" Massaron refutes the claim that WSU reaped a financial \"bonanza\" by retaining monies from a contingency fee assessed last fall. He wrote, "These are harsh words to describe a university that has cut expenditures again and again in an effort to lessen the financial burden on its students and their families." He further stated that the funds will be invested in "activities and infrastructure that directly benefit students -- such as classroom improvements, enhancements to instructional technology, increased support for libraries and improved academic advising."

Dr. Matcheri Keshavan, professor and associate chairman of Wayne State University's Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, and his team of researchers from WSU and the University of Michigan, have received over $2.6 million from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) to study similarities and differences in those inflicted with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Keshavan said the grant \"will potentially help us understand the causes of schizophrenia or bipolar disorders and will also help guide development of new treatment strategies targeting symptoms in these disorders."

Morning show host Paul W. Smith interviewed WSU law professor Robert Sedler about the hiring by the Detroit City Council of attorney Bill Goodman as special counsel.

President Irvin D. Reid's future position as Chair of Community Engagement is the subject of this feature story. The position was made possible through a $2.1 million grant from Wayne State University alumnus and philanthropist Eugene Applebaum. \"I am especially grateful to Eugene Applebaum for his friendship and his continuing generosity to both the university and the city," said Reid. "This chair, which is named in his honor, symbolizes his continuing confidence in the city\'s future and in the university\'s ability to be a positive force in that future.\" In a letter to Susan Burns, WSU vice president for development and alumni affairs, Applebaum noted that he and Reid share optimism about Detroit\'s future and that he has been impressed by the president\'s accomplishments at Wayne State. Eugene Driker, chair of Wayne State\'s Board of Governors, also commented, \"I am delighted that Irv is remaining with the university where he can continue to make his vision a reality.\" Photos of Applebaum and Reid are included.

The College Board, the nonprofit group that owns the SAT, announced today that the average combined scores on the exam's mathematics and critical-reading sections for the high-school class that graduated in 2007 declined by four points from the previous year, to its lowest level in nearly a decade. Average scores on the math section fell three points, to 515, and reading scores fell one point, to 502, out of a possible 800 points. A record 1.5 million students took the exam. Last year the combined scores on the SAT dipped by seven points, the biggest one-year drop since 1975. The College Board attributed that decline, in part, to a fall in the number of students who had taken the exam more than once.

An opinion column by an associated press columnist who is critical of President Bush's appointment of Alberto Gonzales as U.S. attorney general includes comments by Marc Kruman, chair of the history department and director of the Center for the Study of Citizenship here. "I think the president overlooked what appears to have been malfeasance and, at least as I read the record, perhaps as much as perjury before Congress," he says in part. The column, by Ron Fournier, ran in newspapers throughout the U.S. and Canada and at least one in Australia.

In a letter to the editor, Western Michigan University President John M. Dunn responds to an Aug. 14 Free Press article titled, \"Smaller schools fear biggest universities will hog state cash." Dunn argues that WMU is a comprehensive research university and shouldn't be grouped as one of Michigan's 12 "smaller" universities, but rather as one of the state's five Carnegie-designated public research universities. Wayne State is mentioned as one of the five.

In a lengthy letter to the editor, Thomas Green, vice president for enrollment management at Eastern Michigan University, contends that recent articles in the Free Press about the university's arrangement with student lender Sallie Mae were "incomplete and misleading." He goes on to explain details of the agreement. "It is important during this period, when so many aspects of financial aid and our university are being scrutinized, that accurate and complete facts are presented," he emphasizes.

Graduate schools are reporting a continuing rebound in applications from outside the United States, but levels at most institutions have not reached 2003 levels, according to a report by the Council of Graduate Schools.

Wayne State University Chief of Police Tony Holt said the simulation drill went very well. \"Our main objective in a test like this of an active shooter was how fast we could neutralize the shooter, because the faster you neutralize the shooter, the faster you stop the loss of life.\" Secondary goals of the drill were testing out the crisis communications system, testing the crisis team\'s management abilities and testing the university\'s ability to coordinate with other agencies. Holt said the university is still reviewing a videotape of the exercise and evaluation forms from all participants.

Wayne State University is testing a new emergency broadcast messaging system. Public Safety Director Anthony Holt said 15,000 people have signed up so far to receive emergency messages through the system. There is a link to a longer article from yesterday's Great Lakes IT Report about last Friday's test of the system during a full-scale police exercise.

Tony Holt, Wayne State University police chief, is quoted extensively in this piece about the Aug. 24 simulation training exercise on campus. "After the Virginia Tech incident, you had to ask yourself: If that happened here, could we respond?\" said Holt. \"This is a safe place,\" Holt said before the training exercise. \"We want to show them that.\" It is noted in the story that Wayne State and Michigan State currently offer instant alerts via cell phone text messages to students, faculty and staff who sign up. More than 15,000 students and staff have signed up so far at WSU. Thousands more have asked for the information via e-mail or instant message. The Detroit News story also carried a companion series of 19 photos of the simulation drill in the photo gallery Web section. Click on http://info.detnews.com/photogalleries/indexnew.cfm?gallery=news and then select "Wayne State University and Detroit police respond to mock shooter."

WWJ-AM and WUOM-FM, an NPR station, covered last Friday's police drill on campus involving a shooter in a building. Both stations interviewed Public Safety Director Tony Holt and WWJ also aired an interview with a WSU student who participated in the drill and said it was reassuring to know that the campus police are prepared for such emergencies. Reporter Pat Vitale mentioned that the drill was filmed for use in evaluation and training. Holt's interview with WDET, in which he explained the purpose of the exercise, was live on the air.

The above stations ran reports filmed on-site at the "shooting emergency" drill at Wayne State Friday. Channel 2 reporter Camille Amiri ran a live report during the simulation. Fox 2 also provided coverage of the followup evaluation meeting with officers from Wayne State's and Detroit's police departments. Channel 7's Brandon Truttling's report was aired during the noon news. Police Chief Tony Holt explained aspects of the practice exercise and Patrick Gossman of the Computing and Information Technology Division talked about the broadcast messaging system, which also was tested. Channel 4 reporter Rachel Bianco provided on site coverage for the later news reports on WDIV.

Jack Lessenberry's latest Toledo Blade column focuses on the life of Douglas Fraser, WSU university professor of labor studies and former president of the UAW.

Wayne State University and Henry Ford Community College (HFCC) have partnered in WayneDirect, which will streamline a HFCC student\'s admission to WSU. According to a statement made by Howard Shapiro, associate vice president for undergraduate programs at WSU, the WayneDirect program will serve as a vehicle for increasing the number of college students who ultimately complete four-year degrees in the state

DNA research done by Wayne State University Associate Professor Henry Heng and graduate students in the molecular medicine and genetics lab was featured in a recent Discovery Channel documentary. Researchers studied the DNA of five Gulf War veterans in an attempt to prove or refute the possibility of major illnesses caused by chemicals used during Gulf War operations. The show is available for viewing on YouTube.com.

The Eastern Michigan University Board of Regents has dismissed three top administrators, including President John Fallon. The actions came Monday and Tuesday after heated debate over whether administrators intentionally hid the circumstances of a student's slaying last year. Terminated along with Fallon were the public safety chief and the vice president of student affairs. Expressing dismay at the way the termination was handled, Fallon told a newspaper that he intends to tell his side of the story. http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007707170388 http://chronicle.com/daily/2007/07/2007071701n.htm?=attn

Eastern Michigan University regents approved a 9.5 percent tuition increase Monday, but there will be no increase in fees. In-state undergrads will pay an additional $557 annually, bringing the annual cost of tuition and fees to $7,490.

This daily online business headlines service carries a home-page story speculating about the increased pressure Chinese import vehicles will eventually put on American manufacturers. On a jump page, marketing professor Hugh Cannon is quoted. He says he is optimistic that the U.S. automakers can handle the challenge.