Michigan must work harder at making college more affordable, especially since the state's economic success depends on sending its youth to college, according to a Detroit News editorial. The impetus behind the rising costs in Michigan's public universities is declining state investment. In the 1970s, Michigan invested $3 for every $1 a student invested. Now it's 70 cents. Greater access to low-cost loans, federal grants, and scholarships would also help before Michigan loses its competitive edge in the global economy.

David W. Ripple of Plymouth has been named associate vice-president of development and alumni affairs at Wayne State University .

The Wayne State University Law School announced that the 14th Annual Bernard Gottfried Memorial Labor Law Symposium will be held Thursday, Oct. 12, on the law school campus. Gottfried (1925-92), who taught at the WSU Law School , was director for Region 7 of the National Labor Relations Board from 1973 until his death. Program and registration information is included.

The Wayne State University football team beat Mercyhurst 35-31 on Saturday, Sept. 16. Quarterback Trent Pohl, a former Grand Ledge star playing in his first collegiate game for WSU, completed seven of 12 passes for 99 yards and a touchdown.

This article reports on WSU's football victory over Mercyhurst on Sept. 16. Joique Bell ran for 318 yards and four touchdowns on 26 carries, breaking the previous record by four yards. His last touchdown came from a 39-yard-run with 4:06 remaining and WSU trailing 32-28. "I have not been involved in anything this special. It was a special day for ( Bell ) and our team," said Coach Paul Winters.

Wayne State University humanities professor Julie Thompson Klein, comments on how Stanford University is institutionalizing profound changes in the way knowledge is produced that are vital to solving the problems we face as a society. Stanford is on the forefront of cutting edge medical technology and "odd partnerships," as many doctors are working with aerospace engineers, geophysicists, and philosophers. Doctors are expected to bridge fields that seem irrelevant in an effort to remain relevant in a world with increasingly complex problems demanding interdisciplinary solutions.

Carl Freeman, biology professor at Wayne State, warns that Lake St. Clair's increasingly swampy and weed-infested shoreline could be facing an ecological crisis. Phragmites, Freeman said, cannot be destroyed by cutting or burning the plants. They quickly grow back. "You can try to chop them up, but the only way is to dig the roots out. The options are really few."

Wayne State's football team defeated Mercyhurst 35-31 Saturday improving their GLIAC record (2-0) for the first time since 1980. Warrior running back Joique Bell set a school record with 318 yards on 26 carries, breaking the previous record by four yards. "I have not been involved in anything this special," head coach Paul Winters said. "It was a special day for (Bell) and our team." Bell's 318-yard performance broke Randy Holmes' old record of 314 yards, which he set on Sept. 17, 1988.

Schoolcraft College is holding its annual College Night on Oct. 5 at its Livonia campus. Representatives from colleges and universities across Michigan and the Midwest, including Wayne State University, will be present to provide information on various degree programs and admission requirements. Contact information is provided.

The United Way of Monroe County has announced its leadership team for its fall campaign. Among those listed is Dr. Darius Mehregan, an assistant professor at Wayne State who recently was named chairman of the Department of Dermatology in the WSU School of Medicine.

The Annual Lifeline Awards Dinner will be held at 6:30 p.m., Thursday, recognizing alumni who have excelled in their respective professions. Contact and ticket information is provided.

Tuition at Michigan 's 15 public universities - including Wayne State University - have risen from 4.8 percent to 17.8 percent. In 1977 at WSU, there was an average of one non-faculty employee for every nine students. By 2002, the ratio was up to one to every seven students. It concludes by stating administrations need to be held accountable for tuition hikes and shouldn't be squandering money on luxuries like campus cafés.

The Detroit Public Library launches an exhibit of photos contained in Wayne State University Press' book "American City: Detroit Architecture 1845-2005" by photographer Will Zbaren and writer Robert Sarnoff. The free exhibit is on the Main Library's third floor. WDET-FM 101.9 has some photos in a gallery on its Web site at:

Former Macomb County prosecutor Carl Marlinga voluntarily testified in 2004 before a grand jury investigating whether or not he gave official favors to accused criminals in exchange for campaign donations during his unsuccessful bid for Congress in 2002. He testified in the hopes that the grand jury would not indict him. His 2004 testimony is now being used against him in an attempt to highlight incriminating and contradictory statements at his trial last week. Wayne State University Law Professor Peter Henning stated this move is "very high-risk" as accused criminals have the constitutional right not to incriminate themselves, nor can they be compelled to testify at their own trials.

Jorge L. Chinea, director of Wayne State's Center for Chicano-Boricua Studies, is featured in a story about Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15. The Mexican population in Wayne, Oakland, Macomb and Livingston counties leaped from about 48,000 people in 1990 to 103,000 in 2005, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau. At the same time, Latinos in those four metro Detroit counties from countries other than Mexico also increased, from about 31,000 people to 38,000. The relatively small size of Detroit\'s Latino population has made for few divisions along geographic, social and national lines. Chinea, who moved to the U.S. mainland from Puerto Rico at age 13, says that in southwest Detroit, \"you don\'t have Puerto Ricans and Dominicans living\" in separate neighborhoods. \"You have Puerto Ricans living in Mexicantown, and that\'s unique by U.S. standards.\" A photo of Chinea is included.

Wayne State University said projects related to its research received $7.2 million in grants from the state\'s 21st Century Jobs Fund. Of the $7.2 million committed to Wayne State, $4.2 million was awarded to faculty at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute. Projects funded include chemical engineering professor K.Y. Simon Ng\'s proposal for the development of synthetic-fueled generators, $2 million; Karmanos Cancer Institute professor Neb Duric\'s proposal for improved breast cancer diagnosis with ultrasound, $1.6 million; Karmanos Cancer Institute professor Patricia LoRusso\'s proposal for more monitoring equipment for cancer drug development, $2.6 million; mechanical engineering professor Golam Newaz\'s proposal for laser joining technologies, $700,841; and mechanical engineering associate professor Xin Wu\'s proposal for new bonding technologies, $302,761. The Ng proposal is in conjunction with Detroit-based Titan Energy Development Inc. and NextEnergy, the state\'s alternative energy development incubator.

Wayne State University law professor Peter Henning commented about the Hewlett Packard (HP) spying scandal and which corporate officers may be vulnerable to charges. Investigators are likely to question attorneys who played varying roles in the snooping. If HP\'s general counsel Ann Baskins was involved in hiring or supervising the outside contractor, she "is squarely in the line of fire,\'\' Henning said. "Even if it got delegated to a lower-level attorney, the general counsel is required to supervise that office, not only as a management rule but as an ethical requirement.\'\'

Highlights of Law School Dean Frank Wu's talk at the Nancy Cantor Distinguished Lecture at the University of Michigan are presented in this piece. Wu addressed the issue of affirmative action, saying that society should be inclusive and rich in diversity, and then use that consensus to fuel the development of policies that will accomplish such a goal. A photo of Wu accompanies the write-up.

A feature story highlights Wayne State University senior tennis player Colette Cabot, who just won the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Week award. Cabot, a 22-year-old kinesiology major who was named to the coach's honor team, was also an all-academic performer at Muskegon Community College.

According to the Education Trust, a nonprofit research group, about 50 colleges across the country have a six-year graduation rate below 20 percent. Many of the institutions serve low-income and minority students. Such numbers have prompted a fierce debate about who is to blame for the results, whether they are acceptable for nontraditional students, and how universities should be held accountable if the vast majority of students do not graduate. A federal commission that examined the future of American higher education recommended in August that colleges and universities take more responsibility for ensuring that students complete their education. The presidents of Northeastern Illinois and Chicago State, whose graduation rates are 17 and 16 percent respectively, say their universities serve a valuable mission, educating untraditional students who often take a long time to complete course work. Many of their students are the first in their families to attend college, they said. Many come ill prepared. Often the students are older, have children and work full time. "I think the work of this institution should be lauded rather than criticized," said Elnora D. Daniel, the president of Chicago State, where 86 percent of the 7,300 students are African-American. "And I say that for all public institutions nationally that attract and have as part of their mission the education of low-income, disadvantaged minorities." Daniel also said that conventional methods for calculating graduation rates significantly understate how many students actually earn degrees.