Anjaneyulu Kowluru of West Bloomfield, a professor in the Pharmaceutical Sciences department at Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Wayne State University , was appointed to the Innovative Grant Review Panel of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International.

Dorothy Smith says she joined Nifty Needles, a weekly sewing circle at Sequoia Place Elderly Housing in Ann Arbor , because \"I wanted to be busy -- it\'s something to keep my mind busy.\" What Smith, 72, says strikes a chord with senior citizens and gerontologists alike. Research shows that crafts keep the mind sharp and that doing them in groups promotes socialization, a key component of warding off isolation among seniors. Dr. Peter Lichtenberg, director of the Institute of Gerontology at Wayne State University , agrees. To help, the institute is hosting an Art of Aging Successfully conference later this month. \"Good health and well-being are promoted by engagement,\" Lichtenberg says. \"People have to be active with things they have a passion for.\"

EAST LANSING - The Islamic Center of Greater Lansing will hold a public discussion on Saturday in response to the Danish cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad. The meeting is scheduled to start at 4:30 p.m. at the center at 920 S. Harrison Road in East Lansing . Guest speakers who will share their thoughts on recent events include: Muneer Fareed, Wayne State University professor of Islamic studies; the Rev. Frederick Fritz, senior pastor, University Lutheran Church ; and Alford Welch , Michigan State University religious studies professor.

The Hip-Hop Summit Action Network (HSAN), title sponsor Chrysler Financial and presenting sponsor Anheuser-Busch, Inc. will kick-off the second year of the \"Get Your Money Right\" financial literacy and empowerment national tour in Detroit on March 25. Artists participating on the panel include Russell Simmons, Three 6 Mafia, Don Omar, MC Lyte, Doug E. Fresh, former Detroit Piston Derrick Coleman, Obie Trice, Stat Quo, Bobby Creekwater and Spudd from Radio One. Dr. Benjamin Chavis, President/CEO of HSAN and Doug E. Fresh will co-moderate the Summit . The Summit will take place at Wayne State University 's Bonstelle Theatre, ( 3424 Woodward Ave. ) Doors open at 12:30 p.m. and the Summit program will run from 1:30-3:30 p.m.

Michigan\'s public universities should revise sabbaticals and other rules that give professors excessive free time supported by tax dollars and tuition. Requiring more attention to teaching makes sense in a time of skyrocketing tuition and tough state budgets. As money gets tight, perks should dwindle -- a common-sense principle now being applied in private industry. \"Sabbatical\" is an academic term for taking a paid time off to do pretty much what you want. Theoretically, the time is used for research. But many top professors already teach fewer than 15 hours a week and have much of the summer off as well. That\'s plenty of time to catch up on advances in their field and add to the knowledge base. Experts in other professions, including engineering, medicine and business, don\'t need months off to be efficient or productive. In school year 2004-05, more than 550 Michigan professors were paid for leaves. The tab was about $23 million in salaries, $8 million in benefits, not including paying instructors to fill in for absent professors. The figure is not large given the total spending for higher education. But it comes after many universities jacked up tuition at a double-digit pace. The schools are willing to make students sacrifice by paying more money, but they don\'t require professors to carry a bigger teaching burden.

The above noted television and radio outlets covered the launch of a community redesign project for the 12-block TechTown community, held at NextEnergy last Monday. The interactive summit brought together leaders, entrepreneurs and students to collaborate on a comprehensive plan detailing the complete landscaping and renovation of TechTown by 2020.

Ben Burns, director of Wayne State's journalism department and a member of the Freedom of Information Committee, says both the Freedom of Information Laws and Open Meetings Acts, being honored this week as part of Sunshine Week, are a simple way to provide everyone access to information. "But not everyone appreciates the laws," Burns adds.

The Detroit research and technology park TechTown, the New Center Council and the University Cultural Center Association will host leaders from around the country to launch a community redesign project for the 12-block TechTown community. The interactive summit will bring together leaders, entrepreneurs and students to collaborate on a comprehensive plan detailing the complete landscaping and renovation of TechTown by 2020. The meeting begins with addresses today from political leaders at 9 a.m at NextEnergy. Confirmed guest speakers include Wayne State University President Irvin D. Reid, Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, Congressman John Conyers, Michigan Economic Development Corp. President and CEO James Epolito, Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano, and Detroit City Council President Ken Cockrel Jr.

The Detroit Orientation Institute (DOI) at Wayne State University is now accepting applications for the spring session scheduled on three consecutive Tuesdays, April 25, May 2 and May 9. The DOI offers a historical perspective and candid look at Detroit and the metro region. The sessions are especially beneficial to newcomers or anyone wishing to learn about the city and metro area. Business executives, professionals from nonprofit organizations, university faculty, high school teachers and administrators, government administrators and journalists typically attend. Contact information is provided, including the DOI\'s Web site address at www.doi.wayne.edu.

Ann Arbor-based business process consultants Simons-White & Associates last week announced the launch of a new program for improving product launches and customer satisfaction. The Design for \"Six Sigma - Theory of Inventive Problem Solving\" program was developed by Kai Yang, professor of industrial and manufacturing engineering at Wayne State University, and Norma S. Simons, president of Simons-White. Unlike typical Six Sigma practices, which typically focus on process improvement and defect reduction, the new program focuses on the earliest stages of product development. The problem-solving component of the program is based on more than 50 years of research on millions of patents, focused on unlocking the secrets of inventions and technical breakthroughs. Yang will provide an overview of the new program in an event at Automation Alley in Troy on April 7.

FIRST - For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology will hold regional robotics competition Thursday through Saturday at Wayne State University . Regionals March 30-April 1 will be at Grand Valley State University .

Frank W. Wu, dean of Wayne State's Law School, hopes to convince voters the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative is not a blow against racial and sex discrimination as advertised. According to Wu, it will end programs designed to eliminate racial disparities. Critics fear that, if approved, the initiative would limit minority access to educational and job opportunities. Wu will be discussing the initiative at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Wealthy Theater. A photo of Wu is included.

Michigan universities paid more than 500 professors $23.2 million for sabbaticals during the 2004-05 school year according to records obtained by The Detroit News under Michigan\'s Freedom of Information Act. The data represents only the salaries paid to professors while they were away from their jobs. When health insurance and other benefits are included, the cost of the sabbaticals increases to about $31 million. Proponents of sabbaticals say they allow professors to gain fresh insights they share with students, and are critical to attracting and retaining top-flight professors and researchers. Critics say professors typically work only nine to 10 months per year, their teaching loads have dropped dramatically since the 1960s and their schedules already allow ample time to conduct most research. It is also noted in the story that according to data received from Michigan\'s universities, Wayne State University, Central Michigan University and Michigan State University each listed a professor as having been on sabbatical when in fact the teacher had left the university without taking the planned leave. The University of Michigan said it cost more than $200 in staff time just to determine which professors at its Ann Arbor, Dearborn and Flint campuses were on sabbatical in 2004-05, and for how long. Sidebar graphs list tuition and fee rates and sabbatical data for Michigan\'s public universities, including WSU.

Willie L. McKether, associate director of Wayne State\'s Douglas A. Fraser Center for Workplace Issues, just completed a 500-page-plus work on Saginaw\'s large influx of black residents during the auto industry\'s heyday. \"People may believe that African-Americans had better experiences after they left the South, but I didn\'t realize the depth of racism that existed here \"people not able to eat at downtown restaurants, the limited economic opportunities outside of General Motors,\" McKether said. After five years of research, McKether is ready to share his findings with the public, either for purchase or for review at Saginaw\'s Hoyt Main Library.

For at least 50 years, there have been calls to replace, or at least supplement, expert witnesses hired by courtroom adversaries with experts appointed by the court. According to advocates of those proposals, the judge-picked scientist could focus on the evidence and advise the jury free from pressures imposed by the side that hired him. Judges in Kentucky already are allowed to appoint their own experts, but they almost never do. Dr. Ralph Slovenko, professor of psychiatry and law at Wayne State University, says court-appointed experts haven't caught on because judges are reluctant to tamper with the adversarial process.

TechTown will launch on Monday, March 13, a massive effort to redevelop the 12-block area it occupies near the Wayne State campus. Beginning at 9 a.m., the event will include presentations by government officials, urban planners and students, as well as discussion groups. TechTown hopes to renew its neighborhood with landscaping, residences, shops and new businesses by 2020.

In a first of its kind event, a Sunni-Shi\'a gathering was held at the Muslim Unity Center in Bloomfield Hills last week. A number of Muslim leaders gathered in Solidarity, not only against violence overseas, but for understanding at home. The local community \"needs to establish an organization that allows meaningful Muslim-Muslim dialogue,\" said Muneer Fareed, associate professor with the department of Near Eastern and Asian Studies at Wayne State.

A sidebar to a story about alternative spring break activities notes that Wayne State University students are volunteering for projects to help wipe out blight in Detroit.

Wayne State University is noted as a regional site for FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) March 16-18. The event is part of the national 2006 FIRST Robotics Competition program. More than 1,125 teams from around the world are competing in 33 regionals to reach the championship in Atlanta in April.

Wayne State is mentioned as the Detroit Regional competition site for the FIRST Robotics Competition on March 16-18.