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MMCC seeking project funds from Gov. Granholm
College asks for inclusion in Capital Outlay program
Mid Michigan Community College has asked to be included in Gov. Jennifer Granholm's Capital Outlay recommendation for
campus renovation state funding. Once this challenge is met, MMCC may be considered to receive funding for one of two
possible projects that were proposed by MMCC President Carol Churchill at a Joint Capital Outlay Committee meeting last week
in Lansing. "We have the supplies and resources to manage a project," she said. Renovation could commence on
either the Mount Pleasant or Harrison campus, Churchill said, depending which project is offered support. According
to the Capital Outlay Proposal's first option, MMCC's long-standing goal is to join college structures in Mount Pleasant on
a roughly 50-acre area to open the Herbert D. Doan Center for Science and Health Technology building in May. This would
leave no possibility of renovation to a recently remodeled office facility on Pickard Street, which would divert $27 million
to the Doan project. However, Churchill said there has been a "strong indication of interest" from a second party to
purchase facilities on the Harrison campus. Churchill would not say who the second party was because the potential
deal still is in progress. "There's not a firm offer on the table," Churchill said. The Capital Outlay Proposal's
second option states that if a purchase agreement is met, a $12 million project will initiate a renovation of the M-TEC building
in Harrison to create an environment dedicated to vocational training. "Our proposal is unusual in asking the Joint
Capital Outlay Subcommittee to consider a contingency plan," Churchill said. "We believe that the proposal has merit in taking
advantage of a possible emerging opportunity, conserving taxpayers' dollars and addressing the needs of our constituents." Rep.
Bill Caul, R-Mount Pleasant, was present at last week's Capital Outlay Committee hearing. "It was a very time-limited
presentation," he said. "This was (Churchill's) opportunity to lay out their plan for Mid Michigan in the future." Caul
said colleges like MMCC were not primarily entailed in Granhom's Capital Outlay recommendation, which rejected projects from
larger schools, including Central Michigan University. "If there's an opportunity to look at projects in the bill ...
if there are changes, it might include Mid Michigan," he said. Caul said no formal decision has been made regarding
MMCC's contingency proposal. There will be rule once other schools have been heard. news@cm-life.com
Livonia sophomore wins prize for business idea
Emily Turbiak's "Hands on Handbags" might someday put women hoping to choose the perfect purse or handbag at ease. The
Livonia sophomore received a $500 cash prize in the Labelle Entrepreneurial Center's "Make a Pitch" competition Thursday in
Grawn 100 for her web page-based custom handbag business idea. "The average person changes (handbags) three times
a year, I change it maybe like once a week...if not more," she said. "I think designing them specifically to what I want would
be amazing." Turbiak's idea outlined all the possibilities of building a customer's ideal handbag. From more than 1,000
different fabric options, details could be specified right down to the length of a bag's handle. "I looked on different
web pages to see if this had been done before, and it really wasn't," she said. "It wasn't as elaborate as I had planned out." The
"Make a Pitch" competition has been held twice a semester for the last three or four years, said Jim Damitio, director of
the Labelle Entepreneurship Center. This year's 15 contestants were given five minutes to present ideas without the use of
props and time to answer questions. "Our goal is to spread Entepreneurship all over campus," he said. Damitio
said this contest provides an opportunity for students to network and turn their ideas into reality, as many professionals
look for good ideas to invest in. "We encourage them to develop ideas into full blown plans," he said. "Our judges
are connected with venture capitalists...We've seen (former contestants) establish businesses." In addition to the
$500 cash prize, second and third place certificates were given to three other undergraduates who made a pitch. Southfield
senior Alex Citron created a plan that delivers a food chosen from a prepared menu to the doors of time-consumed college students
in his business idea "College Kids Catering." Citron said his plan would give students the ability to order daily
meals for each coming week, an idea that came to him the previous semester. "It just came to me," he said. "Right now
it's just an idea." Lindsey White, Williamsburg senior shared third place with Citron for her receipt card pitch, which
would give shoppers the ability to keep track of all purchases on one cost-effective card over countless paper receipts. White
said the receipt card idea developed while she was at work, listening to a customer complain about policies requiring receipts
in order to return a purchase. "I was just sitting in Old Navy," she said. "It was like an epiphany." news@cm-life.com
Council to outline diversity goals
The Student Diversity Advisory Council has set out to inform students about its goal to make Central
Michigan University a more welcoming environment.
The group is hosting an open house and welcome reception at 6 p.m.
Tuesday in Charles V. Park Library's Baber Room to present its idea of diversity.
"When people see we're about diversity,
they assume it's a black thing," said council member and Muskegon senior Jesse Vance. "Diversity isn't just black and white
- it's uniting people."
At 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, the council will introduce key points to outline its purpose. Vance said
these points include unity, diversity education, service, communication and networking.
"We would like to educate people
about diversity," said Troy junior and council member Valerie Edwin. "It's really an informal program."
She said the
program will not include only the talking points, but also council introductions in order to network with attendees.
Earlier
in the academic year, Edwin said she received an advertisement for the council. She said it sounded interesting, so she applied
for a committee position.
The reception idea emerged in late February, during the group's second meeting.
"The
whole committee had an input on the planning," he said. "Everyone needs to be a part."
Edwin said the group formulated
ideas to create the council's goal of a warm atmosphere on campus, and this could be done by promoting cooperation and further
networking.
To spread awareness about the occasion, she said, some members sent out invitations and set up table tents.
"We're
there to initiate our own diversity unification," Edwin said. "Hopefully we can get the word out."
news@cm-life.com
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